Appellate

  • July 28, 2026

    Cannabis User Urges 8th Circ. To Rehear Gun Case

    A man convicted of possessing a pistol while using marijuana is urging the Eighth Circuit to rehear his case, arguing that its prior decision to uphold his guilt conflicts with the appeals court's prior ruling requiring the government to prove that a person's drug use caused their dangerous behavior.

  • July 28, 2026

    11th Circ. Weighs Waiver In $12.2M Solar Farm Coverage Case

    An Eleventh Circuit panel grappled Tuesday with whether Zurich American Insurance Co. should be freed from a $12.2 million verdict finding it shortchanged a Georgia solar farm's storm damage claim, with one judge seeming to side with the farm's argument that a waiver of a flood deductible was possible.

  • July 28, 2026

    No COVID Immunity For Mich. Hospitals In Malpractice Revival

    Just because a motion is unopposed doesn't mean it should be granted, Michigan appellate judges said in a published opinion Tuesday, reversing a trial court's decision that the Pandemic Health Care Immunity Act shielded Beaumont Hospital Farmington Hills from a medical malpractice suit.

  • July 28, 2026

    3rd Circ. Upholds Alecto Health's Small-Biz Ch. 11 Plan

    The Third Circuit affirmed Tuesday that hospital owner Alecto Healthcare Services' streamlined Chapter 11 and the resulting plan confirmation withstood an appeal by a creditors' group.

  • July 28, 2026

    2nd Circ. Says Racist Mass Shooter Can Face Death Penalty

    The Second Circuit has determined that the federal government can seek the death penalty for a white supremacist, Payton S. Gendron, who murdered 10 Black people and wounded three others during a May 2022 mass shooting at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, that he partly livestreamed.

  • July 28, 2026

    8th Circ. Keeps Some Claims Alive In Jail Macing Suit

    The Eighth Circuit has partially revived a lawsuit brought by four incarcerated people in a St. Louis jail, finding that guards at the facility should not be granted complete qualified immunity from claims that they used excessive force.

  • July 28, 2026

    4th Circ. Says DOL Can Argue In Lockheed Pension Suit

    A Fourth Circuit panel granted the U.S. Department of Labor's request to participate in oral arguments for a Lockheed Martin Corp. appeal challenging a Maryland federal judge's refusal to dismiss a proposed class action challenging a $9 billion pension risk transfer.

  • July 28, 2026

    Pa. Panel Narrows Test For Tax Exemption On Charities' Land

    A Pennsylvania appeals court panel held Tuesday that the Salvation Army was wrongly denied a real estate tax exemption for an outdoor retreat by the organization, saying that the entire property was operated in keeping with the group's charitable mission.

  • July 28, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Won't Rethink Expert Decision In Microsoft Case

    The Federal Circuit has turned down Microsoft's request that it revisit a panel's decision that reopened the damages amount issue in a patent infringement case brought against the tech giant by Israeli company Exafer Ltd.

  • July 28, 2026

    Court Is In Session Whenever A Judge Says It Is, 6th Circ. Told

    Court is wherever and whenever a judge says it is, counsel for a Detroit judge told a Sixth Circuit panel Tuesday, arguing that subjecting a student to a mock arrest and trial because she fell asleep during a field trip was within his jurisdiction.

  • July 28, 2026

    High Court Asked To Take Another Settled Expectations Case

    E-learning company Kahoot Inc. is pushing the U.S. Supreme Court to take up its challenge to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's practice of using settled expectations as a reason to deny patent reviews, marking the second petition before the high court on the issue.

  • July 28, 2026

    1st Circ. Skeptical That JPMorgan AI Tool Broke Mass. Law

    A First Circuit panel appeared doubtful Tuesday that an artificial intelligence-powered applicant screening tool used by JPMorgan Chase & Co. constituted the kind of lie detector test that Massachusetts law bars employers from using in interviews. 

  • July 28, 2026

    Texas Panel Says Sysco Can't Arbitrate Driver Injury Claim

    A Texas appeals court on Tuesday found that Sysco USA I Inc. cannot compel arbitration in a delivery driver's injury suit, as the driver is exempt from the Federal Arbitration Act as a transportation worker.

  • July 28, 2026

    340B Appellate Cases To Watch In The 2nd Half Of 2026

    Drugmakers are pressing appellate judges in the back half of 2026 to strike down state laws blocking them from restricting 340B contract pharmacy arrangements. Law360 Healthcare Authority has the cases to watch.

  • July 28, 2026

    Nielsen Says 2nd Circ. Ruling Makes Courts Price Regulators

    Nielsen has asked the Second Circuit to reconsider a ruling upholding an injunction in a case from Cumulus accusing it of tying sales of its national radio ratings data to its local offerings, telling the appeals court the ruling turns judges into price regulators.

  • July 28, 2026

    Minn. Schools' Hail Damage May Be Covered, 8th Circ. Says

    The Eighth Circuit revived a Minnesota school district's suit seeking coverage for hail damage to the roofs of two schools, finding that the damage may fall outside a cosmetic damage exclusion if it weakened the roofs' ability to withstand the elements to the same extent as before the storm.

  • July 27, 2026

    7th Circ. Revives Suit Over Chobani's 'Sugar Free' Labeling

    The Seventh Circuit Monday resurrected a proposed class action claiming Chobani misled customers by labeling its yogurt as "sugar free," ruling that the naturally occurring sweetener in the yogurt constitutes a sugar under federal regulation and thus the customers have plausibly alleged consumer deception.

  • July 27, 2026

    Wash. Panel Revives Island Health Wage, Break Class Action

    A Washington Court of Appeals panel has reinstated a worker's proposed class action accusing public hospital district Island Health of denying employees meal breaks and illegally rounding time worked when calculating wages, finding Monday that a trial court wrongly concluded the claims must be arbitrated under a union agreement.

  • July 27, 2026

    US Reps Tell DC Circ. ICE Oversight Notice Policy Is Unlawful

    Lawmakers have urged the D.C. Circuit to affirm a pause on a policy requiring seven days' notice for congressional oversight visits to immigration detention facilities, saying a lower court correctly held they could challenge the policy and would likely succeed.

  • July 27, 2026

    Speech Concerns Could Sink Maine Lobster Fishers' Suit

    A panel of First Circuit judges Monday closely scrutinized the Maine lobster industry's lawsuit over a sustainable seafood report that told consumers to avoid lobster, raising doubts that the lobster fishers can overcome a bar on group defamation claims. 

  • July 27, 2026

    NY AG Urges 2nd Circ. To Deny Kalshi Sports Bet Ban Shield

    New York regulators urged the Second Circuit to deny Kalshi's request for an emergency order that would allow the prediction market company to continue conducting business in New York while its challenge to the state's gambling laws is resolved, arguing the company's operations are both prohibited and predatory.

  • July 27, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Clears Boston Scientific In $49M Stent Patent Case

    The Federal Circuit on Monday overturned a $49.4 million patent judgment against Boston Scientific, ruling that the company's drug-eluting coronary stents did not infringe a patent owned by the University of Texas System and that the patent is invalid.

  • July 27, 2026

    7th Circ. Asked To Clarify Copyright Prevailing Party Status

    A man who successfully defended himself from being held liable for damages when he was sued by a food photography company that claimed his photo of raw meat on Facebook counted as copyright infringement has asked the Seventh Circuit to find that he's the "prevailing party" for purposes of seeking attorney fees.

  • July 27, 2026

    11th Circ. Won't Revive Cop's Sex Harassment Lawsuit

    The Eleventh Circuit declined to revive a former detention deputy's sexual harassment and malicious prosecution lawsuit against two officers with the Seminole County Sheriff's Office, affirming a Florida district court's decision to free the sheriff and a sergeant from the suit.

  • July 27, 2026

    Railroads, Feds Spar Over Train Crew Size Rule In 11th Circ.

    Railroads have told the Eleventh Circuit that the Federal Railroad Administration failed to properly justify its 2024 two-person train crew rule, saying the agency flip-flopped from its previous determination that such a rule was unnecessary.

Expert Analysis

  • Remote Work Rulings Show ADA Fights Hinge On Process

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    Two opposite outcomes in recent Fifth Circuit and D.C. federal court cases underscore that the legality of denying employees' disability accommodation requests for remote work depends less on broad policy and more on how it's applied, says Paul Sweeney at Ice Miller.

  • Fed Autonomy Rests On Narrow Exception After Justices Rule

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decisions in Trump v. Cook and Trump v. Slaughter expand presidential removal power while temporarily preserving the Federal Reserve’s independence, but there is uncertainty about which of the Fed’s authorities fall within the court’s narrow monetary-policy exception, says Keith Bradley at Squire Patton.

  • Series

    Being A Magician Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The skills I've developed as a lifelong magician have translated directly into tangible benefits in the courtroom because performing magic and trying cases both live at the intersection of psychology, storytelling, timing and disciplined rehearsal, says Mark Dombroff at Fox Rothschild.

  • How Litigants Are Testing Conversion Therapy Ruling's Scope

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    Litigants are already using the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Chiles v. Salazar ruling, which applied strict scrutiny to Colorado’s conversion therapy ban, to challenge laws limiting algorithmic rental pricing, artificial intelligence-based discrimination and anti-union employer speech, and courts must soon decide Chiles’ First Amendment limits, say attorneys at O'Melveny.

  • How Justices' TPS Ruling Affects Workforce Planning

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent holding in Mullin v. Doe that courts lack jurisdiction to review temporary protected status determinations greenlights the end of TPS for thousands of Syrian and Haitian nationals, and means employers must reevaluate TPS-designees' employability while avoiding discriminatory document practices, says attorney Richard Herman.

  • How Pfizer Won Fed. Circ. Patent Dispute By 1 Carbon Atom

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    The Federal Circuit's recent refusal to revive a patent in Enanta Pharmaceuticals v. Pfizer over an alleged typo creating a one-atom difference in a COVID-19 treatment application hands defendants a template for potentially converting a triable fact question into an early dispositive ruling, say attorneys at Polsinelli.

  • What To Know Before Justices Rule In Title IX Employee Case

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    The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to decide whether Title IX protections extend to employees alleging sex discrimination in Crowther v. Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, which could have significant implications for higher education institutions and their employees, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Fed. Circ. Ruling Highlights The Cost Of Incorrect Inventorship

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Fortress Iron v. Digger Specialties, affirming that a fencing company's patents were invalid due to a missing co-inventor, is a reminder that confirming correct inventorship should be a critical part of every patent invalidity workup, say attorneys at Neal Gerber.

  • Future Of Fed Independence Shaky After Justices' Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Trump v. Cook preserved the Federal Reserve's formal independence but could invite the president to remove board members with just modest protections, leaving the central bank's autonomy uncertain and potentially setting up fresh clashes over other agencies, says Steven Schwinn at the University of Chicago.

  • Series

    Mich. Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

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    The second quarter brought several notable financial services law developments to Michigan, including a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on state tax foreclosures, progress on a money transmission modernization bill package, and continued legislative momentum on cryptocurrency and mortgage lending, say attorneys at Dykema.

  • Justices' Ruling Alters Playing Field For State Subpoena Suits

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in First Choice Women’s Resource Centers v. Davenport will spark more federal court challenges to state subpoenas, but procedural defenses will block some merits decisions, so plaintiffs must carefully time and manage parallel federal and state proceedings, say attorneys at Troutman.

  • Looking At Drake's Diss Track Appeal Through An IP Lens

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    Though Drake's pending Second Circuit appeal over UMG's promotion of Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us" is formally about defamation, it shows that IP considerations can help identify records showing how a work traveled, which may guide courts when deciding context, says attorney Abdul Abdullahi.

  • Series

    Bass Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Landing a trophy striped bass and closing a big deal both require cultivating the patience to finesse — not force — your way to desired outcomes, changing course when your old approach isn’t working and learning from the ones that got away, says Jon Ruiss at Alston & Bird.

  • Series

    NY Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

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    The year's second quarter brought several notable banking law developments to New York, including a proposal to align state stablecoin rules with the federal Genius Act, fresh fair lending and cybersecurity guidance from state regulators, and a significant Second Circuit holding on preemption, say attorneys at Ashurst Perkins Coie.

  • PacifiCorp Ruling Shows Limits Of Aggregate Wildfire Loss Models

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    An Oregon appeals court's recent decision in James v. PacifiCorp illustrates that in litigation involving multiple wildfires, materially different causation theories, and evidence tied to particular fires and locations, a single undifferentiated damages model is vulnerable to attack, say Paige Van Oosten and Jason Kim at Hunton and Kevin Cahill at FTI Consulting.

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