Commercial Contracts

  • May 22, 2024

    Record Co. Worker Can't Appeal Before Nirvana Logo Trial

    A former record company employee who claims he created Nirvana's "smiley face" logo can't immediately appeal a ruling denying his ownership claim or delay trial in the band's copyright suit against designer Marc Jacobs International LLC over the logo, a California federal judge has ruled.

  • May 22, 2024

    NFL Escapes Sanders Statue Spat As Getty Eyes Arbitration

    The NFL has escaped a New York federal lawsuit filed by a professional photographer who claims his copyrighted photo was unlawfully used to create a statue of legendary running back Barry Sanders, while Getty Images Inc. hopes to settle through arbitration.

  • May 22, 2024

    Tax Biz Sues Wayfair In Del. For Unpaid Tax Savings Delivery

    Texas-headquartered consultant Ryan Tax Compliance Services LLC on Wednesday sued Wayfair LLC in Delaware's Superior Court, accusing the online consumer goods giant of failing to pay more than $1.8 million in fees after Ryan delivered $7 million in tax payout savings over three years.

  • May 22, 2024

    Fla. Judge Won't Pause Russian Planes Coverage Suit

    A Florida judge on Wednesday refused to pause an aircraft leasing company's coverage suit for $700 million worth of airplanes reappropriated by Russian airlines after the Ukraine war began, denying a request by some of the company's insurers to wait until litigation in the U.K. is resolved.

  • May 22, 2024

    Wells Fargo Tries 2 Tactics To Get Overdraft Fee Suit Bounced

    Wells Fargo is arguing to a South Dakota federal judge that customers suing as a potential class fully knew they were subject to penalties when they bounced checks, and that an arbitration clause obligates them to handle disputes outside court.

  • May 22, 2024

    Ill. Justices Weigh Zurich's Right To Recover $3M Flood Loss

    The Illinois Supreme Court weighed Wednesday whether Zurich American Insurance Co. can recoup $3 million from a subcontractor for water damage repair costs the insurer paid to a general contractor despite Zurich filing suit on behalf of a different insured.

  • May 22, 2024

    Del. Justices Reverse BitGo-Galaxy Merger Suit Dismissal

    Delaware's Supreme Court on Wednesday reversed the dismissal of a lawsuit that cryptocurrency wallet provider BitGo Holding Inc. filed against digital assets firm Galaxy Digital Holdings Inc., remanding the dispute over their broken $1.2 billion merger back to Chancery Court to resolve multiple "ambiguities."

  • May 22, 2024

    Daughter Sues Over Oil Co. Family's 'Looting Campaign'

    Two relatives of Westmore Fuel Co. Inc.'s late co-founder are plundering the company to edge out his successors, the daughter of a co-founder claims in a Connecticut state court complaint aiming to dissolve the firm.

  • May 22, 2024

    Insurance Co. Says Ex-Underwriter 'Lured' Away Colleagues

    An insurance brokerage and its affiliate have accused a former high-ranking company official of decamping for a competitor and encouraging colleagues to follow suit, according to a complaint designated Wednesday to North Carolina Business Court.

  • May 22, 2024

    Boeing Can't Use Belated Patent Defense In Startup's IP Trial

    A Washington federal judge has rejected The Boeing Co.'s last-minute bid to tell a jury that its patents preempt claims it misappropriated an electric jet startup's intellectual property, saying it would be unfair to allow previously unpled affirmative defenses now that the trial is underway.

  • May 22, 2024

    'Pump-And-Dump' Claims Sputter In 'Disorganized' RICO Suit

    A Michigan federal judge on Tuesday freed multiple defendants accused of funding a "pump-and-dump" scheme, saying a company suing over shareholders' alleged $3 million losses couldn't prove that the defendants made any plans together, while taking jabs at both sides' "disorganized" filings.

  • May 22, 2024

    OSU Strikes Deal To Resolve Ex-Prof's Gender Bias Suit

    Ohio State University reached a tentative deal Wednesday with a former marketing professor to end her lawsuit accusing the school of firing her for working with outside clients while male colleagues escaped retribution, a notice in federal court said.

  • May 22, 2024

    Data Storage Co. Says Seagate Stole Info For New Product

    New Jersey data storage company Access Optical Networks Inc. has sued competitor Seagate Technology LLC in California state court, alleging its rival stole trade secrets to advance development of a new storage product — all while pretending to want to develop a business relationship with AON.

  • May 22, 2024

    Twitter Must Turn Over Records In Eviction Fight

    A Colorado state judge has ordered X Corp., formerly Twitter, to produce records in a lease dispute related to its alleged decision to not pay rent to a Colorado landlord, but found it's not necessary at this point for the social media company to turn over documents about other leases.

  • May 22, 2024

    Honeywell Rival Sues To Ward Off 'Meritless' Litigation Threat

    A Japanese manufacturer is suing to put a stop to what it described as an "aggressive threat of litigation" by Honeywell International Inc. in the conglomerate's long-running crusade to protect its patents for barcode scanners, calling Honeywell's latest claim "unwarranted and meritless."

  • May 22, 2024

    LA Investor Sues Greenberg Glusker Over 'Appalling' Filings

    A Los Angeles investor has filed a suit against Greenberg Glusker and two of its partners for allegedly bungling his defense in an underlying suit brought by his stepson, accusing the firm of sharing a draft complaint prior to filing and including inaccuracies and unnecessary personal attacks in another filing, while also pressuring him to accept a bad settlement.

  • May 21, 2024

    BNSF Judge Said Trespass Payout Will Be Distance-Based

    BNSF Railway Co. will have to give up profits from at least part of its 1,500-mile oil shipment route to compensate a Washington tribe for nearly a decade of train trespassings across a less-than-mile-long easement, a federal judge ruled Monday.

  • May 21, 2024

    Texas Panel Says Mallory Ruling Has No Home There

    A Texas appellate court has upheld a ruling preventing a Dallas car repair services company from litigating a trade secrets case there against a Michigan rival over allegedly hiring away a former executive, holding that the U.S. Supreme Court's Mallory decision last year doesn't do much in Texas.

  • May 21, 2024

    Pacific Seafood Beats Crab Price-Fixing Claims, For Now

    A California federal magistrate judge on Tuesday dismissed a proposed class action claiming Pacific Seafood fixed the price paid to fishers for Dungeness crab in the Pacific Northwest but will allow the fisherman who filed the suit the opportunity to amend most of his claims.

  • May 21, 2024

    Bungie's Code Copying Claims Questioned At Seattle Trial

    A top product security engineer at Bungie told a Seattle federal jury on Tuesday that a hacker accused of exploiting a popular game to make cheat software likely never had access to the game's source code and acknowledged the game company hasn't seen the cheat code that it claims amounts to copyright infringement.

  • May 21, 2024

    Realtors Want Rethink After DOJ Antitrust Probe Allowed

    The National Association of Realtors has asked the D.C. Circuit for a rehearing after the appeals court found the U.S. Department of Justice can reopen an antitrust investigation into the trade group despite an earlier agency settlement over the association's rules.

  • May 21, 2024

    Calif. Justices Doubt App-Based Drivers' Prop 22 Challenge

    Several California Supreme Court justices pushed back Tuesday against arguments by ride-hailing drivers that the Proposition 22 ballot measure carving out certain app-based workers from a worker classification law unconstitutionally runs afoul of the Legislature's authority, with one justice saying their position could "freeze out" voter-approved initiatives.

  • May 21, 2024

    Toll Bros. Lobs Legal Malpractice Claims At Gordon Rees

    Luxury home builder Toll Bros. Inc. has filed legal malpractice and breach of contract claims against Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani LLP, claiming that the California-based firm didn't comply with discovery obligations, among other failures while representing Toll Bros. in a dispute over a project in Washington state.

  • May 21, 2024

    Medical Marijuana Co. Owes Investor Duo $200K, Suit Says

    A pair of would-be investors in a purported medical marijuana company have sued the enterprise and two of its representatives, claiming repayment of their $200,000 investment was over five months overdue.

  • May 21, 2024

    DC Circ. Says Drugmakers Can Limit Pharmacy Discounts

    The D.C. Circuit held Tuesday that a federal drug discount program does not bar manufacturers from restricting deliveries of discounted drugs to contract pharmacies, rejecting the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' expansive interpretation of the 340B drug pricing program.

Expert Analysis

  • Former Minn. Chief Justice Instructs On Writing Better Briefs

    Author Photo

    Former Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Lorie Gildea, now at Greenberg Traurig, offers strategies on writing more effective appellate briefs from her time on the bench.

  • Stay Interviews Are Key To Retaining Legal Talent

    Author Photo

    Even as the economy shifts and layoffs continue, law firms still want to retain their top attorneys, and so-called stay interviews — informal conversations with employees to identify potential issues before they lead to turnover — can be a crucial tool for improving retention and morale, say Tina Cohen Nicol and Kate Reder Sheikh at Major Lindsey.

  • Independent Regulator Could Chip Away At FIFA Autonomy

    Author Photo

    After the U.K.'s recent proposal for an independent football regulator, FIFA's commitment to safeguarding football association autonomy remains unwavering, despite a history of complexities arising from controversies in the bidding and hosting of major tournaments, say Yasin Patel at Church Court Chambers and Caitlin Haberlin-Chambers at SLAM Global.

  • Series

    Spray Painting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    My experiences as an abstract spray paint artist have made me a better litigator, demonstrating — in more ways than one — how fluidity and flexibility are necessary parts of a successful legal practice, says Erick Sandlin at Bracewell.

  • Examining The Arbitration Clause Landscape Amid Risks

    Author Photo

    Amid a new wave of mass arbitrations, recent developments in the courts and from the American Arbitration Association suggest that companies should improve arbitration clause drafting to protect themselves against big-ticket settlements and avoid major potential liability, say attorneys at Benesch.

  • 10 Areas To Watch In Aerospace And Defense Contracting Law

    Author Photo

    The near future holds a number of key areas to watch in aerospace and defense contracting law, ranging from dramatic developments in the space industry to recent National Defense Authorization Act updates, which are focused on U.S. leadership in emerging technologies, say Joseph Berger and Chip Purcell at Thompson Hine.

  • Meta Data Scraping Case Has Lessons For Platforms, AI Cos.

    Author Photo

    The California federal court ruling that artificial intelligence company Bright Data's scraping of public data from Meta social media sites does not constitute a breach of contract signals that platforms should review their terms of service and AI companies could face broad implications for their training of algorithms, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Independence Is Imperative This Election Year

    Author Photo

    As the next election nears, the judges involved in the upcoming trials against former President Donald Trump increasingly face political pressures and threats of violence — revealing the urgent need to safeguard judicial independence and uphold the rule of law, says Benes Aldana at the National Judicial College.

  • Series

    Riding My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Using the Peloton platform for cycling, running, rowing and more taught me that fostering a mind-body connection will not only benefit you physically and emotionally, but also inspire stamina, focus, discipline and empathy in your legal career, says Christopher Ward at Polsinelli.

  • Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents

    Author Photo

    Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.

  • What 2 Years Of Ukraine-Russia Conflict Can Teach Cos.

    Author Photo

    A few key legal lessons for the global business community since Russia's invasion of Ukraine could help protect global commerce in times of future conflict, including how to respond to disparate trade restrictions and sanctions, navigate war-related contract disputes, and protect against heightened cybersecurity risks, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Assessing 2 Years Of High Court's Arbitration Waiver Ruling

    Author Photo

    In the two years since the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Morgan v. Sundance, clarifying that no special rules apply to waiver of arbitration provisions, the ruling has had immediate ramifications in federal courts, but it may take some time for the effects to be felt on other federal issues and in state courts, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • What Recent Study Shows About AI's Promise For Legal Tasks

    Author Photo

    Amid both skepticism and excitement about the promise of generative artificial intelligence in legal contexts, the first randomized controlled trial studying its impact on basic lawyering tasks shows mixed but promising results, and underscores the need for attorneys to proactively engage with AI, says Daniel Schwarcz at University of Minnesota Law School.

  • The Epic Antitrust Cases And Challenges Of Injunctive Relief

    Author Photo

    The Epic cases against Apple and Google offer a window into the courts' considerable challenges in Big Tech litigation and establishing injunctive relief that enhances competition and benefits consumers, say Kelly Lear Nordby and Jon Tomlin at Ankura Consulting.

  • UMG-TikTok IP Rift Highlights Effective Rights Control Issues

    Author Photo

    Despite Universal Music Group's recent withdrawal of TikTok's licensing rights to its music catalog, the platform struggles to control uploads and reproductions of copyrighted material, highlighting the inherent tension between creative freedom and effective rights control in the age of social media, says Simon Goodbody at Bray & Krais.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Commercial Contracts archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!