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Appellate

  • September 11, 2025

    7th Circ. Backs $183M FCA Award Over Eli Lilly Drug Rebates

    The Seventh Circuit refused on Thursday to unwind a whistleblower's $183 million trial win against Eli Lilly in a false claims case targeting more than a decade of drug rebate miscalculations, saying a jury reasonably found that the company knowingly "hid the truth" about how much it charged for Medicaid-covered drugs.

  • September 11, 2025

    Panel Says $4.5M Wrongful Death Award Lacked Evidence

    A panel of the Michigan state appeals court on Wednesday undid a $4.5 million default judgment against a bus driver who ran over a man in Detroit, finding the estate of the man did not provide enough evidence to support the damages amount.

  • September 11, 2025

    Texas Justices Wary Of Letting Developers Out Of $75M Bond

    Texas Supreme Court justices seemed hesitant Thursday to buy an argument from Greystar Development & Construction LP that it and other defendants on the hook for a $406 million judgment only need to collectively pay a $25 million bond for their appeal, saying the statute seemingly compels each individual defendant to pony up.

  • September 11, 2025

    Ga. Law Bars Broad Media Access To Executions, Court Told

    Georgia officials Thursday told a state appellate court it should reject a nonprofit news organization's bid to force greater media access to executions, arguing the outlet is trying to rely on the type of third-party standing that was scrapped earlier this year by the state's Supreme Court.

  • September 11, 2025

    NC Justices Ponder How Much Of Firm Value Atty's Ex Gets

    North Carolina's top court hinted Thursday that a solo attorney's ex-wife may be able to claim at least a morsel of his law firm's worth in their divorce, as the justices pondered whether to draw a distinction between two types of business value known as personal and enterprise goodwill.

  • September 11, 2025

    BofA Wants Quick 4th Circ. Appeal In 401(k) Forfeiture Suit

    Bank of America wants to appeal a North Carolina federal court's denial of its dismissal bid in a proposed class action filed on behalf of 401(k) participants alleging the bank misspent forfeitures from workers' retirement plan.

  • September 11, 2025

    23 States Back High Court Stay Of FTC Dem's Reinstatement

    Florida and 22 other states have urged the U.S. Supreme Court to grant the Trump administration's request to block a Democratic member of the Federal Trade Commission from serving on the commission while she challenges her firing.

  • September 11, 2025

    LifePoint Must Face Workers' 401(k) Mismanagement Suit

    A Tennessee federal judge refused to toss a proposed class action against LifePoint Health Inc. from participants in the healthcare company's employee 401(k) plan who alleged their retirement savings were dragged down by excessive recordkeeping and administrative fees, concluding allegations were sufficiently backed up to proceed to discovery.

  • September 11, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Lets Ruling On Canada's Cherry Patent Stand

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday declined a request by a group of cherry growers to reinstate a court order that a patent covering the Staccato cherry variety owned by the Canadian government was invalid, saying a district judge had not acted improperly by reversing the order.

  • September 11, 2025

    US Attorneys, Judicial Noms Advance Amid Senate Tensions

    Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, faulted Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., on Thursday, for getting in the way of efforts by him and Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the committee's ranking Democrat, to expedite the confirmation of U.S. attorney nominees. 

  • September 11, 2025

    4th Circ. Seems Wary Of Backing Freeze On Trump DEI Orders

    A Fourth Circuit panel appeared reluctant Thursday to uphold an injunction blocking parts of President Donald Trump's executive orders that aimed to cut grants and rein in diversity programs among federal contractors, posing tough questions to the groups who claim the orders are unconstitutional.

  • September 11, 2025

    Fla. Doc Can Pursue Defamation Claims Against CNN, Cooper

    A Florida appeals court has reversed an order throwing out a pediatric doctor's suit against CNN, Anderson Cooper and reporters for the network, saying a jury should decide whether they defamed him through the use of unadjusted mortality rates at his hospital.

  • September 11, 2025

    Pa. Justices Seek Fair Process For Picking Tax Appeals

    Pennsylvania's Supreme Court grappled Thursday with whether a school district's tax assessment appeals ran afoul of prior rulings upholding the uniformity clause of the state Constitution, suggesting that any criteria for choosing appeals might favor one kind of property over another.

  • September 11, 2025

    2nd Circ. Says 9/11 MDL Firm Must Wait To Appeal Sanctions

    Sanctions imposed against a New York firm for leaking a document in violation of a protective order in the multidistrict litigation over the Sept. 11 attacks are too closely tied to the merits of the case for an appellate panel to consider tossing them, the Second Circuit has determined.

  • September 11, 2025

    2nd Circ. Says Kik Scans Don't Violate Fourth Amendment

    Messaging applications like Kik are allowed to search users' conversations as part of due diligence into suspected cases of child sexual abuse material without violating users' Fourth Amendment rights, the Second Circuit has found.

  • September 11, 2025

    Montana Tribe Members Ask To Join Justices' Tariff Suit Review

    Members of the Blackfeet Nation have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to join its review of cases challenging President Donald Trump's emergency tariffs, telling the justices that their arguments' inclusion in the matter is essential to support tribal rights under federal law.

  • September 11, 2025

    IRS Forfeits Opposition In $37M Easement Dispute, Court Told

    Two partnerships seeking to reinstate their combined $37 million tax deductions for donating adjoining Georgia conservation easements told the Eleventh Circuit that the IRS has effectively forfeited its opposition to their claim that the U.S. Tax Court made valuation errors in reducing their tax breaks.

  • September 11, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Keeps Google, Amazon Patent Fights In Calif.

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday refused to send back to Texas federal court a pair of suits from a software company accusing Google and Amazon of patent infringement, refusing to undo findings that California was the better venue.

  • September 11, 2025

    2nd Circ. Axes Hotel's Appeal After Town Drops Zoning Suit

    The Second Circuit tossed a hotel's appeal bid for a district court order that remanded a New York town's zoning suit concerning asylum seekers staying at the hotel, ruling Thursday that it will also vacate the remand order because the town permanently dropped its suit against the hotel.

  • September 11, 2025

    Calif. Panel Frees Walmart From Fatal Big Rig Crash Suit

    A California appeals panel won't revive a woman's claims against Walmart Inc. and one of its suppliers over the death of her daughter in a collision with a delivery truck, finding her claims are preempted by the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act.

  • September 11, 2025

    5th Circ. Won't Revisit Doctor's Captive Insurance Case

    The Fifth Circuit rejected a Texas doctor's request for the full court to review a panel's July decision that he was not entitled to $1 million in tax deductions linked to his urgent care network's captive insurance company.

  • September 11, 2025

    Italian Firm Adds Obama Counsel For Cross-Border Advice

    A former senior U.S. Department of Justice lawyer and senior counsel for former President Barack Obama has joined Italian digital media technology and life sciences firm Portolano Cavallo to bolster its cross-border capabilities, it announced Thursday.

  • September 10, 2025

    11th Circ. Tosses Gun Conviction Over Alabama Loophole

    The Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday threw out the conviction of an Alabama man charged with illegally having a gun after a prior felony, ruling that because the state offense to which he pled guilty did not require imprisonment, it did not trigger the federal firearm ban for felons.

  • September 10, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Won't Revisit Double-Patenting, Soda TM Appeals

    The Federal Circuit on Wednesday declined to revisit its decisions in a trio of intellectual property cases, including one where it upheld an Acadia Pharmaceuticals Parkinson's disease drug patent and addressed double-patenting, and another deeming "Kist" and "Sunkist" soft drink marks confusingly similar.

  • September 10, 2025

    Pa. Court Upholds Defense Verdict In Throat Surgery Suit

    The Pennsylvania Superior Court on Wednesday affirmed a jury verdict in favor of an anesthesiologist accused of causing a patient's trachea tear following throat surgery, saying the doctor's expert witness didn't introduce new testimony at trial.

Expert Analysis

  • How 6th Circ. Ruling Deepens Split On Broker Liability

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    A growing divide in Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act jurisprudence is ripe for U.S. Supreme Court review, after the Sixth Circuit last month found in Cox v. Total Quality Logistics that brokers can be held liable for negligent hiring, says Gregory Reed at Hanson Bridgett.

  • Trending At The PTAB: IPR Memo And Its Fed. Circ. Backdrop

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    There are new rules for when and how evidence other than patents or printed publications can be considered in inter partes reviews, and while this change is intended to reflect current Federal Circuit precedent, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's memo seems to acknowledge tension with last month's Shockwave decision, say attorneys at Finnegan.

  • Calif. Arbitration Fee Ruling Gives Employers Slight Leeway

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    The California Supreme Court's decision in Hohenshelt v. Superior Court of Los Angeles County offers a narrow lifeline that protects employers from losing arbitration rights over inadvertent fee payment delays, but auditing arbitration agreements and implementing payment tracking protocols can ensure that deadlines are always met, say attorneys at Buchalter.

  • Ruling Offers Insurers A Path To Settle Sans Insured Consent

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    A recent North Carolina federal court ruling, Martin Marietta Materials v. Ace, joins other states in holding that an insurer may consider its own interests in settlement negotiations, outlining a strong strategy for insurers faced with an uncooperative insured and the threat of a large verdict, say attorneys at Phelps Dunbar.

  • Lessons From 7th Circ.'s Deleted Chat Sanctions Ruling

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    The Seventh Circuit’s recent decision in Pable v. Chicago Transit Authority, affirming the dismissal of an ex-employee’s retaliation claims, highlights the importance of properly handling the preservation of ephemeral messages and clarifies key sanctions issues, says Philip Favro at Favro Law.

  • Adapting To USPTO's Tighter Inter Partes Review Rules

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    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's recent pivot regarding how it will address general knowledge in inter partes review petitions presents immediate strategic implications for petitioners, patent owners and litigants watching the contours of Patent Trial and Appeal Board practice, say attorneys at Winston & Strawn.

  • Series

    Quilting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Turning intricate patterns of fabric and thread into quilts has taught me that craftsmanship, creative problem-solving and dedication to incremental progress are essential to creating something lasting that will help another person — just like in law, says Veronica McMillan at Kramon & Graham.

  • 3rd Circ. FMLA Suit Revival Offers Notice Rule Lessons

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    In Walker v. SEPTA, the Third Circuit reinstated a former Philadelphia bus driver's Family and Medical Leave Act lawsuit, finding the notice standard is not particularly onerous, which underscores employers' responsibilities to recognize and document leave requests, and to avoid penalizing workers for protected absences, say Fiona Ong and Leah Shepherd at Ogletree.

  • Utility Agency Suits May Rise As Calif. Justices Nix Deference

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    A recent California Supreme Court ruling rejecting the uniquely deferential standard of review accorded to California Public Utilities Commission decisions interpreting the Public Utilities Code will incentivize more litigation against the agency, as long as litigants can show their challenges meet certain requirements, says Thaila Sundaresan at Davis Wright.

  • 2 Appellate Rulings Offer Clickwrap Enforcement Road Map

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    Two recent decisions from the Fourth and Eleventh Circuits in cases involving Experian signal that federal appellate courts are recognizing clickwrap agreements' power in spite of their simplicity, and offer practical advice on how companies can sufficiently demonstrate notice and assent when attempting to enforce contractual terms, says Brian Willett at Saul Ewing.

  • Fleeing Or Just Leaving Quickly? 2nd Circ. Says It Depends

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    The Second Circuit’s recent U.S. v. Bardakova decision adopted a new approach for determining whether a defendant who commits a crime in the U.S., and then leaves and remains abroad, intends to avoid prosecution — making it more difficult to argue against the fugitive disentitlement doctrine in most cases, say attorneys at MoloLamken.

  • What 2 Profs Noticed As Transactional Law Students Used AI

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    After a semester using generative artificial intelligence tools with students in an entrepreneurship law clinic, we came away with numerous observations about the opportunities and challenges such tools present to new transactional lawyers, say professors at Cornell Law School.

  • What Patent Claim 'Invalidity' Means In Different Forums

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    A recent Federal Circuit order allowing a patent suit to proceed despite similar claims being invalidated in an inter partes review underscores how fractured the patent litigation landscape has become, leading to critical nuances in how district courts, the U.S. International Trade Commission and Patent Trial and Appeal Board treat invalidity, says Jason Hoffman at BakerHostetler.

  • Reel Justice: 'Eddington' Spotlights Social Media Evidence

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    In the neo-Western black comedy “Eddington” released last month, social media is a character unto itself, highlighting how the boundaries between digital and real-world conduct can become blurred, thereby posing evidentiary challenges in criminal prosecutions, says Veronica Finkelstein at Wilmington University School of Law.

  • 8th Circ. Rulings Show Employer ADA Risks In Fitness Tests

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    Two recent Eighth Circuit decisions reviving lawsuits brought by former Union Pacific employees offer guidance for navigating compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, serving as a cautionary tale for employers that use broad fitness-for-duty screening programs and highlighting the importance of individualized assessments, says Masood Ali at Segal McCambridge.

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