Appellate

  • September 23, 2026

    Del. Justices Weigh If Corporations Can Vote In Beach Town

    The ACLU of Delaware urged the state's high court Wednesday to revive its challenge to Fenwick Island's practice of allowing property-owning corporations and other artificial entities to vote in municipal elections, arguing the system unlawfully dilutes residents' votes.

  • September 23, 2026

    Fla. Panel Won't Hear City's Immunity Bid In Partnership Suit

    A Florida state appellate panel issued a split decision on Wednesday dismissing a bid by a city to overturn an order striking its motion to argue for immunity in a lawsuit over a public-private partnership to build a green waste facility near protected wetlands, saying it lacks jurisdiction. 

  • September 23, 2026

    3rd Circ. Bars Early Probation Termination Bids Before 1 Year

    In a precedential opinion Wednesday, the Third Circuit held that a defendant seeking early termination of supervised release must serve at least one year of the current supervised release term before petitioning the court.

  • September 23, 2026

    Ute Tribe Says Split-Estate Lands Remain Indian Country

    The Ute Indian Tribe has urged the Tenth Circuit to overturn a Utah federal judge's ruling that the surface of split-estate lands within its reservation's original boundaries is not Indian Country, arguing the appellate court settled the issue decades ago.

  • September 23, 2026

    'Hanging In There' Doesn't Ax Disability Claim, 9th Circ. Says

    "Hanging in there" and working through the pain of a worsening disability is not a reason to reject the testimony of someone seeking Social Security benefits, the Ninth Circuit ruled Wednesday.

  • September 23, 2026

    Board Eases Burden Over Migrant Drug Use Admission

    The Board of Immigration Appeals upheld an immigration judge's decision finding a Mexican national ineligible for status adjustment because he had admitted to possessing and using cocaine, finding no obligation to first inform him of the offense's particular legal elements.

  • September 23, 2026

    Legal Groups Back Firm In NC High Court Malpractice Appeal

    Legal advocacy groups are standing behind the law firm Hedrick Gardner Kincheloe & Garofalo LLP in asking North Carolina's highest court to find that the state's four-year statute of repose on legal malpractice claims creates an immovable end-date to liability.

  • September 23, 2026

    KCSR Appeals STB's BNSF Terminal Trackage Rights Ruling

    Canadian Pacific Kansas City subsidiary Kansas City Southern Railway is asking the D.C. Circuit to overturn a Surface Transportation Board ruling that set the price BNSF Railway will pay to use a nine-mile conduit for petroleum and chemical shipping in Louisiana, in an appeal filed this week.

  • September 23, 2026

    Fed. Grants Bind Railways To Fed. Labor Law, NMB Argues

    The Eleventh Circuit should affirm a Florida federal judge's finding that a high-speed rail operator is subject to the Railway Labor Act, the National Mediation Board argued, saying the operator can't wriggle its way out of complying because it runs an intercity rather than interstate rail line.

  • September 23, 2026

    Ga. Appeals Court Says Atlanta Can't Escape Injury Verdict

    The Georgia Court of Appeals on Wednesday said a trial court rightly refused to set aside a $140,000 verdict against the city of Atlanta in a woman's lawsuit over a broken wrist she said she suffered when she tripped over the metal remnants of a traffic sign on the sidewalk. 

  • September 23, 2026

    Judge Won't Overturn $5M American Axle Win In Patent Case

    Neapco Holdings LLC has lost its bid to dodge paying a $5.2 million award in a patent suit from American Axle after a Delaware federal judge found that there was enough evidence to back the jury's finding and that the monetary amount wasn't excessive.

  • September 23, 2026

    9th Circ. Says Pre-2013 Life Policies Needn't Get Lapse Forms

    Life insurers are not required to send designation forms to California policyholders whose policies were issued before 2013, when a state law requiring carriers to provide applicants with a form to designate another individual to receive notice of a lapse or termination went into effect, the Ninth Circuit ruled.

  • September 23, 2026

    State Pols Urge Justices To Rein In Kalshi's Sports Offerings

    A coalition of state lawmakers has urged the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Third Circuit decision allowing Kalshi to keep its sports offerings online in New Jersey, emphasizing that sports betting oversight must be left to the states.

  • September 22, 2026

    Feds' Latest Permit For Calif. Pipeline Challenged At 9th Circ.

    Environmental groups are urging the Ninth Circuit to review Trump administration's recent decision approving operations of two coastal California oil pipeline segments, including one that was shut down for years following a 2015 oil spill, saying on Tuesday that the new permit waives key safety requirements.

  • September 22, 2026

    Hydropower Plant Needs More Monitoring, Wash. Panel Says

    A Washington appeals panel broadly upheld the state's certification of a hydroelectric power project near the Columbia River on Monday, although the court said officials need to impose additional monitoring and reporting requirements to address potential leakage into the surrounding watershed.

  • September 22, 2026

    Big Tech Backs Samsung At Fed. Circ. Over Patent Injunctions

    Top technology companies and various industry groups have urged the Federal Circuit to deny Collision Communications an injunction after the patent owner's $445.5 million infringement verdict against Samsung, saying an injunction would undermine U.S. Supreme Court precedent.

  • September 22, 2026

    9th Circ. Wipes Out $140M Class Verdict Against CenturyLink

    The Ninth Circuit overturned a $140 million class verdict against CenturyLink on Tuesday, holding that the company's reasonable interpretation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act shielded it from liability for willful violations when it pulled consumers' credit reports during online orders for internet service.

  • September 22, 2026

    Panel Hints Hill Wallack May Face Revived Malpractice Suit

    A New Jersey state appeals court panel on Tuesday appeared troubled by a trial judge's decision to toss a malpractice suit accusing Hill Wallack LLP of mishandling the defense of a family facing labor trafficking allegations, repeatedly asking counsel whether the lower court made the factual findings required before imposing the system's harshest sanction.

  • September 22, 2026

    Colo. Justices Mull Trial Court's Authority In Water Rights Suit

    The Colorado Supreme Court grappled Tuesday with ranchers' bid for the justices to overturn a water court's order allowing a change of water right for a right they say was not at issue, questioning counsel on the water court's authority to impose certain conditions in the neighbors' 10-year legal battle.

  • September 22, 2026

    High Court Told Sony Win In $500M Patent Case Flouted Law

    The owner of a patent that Sony's PlayStation controllers were cleared of infringing has told the U.S. Supreme Court that the Federal Circuit's decision applied a rule found nowhere in the statute governing functional patent claims or in high court precedent.

  • September 22, 2026

    Lender's $8.1M In Losses Were 'Self-Inflicted,' 11th Circ. Told

    The former CEO of a lender that financed independent insurance marketers has urged the Eleventh Circuit to reverse an $8.1 million trial judgment for breaching his work terms, arguing that the damages sustained by his previous employer were "self-inflicted." 

  • September 22, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Revives VA Fellow's AI Whistleblower Claim

    A Federal Circuit panel on Tuesday revived a former technology fellow's challenge to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' decision removing him from his position after he raised concerns over the agency's artificial intelligence tool used for processing disability benefits claims.

  • September 22, 2026

    Wash. Appeals Court Revives Colo. Tax Payment Dispute

    Whether intercompany payments count as profit, royalties or taxable management fees is a disputed question of fact, a Washington state appellate panel said Tuesday, ordering back to a trial court a dispute over whether a Colorado company and its affiliates owe Washington's business and occupation tax.

  • September 22, 2026

    Pa. Gov., Legislators Must Face Public-Defense Funding Suit

    A divided Pennsylvania appeals court has allowed a petition filed against the commonwealth's top political leaders to proceed, granting a path forward for the claims that chronic underfunding of public defender offices has led to indigent criminal defendants receiving ineffective legal assistance.

  • September 22, 2026

    Trump Admin Asks Justices To Curb Noncitizen Habeas Relief

    The Trump administration implored the U.S. Supreme Court to cure a circuit split over noncitizens filing habeas petitions to challenge their detention during pending removal proceedings, warning of "intolerable disuniformity" in how the Immigration and Nationality Act is administered.

Expert Analysis

  • 3 Disgorgement Questions Linger After Justices' SEC Ruling

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    While the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Sripetch v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission avoided placing new limits on the SEC’s disgorgement powers, it passed over several questions, including whether the commission can seek disgorgement when returning the money to investors isn't possible, says David Slovick at Kopecky Schumacher.

  • Checking For AI Errors Is Now A Two-Way Street

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    A handful of recent federal and state cases demonstrate the importance of checking for errors generated by artificial intelligence not only in your own court submissions, but also your opponent's, as well as when catching opposing counsel's AI mistakes could result in an award for attorney fees, says Tamara Barago at Hollingsworth.

  • Opinion

    Federal Circuit Should Implement Mini En Banc Process

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    To fulfill its mission of uniformity in patent law while avoiding the challenges of en banc hearings, the Federal Circuit should institute mini en bancs — allowing regular three-judge panels to exercise en banc powers unless a majority of the court says otherwise, says Joshua Sohn at the U.S. Department of Justice.

  • What's Next After Justices' Last-Mile Driver Arbitration Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Flowers Foods v. Brock, refusing to narrow the scope of a Federal Arbitration Act exemption for workers engaged in interstate commerce, gives previously unprotected workers access to litigation, but preserves two potentially powerful arguments for future proceedings, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • Series

    The Biz Court Digest: Shoring Up Corporate Law In Maryland

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    Launched more than 20 years ago to improve complex corporate adjudication, Maryland's Business and Technology Case Management Program has been a solid success in some areas, but there always is room for improvement, says Bill Krulak at Miles & Stockbridge.

  • How End Of SEC 'Gag Rule' Affects Free Speech Certiorari Bid

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    The Securities and Exchange Commission's recent rescission of the so-called gag rule, which forbade defendants in settlements from denying the SEC’s allegations, may sway the outcome of a petition to the Supreme Court in a case challenging the rule on First Amendment grounds, say attorneys at Troutman.

  • 2nd Circ.'s Embedded Video Ruling May Protect Publishers

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    The Second Circuit's recent decision in Richardson v. Townsquare, dismissing an infringement claim arising from an embedding of a YouTube-hosted interview, reaffirms a potent defense for publishers who regularly use social media platforms' embed functionality, says Amanda Harris at Jassy Vick.

  • Federal Officer Removal After Justices' La. Pollution Ruling

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    In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Chevron USA v. Plaquemines Parish, companies seeking to use federal officer removal to move litigation out of state court should ask three questions, focusing on government contract language, federally directed activity and related conduct, say attorneys at Hollingsworth.

  • Series

    Competing At Poker Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing poker in male-dominated rooms taught me to treat skepticism as background noise when my opponents seem to underestimate me, to apply pressure when it matters and to adapt without losing strategic discipline — skills that are all indispensable in restructuring and insolvency matters, says Alexis Gambale at Pashman Stein.

  • Revisiting TransUnion's Underused Standing Rule, 5 Years On

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    The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals' recent use of the U.S. Supreme Court’s now five-year-old TransUnion v. Ramirez rule specifying that the "mere risk of future harm" isn't concrete enough to support a damages claim presents an opportunity to revisit this underutilized standing rule, say attorneys at Horvitz & Levy.

  • 5 Things Associates Must Ask About Their Firm's Merger Plan

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    The associates who navigate law firm mergers best ask the right questions early, such as inquiring about partners' plans, to assess how the merger could affect their workflow and career path, says Jackie Bokser-LeFebvre at Major Lindsey.

  • Uncertainty Looms After Justices' Withdrawal Liability Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent holding in M&K Employee Solutions v. Trustees of the IAM National Pension Fund increases the unpredictability of withdrawal liability assessments, so employers should prepare for a range of assessments and be equipped to challenge unreasonable ones, say attorneys at Winston Taylor.

  • CFTC Trading Rule Can't Police Prediction Markets Yet

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    The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s recent efforts to police insider trading in prediction markets through a post-Dodd-Frank anti-fraud rule exposes doctrinal gaps around misappropriation theory, leaving platforms to fill the void with win-rate-based surveillance, says attorney Tamara de Silva.

  • Columbia Software IP Ruling Tests Royalty Damages Model

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Columbia University v. Gen Digital, vacating a damages verdict involving foreign software sales, provides guidance on ambiguities surrounding the worldwide royalty damages model established by the court's decision in Brumfield v. IBG two years ago, say attorneys at Munger Tolles.

  • Turning To The Courts When PBM Reform Falls Short

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    The effectiveness of state laws intended to regulate pharmacy benefit managers remains uncertain, but litigation — utilizing tried-and-true theories like breach of contract and fair dealing — offers another mechanism through which stakeholders may seek relief from PBMs, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

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