Washington

  • July 11, 2024

    9th Circ. Signals Dr.'s Vax-Refusal Case Deserves New Chance

    Ninth Circuit judges signaled Thursday that they were likely to revive a doctor's case claiming he was wrongfully fired from his Washington State University residency for refusing to get a COVID-19 vaccination, with two judges questioning if the school went far enough to accommodate his religious beliefs.

  • July 11, 2024

    Calif.'s Insulin Cost Suit Belongs In Fed. Court, 9th Circ. Told

    Express Scripts and Caremark PCSHealth urged the Ninth Circuit on Thursday to reverse a lower court's order sending California's antitrust suit over skyrocketing insulin prices back to state court, with both appellants' counsel arguing the state's claims involve disputes over federal contracts and regulations that must be resolved in federal court.

  • July 11, 2024

    DACA Recipient, Credit Union Settle Home Loan Bias Suit

    A beneficiary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program has reached a settlement with an Oregon credit union to end claims that he was unlawfully denied a home equity loan based on his immigration status.

  • July 11, 2024

    Navy Can't Get Out Of Ex-Marine's PTSD Discrimination Suit

    A Washington federal judge won't let the U.S. Navy out of a suit from a former Marine alleging that he was discriminated against and terminated over his post-traumatic stress disorder, saying there is enough evidence that a fact-finder could determine his boss retaliated against him.

  • July 11, 2024

    Trans Worker Seeks Facial Hair Removal In ERISA Suit

    A transgender woman said her employer's health benefit plan administered by UnitedHealthcare refused to cover facial hair removal as part of her gender-affirming care in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, according to a complaint filed in Washington federal court.

  • July 11, 2024

    Fiat Chrysler Says Exploding Minivan MDL Still Lacks Detail

    A Stellantis unit has asked a federal judge in Michigan to significantly pare back multidistrict litigation over a risk of spontaneous explosion in certain Chrysler plug-in hybrid minivans, arguing that many drivers' state claims are stale or are otherwise legally flawed.

  • July 11, 2024

    Wash. Justices Agree To Review State's Pot Co. Wage Suit

    The Washington Supreme Court has agreed to review whether the state labor agency jumped the gun by suing a cannabis company to collect back pay for employees before the agency knew how much money the workers were owed.

  • July 10, 2024

    Judge Chides Troopers' No-Show Atty At Sanctions Hearing

    A Washington federal judge slapped a group of state troopers with sanctions Wednesday for defying a discovery order in their case against Ford Motor Co., while also calling out their attorney who failed to show up for the hearing despite the court's repeated prodding.

  • July 10, 2024

    Washington Justices To Tackle CARES Act Eviction Split

    Washington's Supreme Court has agreed to review whether the CARES Act eviction notice only applies to tenants who are late on rent, and not to violent tenants targeted by landlords for quick removal.

  • July 10, 2024

    Wash. Justices To Review Worker's Asbestos Exposure Row

    Washington's highest court agreed to review whether the deliberate intention exception in the state's Industrial Insurance Act prevented a worker from asserting personal injuries against his former employer's successor over a claim that his mesothelioma was caused by employment-related asbestos exposure.

  • July 10, 2024

    Thoma Bravo's Qualtrics Bid Fell Short, SAP Tells Chancery

    Thoma Bravo LP may have offered $1.2 billion more than Silver Lake Management to buy Qualtrics International Inc. from software company SAP SE in 2023, but other aspects of the bid were less attractive than Silver Lake's $12.5 billion offer, an attorney for SAP directors told Delaware's Court of Chancery on Wednesday.

  • July 10, 2024

    9th Circ. Says Nev. Call Center Agents' Bootup Warrants Trial

    The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday revived, for a second time, call center agents' collective action alleging the time spent turning on and off their computers before their shifts is payable under the Fair Labor Standards Act, finding that to be a factual issue that should be resolved through a jury trial.

  • July 10, 2024

    Salt Co. CEO, Worker Settle Suit Over Spurned Affair

    A Seattle-area gourmet sea salt company has settled a discrimination suit by an employee who says she was demoted and ostracized when she rejected sexual advances from its founder and CEO, who allegedly tried to win her over by paying for a new car, a new apartment and her student loans.

  • July 10, 2024

    Giuliani Urges DC Court Not To Disbar Him Over Trump Work

    Rudy Giuliani on Wednesday urged the D.C. Court of Appeals to let him keep his law license, saying he did not commit misconduct in his work on former President Donald Trump's challenge to Pennsylvania's 2020 presidential election.

  • July 10, 2024

    Wash. Condo Assoc. Wants Allstate To Cover $9.7M In Repairs

    A Washington condominium association is suing Allstate Insurance Co. in federal court, saying it broke their coverage agreement by refusing to cover $9.7 million in repairs for "hidden damage" to the buildings' exteriors.

  • July 09, 2024

    Bard Fights 'Patent Misuse' Ruling In $53M Suit At 9th Circ.

    Bard urged the Ninth Circuit on Tuesday to reverse a lower court's finding that its attempt to collect $53 million in licensing payments from a medical-device company was a clear case of "patent misuse," arguing that the parties' licensing agreement allows for Bard to collect payments even after the patents-in-suit expired.

  • July 09, 2024

    9th Circ. Won't Revive Great-Grandson's Nazi-Looted Art Suit

    The Ninth Circuit said Tuesday it won't rehear a unanimous panel decision that a Spanish museum has no obligation to return a Camille Pissarro painting that the Nazis stole from a Holocaust survivor's grandmother, despite a senior circuit judge's protest that California law should apply.

  • July 09, 2024

    Amazon Gets 'Buy Box' Rigging Case Tossed, For Now

    A Washington federal court has dismissed a proposed class action accusing Amazon of using its "Buy Box" feature to deceive consumers after finding that the two men bringing the claims failed to include any details about the transactions they made and allegedly overpaid for.

  • July 09, 2024

    FTC Is Denied Amazon's Instructions On Signal Use, For Now

    A Washington federal judge refused Tuesday to give the Federal Trade Commission a peek into what it contends is the extensive use of Signal by Jeff Bezos and other top Amazon.com executives to hide communications relevant to a monopolization lawsuit, preferring to order deposition testimony on that use first.

  • July 09, 2024

    'Stop Right There': Judge Slams King County Deportation Args

    A Ninth Circuit panel on Tuesday criticized King County's argument that its executive order banning deportation flights from a Seattle airport did not force a fuel supplier to stop servicing the flights, with one judge calling it preposterous.

  • July 09, 2024

    Boeing, DOJ Say 737 Max Families Can't Rush Monitor Pick

    Boeing has told a Texas federal judge that 737 Max crash victims' families cannot rush the appointment of an independent monitor to oversee the company's safety and compliance efforts, saying its new tentative plea agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice adequately addresses the monitorship issue.

  • July 09, 2024

    9th Circ. Lets Librarian's Suit Against Dun & Bradstreet Go On

    The Ninth Circuit has backed a California federal court's decision not to throw out a suit claiming Dun & Bradstreet Holdings sold personal information of individuals without consent, saying the proposed class action can move forward.

  • July 09, 2024

    Ex-Uber Driver Urges 9th Circ. To Rehear Race Bias Suit

    An Asian former Uber driver is asking the Ninth Circuit to overturn a panel's June ruling finding he failed to support his allegations that the ride-hailing giant's rating system is racially biased, saying the court held him to too high of a standard.

  • July 09, 2024

    5th Circ. Skeptical Of Nixing ESG Rule Despite Chevron's End

    A Fifth Circuit panel appeared unlikely Tuesday to knock out a Biden administration rule allowing retirement plan advisers to consider environmental, social and governance factors when choosing investments, although one judge seemed to support vacating a lower court's decision upholding the regulation in light of the Chevron doctrine's demise.

  • July 09, 2024

    Buchalter Debuts Immigration Group, Adds 2 Karr Tuttle Attys

    Buchalter PC has hired two attorneys for its Seattle office to complement its new immigration practice group.

Expert Analysis

  • When Courts Engage In Fact-Finding At The Pleading Stage

    Author Photo

    It remains to be seen whether the Ninth Circuit's pleading-stage factual determination in a securities class action against Nvidia was sui generis or part of a trend, but the court has created a template for district courts to follow, says Jared Kopel at Alto Litigation.

  • AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier

    Author Photo

    Legal professionals without programming expertise can use generative artificial intelligence to harness the power of automation and other technology solutions to streamline their work, without the steep learning curve traditionally associated with coding, says George Zalepa at Greenberg Traurig.

  • How Legal Teams Can Prep For Life Sciences' Tech Revolution

    Author Photo

    The life sciences and health care industries are uniquely positioned to take advantage of new efficiencies created by cloud computing and generative artificial intelligence, but the sensitivity of their data also demands careful navigation of an expanding legislative and regulatory landscape, say Kristi Gedid, Zack Laplante and Lisa LaMotta at Ernst & Young.

  • Harvard's Broker Fight Shows Active Risk Management Is Key

    Author Photo

    Harvard University’s recently filed suit against its insurance broker for alleged malpractice in handling the Students for Fair Admissions claim illustrates that risk management requires the concerted effort of policyholders, brokers and insurers to protect against disastrous losses, say William McMichael and David Klein at Pillsbury.

  • Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World

    Author Photo

    As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.

  • General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI

    Author Photo

    With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.

  • Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information

    Author Photo

    As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.

  • Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD

    Author Photo

    Given the prevalence of ADHD among attorneys, it is imperative that the legal community gain a better understanding of how ADHD affects well-being, and that resources and strategies exist for attorneys with this disability to manage their symptoms and achieve success, say Casey Dixon at Dixon Life Coaching and Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • Beware Privacy Risks In Training AI Models With Health Data

    Author Photo

    Because data used to train artificial intelligence models may be protected by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act or other regulations, users of these models should conduct proper diligence to avoid costly compliance failures, say Neha Matta and Barbara Bennett at Frost Brown.

  • Opinion

    Courts Shouldn't Credit Allegations From Short-Seller Reports

    Author Photo

    Securities class actions against public companies can extend for years and lead to significant settlements, so courts should not allow such cases with allegations wholly reliant on reports by short-sellers, who have an economic interest in seeing a company's stock price decline, to proceed past the motion to dismiss stage, says Richard Zelichov at DLA Piper.

  • Attorneys, Law Schools Must Adapt To New Era Of Evidence

    Author Photo

    Technological advancements mean more direct evidence is being created than ever before, and attorneys as well as law schools must modify their methods to account for new challenges in how this evidence is collected and used to try cases, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Tips For Litigating Against Pro Se Parties In Complex Disputes

    Author Photo

    Litigating against self-represented parties in complex cases can pose unique challenges for attorneys, but for the most part, it requires the same skills that are useful in other cases — from documenting everything to understanding one’s ethical duties, says Bryan Ketroser at Alto Litigation.

  • Pro Bono Work Is Powerful Self-Help For Attorneys

    Author Photo

    Oct. 22-28 is Pro Bono Week, serving as a useful reminder that offering free legal help to the public can help attorneys expand their legal toolbox, forge community relationships and create human connections, despite the challenges of this kind of work, says Orlando Lopez at Culhane Meadows.

  • State Regs Sow Discord Between Cannabis, Hemp Industries

    Author Photo

    Connecticut, Maryland and Washington are the latest states choosing to require intoxicating hemp products to comply with the states' recreational marijuana laws, resulting in a widening rift between cannabis and hemp as Congress works on crafting new hemp legislation within the upcoming 2023 Farm Bill, say attorneys at Wilson Elser.

  • Series

    Playing In A Rock Cover Band Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Performing in a classic rock cover band has driven me to hone several skills — including focus, organization and networking — that have benefited my professional development, demonstrating that taking time to follow your muse outside of work can be a boon to your career, says Michael Gambro at Cadwalader.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Washington archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!