Aerospace & Defense

  • April 03, 2025

    Former Admiral Loses Bid To Escape Bribery Case

    A D.C. federal judge refused to dismiss charges the U.S. government brought against former Navy Admiral Robert P. Burke for allegedly steering a contract to a company in exchange for a lucrative post-retirement position, calling his attempt to escape the charges "meritless."

  • April 03, 2025

    ATM Company Sanctioned For 'Objectively Frivolous' Claim

    A Georgia federal judge on Wednesday tossed an attempt to relitigate a patent infringement suit brought by an ATM technology company against a competitor, and sanctioned its attorneys for bringing the "objectively frivolous" claim that the competitor defrauded the court in a previous suit.

  • April 03, 2025

    'No Serious Question' Federal Firings Broke Law, Justices Told

    Federal employee unions and advocacy groups urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to reject the Trump administration's bid to pause a California court order reinstating tens of thousands of probationary workers fired from six agencies, arguing the government can't escape self-inflicted harms brought on by its allegedly unlawful actions.

  • April 03, 2025

    Nadine Menendez Trial Paused Due To Health Concerns

    Nadine Menendez's trial on charges that she facilitated bribe payments for her husband, former U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, was paused for the week Thursday morning after the defendant appeared to be in discomfort and expressed unspecified health concerns.

  • April 02, 2025

    5 Fed. Circ. Clashes To Watch This Month

    The Federal Circuit will hear arguments this month in patent cases involving Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine and a blockbuster Johnson & Johnson schizophrenia drug, and the court will itself be the subject of a case at another appeals court as Judge Pauline Newman seeks to end her suspension.

  • April 02, 2025

    Transfer Of SpaceX NLRB Challenge To Calif. Paused For Now

    A Texas federal judge has paused an order transferring SpaceX's lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the National Labor Relations Board's structure to California, saying he had mistakenly thought a Fifth Circuit mandate connected to the case had already been issued.

  • April 02, 2025

    Northrop Retirees Can Pursue Some Claims Against Committee

    A California federal judge trimmed, but refused to throw out, proposed class action claims two Northrop Grumman Corp. retirees lodged against their former employer's pension plan administrator, saying the Employee Retirement Income Security Act is unclear if their claims fall outside its statute of limitations.

  • April 02, 2025

    Congress Demands VA Update Health Record System Costs

    A bipartisan group of congressional leaders has sent a letter demanding that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs update its schedule and cost estimate for its problem-ridden, multibillion-dollar electronic health record modernization program, just as the VA announced it would roll out the system to nine additional sites in 2026.

  • April 02, 2025

    Boeing CEO Tells Senate Panel Safety Overhaul Progressing

    Boeing's CEO told a Senate panel Wednesday that the company remains focused on overhauling its corporate culture and plugging safety gaps on production lines, as the plane-maker continues to stabilize its business after being rocked by two 737 Max 8 crashes and a door-plug blowout.

  • April 02, 2025

    CFPB's FirstCash Lending Suit Paused For Settlement Talks

    A Texas federal judge has agreed to pause the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's Biden-era lawsuit accusing a leading U.S. pawn store operator of military lending violations, a case the agency is now discussing settling after deciding last month to move forward with it.

  • April 02, 2025

    Signal Steals The Show At Cybersecurity Oversight Hearing

    Democrats and Republicans faced off Wednesday morning at a House Subcommittee on Military and Foreign Affairs hearing over how to prevent state-sponsored cyberattacks, crossing swords over whether Democrats were "politicizing" the hearing by bringing up the recent Signal app leak of plans to attack targets in Yemen.

  • April 02, 2025

    Fla. Man Gets 70 Months For Sending Aircraft Parts To Russia

    An Arizona federal judge on Wednesday sentenced a Florida resident to nearly six years in prison for illegally exporting controlled aviation technology to Russia, and ordered the forfeiture of the $4.6 million in proceeds he earned through the scheme.

  • April 02, 2025

    DOD Must Justify Noncompetitive Commissary Food Deal

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office has backed a food distributor's protest over a Defense Commissary Agency fresh food supply deal, finding the agency wrongly failed to justify its use of a noncompetitive award.

  • April 02, 2025

    Freshfields Guides Leggett & Platt On $285M Aerospace Sale

    Freshfields US LLP is guiding Leggett & Platt on the sale of its Aerospace Products Group to Tinicum Inc. for $285 million, as the company seeks to better align its portfolio with its long-term vision, according to a Wednesday announcement from Leggett & Platt. 

  • April 02, 2025

    Law Profs Back Cert. Reversal In Boeing Stock-Drop Fight

    Law professors and former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission officials urged the Fourth Circuit to undo class certification for Boeing investors who accused the company of overstating the safety of its 737 Max fleet, calling the certification order a "master class" in misinterpreting precedent.

  • April 01, 2025

    Trump Admin Layoffs 'Probably Broke Laws,' Judge Says

    A Maryland federal judge ruled Tuesday that the Trump administration "probably broke the laws that regulate en masse terminations of government employees," ordering the federal government to reinstate thousands of probationary employees who were abruptly fired from their jobs in 19 states and the District of Columbia.

  • April 01, 2025

    High Court Probes Jurisdiction In Terrorism Victims' Lawsuit

    The U.S. Supreme Court during oral arguments Tuesday gave little indication of how it will rule in a case questioning the constitutionality of a 2019 law ending a jurisdictional hurdle for lawsuits stemming from terrorist attacks in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

  • April 01, 2025

    GAO Supports VA's Rejection Of Wheelchair Services Bid

    The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs reasonably rejected a business's proposal to provide wheelchair transportation services at an Atlanta medical center for failing to include details about how much it would charge for wait times, the U.S. Government Accountability Office said.

  • April 01, 2025

    DOD Parts Maker To Pay $15.7M Over Non-Military Grade Parts

    An electrical parts maker has reached a $15.7 million deal to resolve False Claims Act allegations that it falsely certified certain parts as military-grade when those parts weren't tested as required, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday.

  • April 01, 2025

    Trump Admin Fights Wash.'s Bid To Expand Layoff Injunction

    The Trump administration has urged a California federal judge to reject the state of Washington's request to expand an injunction blocking federal agencies from firing probationary employees, saying the bid to broaden the order to other agencies is unnecessary and based on unfounded speculation of harm. 

  • April 01, 2025

    Insurer Can't Escape Aerospace Co.'s $3.3M Claim Denial Suit

    An insurer for an aerospace products manufacturer can't escape claims that it wrongfully denied coverage of an approximately $3.3 million loss from fund mismanagement after years of delay, an Oregon federal court ruled.

  • April 01, 2025

    GAO Faults Army's Experience Assessment On $544M Deal

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office has sustained a protest over a $544.35 million U.S. Army communications support services deal, saying the Army did not assess the past performance of the contractor in line with its solicitation.

  • April 01, 2025

    6th Circ. Lets Feds End Whistleblower's NASA Contractor Suit

    The Sixth Circuit stood by a lower court's decision to let the federal government intervene and successfully seek dismissal for a whistleblower's False Claims Act suit against a NASA contractor, applying a 2023 U.S. Supreme Court precedent to back the government's recent tear of dismissal bids in FCA cases.

  • April 01, 2025

    3 Firms Guide MDA Space's $269M SatixFy Deal

    MDA Space said Tuesday it will acquire SatixFy Communications Ltd. at an equity value of approximately $193 million in a push by the Brampton, Ontario-based firm to bolster its end-to-end satellite systems offerings, with at least three law firms steering the deal.

  • March 31, 2025

    SpaceX Says It's Too Soon To Transfer Battle With NLRB 

    SpaceX urged a Texas federal court to vacate a renewed order making California the location for the aerospace company's lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the National Labor Relations Board's structure, saying conditions the Fifth Circuit imposed for renewing a bid for a transfer after blocking it in August haven't been met.

Expert Analysis

  • Use The Right Kind Of Feedback To Help Gen Z Attorneys

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    Generation Z associates bring unique perspectives and expectations to the workplace, so it’s imperative that supervising attorneys adapt their feedback approach in order to help young lawyers learn and grow — which is good for law firms, too, says Rachael Bosch at Fringe Professional Development.

  • Opinion

    Congress Can And Must Enact A Supreme Court Ethics Code

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    As public confidence in the U.S. Supreme Court dips to historic lows following reports raising conflict of interest concerns, Congress must exercise its constitutional power to enact a mandatory and enforceable code of ethics for the high court, says Muhammad Faridi, president of the New York City Bar Association.

  • Series

    The Pop Culture Docket: Justice Lebovits On Gilbert And Sullivan

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    Characters in the 19th century comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan break the rules of good lawyering by shamelessly throwing responsible critical thought to the wind, providing hilarious lessons for lawyers and judges on how to avoid a surfeit of traps and tribulations, say acting New York Supreme Court Justice Gerald Lebovits and law student Tara Scown.

  • To Report Or Not To Report Others' Export Control Violations

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    A recent Bureau of Industry and Security enforcement policy change grants cooperation credit to those that report violations of the Export Administration Regulations committed by others, but the benefits of doing so must be weighed against significant drawbacks, including the costs of preparing and submitting a report, says Megan Lew at Cravath.

  • 'Minimum Contacts' Issues At Stake In High Court FSIA Case

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    In CC/Devas v. Antrix, the U.S. Supreme Court must decide whether a "minimum contacts" requirement should be implied in the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, with the potential to dramatically change the legislative landscape through the establishment of a new and significant barrier to U.S. suits against foreign states, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • State Of The States' AI Legal Ethics Landscape

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    Over the past year, several state bar associations, as well as the American Bar Association, have released guidance on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in legal practice, all of which share overarching themes and some nuanced differences, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law Group.

  • How BIS' Rule Seeks To Encourage More Voluntary Disclosure

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    Updated incentives, penalties and enforcement resources in the Bureau of Industry and Security's recently published final rule revising the Export Administration Regulations should help companies decide how to implement export control compliance programs and whether to disclose possible violations, say attorneys at Freshfields.

  • 8 Childhood Lessons That Can Help You Be A Better Attorney

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    A new school year is underway, marking a fitting time for attorneys to reflect on some fundamental life lessons from early childhood that offer a framework for problems that no legal textbook can solve, say Chris Gismondi and Chris Campbell at DLA Piper.

  • Opinion

    This Election, We Need To Talk About Court Process

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    In recent decades, the U.S. Supreme Court has markedly transformed judicial processes — from summary judgment standards to notice pleadings — which has, in turn, affected individuals’ substantive rights, and we need to consider how the upcoming presidential election may continue this pattern, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Series

    Playing Diplomacy Makes Us Better Lawyers

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    Similar to the practice of law, the rules of Diplomacy — a strategic board game set in pre-World War I Europe — are neither concise nor without ambiguity, and weekly gameplay with our colleagues has revealed the game's practical applications to our work as attorneys, say Jason Osborn and Ben Bevilacqua at Winston & Strawn.

  • Bid Protest Spotlight: Debriefings, Timeliness, Documentation

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    ​James Tucker at MoFo examines three recent decisions from the Federal Circuit, the U.S. Government Accountability Office and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims concerning an agency's decision not to hold post-award discussions, a timeliness trap in certain Federal Supply Schedule procurements and the importance of providing contemporaneous documentation in price-evaluation protests.

  • Mental Health First Aid: A Brief Primer For Attorneys

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    Amid a growing body of research finding that attorneys face higher rates of mental illness than the general population, firms should consider setting up mental health first aid training programs to help lawyers assess mental health challenges in their colleagues and intervene with compassion, say psychologists Shawn Healy and Tracey Meyers.

  • Series

    Collecting Art Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The therapeutic aspects of appreciating and collecting art improve my legal practice by enhancing my observation skills, empathy, creativity and cultural awareness, says attorney Michael McCready.

  • Aviation Watch: Boeing Plea Agreement May Not Serve Public

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    The proposed plea agreement between the U.S. Department of Justice and Boeing — the latest outgrowth of the company's 737 Max travails — is opposed by crash victims' families, faces an uncertain fate in court, and may ultimately serve no beneficial purpose, even if approved, says Alan Hoffman, a retired attorney and aviation expert.

  • Secret Service Failures Offer Lessons For Private Sector GCs

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    The Secret Service’s problematic response to two assassination attempts against former President Donald Trump this summer provides a crash course for general counsel on how not to handle crisis communications, says Keith Nahigian at Nahigian Strategies.

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