No, Microsoft Isn't Driving DOJ's Google Antitrust Suit: Judge

By Bryan Koenig

A D.C. federal judge pushed back Friday on Google's efforts to paint Microsoft as the true plaintiff in the Justice Department's search monopolization lawsuit, casting doubt during a hearing that Google should get even more information about Microsoft's relationship with ChatGPT-maker OpenAI.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

TikTok Divestment Deadline Must Be Extended, Senators Say

By Nadia Dreid

TikTok is set to be removed from app stores in the United States in less than a month, but two senators have urged President Joe Biden to kick the can down the road with an extension that would prevent "serious hardship" to both creators and users.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Split Del. Jury Clears Qualcomm In Arm Ltd. Chip Fight

By Jeff Montgomery

A federal jury in Delaware on Friday rejected semiconductor design and licensing giant Arm Ltd. Inc.'s claims that Qualcomm Inc. breached Arm's chip architecture licensing and trademark rights, but was declared hung on matching claims against Nuvia Inc., acquired by Qualcomm in 2021

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Womble Bond Atty Held In Contempt For Unfixed Falsities

By Hayley Fowler

A North Carolina federal judge on Friday temporarily suspended the admission of a Womble Bond Dickinson partner to practice in his district after finding the attorney failed to correct misrepresentations to a Dutch tribunal in parallel litigation involving a software developer and its former Dutch partner.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Israel's NSO Liable For Hacking WhatsApp, Judge Finds

By Rae Ann Varona

Israeli spyware maker NSO Group is liable for hacking into 1,400 WhatsApp users' devices, a California federal judge ruled Friday when granting WhatsApp's bid for a partial summary judgment win, leaving damages as the only issue to be probed during trial.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Startup Defends AI Antitrust Suit Against Nvidia, Microsoft

By Jared Foretek

Tech startup Xockets defended its monopoly and patent infringement suit against Nvidia and Microsoft Thursday, telling a Texas federal judge that the tech behemoths' motion to dismiss is part of the "standard game plan" when a smaller patent holder alleges infringement by the industry's top players.

Brief attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Nvidia Gets European Union's Nod For $700M Run:ai Buyout

By Tom Fish

The European Commission said Friday it has approved Nvidia Corp.'s reported $700 million bid for Israeli workload management software startup Run:ai Labs Ltd., after concluding the planned buyout will not hinder competition.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

The Most Significant Trade Secrets Cases Of 2024

By Ivan Moreno

Insulet Corp. became the latest company to notch a colossal trade secrets award, and a new presidential administration has attorneys wondering what will become of the Federal Trade Commission's pending proposal to ban employee noncompete agreements. Here's a look at trade secrets cases that defined 2024 and what to expect from the FTC in the coming year.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Top Privacy & Cybersecurity Developments Of 2024

By Allison Grande

The state data privacy law patchwork continued to add new and varied pieces in 2024, while major hacks shook up the healthcare industry and other critical sectors, and the first U.S. laws setting guardrails for the use of artificial intelligence technologies emerged.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

A Look Back At 2024's Major Securities Litigation Moments

By Katryna Perera

The private securities litigation bar experienced a busy 2024, with meaningful and significant rulings in almost all of the nation's leading courts, and corporations, investors, government agencies and executives fighting over pay packages, disclosures, class certifications and mergers.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

The Telecom Developments That Defined 2024

By Christopher Cole

The end of 2024 portends a sea change in telecom policy, as voters usher in a second Donald Trump term and with it a newly named GOP chief of the Federal Communications Commission who has pushed for a 180-degree turn at the agency.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

The Biggest Immigration Policies Of 2024: Year In Review

By Britain Eakin

The Biden administration implemented some of the harshest and most heavily criticized asylum restrictions yet in 2024 but also implemented measures to revamp temporary foreign worker programs and expand avenues for immigrants to change their status. Here, Law360 looks back at four of the biggest immigration policy developments of the year.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Brief

NC Lawmaker Chosen To Lead House Communications Panel

By Christopher Cole

Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., has been selected as the next chair of the House Energy and Commerce panel with telecom jurisdiction.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Brief

Cable Org. Warns Members About FCC Robocall Enforcement

By Nadia Dreid

Voice service providers need to make sure their Robocall Mitigation Database filings meet existing requirements, because if they aren't, the Federal Communications Commission is ready to start delisting companies and blocking them from providing voice service.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Full Fed. Circ. Won't Review Case Salesforce Said Caused Split

By Ryan Davis

The full Federal Circuit has refused to review a ruling that revived a software patent suit against Salesforce and sunk a $6.9 million attorney fee award it won, turning aside the company's argument that the decision created a split within the court that will cause "recurring confusion."

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Another Texas Judge Exits X's Advertising Boycott Suit

By Lauren Berg

The second Texas judge to oversee litigation filed by Elon Musk's X Corp. accusing the World Federation of Advertisers and others of conspiring to withhold advertising revenue from the company has recused himself from the case.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Samsung Contractor Still Partly On Hook In Patent Suit

By Adam Lidgett

A California federal judge has partially denied a Samsung contractor's attempt to beat a suit alleging two of its products infringe a pair of technology patents, only agreeing to narrow which claims can move to trial.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

RealPage Can't Transfer Enforcers' Rent-Fix Case Out Of NC

By Lauren Berg

RealPage cannot get the government's antitrust case against it moved either to the Tennessee court overseeing similar civil litigation or to Texas, where the rental software maker is headquartered, a North Carolina federal judge ruled Friday.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Nike, Converse Blast Co.'s Trade Secret Case Ahead Of Trial

By Ivan Moreno

Ahead of a trial in February in Oregon federal court, Nike Inc. and Converse Inc. on Thursday blasted trade secret theft allegations involving an anti-counterfeiting system from Valmarc Corp., saying that Valmarc failed to protect its claimed secrets, that the technology at issue has been around for years and that the company's complaint is time-barred.

Memorandum attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Medical Records Co. Wants Rival's Antitrust Suit Tossed

By Matthew Perlman

Epic Systems Corp. told a New York federal court that an antitrust case lodged by Particle Health Inc. is really just payback for revealing concerns that Particle allowed its customers to inappropriately access personal medical records.

Brief attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

TikTok Sales Reps Say OT Suit Deserves Collective Cert.

By Irene Spezzamonte

Several TikTok sales representatives said they shared the same job duties and that the social media company applied the same unlawful policy of misclassifying them as overtime-exempt, urging a California federal court to grant them collective certification.

Memorandum attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Amazon Touted Efforts To Curb Price-Gouging, Shoppers Say

By Greg Lamm

A group of online shoppers said Thursday that Amazon can't dodge litigation alleging price-gouging during the pandemic, arguing that the retail giant's efforts to toss the case are contradicted by earlier public statements "trumpeting" the company's work with Washington's attorney general to enforce the state's consumer protection law against price-gougers.

Response attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Brief

Ky. Man Drops Suit Against Virtual Casino Creators

By Elaine Briseño

A Kentucky resident has dismissed a lawsuit he brought against the producers of online gaming apps he described as "social casinos" that constitute illegal wagering and cause the same problems as real-life gambling.

Notice attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Capital Markets Attorneys Ready For Reset After Bumpy 2024

By Tom Zanki

Capital markets activity — initial public offerings especially — posted a hesitant recovery in 2024, marginally increasing over prior-year levels before pausing altogether during a heated presidential election and postponing attorneys' hopes for a stronger rebound until 2025.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Trump Transfers $4B Equity Stake In Media Startup To Trust

By Tom Zanki

President-elect Donald Trump has transferred control over his estimated $4 billion stake in the company that owns his social media platform to a revocable trust held by his son, according to regulatory flings.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Kirkland-Led Nordic Capital Wraps €2B Evolution II Fund

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Kirkland & Ellis LLP-advised Nordic Capital on Friday announced that it wrapped its second Evolution Fund after raising €2 billion ($2.1 billion) from investors in just four months.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Kirkland Steers CCC Intelligent On $730M AI Insurance Deal

By Al Barbarino

Chicago-based insurance industry platform CCC Intelligent Solutions Inc. said Friday it has agreed to acquire EvolutionIQ Inc., an AI-powered claims management platform, for $730 million, in a deal steered by Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Lowenstein Sandler LLP, respectively.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Fuji Soft Founder, Bain Band Together On 'Not' Hostile Bid

By Al Barbarino

Bain Capital and Fuji Soft's founder said Friday they are joining forces on a plan to snap up a 50.1% stake in the Japanese IT company and take it private, as a bidding war with Bain rival KKR kicks into high gear. 

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Chilean Phone Co. WOM Gets OK On $500M Takeover Terms

By Alex Wittenberg

A Delaware bankruptcy judge on Friday signed off on the framework for Chilean mobile phone operator WOM SA's $500 million restructuring plan, finding the debtor had exercised sound business judgment in selecting the deal to reduce some $650 million in debt.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

EU Lays Out Apple's Interoperability Requirements

By Jared Foretek

The European Commission unveiled a host of proposed interoperability standards for Apple that would require the company to allow third-party devices to run background operations, automatically switch audio, send and receive files via AirDrop and much more with connected Apple products.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Feds Say Man Admitted To Role In Ransomware Group

By Sydney Price

Federal prosecutors have accused a dual Russian and Israeli national of being part of the LockBit ransomware group that extracted more than $500 million in ransom payments from victims worldwide, saying the man admitted as much during a prior arrest, according to a superseding criminal complaint in New Jersey unsealed Friday.

1 document attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

CFPB Sues BofA, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Over Zelle Fraud

By Sarah Jarvis

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau sued Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo on Friday, alleging their customers have lost more than $870 million through a "massive scale" of fraud on the payment network Zelle while the banks turned a blind eye.

Complaint attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Top Government Contracts Of 2024: Year In Review

By Daniel Wilson

This year, the U.S. General Services Administration made dozens of awards for two massive, uncapped governmentwide deals, while the U.S. Department of Energy awarded more than $70 billion both for making nuclear weapons and cleaning up their legacy. Here, Law360 looks at seven of the biggest government contracts awarded in 2024.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Risk Management Takeaways From NIST's AI Symposium

Based on the National Institute of Standards and Technology's September artificial intelligence innovation symposium, companies should anticipate that laws and regulations safeguarding AI could take new forms and approaches that break the current mold, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Reviewing 2024's Crucial Patent Law Developments

As 2024 draws to a close, significant rulings and policies aimed at modernizing long-standing legal practices or addressing emerging challenges have reached patent law, says Michael Ellenberger at Rothwell Figg.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

The Justices' Securities Rulings, Dismissals That Defined '24

The U.S. Supreme Court's 2024 securities rulings led to increased success for defendants' price impact arguments, but the justices' decisions not to weigh in on important issues relating to the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act's pleading requirements may be just as significant, say attorneys at Skadden.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

10 Noteworthy CFPB Developments From 2024

In a banner year for consumer finance regulation, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau made significant strides in its efforts to rein in Big Tech and nonbank financial firms, including via rules regarding open banking, credit card late fees, and buy now, pay later products, say attorneys at Wiley.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Series

Fixing Up Cars Makes Me A Better Lawyer

From problem-solving to patience and adaptability to organization, the skills developed working under the hood of a car directly translate to being a more effective lawyer, says Christopher Mdeway at Kaufman Dolowich.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

MoFo, Irell Latest Firms To Unveil Competitive Bonuses

By Aebra Coe & Hailey Konnath

Morrison Foerster LLP and litigation boutique Irell & Manella LLP have joined a chorus of firms announcing associate bonuses that meet or exceed the BigLaw standard for associate bonuses this year, with MoFo offering up to $218,200 and Irell handing its lawyers as much as $175,000.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Approach The Bench: What Judges Had To Say This Year

By Cara Bayles

Jurists weighed the benefits of partisan elections, praised innovations in telehearings and worried about the future of the profession in nearly a dozen interviews with Law360 this year.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Gunster $8.5M Data Breach Deal Needs More Info, Judge Says

By Matt Perez

A Florida federal judge this week denied preliminary approval of an $8.5 million settlement in a data breach class action against Gunster and demanded more information on payouts, the plaintiffs' standing in the case and a historical breakdown of settlement rates.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

NJ Bar's Diversity Plan Isn't Biased, Panel Says

By Tracey Read

A New Jersey state appeals court reversed and remanded on Friday a lower court's ruling that found the state bar association's diversity practices to be an unlawful, discriminatory quota system.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

How Lawyers May Sue The Trump Administration … Again

By Cara Bayles

During the last Trump administration, BigLaw firms challenged White House policies, focusing on immigration, environmental regulations and healthcare. This time around, attorneys could rely on old tools, and some new tactics, to stall the executive branch.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Biden Exceeds Trump's Record On Judges By One

By Courtney Bublé

The U.S. Senate confirmed on Friday the last two judicial nominations from President Joe Biden, making his total of lifetime judicial appointments 235, just one over President Donald Trump's 234.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

High Court Bar's Future: Williams & Connolly's Sarah Harris

By Katie Buehler

Sarah M. Harris of Williams & Connolly LLP never planned on being a U.S. Supreme Court advocate, or even an appellate one. She stumbled upon that career path after realizing her initial goal of becoming a national security or government lawyer wasn't the right fit.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Legislators Key To Court Fee Relief, Chief Justices Say

By Cara Salvatore

Two state high court chief justices and a top judicial administrator have told the National Center for State Courts that while they've been able to make significant progress in abolishing unfair court fines and fees, lawmakers have been vital in enacting these changes.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Feature

Litigator On The Roof: The Acting, Singing Mass. Solicitor

By Chris Villani

The top appellate lawyer in the Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General will be ringing in the new year by performing a comical cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach, the latest show in a lengthy side career in music.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Hagens Berman Settles Suit Over Effexor Deal Atty Fees

By Bryan Koenig

A pharmaceutical reseller's in-house counsel and founder moved Friday to drop a Mississippi federal court breach of contract suit accusing Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP of stiffing him on his share of a $13 million attorney fees award from an antitrust class settlement, citing a resolution to the dispute.

Notice attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Girardi's Mental Health To Be Evaluated At NC Federal Prison

By Craig Clough

A California federal judge said Friday she will order Tom Girardi to receive a psychiatric evaluation at a North Carolina federal correctional facility after she recently delayed his wire fraud sentencing to determine if he should be committed to a medical facility instead of prison due to his dementia diagnosis.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Q&A

A Judge Reflects: West Wing Call, 'Alford Plea?' Early Exit

By Hayley Fowler

When Chief Judge Louis A. Bledsoe III of the North Carolina Business Court hangs up his robes for the last time on Dec. 31, he'll leave behind a white-hot docket of high-profile cases and a profusion of opinions that helped mold the court into a tribunal fit to rival Delaware's Court of Chancery.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Andrea Keckley

This week's Legal Lions leader comes from the public sector, as federal prosecutors secured a $650 million settlement from McKinsey & Co. to resolve a lawsuit over the consulting giant's role in Purdue Pharma's promotion of OxyContin.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

By Max Austin

This past week in London has seen the University of Southampton sue a drone-maker over the rights to an uncrewed aircraft patent, Importers Service Corp. and its subsidiary ISC Europe take action against a former director who allegedly owes the company over £1.1 million ($1.4 million), and DAC Beachcroft face a fraud claim by a "prolific litigant." 

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

In Case You Missed It: Hottest Firms And Stories On Law360

For those who missed out, here's a look back at the law firms, stories and expert analyses that generated the most buzz on Law360 last week.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »