Appellate

  • June 11, 2025

    8th Circ. Probes NLRB's Process In Home Depot 'BLM' Ruling

    An Eighth Circuit panel questioned Wednesday the process behind the National Labor Relations Board's ruling that Home Depot illegally forced out a worker for displaying the letters "BLM" on their apron but didn't tip its hand on whether this move was within the company's rights.

  • June 11, 2025

    2nd Circ. Rules Girlfriend's Phone Search Didn't Violate Rights

    The Second Circuit on Wednesday upheld the conviction of a New York man on charges over the receipt and possession of child sexual abuse material, rejecting claims that his Fourth Amendment rights were violated when his girlfriend unlocked his phone, found illicit images and showed them to a police officer. 

  • June 11, 2025

    Sony Fights Feds' 'Bewildering' Support Of Cox's High Court Bid

    Sony Music Entertainment and other music publishers questioned the federal government's "bewildering" support for Cox Communications Inc.'s challenge at the U.S. Supreme Court to a Fourth Circuit ruling affirming a contributory copyright infringement verdict against the internet service provider, saying only the verdict's vicarious liability finding should be reviewed.

  • June 11, 2025

    Firm Tells NC Panel To Rethink Ex-Partner's Retroactive Care

    Cranfill Sumner LLP has asked a North Carolina appellate panel to rethink a single issue from the court's sweeping workers' compensation ruling last month favoring a former partner, saying there is not enough evidence to support granting him retroactive attendant care for his disability.

  • June 11, 2025

    Mass. Gov. Nominates Probate Court Justice To Appeals Court

    Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey on Wednesday nominated Probate and Family Court Justice Jennifer M. Allen to the state's intermediate appellate court.

  • June 11, 2025

    3rd Circ. Sends Dow Pollution Suit Back To NJ State Court

    The Third Circuit on Wednesday said New Jersey's lawsuit accusing Dow Chemical Co. of causing widespread groundwater pollution through a product containing a potentially cancer-causing compound should be heard in state court, rejecting the chemical company's argument that it was acting under the direction of the federal government.

  • June 11, 2025

    1st Circ. Won't Rethink Split Ruling On Atty's Stock Scheme

    A First Circuit panel won't rethink its 2-1 decision that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission could keep its pretrial win against a Connecticut attorney who sold unregistered penny stocks, according to an order from the appellate court.

  • June 11, 2025

    Union Pacific Can Appeal BIPA Retroactivity At 7th Circ.

    An Illinois federal judge on Tuesday allowed Union Pacific to pursue an early appeal of her finding that a recent amendment to Illinois' biometric privacy law limiting companies' exposure does not apply retroactively, recognizing the "novelty and complexity of the legal issue" and allowing the Seventh Circuit the opportunity to weigh in.

  • June 11, 2025

    Houston Atty Says Rival's Client Files Aren't Trade Secrets

    A Houston attorney accused of stealing another lawyer's files in an attempt to recruit clients to file malpractice suits told a Texas appellate court that his rival "misrepresents facts to support his false narrative" that the information constituted trade secrets.

  • June 11, 2025

    Atty Wants 6th Circ. To Vacate Tenn. 'Gag Order' Rule Decision

    If the Sixth Circuit does not undo a decision that a Nashville attorney didn't have standing to challenge a since-rescinded Middle District of Tennessee rule concerning lawyers' "extrajudicial statements," it could "be all but impossible" for lawyers to challenge similar court rules in the future, the attorney said Wednesday.

  • June 11, 2025

    Del. Justices OK Early Review Of New Corp. Liability Shield

    Delaware's justices agreed to a fast-tracked state constitutional review Wednesday for questions in a Court of Chancery case affected by state legislation approved in March that expanded and made retroactive "safe harbor" liability shields for conflicted corporate directors or controllers.

  • June 11, 2025

    Trump Presses 2nd Circ. To Federalize Hush Money Appeal

    Counsel for President Donald Trump on Wednesday urged the Second Circuit to take over the appeal of his New York state hush money conviction post-trial, saying a federal judge in Manhattan wrongly denied removal, and the landscape has now changed in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark presidential immunity decision.

  • June 11, 2025

    2nd Circ. Says Retirement Funds Can't Pay Arbitration Award

    The Second Circuit refused to let a Japanese video game company raid retirement accounts established by an American game development executive to pay part of a $23.3 million arbitration award related to an intellectual property dispute, ruling the funds are protected by federal benefits law.

  • June 11, 2025

    Lockheed Not Liable For Reporting Employee To Government

    Lockheed Martin is shielded from a former employee's defamation and other claims that were based on the defense contractor's mandatory reporting of suspected misconduct, a Massachusetts intermediate appellate court ruled Wednesday.

  • June 11, 2025

    4th Circ. To Hear Arguments In Army Boarding School Row

    The Fourth Circuit has set arguments in a dispute between the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska and the U.S. Army over the return of remains of two of the tribe's children that are buried in the Carlisle Indian Boarding School cemetery in Pennsylvania.

  • June 10, 2025

    9th Circ. Weighs Bids To Revive 3 Website Wiretapping Suits

    A Ninth Circuit panel Tuesday appeared skeptical of a trio of consumers' bids to resurrect separate proposed class actions accusing Papa John's, Converse and Bloomingdale's of unlawfully tracking website visitors, questioning whether the plaintiffs' claims fit within the scope of California's wiretapping and eavesdropping protections.

  • June 10, 2025

    Judiciary Panel Advances New Rules On Amici, AI, Subpoenas

    The federal judiciary's top policy panel Tuesday propelled revamped rules regarding numerous hot legal topics, including artificial intelligence, "dark money" groups bankrolling amicus briefs and the subpoena powers of courts and defense counsel.

  • June 10, 2025

    10th Circ. Affirms Toss Of USPS Contractor's $500M Suit

    The Tenth Circuit on Tuesday refused to revive a U.S. Postal Service contractor's $500 million lawsuit accusing USPS of misappropriating its confidential business information and wrongfully terminating their long-running relationship, affirming a lower court's toss of tort and contract claims.

  • June 10, 2025

    Ga. Justices Consider Tolling In Tongue Amputation Case

    The Georgia Supreme Court on Tuesday considered whether the state's two-year statute of limitations applies to a lawsuit against Regency Hospital Co. and one of its nurses over claims that they neglected an allegedly incapacitated patient to the point that her tongue had to be amputated. 

  • June 10, 2025

    Feds Fight Calif. Tribe's Bid To Undo BIA Organization Rule

    The federal government is fighting a D.C. Circuit appeal by nine California Valley Miwok Tribe members who are looking to overturn a lower court order allowing an expansion of the tribe's organization, arguing the decision was not arbitrary and capricious.

  • June 10, 2025

    Chamber Calls On Justices To Hear Auditor Fraud Case

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is among the parties calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to take up a case accusing BDO USA LLP of securities fraud, telling the justices that allowing a Second Circuit ruling to stand could lead to more lawsuits against accountants, lawyers and underwriters.

  • June 10, 2025

    Atty Accuses City Of 'Game-y' Tactics In Race Bias Settlement

    A North Carolina employment attorney accused the city of Charlotte in federal court Tuesday of being "game-y" by trying to change a Black fire chief's racial bias settlement after both sides agreed to certain terms, saying she wouldn't make him sign something that didn't reflect those promises.

  • June 10, 2025

    9th Circ. Revives Real Estate Investor Securities Suit, Again

    The Ninth Circuit on Tuesday once again revived a proposed securities class action accusing investment guru Grant Cardone of making misleading social media statements to sell interests in his companies' real estate investment funds, holding, among other findings, that the complaint sufficiently alleged Cardone "subjectively disbelieved" certain stated projections.

  • June 10, 2025

    6th Circ. Probes Ambiguity Of Flagstar Overdraft Contract

    A panel of Sixth Circuit appellate judges on Tuesday zeroed in on whether a Flagstar Bank customer had to read and understand an agreement to support claims a contract was ambiguous in her case alleging the bank charged surprise, repeated overdraft fees, noting that there is little benefit to reading an agreement if it's unclear. 

  • June 10, 2025

    9th Circ. Says Legal Co.'s $1.7M Chase Check Suit Is Too Late

    The Ninth Circuit affirmed a California federal court's ruling dismissing a suit by legal support company Nationwide Legal against JPMorgan Chase, saying its suit claiming Chase Bank acted negligently when it allowed a Nationwide Legal employee to deposit fraudulent checks was time-barred.

Expert Analysis

  • Top 3 Litigation Finance Deal-Killers, And How To Avoid Them

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    Like all transactions, litigation finance deals can sometimes collapse, but understanding the most common reasons for failure, including a lack of trust or a misunderstanding of deal terms, can help both parties avoid problems, say Rebecca Berrebi at Avenue 33 and Boris Ziser at Schulte Roth.

  • 5th Circ. Ruling Is Latest Signal Of Shaky Qui Tam Landscape

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    In his recent concurring opinion in U.S. v. Peripheral Vascular Associates, a Fifth Circuit judge joined a growing list of jurists suggesting that the False Claims Act's whistleblower provisions are unconstitutional, underscoring that acceptance of qui tam relators can no longer be taken for granted, say attorneys at Miller & Chevalier.

  • How Attys Can Use A Therapy Model To Help Triggered Clients

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    Attorneys can lean on key principles from a psychotherapeutic paradigm known as the "Internal Family Systems" model to help manage triggered clients and get settlement negotiations back on track, says Jennifer Gibbs at Zelle.

  • Tracking The Evolution Of Liability Management Exercises

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    As liability management exercises face increasing legal scrutiny, understanding the history of these debt restructuring tools can help explain how the playbook keeps adapting — and why the next move is always just one ruling or transaction away, say attorneys at Weil.

  • Navigating Florida's Bad Faith Reforms After Appellate Ruling

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    A Florida appellate court's recent decision is among the first to interpret two significant amendments to the state's insurance bad faith law, and its holding that one of the statutes could not apply retroactively may affect insurers' interpretation of the other statute, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • 3 Steps For In-House Counsel To Assess Litigation Claims

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    Before a potential economic downturn, in-house attorneys should investigate whether their company is sitting on hidden litigation claims that could unlock large recoveries to help the business withstand tough times, says Will Burgess at Hilgers Graben.

  • Series

    Teaching College Students Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Serving as an adjunct college professor has taught me the importance of building rapport, communicating effectively, and persuading individuals to critically analyze the difference between what they think and what they know — principles that have helped to improve my practice of law, says Sheria Clarke at Nelson Mullins.

  • A New Tool For Assessing Kickback Risks In Health Marketing

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    The Seventh Circuit's recent decision in U.S. v. Sorensen, reversing a conviction after trial of a durable medical equipment distributor, highlights two principle considerations for determining whether payments to marketers in healthcare are unlawful under the Anti-Kickback Statute, says Elisha Kobre at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Maximizing Employer Defenses After Calif. Meal Waiver Ruling

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    A California state appeals court's recent decision in Bradsbery v. Vicar Operating, finding that revocable meal period waivers prospectively signed by employees are enforceable, offers employers four steps to proactively reduce their exposure to meal period claims and bolster their defenses in a potential lawsuit, say attorneys at Fisher Phillips.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From DOJ Enviro To Mid-Law

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    Practitioners leaving a longtime government role for private practice — as when I departed the U.S. Department of Justice’s environmental enforcement division — should prioritize finding a firm that shares their principles, values their experience and will invest in their transition, says John Cruden at Beveridge & Diamond.

  • Independent Contractor Rule Up In The Air Under New DOL

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    In several recent court challenges, the U.S. Department of Labor has indicated its intent to revoke the 2024 independent contractor rule, sending a clear signal that it will not defend the Biden-era rule on the merits in anticipation of further rulemaking, say attorneys at Jackson Lewis.

  • Why Trade Cases May Put Maple Leaf Deference On Review

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    When litigation challenging the president’s trade actions reaches the Federal Circuit, the court will have to reevaluate the Maple Leaf standard in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2024 Loper Bright decision limiting Chevron-like deference to cases involving statutory provisions in which Congress delegated discretionary authority to the executive branch, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • A Look At Probabilistic Tracing After High Court's Slack Ruling

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    Recent decisions following the U.S. Supreme Court's 2023 ruling in Slack v. Pirani have increased the difficulty of pleading Securities Act claims for securities issued in direct listings by rejecting the use of statistical probabilities to establish that share purchases were traceable to a challenged registration statement, says Jonathan Richman at Brown Rudnick.

  • Legal Ethics Considerations For Law Firm Pro Bono Deals

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    If a law firm enters into a pro bono deal with the Trump administration in exchange for avoiding or removing an executive order, it has an ethical obligation to create a written settlement agreement with specific terms, which would mitigate some potential conflict of interest problems, says Andrew Altschul at Buchanan Angeli.

  • How To Address FCA Risk After 4th Circ. Ruling On DEI Orders

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    Following the Fourth Circuit's ruling in National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education v. Trump, which freed the administration to enforce executive orders targeting diversity, equity and inclusion programs, government contractors should take stock of potentially unlawful DEI programs, given their heightened risk under the False Claims Act, say attorneys at Sidley.

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