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Appellate

  • September 08, 2025

    DC Circ. Probes Sovereign Immunity In Nazi Art Case

    The D.C. Circuit on Monday grappled with whether claims asserted by the descendants of Hungarian Jewish art collectors over artwork stolen during the German occupation of Hungary are barred under sovereign immunity, focusing on how to delineate an "occupation."

  • September 08, 2025

    Atty In Judge Newman Suspension Feud Moves To DOJ

    An attorney who has been representing Federal Circuit Judge Pauline Newman in the legal battle over her suspension has jumped from the New Civil Liberties Alliance to work at the U.S. Department of Justice.

  • September 08, 2025

    Barrett Talks Dobbs, Court's Role In New Book

    U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett defends her vote to overturn Roe v. Wade and declare there's no constitutional right to abortion in her new memoir, which also provides unique insight into her view of the judiciary's role in American democracy and her approach to interpreting law.

  • September 08, 2025

    11th Circ. Grants Cop Immunity Over Repeat 911 Caller Arrest

    An Eleventh Circuit panel has ruled that a pair of cops are shielded by qualified immunity for arresting a woman who repeatedly called 911 to report gunfire in her neighborhood despite knowing that the guns were being fired on a legal shooting range.

  • September 08, 2025

    Securities Class Actions Had A Late Summer Appellate Bloom

    While the later summer months are often a quiet time for the nation's courts, the federal appellate courts were hard at work this past July and August issuing important rulings on class certification standards for shareholder lawsuits and handing down split-panel decisions over the future of disclosure litigation.

  • September 08, 2025

    11th Circ. Says Cos.' 20-Year Contract Fight Properly Ended

    The Eleventh Circuit won't revive fastener and components supplier Whitesell Corp.'s contract fight with household appliance maker Electrolux and a lawn and garden equipment-maker spinoff company, saying it will not disturb various court rulings that led to a nearly $9 million jury verdict after 20 years of litigation.

  • September 08, 2025

    9th Circ. Upholds Dismissal Of 'Penny Dreadful' IP Suit

    The Ninth Circuit on Monday affirmed a lower court's decision to dismiss a suit brought by a woman who claimed her writings on an online role-playing forum were used to create a character in the Showtime series "Penny Dreadful," saying the resemblance between her characters and Showtime's wasn't obvious enough to preclude coincidence.

  • September 08, 2025

    Grassley Blocked On Quick US Attorney Confirmations

    Senate Judiciary Committee chair Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, tried Monday to quickly confirm 10 nominees for U.S. attorneys, but was blocked by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

  • September 08, 2025

    Phillips 66 Faces Retrial After 'Improper' Infringement Theory

    The Federal Circuit on Monday ordered a new trial over allegations that Phillips 66 infringed Magēmā Technology's oil refinery patents, saying in a precedential opinion that a Texas federal court wrongfully concluded that Phillips' noninfringement theory was harmless, as it had also found the theory "improper and prejudicial."

  • September 08, 2025

    Biz Groups Ask Justices To Shield Freight Brokers From Suits

    Business and trucking trade groups asked the U.S. Supreme Court to smooth out splintered circuit court rulings that have exposed freight brokers to patchwork liability for state-based negligence claims, saying there could be lasting disruptions to the supply chain if the justices don't intervene.

  • September 08, 2025

    Exxon, BP, Others Keep Dismissal Of Pa. Benzene Suit

    A Pennsylvania appeals court on Monday refused to reinstate a woman's suit alleging that products from Exxon Mobil Corp., BP Products North America Inc. and others exposed her husband to benzene, leading to his death, ruling the trial court rightly found that North Carolina is the far better venue.

  • September 08, 2025

    Del. Gov. Defends Corp. Law Overhaul In Pending Appeal

    Delaware's governor has weighed in strongly against a state Supreme Court challenge to legislation approved earlier this year barring damages or "equitable" relief for some controlling stockholder or going-private deals, arguing that nothing in the measure unconstitutionally limits court powers.

  • September 08, 2025

    Caltrans Escapes $3.8M Verdict Over Bicyclist's Injuries

    The California Department of Transportation successfully overturned a $3.8 million jury verdict in a case involving a bicycle accident on a bridge in Santa Barbara that caused a man's severe injuries, as an appeals court ruled Monday that the trial court improperly excluded Caltrans' witnesses as a discovery sanction.

  • September 08, 2025

    Trump Returns To High Court In Foreign Aid Freeze Dispute

    President Donald Trump asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to pause a lower court's order requiring the administration to release roughly $4 billion in frozen foreign aid, claiming the ruling interferes with his attempt to lawfully rescind the funding.

  • September 08, 2025

    Pa. Top Court Snapshot: Clickwrap Agreements, Mail-In Votes

    The Pennsylvania Supreme Court will return from its summer break with a couple of familiar issues, including the heavily litigated issue of discarding undated mail-in ballots and a much-anticipated review of common "clickwrap" agreements for apps and websites. Here are some of the cases the state's justices will hear in their Sept. 9-11 session.

  • September 08, 2025

    NJ Justices Question Parole Board Rule's Constitutionality

    The New Jersey Supreme Court suggested Monday that a state Parole Board regulation posed a due process problem by categorically barring prison inmates from accessing their psychological evaluations even if the board applies the rule in a manner that it says is constitutional.

  • September 08, 2025

    9th Circ. Denies CoStar's Bid To Rehear Antitrust Ruling

    A Ninth Circuit panel rejected a call to revisit the court's June decision reviving claims alleging that real estate information service CoStar monopolizes several commercial real estate listing markets through exclusive deals with brokers and technological barriers for competitors.

  • September 08, 2025

    Class Actions May Be The New Injunction Bid, And Next Target

    In the two months since the Supreme Court hobbled universal injunctions, lawyers and trial judges have pivoted to adjust to a new litigation landscape, with class actions playing a larger role in lawsuits seeking to stop presidential policies. That, in turn, could put the tactic in the administration's crosshairs.

  • September 08, 2025

    Bessent Says US Will Refund Revenue If Justices Nix Tariffs

    If the U.S. Supreme Court decides President Donald Trump lacked authority to impose tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, the U.S. government will refund revenue it has collected with tariffs under that law, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said.

  • September 08, 2025

    9th Circ. Backs Trump Donor's Tax, Foreign Agent Convictions

    A venture capitalist whose 12-year prison term for evading taxes and making illegal campaign contributions through foreign clients was commuted by President Donald Trump did not plead guilty to the crimes involuntarily, the Ninth Circuit found in affirming his convictions, rejecting his claim that his attorney hid information from him.

  • September 08, 2025

    5th Circ. Reinstates $2.4M Award In Hair Product Co.'s IP Suit

    The Fifth Circuit has restored a $2.4 million jury award to a hair product company in its trademark infringement trial win over a rival, ruling a district court judge was wrong to throw out the verdict and the company had shown evidence the infringement hurt its business.

  • September 08, 2025

    Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

    Last week at the Delaware Court of Chancery, a bankruptcy administrator for a generic drugmaker formerly known as Teligent was told he can proceed with duty of oversight claims against most former officers and directors of the company, who the administrator said was complicit in the company's collapse. In an opinion, the Court of Chancery cites its 1996 decision In re Caremark International Inc. Derivative Litigation, which refined director duties of care and oversight.

  • September 08, 2025

    Conn. Tax Atty Wants Full Appeals Court To Rethink Her Firing

    Connecticut's former tax legal director has asked the full Connecticut Appellate Court to reconsider an appellate panel's ruling that found her firing was proper after she used her work computer to send unauthorized draft legislation to a lobbyist, arguing that as a case of first impression it is important for the full court to weigh in.

  • September 08, 2025

    Appeal Limited To NJ US Atty DQ Ruling, 3rd Circ. Told

    The federal government and defense counsel have agreed that the scope of a Third Circuit appeal is limited to the disqualification of New Jersey Acting U.S. Attorney Alina Habba from overseeing two cases.

  • September 08, 2025

    Dems Again Ask NY Ethics Body To Investigate Bove

    Two Democratic senators filed an updated ethics complaint with the New York State Courts' attorney ethics body against recently confirmed Third Circuit Judge Emil Bove, citing what they called his "quid pro quo deal" to drop criminal charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams and other alleged ethical violations.

Expert Analysis

  • Birthright Ruling Could Alter Consumer Financial Litigation

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s upcoming decision about the validity of the nationwide injunctions in the birthright citizenship cases, argued on May 15, could make it much harder for trade associations to obtain nationwide relief from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's enforcement of invalid regulations, says Alan Kaplinsky at Ballard Spahr.

  • Fed. Circ. In April: Introducing New Evidence During IPR

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    The Federal Circuit's decision in Sage Products v. Stewart last month upheld the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's decision to allow a petitioner to rely on case-dispositive evidence beyond prior art references, affording petitioners in inter partes review proceedings greater latitude in the timing of evidence presentation, say attorneys at Knobbe Martens.

  • 1st Circ. Ruling Widens Split Over Sentencing Enhancements

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    In U.S. v. Salvador-Gutierrez, the First Circuit recently switched sides in a circuit split by holding that certain sentencing enhancements apply only where the defendant used a minor in the commission of the crime, deepening a divide over the scope of role adjustments, says Sarah Sulkowski at Gelber & Santillo.

  • A Cautionary Fed. Circ. Tale On Design Patents

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    The Federal Circuit's decision last month in Floyd highlights a risk in design patent prosecution — attempting to claim priority to a utility application, says John Hemmer at Morgan Lewis.

  • Series

    Power To The Paralegals: An Untapped Source For Biz Roles

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    Law firms looking to recruit legal business talent should consider turning to paralegals, who practice several key skills every day that prepare them to thrive in marketing and client development roles, says Vanessa Torres at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Google Case Amicus Briefs Reveal Patent Damage Fault Lines

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    The 21 amicus briefs filed before the en banc rehearing of EcoFactor v. Google offer opposing viewpoints on important patent damages issues that extend beyond the specific question the Federal Circuit eventually ruled on, helping practitioners anticipate and address likely objections to future damages opinions, say attorneys at Stout.

  • Using Federal Forum Provisions To Nix State Securities Cases

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    A California appeals court's recent decision in Bullock v. Rivian clarifies that underwriters may enforce federal forum provisions to escape state court Securities Act claims, marking progress in restoring such lawsuits to federal court and reducing the litigation costs arising from duplicative state court litigation, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

  • 30 Years Later: 2nd Circ.'s Road To Arbitral Preemption

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    The Second Circuit's recent decision in Lloyds of London v. 3131 Veterans Blvd. overturns its own 1995 precedent and squares its position with decades of circuit court jurisprudence holding that international arbitration agreements must take primacy over state anti-arbitration insurance laws, say attorneys at Linklaters.

  • Series

    Playing Poker Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Poker is a master class in psychology, risk management and strategic thinking, and I’m a better attorney because it has taught me to read my opponents, adapt when I’m dealt the unexpected and stay patient until I'm ready to reveal my hand, says Casey Kingsley at McCreadyLaw.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Becoming A Firmwide MVP

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    Though lawyers don't have a neat metric like baseball players for measuring the value they contribute to their organizations, the sooner new attorneys learn skills frequently skipped in law school — like networking, marketing, client development and case evaluation — the more valuable, and less replaceable, they will be, says Alex Barnett at DiCello Levitt.

  • 9th Circ. Ruling Clarifies Derivative Suit Representation Test

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    The Ninth Circuit's recent ruling in Bigfoot Ventures v. Knighton clarifies the test used to assess the adequacy of a plaintiff's representation in a shareholder derivative action, and will likely prove useful to litigants by ensuring that courts can fully examine all relevant circumstances, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • Patenting AI And Machine Learning In The Wake Of Recentive

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    Though the Federal Circuit's recent decision in Recentive Analytics v. Fox Corp. initially appears to doom patents related to artificial intelligence and machine learning, a closer look shows that strategies for successfully drafting and prosecuting such patents offer hope despite increased pushback from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, say attorneys at Banner Witcoff.

  • Age Bias Suit Against Aircraft Co. Offers Lessons For Layoffs

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    In Raymond v. Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, an aircraft maker's former employees recently dismissed their remaining claims after the Tenth Circuit rejected their nearly decade-old collective action alleging age discrimination stemming from a 2013 reduction in force, reminding employers about the importance of carefully planning and documenting mass layoffs, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • Trade Secrets Would Likely See Court Protection From GenAI

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    The advent of generative artificial intelligence has given rise to debate about how this technology will affect intellectual property rights and trade secret protections in particular, but courts to date have protected owners when technological advances have facilitated new means for trade secret theft, say attorneys at Kilpatrick Townsend.

  • How Mass Arbitration Defense Strategies Have Fared In Court

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    As businesses face consumers who leverage arbitration agreements to compel mass arbitration, companies are trying defense strategies like batching arbitration cases to reduce costs, and escaping specific mass arbitrations without rejecting the process completely, with varying results in the courtroom, say attorneys at Montgomery McCracken.

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