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Benefits
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May 20, 2025
Indirect Chicken Buyers' Attys Seek Additional $12M In Fees
Attorneys for commercial and institutional indirect purchaser plaintiffs in sprawling antitrust litigation against the nation's top poultry producers asked an Illinois federal judge Monday to approve roughly $12 million in additional attorney fees after they secured more than $41 million in additional deals since a prior fee motion.
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May 20, 2025
Nursing Homes Facing 'Corporate Death Penalty' Owe $15.4M
The companies behind two Pittsburgh-area nursing homes convicted of falsifying staffing records were ordered Tuesday to pay a total of $15.35 million in restitution to the federal government, though the corporations' attorney told the judge that they had already received a "corporate death penalty" for their conviction.
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May 20, 2025
Veterans Seek Certification For VA Consultant Fee Claims
A proposed class of veterans urged a North Carolina federal judge to certify their claims against a consulting firm they allege charged them millions in illegal fees, arguing that the individual claims of thousands all hinge on a single statutory interpretation.
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May 19, 2025
Vanguard $40M Deal Rejected In Investors' Tax Fight
A Pennsylvania federal judge on Monday rejected a $40 million proposed settlement between Vanguard and investors, blocking the investors' attorneys from netting $13 million in fees and embracing the objections of one investor who called out the deal — meant to compensate for surprise tax bills — as worthless.Â
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May 19, 2025
Wells Fargo's 9th Circ. Cert. Challenge Gains SIFMA Backing
A top securities industry group has voiced its support of Wells Fargo's appeal of class certification in an investor dispute alleging the bank conducted "sham" interviews to meet diversity quotas, which harmed the bank's stock price when the truth came to light.
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May 19, 2025
Electric, Nuclear Valve Co. Escape Pension Dispute
A federally owned electric company and a contractor were not required to make pension fund contributions to a plumbers and steamfitters union because the contracted valve work was an exempt specialty contract, a Tennessee federal judge ruled in a lawsuit Monday.
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May 19, 2025
Conn. Con Man Admits To New $1.9M Medicaid Scam
A Connecticut man has admitted to a federal charge in connection with a Medicaid scam he ran with a now-former state employee that netted nearly $1.9 million, federal prosecutors said, noting that some of the criminal activity took place while he was in prison for a different healthcare ripoff.
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May 19, 2025
9th Circ. Backs Family's Win In Suit Over Denied Benefits
The Ninth Circuit declined to upend a guild member's win in his lawsuit challenging his healthcare plan's decision to deny coverage for his son's mental health treatments, but said a lower court was wrong to award the family additional damages on their breach of fiduciary duty claim.
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May 19, 2025
Coast Guard Told To Revisit Forced Retirees' Service Dates
The U.S. Coast Guard can't retroactively apply a policy to speculate that a class of 200-plus service members who were involuntarily retired through an unlawful process would have been involuntarily retired anyway, a Court of Federal Claims judge said Friday.
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May 19, 2025
Atty Says Texas Firm Fired Her For Taking Protected Leave
A former associate at a prominent Texas personal injury firm who claims she was fired after she took medical leave for a disabling eye condition and bereavement leave upon her mother's death has brought a disability discrimination suit against the firm and associated entities in federal court in Houston.
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May 19, 2025
X Failed To Pay Promised Severance, Ex-Workers Say
X, the company formerly known as Twitter, illegally reneged on its promise to keep in place its policy to provide certain severance payments to terminated employees after Elon Musk took over the social media company, a lawsuit filed in Washington federal court said.
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May 19, 2025
Ex-Litigator Settles Disability Bias Suit Against Wilson Elser
A former Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP litigator on Monday agreed to permanently drop his federal disability bias suit against the firm, after the sides came to a confidential resolution.
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May 16, 2025
Firms Eye Setoff Shielding $66M Conn. Life Insurance Policies
Three investment companies holding PHL Variable Insurance Co. policies asked a Connecticut state court judge on Friday to allow them to set off in-force life insurance policy premiums against their $66 million in matured policies, fearing they could receive only a fraction of their investments while the state supervises the struggling insurer.
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May 16, 2025
SEC's Atkins Previews Possible Changes To CEO Pay Rules
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins announced Friday the agency plans to review rules requiring public companies to report the earnings of CEOs and other high-level executives, highlighting a possible area of regulatory change for the now Republican-led commission.
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May 16, 2025
HHS Says Pain Clinic's Delay Hurts $11M Bill Challenge
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Friday fought a pain clinic's bid in North Carolina federal court for a pretrial win in the clinic's suit challenging $11 million in overpayments for urine drug screening tests, saying the clinic waited too long to bring evidence that the testing was justified.
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May 16, 2025
Mich. Judge Gives Final OK To $55M Pandemic Aid Deal
A Michigan state judge has granted final approval to a $55 million settlement between the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency and people who allege their benefits were improperly clawed back without notice during the pandemic.
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May 16, 2025
Intuit Strikes $2M Deal To Wrap Up 401(k) Forfeiture Suit
Intuit will pay $2 million to end a proposed class action alleging its use of forfeited 401(k) funds to cover employer contributions rather than plan expenses violated federal benefits law, the former employee leading the suit said Friday in California federal court.
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May 16, 2025
9th Circ. Upholds California's Employee Classification Test
California's worker-friendly employee classification test doesn't violate the dormant commerce and equal protection clauses of the U.S. Constitution, the Ninth Circuit ruled Friday, upholding the lower court denial of a preliminary injunction.
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May 16, 2025
Stris & Maher Taps DOL Appellate Chief For ERISA Litigation
Trial and appellate litigation boutique Stris & Maher LLP has expanded its Employee Retirement Income Security Act litigation practice with the addition of a veteran U.S. Department of Labor attorney.
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May 16, 2025
Trucking Co. Worker Says Tobacco Surcharge Violates ERISA
An employee of Marten Transport Ltd. is suing the trucking company in Wisconsin federal court, alleging that a tobacco surcharge in its health plan violates federal antidiscrimination law.
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May 15, 2025
Lennar Workers Should Arbitrate 401(k) Suit, Judge Says
Current and former Lennar Corp. employees should have to individually arbitrate a proposed class action claiming the construction company loaded its 401(k) plan with excessive fees and lackluster investment options, a Florida federal magistrate judge recommended, finding the plan's arbitration provision doesn't conflict with federal benefits law.
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May 15, 2025
Feds Freeze Parity Enforcement As Agencies Rethink Regs
Federal agencies said Thursday they will hold off on enforcing a rule requiring employer group health plans to analyze how they restrict coverage for mental health and substance use disorder treatments, citing ongoing litigation aimed at blocking the policy and broader plans to reevaluate enforcement priorities.
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May 15, 2025
Flooring Company Miscalculates Overtime, Ex-Manager Says
A flooring and tile company failed to consider bonuses and incentive compensation it pays employees when calculating their overtime pay rates, a former manager alleged in a proposed class and collective action filed in New Jersey federal court.
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May 15, 2025
House Bill Aims To Nix FMLA Leave Cap For Married Couples
A bipartisan group of U.S. House members floated a bill that aims to strike a provision from the Family and Medical Leave Act that limits leave for married couples who work for the same employer.
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May 14, 2025
Chicken Price-Fixing Atty Fees Challenged Again At 7th Circ.
A class objector in Chicago's massive consolidated suit over broiler chicken price-fixing is again urging the Seventh Circuit to vacate an attorney fee award for class counsel in a $181 million deal for chicken buyers, saying the district court erred in calculating the $51.66 million awarded on remand.
Expert Analysis
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Employers Should Not Neglect Paid Military Leave Compliance
An August decision from the Ninth Circuit and the settlement of a long-running class action, both examining paid leave requirements under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, are part of a nationwide trend that should prompt employers to review their military leave policies to avoid potential litigation and reputational damage, says Bradford Kelley at Littler.
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Opinion
Congress Must Do More To Bolster ERISA Protections
As the Employee Retirement Income Security Act turns 50 this month, we applaud Congress for championing a statute that protects worker and retiree rights, but further action is needed to ban arbitration clauses in plan provisions and codify regulations imperiled by the U.S. Supreme Court’s Chevron ruling, say Michelle Yau and Eleanor Frisch at Cohen Milstein.
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How Fund Advisers Can Limit Election Year Pay-To-Play Risks
With Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz now the Democratic candidate for vice president, politically active investment advisers should take practical steps to avoid triggering strict pay-to-play rules that can lead to fund managers facing mutli-year timeouts from working with public funds after contributing to sitting officials, say attorneys at Dechert.
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Why Attorneys Should Consider Community Leadership Roles
Volunteering and nonprofit board service are complementary to, but distinct from, traditional pro bono work, and taking on these community leadership roles can produce dividends for lawyers, their firms and the nonprofit causes they support, says Katie Beacham at Kilpatrick.
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How NJ Temp Equal Pay Survived A Constitutional Challenge
The Third Circuit recently gave the New Jersey Temporary Workers' Bill of Rights a new lease on life by systematically dismantling multiple theories of the act's unconstitutionality brought by staffing agencies hoping to delay their new equal pay and benefits obligations, say attorneys at Duane Morris.
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Firms Must Offer A Trifecta Of Services In Post-Chevron World
After the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision overturning Chevron deference, law firms will need to integrate litigation, lobbying and communications functions to keep up with the ramifications of the ruling and provide adequate counsel quickly, says Neil Hare at Dentons.
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6th Circ. Ruling Highlights Complexity Of ERISA Preemption
The Sixth Circuit’s recent ruling in Standard Insurance v. Guy — that the defendant couldn't collect his mother’s life insurance after being convicted of murdering his parents — illustrates how courts must engage in mental gymnastics to avoid the broad reach of Employee Retirement Income Security Act preemption, says Mark DeBofsky at DeBofsky Law.
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5 Tips To Succeed In A Master Of Laws Program And Beyond
As lawyers and recent law school graduates begin their Master of Laws coursework across the country, they should keep a few pointers in mind to get the most out of their programs and kick-start successful careers in their practice areas, says Kelley Miller at Reed Smith.
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Series
Being An Opera Singer Made Me A Better Lawyer
My journey from the stage to the courtroom has shown that the skills I honed as an opera singer – punctuality, memorization, creativity and more – have all played a vital role in my success as an attorney, says Gerard D'Emilio at GableGotwals.
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How Law Firms Can Avoid 'Collaboration Drag'
Law firm decision making can be stifled by “collaboration drag” — characterized by too many pointless meetings, too much peer feedback and too little dissent — but a few strategies can help stakeholders improve decision-making processes and build consensus, says Steve Groom at Miles Mediation.
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Opinion
Litigation Funding Disclosure Key To Open, Impartial Process
Blanket investor and funding agreement disclosures should be required in all civil cases where the investor has a financial interest in the outcome in order to address issues ranging from potential conflicts of interest to national security concerns, says Bob Goodlatte, former U.S. House Representative for Virginia.
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What NFL Draft Picks Have In Common With Lateral Law Hires
Nearly half of law firm lateral hires leave within a few years — a failure rate that is strikingly similar to the performance of NFL quarterbacks drafted in the first round — in part because evaluators focus too heavily on quantifiable metrics and not enough on a prospect's character traits, says Howard Rosenberg at Baretz+Brunelle.
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Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: August Lessons
In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy considers certification cases touching on classwide evidence of injury from debt collection practices, defining coupon settlements under the Class Action Fairness Act, proper approaches for evaluating attorney fee awards in class action settlements, and more.
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Planning Law Firm Content Calendars: What, When, Where
During the slower month of August, law firms should begin working on their 2025 content calendars, planning out a content creation and distribution framework that aligns with the firm’s objectives and maintains audience engagement throughout the year, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.
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Series
Playing Golf Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Golf can positively affect your personal and professional life well beyond the final putt, and it’s helped enrich my legal practice by improving my ability to build lasting relationships, study and apply the rules, face adversity with grace, and maintain my mental and physical well-being, says Adam Kelly at Venable.