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Appellate
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August 06, 2025
2nd Circ. Backs J&J Spinoff In 'Rapid Release' Label Suit
The Second Circuit on Wednesday declined to revive a proposed class action alleging a Johnson & Johnson spinoff company misled consumers by claiming that "Rapid Release" Tylenol gelcaps dissolve faster than other types of Tylenol.
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August 06, 2025
Russia Says It Never Agreed To Arbitrate With Ukrainian Utility
Russia has asked the D.C. Circuit to overturn a decision ordering it to face litigation by a Ukrainian utility to enforce a nearly $219 million arbitral award the company won after its Crimean assets were seized, saying it never agreed to arbitrate with the company.
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August 06, 2025
7th Circ. Revives Ex-Teacher's Suit Over Trans Student Names
A split Seventh Circuit panel reinstated a religious bias suit from a Christian teacher who alleged that a school district unlawfully required him to refer to transgender students by their preferred names, with a dissent warning that the ruling created a "perilous precedent" for employers.
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August 06, 2025
10th Circ. Partly Revives Ex-Sales Head's Client List Case
A split panel of the Tenth Circuit partially revived a case from a sales executive against his former employer who claims the company took a customer list, saying the executive had improperly been barred from offering expert testimony on his lost wages.
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August 05, 2025
5th Circ. Wipes Out Honeywell Win In Worker's Vaccine Fight
The Fifth Circuit on Tuesday resurrected a former Honeywell employee's suit claiming he was fired for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine after his request for a religious exemption was denied, ruling that a jury could indeed determine that the worker faced religious discrimination.
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August 05, 2025
Key Opioid Theory Actually Irrelevant, Drug Cos. Tell 4th Circ.
With federal judges in West Virginia suddenly split over the central legal theory in opioid litigation, major drug distributors are insisting the theory actually doesn't matter, telling the Fourth Circuit it can uphold their triumph in a landmark trial without even touching the hot-button issue.
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August 05, 2025
Biz Prof's Pay Based On Experience, Not Bias, 6th Circ. Told
Michigan Technological University told the Sixth Circuit on Monday that a former accounting professor was paid less than her husband because he had more teaching experience and better evaluations, urging the court to reject her appeal challenging the dismissal of pay disparity claims and racial or gender discrimination.
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August 05, 2025
Walmart's $2.6M Fall Injury Verdict Not Excessive, Court Affirms
A California appeals court has affirmed a $2.6 million award in a suit accusing Walmart of causing a customer's devastating hamstring injury in a fall, saying the verdict was not excessive given the evidence.
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August 05, 2025
USPTO Urges Fed. Circ. To End Motorola's Fintiv Appeal
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office stood by its acting leader's decision to shut down Motorola's challenge to various Stellar patents at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, saying all of Motorola's appellate arguments at the Federal Circuit should be rejected.
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August 05, 2025
5th Circ. Says Texas Voter ID Law Is Legally Sound
A Fifth Circuit panel upheld a Texas law that requires voters to provide an identification number when voting by mail, finding the law complies with the Civil Rights Act and that the state designed it to combat mail-in ballot fraud.
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August 05, 2025
Fired NCUA Officials Urge DC Circ. To Return Them To Board
Two top credit union regulators fired by President Donald Trump are asking the D.C. Circuit to let them go back to work while it reviews a lower-court decision reinstating them, arguing their service is needed to prevent a painful impending snapback in interest-rate limits for federal credit unions.
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August 05, 2025
Fed. Circ. Presses Brita On Bid To Revive Water Filter Patent
A Federal Circuit panel Tuesday questioned Brita LP's effort to reverse a U.S. International Trade Commission decision that a water filter patent is invalid, suggesting the patent describes little more than an unpredictable scientific formula.
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August 05, 2025
Ex-USPTO Heads, Judges Oppose Anti-Patent Thicket Bill
A pro-innovation group composed of former U.S. Patent and Trademark Office officials and former Federal Circuit judges on Tuesday asked Congress to oppose a bill introduced last month that would limit so-called patent thickets used by pharmaceutical companies to restrict the production of generic counterparts to their drugs.
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August 05, 2025
Fed. Circ. Panel Feeling Deja Vu In Hoverboard IP Case
A Federal Circuit panel had little support for the owner of hoverboard design patents Tuesday, as the judges said much of its noninfringement appeal relies on concerns addressed in a prior appellate decision.
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August 05, 2025
Fed. Circ. Partly Revives Solar Panel Safety Patent Challenge
The Federal Circuit on Tuesday said the Patent Trial and Appeal Board has to take another look at one of renewable energy industry trade group SunSpec Alliance's arguments in its challenge to claims of a patent on safeguards for solar panels.
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August 05, 2025
10th Circ. Says No Signature Needed In Asylum Appeal
The Tenth Circuit on Tuesday revived a Salvadoran family's appeal of an immigration judge's denial of their asylum claim, ruling that the Board of Immigration Appeals wrongly rejected it over a missing signature that wasn't legally required.
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August 05, 2025
UBH Patients Score Partial Win In Mental Health Claims Fight
A California federal judge handed a partial win Tuesday to a class of participants in employee health benefit plans who sought coverage for mental health and substance use disorder treatments from United Behavioral Health, holding the company's overly restrictive guidelines breached fiduciary duties under federal benefits law.
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August 05, 2025
Fed. Hazmat Law Doesn't Bar Negligence Suit, 2nd Circ. Says
A Connecticut federal judge was wrong to find that the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act preempted a propane company's common-law negligence and recklessness claims over damage it suffered from a heating oil spill, the Second Circuit ruled Tuesday in restoring a lawsuit seeking more than $500,000 to cover remediation costs.
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August 05, 2025
McDermott Investors Say One Class Is Enough In Fraud Case
An employee retirement plan leading an investor class action against McDermott International Inc. asked the Fifth Circuit on Tuesday to reverse an order certifying two subclasses of investors based on whether they held stock before or after a 2018 merger.
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August 05, 2025
Ill. Appeals Court Backs Counsel Redo In Battery Case
An Illinois state appeals court has ruled that a man found guilty of domestic battery is entitled to a trial court hearing on a motion he personally lodged claiming his attorney was ineffective and that he was unfairly denied the hearing because of how he filed the request.
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August 05, 2025
2nd Circ. Nixes Madoff Feeder Fund Clawback Suits
About 300 clawback lawsuits filed by the liquidators of British Virgin Islands-based funds that invested in Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities should be dismissed, a Second Circuit panel said on Tuesday, finding the deals were protected by the U.S. Bankruptcy Code's safe harbor for securities transactions.
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August 05, 2025
Homeowners Policy Doesn't Cover Shooting, 6th Circ. Says
State Farm has no duty to defend or indemnify a man facing wrongful death claims after he unintentionally shot and killed a woman in a domestic dispute, the Sixth Circuit affirmed Tuesday, finding that his intentional gunshots still created a foreseeable risk of harm and thus weren't an insurable accident.
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August 05, 2025
Infant Death Suit Reinstated Against Texas Hospital, Doctors
A Texas appeals panel on Tuesday reinstated a couple's suit against Texas Children's Hospital and doctors with Baylor College of Medicine over the death of their 5-week-old infant, finding the trial court abused its discretion in finding their expert report was insufficient to support their claims.
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August 05, 2025
DC Circ. Upholds Reincarceration Following Release Mistake
The D.C. Circuit ruled Tuesday that the lower court in the district did not violate the civil rights of a man who served 27 additional months in prison after the D.C. Department of Corrections accidentally released him and only discovered the error while he was incarcerated again for a different matter.
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August 05, 2025
Pa. Court Says State Can Suspend DUI Suspect's License
In a precedential ruling, Pennsylvania's Commonwealth Court has found that a state law stripping those suspected of DUI of their driver's licenses for one year if they refuse to be tested for intoxicating substances is constitutional, despite a driver's contrary assertions.
Expert Analysis
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In NRC Ruling, Justices Affirm Hearing Process Still Matters
The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Nuclear Regulatory Commission v. Texas safeguards the fairness, clarity and predictability of the regulatory system by affirming that to challenge an agency's decision in court, litigants must first meaningfully participate in the hearing process that Congress and the agency have established, says Jonathan Rund at the Nuclear Energy Institute.
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What Baseball Can Teach Criminal Attys About Rule Of Lenity
Judges tend to assess ambiguous criminal laws not unlike how baseball umpires approach checked swings, so defense attorneys should consider how to best frame their arguments to maximize courts' willingness to invoke the rule of lenity, wherein a tie goes to the defendant, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.
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Tips For Litigating Apex Doctrine Disputes Amid Controversy
Litigants once took for granted that deposition requests of high-ranking corporate officers required a greater showing of need than for lower-level witnesses, but the apex doctrine has proven controversial in recent years, and fights over such depositions will be won by creative lawyers adapting their arguments to this particular moment, say attorneys at Hangley Aronchick.
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Series
Performing As A Clown Makes Me A Better Lawyer
To say that being a clown in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has changed my legal career would truly be an understatement — by creating an opening to converse on a unique topic, it has allowed me to connect with clients, counsel and even judges on a deeper level, says Charles Tatelbaum at Tripp Scott.
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9th Circ. Ruling Is Turning Point For Private Funds In 401(k)s
The Ninth Circuit's decision in Anderson v. Intel reinforces that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act's duty of prudence permits fiduciaries to use private market assets in diversified funds, yet it also exposes the persistent litigation and regulatory uncertainties that continue to temper wider adoption in 401(k) plans, say attorneys at Debevoise.
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Perspectives
Justices' Sentencing Ruling Is More Of A Ripple Than A Wave
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last week in Esteras v. U.S., limiting the factors that lower courts may consider in imposing prison sentences for supervised release violations, is symbolically important, but its real-world impact will likely be muted for several reasons, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.
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DOJ Atty Firing Highlights Tension Between 2 Ethical Duties
The U.S. Department of Justice's recent firing of a prosecutor-turned-whistleblower involved in the Abrego Garcia v. Noem case illustrates the tricky balancing act between zealous client advocacy and a lawyer’s duty of candor to the court, which many clients fail to appreciate, says David Atkins at Yale Law School.
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Series
Law School's Missed Lessons: Rejecting Biz Dev Myths
Law schools don’t spend sufficient time dispelling certain myths that prevent young lawyers from exploring new business opportunities, but by dismissing these misguided beliefs, even an introverted first-year associate with a small network of contacts can find long-term success, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.
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Trade In Limbo: The Legal Storm Reshaping Trump's Tariffs
In the final days of May, decisions in two significant court actions upended the tariff and trade landscape, so until the U.S. Supreme Court rules, businesses and supply chains should expect tariffs to remain in place, and for the Trump administration to continue pursuing and enforcing all available trade policies, say attorneys at Ice Miller.
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Shareholder Takeaways From NY Internal Affairs Doctrine Suit
A May New York Court of Appeals decision in Ezrasons v. Rudd involving Barclays — affirming the state's "firmly entrenched" internal affairs doctrine — is a win for all corporate stakeholders seeking stability in resolving disputes between shareholders and directors and officers, say attorneys at Sadis & Goldberg.
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Move Beyond Surface-Level Edits To Master Legal Writing
Recent instances in which attorneys filed briefs containing artificial intelligence hallucinations offer a stark reminder that effective revision isn’t just about superficial details like grammar — it requires attorneys to critically engage with their writing and analyze their rhetorical choices, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.
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3 Rulings May Reveal Next Frontier Of Gov't Contract Cases
Several U.S. Supreme Court decisions over the past year — involving wire fraud, gratuities and obstruction — offer wide-ranging and arguably conflicting takeaways for government contractors that are especially relevant given the Trump administration’s focus on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, say attorneys at Rogers Joseph.
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NCAA Settlement Kicks Off New Era For Student-Athlete NIL
A landmark settlement stemming from 15 years of litigation between schools and the NCAA reflects a major development in college athletics by securing compensation for usage of student-athletes' names, images and likenesses, and schools hoping to take advantage of new opportunities should take proactive steps to comply with new rules, say attorneys at Manatt.
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7th Circ. Insurance Ruling Resolves Major Jurisdictional Issue
The Seventh Circuit recently confirmed in StarStone Insurance v. Chicago that attorney fees and costs paid as part of a settlement are covered — while unexpectedly raising and answering a question of first impression about federal jurisdiction over foreign entities, says Lara Langeneckert at Barnes & Thornburg.
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DOJ May Rethink Banning Firearms For Marijuana Users
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.