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Appellate

  • July 14, 2025

    11th. Circ. Rules Ga. Strip Search Was Illegal, Nixes Immunity

    A full Eleventh Circuit ruled that Georgia Department of Corrections officers are not entitled to immunity in the case of a woman who was strip-searched while visiting her husband in prison, saying the search was unreasonable and violated her Fourth Amendment rights.

  • July 14, 2025

    5th Circ. Revives Suit Accusing UT Of Race-Based Admissions

    A Fifth Circuit panel partially revived a lawsuit accusing the University of Texas at Austin of continuing to consider race in admissions decisions despite the U.S. Supreme Court's 2023 decision ending affirmative action programs.

  • July 14, 2025

    Tevra Asks 9th Circ. To Revive Bayer Flea, Tick Meds Suit

    Tevra Brands LLC called on the Ninth Circuit to order a new trial after it said a lower court made several errors that prevented it from showing a jury that Bayer HealthCare LLC used exclusive contracts to lock up the market for a flea and tick treatment for dogs and cats.

  • July 14, 2025

    Ga. Judge Calls Atty 'Unworthy Of Belief' As Ethics Case Ends

    A Georgia superior court judge facing ethics charges on Monday urged the state's judicial watchdog to either privately reprimand or suspend her for no more than 30 days if it decides punishment is needed in the case brought against her by the state's Judicial Qualifications Commission. 

  • July 14, 2025

    TV Reporter Fights Town's Appeal After Broken Leg Trial Win

    A television reporter whose leg was broken when he was allegedly hit by a public power employee's truck in the parking lot of a town hall has urged North Carolina's highest court to uphold a jury verdict finding that his injury was a result of the town worker's negligence.

  • July 14, 2025

    11th Circ. Won't Reexamine Sentence Of Convicted Fla. Atty

    The Eleventh Circuit has rejected a Florida lawyer's request to reconsider her 75-month prison sentence for a COVID-19 loan fraud scheme.

  • July 14, 2025

    Mich. Justices Say GOP Can Challege Poll Worker Imbalance

    The Michigan Republican Party can sue to enforce a rule about the political makeup of poll workers, the Michigan Supreme Court said Monday, reversing a lower court's ruling.

  • July 14, 2025

    Supreme Court Clears Way For Education Dept. Layoffs

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday lifted a Massachusetts federal judge's order halting massive job cuts at the U.S. Department of Education, allowing the Trump administration to move forward with firing nearly 1,400 employees.

  • July 14, 2025

    End Of NJ Municipal Court Official's Harassment Suit Upheld

    A former New Jersey municipal court administrator cannot sue the state Administrative Office of the Courts in a sexual harassment case because she was never an employee of the office, the state Appellate Division said Monday in a published opinion.

  • July 14, 2025

    Ex-NFL Player Asks 5th Circ. To Keep $1.86M Fee Award Intact

    The National Football League's retirement plan had a chance to appeal a $1.86 million award of attorney fees to former running back Michael Cloud three years ago in his disability benefits suit, but it chose not to do so, Cloud told the Fifth Circuit in his pushback against the plan's latest appeal.

  • July 14, 2025

    Calif. Panel Keeps Charter PAGA Case Out Of Arbitration

    Charter Communications can't arbitrate an employee's Private Attorneys General Act suit because parts of the arbitration agreement are "unconscionable," a California appeals panel ruled, relying on the state Supreme Court's decisions addressing the same pact.

  • July 14, 2025

    Ex-Seward & Kissel Partner Joins EDNY As 1st Asst. US Atty

    U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. announced Monday he has selected a former federal prosecutor and Seward & Kissel LLP partner to serve as first assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

  • July 14, 2025

    2nd Circ. Won't Let UBS Arbitrate Fund Mismanagement Suit

    The Second Circuit on Monday affirmed a New York federal judge's decision rejecting UBS' bid to send a charitable trust's mismanaged funds suit to arbitration, finding that the bank knowingly relinquished the right to arbitrate "by acting inconsistently with that right."

  • July 14, 2025

    Calif. Panel Upends Arbitration Pact In Worker's Firing Suit

    A Charter Communications worker's wrongful termination suit should not have been sent to arbitration, a California appeals court said, after finding the company's alternative dispute resolution pact held one-sided provisions and made it difficult for employees to opt out.

  • July 11, 2025

    Meta Asks 9th Circ. To Bar Zuckerberg Depo In Privacy Suit

    Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg is turning to the Ninth Circuit to free him from having to give a limited deposition in privacy litigation over a Facebook tool's alleged collection of patient health information, arguing that district courts are "deeply divided" on how to decide whether to allow executive depositions.

  • July 11, 2025

    Fla. Disinfectant Co. Seeks Stay From $5M Canada Judgment

    A Florida disinfectant company asked a state civil court to stay enforcement of a $5.1 million Canadian judgment over breaching a contract for electronic parts supplied during the COVID-19 pandemic, arguing the order was appealed and that the contract was obtained without approval. 

  • July 11, 2025

    4th Circ. Tosses Ex-Baltimore Prosecutor's Fraud Conviction

    A split Fourth Circuit on Friday tossed the mortgage fraud conviction of former Baltimore City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby, finding that the jury was improperly instructed on where the crime occurred, but upheld her perjury conviction.

  • July 11, 2025

    DC Circ. Allows Gov't To Undo 9/11 Plea Deals

    A D.C. Circuit panel ruled on Friday that former Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin acted within the bounds of his legal authority when he yanked back plea deals from a trio of 9/11 co-conspirators that had already been signed.

  • July 11, 2025

    6th Circ. Tosses Arbitration Denial In FCA Minivan Fire MDL

    A Michigan federal judge flubbed it when he denied Fiat Chrysler's bid to push into arbitration some of the plug-in hybrid minivan drivers who claim in multidistrict litigation that their vehicles could spontaneously explode, the Sixth Circuit ruled Thursday, saying the judge tipped the scales against the automaker by raising arguments the drivers hadn't mentioned.

  • July 11, 2025

    5th Circ. Cites Expert Errors In Rejecting BP Spill Sinus Claims

    The Fifth Circuit has ended a cleanup worker's toxic tort lawsuit against BP Exploration & Production Inc. claiming he suffered sinus issues from cleaning up the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill, saying his experts' testimony, some of which was riddled with errors, was properly ejected by the trial court.

  • July 11, 2025

    Colo. Court Mostly Backs Coal Mine In Water Permit Dispute

    A Colorado appeals court said that most of the stormwater discharges produced by a mining company in Gunnison County do not require a permit, reversing lower court and administrative judge rulings.

  • July 11, 2025

    Slack Investor Wants 2nd Shot Before High Court

    An investor leading a proposed class action against Slack Technologies LLC is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to finish what it started, petitioning the justices to clarify a point they declined to rule on two years ago when they limited investors' ability to sue newly public companies.

  • July 11, 2025

    4th Circ. Backs 'GT Racing' Gaming Chair Social Media Block

    The Fourth Circuit on Friday upheld a lower court's decision blocking gaming chair company Wudi Industrial from using the trademark "GT Racing" in its social media accessible in European countries for certain goods.

  • July 11, 2025

    Courts Face Early Push To Expand Justices' Injunction Ruling

    In the two weeks since the U.S. Supreme Court curtailed federal judges' ability to issue universal injunctions, Trump administration attorneys have begun pushing to expand the decision's limits to other forms of relief used in regulatory challenges and class actions. So far, judges don't appear receptive to those efforts. 

  • July 11, 2025

    Success Tricking FDA Shouldn't Protect Merck, Justices Told

    Physicians asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a decision immunizing Merck & Co. from antitrust claims over submissions it made to federal regulators over its mumps vaccine, arguing the Third Circuit went far beyond its peers in holding that deceiving the government isn't illegal if the deception worked.

Expert Analysis

  • DOJ May Rethink Banning Firearms For Marijuana Users

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    In light of various federal circuit court decisions and an executive order from President Donald Trump, U.S. Department of Justice enforcement policy now may be on the verge of changing decidedly in favor of marijuana users' gun rights, and could foreshadow additional marijuana-friendly reforms, says Jacob Raver at Dentons.

  • EDNY Ruling May Limit Some FARA Conspiracy Charges

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    Though the Eastern District of New York’s recent U.S. v. Sun decision upheld Foreign Agents Registration Act charges against a former aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, its recognition of an affirmative legislative policy to exempt some officials may help defendants charged with related conspiracies, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • 9th Circ. Has Muddied Waters Of Article III Pleading Standard

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    District courts in the Ninth Circuit continue to apply a defunct and especially forgiving pleading standard to questions of Article III standing, and the circuit court itself has only perpetuated this confusion — making it an attractive forum for disputes that have no rightful place in federal court, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • Fla. Workers' Comp Ruling Ups Bar For Emotional Injury Suits

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    A Florida appellate court’s recent opinion in Steak 'N Shake v. Spears requires that employees solely claiming emotional distress seek workers’ compensation before suing their employers, closing a potential loophole and reducing the potential proliferation of such disputes in Florida courts, says Rob Rogers at Kirwin Norris.

  • Contract Disputes Recap: Spearin, Overpayments, Jurisdiction

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    Edward Arnold at Seyfarth examines three recent decisions addressing the limits of the Spearin doctrine in design-build contracts, the government's ability to recoup overpayments after a termination for convenience, and the Contract Disputes Act's strict and nonwaivable jurisdictional rules.

  • What Calif. Appeals Split Means For Litigating PAGA Claims

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    After two recent California state appeals court rulings diverged on whether a former employee with untimely individual claims under the Private Attorneys General Act can maintain a representative action, practitioners' strategic agility will be key to managing risk and achieving favorable outcomes in PAGA litigation, say attorneys at Buchalter.

  • Series

    Competing In Modern Pentathlon Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Opening myself up to new experiences through competing in modern Olympic pentathlon has shrunk the appearance of my daily work annoyances and helps me improve my patience, manage crises better and remember that acquiring new skills requires working through your early mistakes, says attorney Mary Zoldak.

  • NY Case Shows How LLC Agreements Can Be Amended

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    The New York Court of Appeals in Behler v. Tao recently held that a merger clause contained in an amended limited liability company agreement superseded and extinguished an alleged oral agreement between the parties, highlighting the importance of determining early how and when an LLC agreement may be amended, says Kerrin Klein at Olshan Frome.

  • If Justices Accept, Maxwell Case May Clarify Meaning Of 'US'

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    If the U.S. Supreme Court agrees to take up Ghislaine Maxwell’s appeal, it could clarify the meaning of “United States” in the context of plea agreements, and a plain language interpretation of the term would offer criminal defendants fairness and finality, say attorneys at Kudman Trachten.

  • The State Of Play In Copyright Protection For Floor Plans

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    With questions over copyright protections for floor plans potentially teed up in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, attorneys in the real estate industry should take steps to clarify and strengthen clients' rights and reduce the risk of litigation, says Dylan I. Scher at Quinn Emanuel.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Teaching Yourself Legal Tech

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    New graduates often enter practice unfamiliar with even basic professional software, but budding lawyers can use on-the-job opportunities to both catch up on technological skills and explore the advanced legal and artificial intelligence tools that will open doors, says Alyssa Sones at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Opinion

    Legacy Of 3 Justices Should Guide Transgender Rights Ruling

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    Three Republican-appointed U.S. Supreme Court justices — Anthony Kennedy, Sandra Day O'Connor and David Souter — gave rise to a jurisprudence of personal liberty that courts today invoke to protect gender-affirming care, and with the court now poised to decide U.S. v. Skrmetti, it must follow the path that they set, says Greg Fosheim at McDermott.

  • How IPR Estoppel Ruling May Clash With PTAB Landscape

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    Though the Federal Circuit's narrowing of inter partes review estoppel in Ingenico v. Ioengine might encourage more petitions, tougher standards for discretionary denial established by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office could be a counterbalancing factor, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • Texas Ruling Emphasizes Limits Of Franchisors' Liability

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    The Texas Supreme Court's recent ruling in Massage Heights Franchising v. Hagman, holding that a franchisor was not liable to a customer for the actions of a franchisee's employee, helps clarify the relative roles and responsibilities of the parties in such situations — and the limits of franchisors' duty of care, say attorneys at Polsinelli.

  • How AI May Reshape The Future Of Adjudication

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    As discussed at a recent panel at Texas A&M, artificial intelligence will not erase the human element of adjudication in the next 10 to 20 years, but it will drive efficiencies that spur private arbiters to experiment, lead public courts to evolve and force attorneys to adapt, says Christopher Seck at Squire Patton.

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