Appellate

  • May 29, 2024

    NY Attys Back Bid For Justices To Hear Double-Patenting Row

    A petition looking to persuade the U.S. Supreme Court to wade into a double-patenting dispute has received support from a trade group of New York patent lawyers.

  • May 29, 2024

    TikTok Ban Gets Expedited Sept. Hearing Date At DC Circ.

    The D.C. Circuit on Tuesday agreed to expedite the briefing schedule for a constitutional challenge against a federal law banning TikTok from the United States unless it severs its ties with its Chinese parent company, ByteDance Ltd., with oral arguments set to be heard this fall. 

  • May 29, 2024

    PJM Watchdog Challenges FERC's Meeting Roadblock

    Monitoring Analytics, the independent market monitor for regional transmission organization PJM Interconnection, is asking the D.C. Circuit to review a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission order from March allowing PJM to keep the monitor out of its liaison committee meetings.

  • May 29, 2024

    Teacher's Contract Renewal Claim Spiked By Ga. Justices

    The Supreme Court of Georgia ruled Wednesday that a teacher can't sue his former district for denying him a contract renewal after he missed its due date, finding that the lack of a definitive salary figure in the offer doesn't conflict with state law.

  • May 29, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Backs Claim Invalidity In Express Mobile Web Patent

    The Federal Circuit has backed a Patent Trial and Appeal Board decision that a single claim of an Express Mobile website generation patent was invalid as obvious based on earlier inventions.

  • May 29, 2024

    Wash. Panel Ends Quest Diagnostics' COVID Coverage Quest

    Quest Diagnostics' insurers don't owe the medical testing lab COVID-19-related business loss coverage, a Washington appeals court said, ruling the company failed to show that the presence of the virus resulted in physical loss or damage to its property.

  • May 29, 2024

    9th Circ. Rejects Objections To $23M Monsanto Roundup Deal

    The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday affirmed a district court's approval of a $23 million MDL settlement to resolve claims that Monsanto failed to warn buyers of the carcinogens in its Roundup weed killer, finding there was no indication of collusion as argued by Missouri-based objectors.

  • May 29, 2024

    Google Rips Sonos Bid To Revive $32M Patent Verdict

    Google is urging the Federal Circuit to reject Sonos' claim that a California federal court endangered thousands of patents when it threw out a jury's $32.5 million infringement verdict in the smart speaker maker's favor, with the tech giant arguing that Sonos is not entitled to patent protection for audio features that the company waited years to disclose.

  • May 29, 2024

    4th Circ. Rejects Atty Fee Bid In Fight Over Ted Nugent Photo

    The Fourth Circuit has denied a photographer's application for attorney fees after Bricker Graydon LLP helped him secure a favorable ruling in his legal battle over a news website's allegedly unauthorized use of a Ted Nugent photo he took in an article titled, "15 Signs Your Daddy Was A Conservative."

  • May 29, 2024

    Non-Atty Advice To Debtors Is Unprotected, 2nd Circ. Told

    New York urged the Second Circuit on Wednesday to find that stopping a nonprofit focused on bankruptcy education and the South Bronx pastor it's working with from advising low-income debtors represents a content-neutral regulation on who can practice law that does not violate the First Amendment.

  • May 29, 2024

    8th Circ. Backs Ark. Landowners' Jury Win In Flooding Suit

    The Eighth Circuit has upheld a group of Arkansas landowners' nearly $350,000 jury win in their lawsuit accusing Lawrence County of building a bridge that caused flooding that damaged their crops.

  • May 29, 2024

    CNN Tells 11th Circ. Trump Defamation Claims Fall Flat

    CNN called on the Eleventh Circuit to reject former President Donald Trump's attempt to revive his $475 million defamation suit against the network, arguing that its use of the phrase "big lie" to describe his claim that the 2020 presidential election was stolen "does not convey Trump is Hitler."

  • May 29, 2024

    9th Circ. Affirms Dismissal Of Doctor's Military Bias Suit

    An Arizona hospital defeated a doctor's discrimination lawsuit for the second time, with the Ninth Circuit upholding an Arizona federal judge's decision to toss the doctor's claims that the hospital showed bias against his military status by not renewing his contract after he deployed.

  • May 29, 2024

    Contractor Talking To Juror Warrants Contempt, NC Panel Told

    A general contractor interfered with the court when he spoke to a juror during a civil trial involving his company, state prosecutors told a North Carolina appellate court in seeking to have the contractor's contempt conviction upheld.

  • May 29, 2024

    5th Circ. Stays Transfer Of Suit Over CFPB's Late Fee Rule

    The Fifth Circuit on Wednesday halted the transfer of a banking industry lawsuit against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's $8 credit card late fee rule, again intervening in the case less than a day after a Texas federal judge ordered it sent to Washington, D.C., for a second time.

  • May 29, 2024

    Ga. Justices Reprimand Atty Over Flubbed Settlement

    A Georgia solo practitioner was hit with a public reprimand by the state's highest court Wednesday after admitting that he bungled a personal injury settlement by delegating the negotiations to his assistant.

  • May 29, 2024

    11th Circ. Backs Insurer's Win In Trampoline Injury Suit

    United Specialty Insurance had no duty to defend or indemnify a landscaper accused of negligently installing a trampoline that led to a child's injuries, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed, finding that the landscaper's insurance application expressly disclaimed the installation of recreational or playground equipment.

  • May 29, 2024

    Alito Won't Recuse From Jan. 6 Cases Over Flag Controversy

    U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito announced Wednesday that he will not recuse himself from deciding cases related to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol or former President Donald Trump's criminal immunity following reports that two flags used by protesters of Trump's 2020 election loss were flown outside his houses.

  • May 28, 2024

    Pa. Court Says Vaccine Refusal Valid Cause For Firing Nurse

    A Pennsylvania Superior Court panel on Tuesday tossed a suit accusing a hospital of wrongfully firing a nurse practitioner who refused to be vaccinated against COVID-19, saying the nurse can't invoke the state's medical malpractice statute in a wrongful termination suit.

  • May 28, 2024

    VLSI Wants Fed. Circ. To Pause Before Pursuing PQA Appeal

    VLSI Technology LLC has asked the Federal Circuit to hold off on deciding whether the Patent Trial and Appeal Board improperly invalidated its chip patent in a high-profile dispute until after the court rules on a key prior art issue in unrelated litigation.

  • May 28, 2024

    Wash. Justices Doubt Atty's Response In Disbarment Case

    Washington State justices were skeptical Tuesday of an appeal from an attorney facing disbarment who asserts that he did nothing wrong in response to misconduct allegations including that he embezzled from investors in a failed venture to build a cannabis industrial park.

  • May 28, 2024

    Agribiz Pushes Ninth Circ. To Reverse Land Swap Decision

    A global agribusiness with operations in Idaho has again asked the Ninth Circuit to reverse a lower court's "misguided" holding under the National Environmental Policy Act that favored the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes in their challenge to a U.S. Department of the Interior land transfer.

  • May 28, 2024

    Frontier, Ex-CEO Settle $21.8M Life Insurance Benefits Feud

    Frontier Communications and Leonard Tow, its former CEO and the top executive of a predecessor, have privately settled a feud surrounding tens of millions in split-dollar life insurance policies, with both sides asking a Connecticut state court judge to withdraw a $21.8 million prejudgment remedy order issued last month.

  • May 28, 2024

    2nd Circ. Ready For Project Veritas' Free Speech Claims

    The Second Circuit seemed eager on Tuesday to get to the merits of a Project Veritas self-proclaimed journalist's assertion that the First Amendment bans the government from reviewing his communications with sources and colleagues surrounding the diary of Joe Biden's daughter Ashley Biden.

  • May 28, 2024

    Singer Tells Justices Jurors Should Hear His 'Rockstar' Song

    The frontman of a band called Snowblind is telling the U.S. Supreme Court that at least one appeals court judge seemingly decided for herself that his 2001 demo sounded nothing like the Nickelback hit record "Rockstar," something he thinks a jury should decide instead. 

Expert Analysis

  • High Court Case Could Reshape Local Development Fees

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    If last month's oral arguments are any indication of how the U.S. Supreme Court will rule in Sheetz v. County of El Dorado, it's unlikely the justices will hold that the essential nexus and rough proportionality tests under the cases of Nollan, Dolan and Koontz apply to legislative exactions, but a sweeping decision would still be the natural progression in the line of cases giving property owners takings claims, says Phillip Babich at Reed Smith.

  • Employer Lessons From Nixed Calif. Arbitration Agreement

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    A California state appeals court’s recent decision to throw out an otherwise valid arbitration agreement, where an employee claimed a confusing electronic signature system led her to agree to unfair terms, should alert employers to scrutinize any waivers or signing procedures that may appear to unconscionably favor the company, say Guillermo Tello and Monique Eginli at Clark Hill.

  • Ch. 11 Ruling Highlights 'Two-Step' Challenges In 4th Circ.

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    A North Carolina bankruptcy court’s recent ruling in Bestwall’s Chapter 11 case, and the decision's interpretation of Fourth Circuit law, suggests that, compared to other circuits, it may be more difficult to dismiss so-called Texas Two-Step bankruptcy cases within the Fourth Circuit, say Brittany Falabella and Kollin Bender at Hirschler Fleischer.

  • EEO-1 Ruling May Affect Other Gov't Agency Disclosures

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    By tightly construing a rarely litigated but frequently asserted term, a California federal court’s ruling that the Freedom of Information Act does not exempt reports to the U.S. Department of Labor on workplace demographics could expand the range of government contractor information susceptible to public disclosure, says John Zabriskie at Foley & Lardner.

  • What Retailers Should Note In Calif. Web Tracking Suits

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    As retailers face a deluge of class actions alleging the use of conventional web analytic tools violate wiretapping and eavesdropping provisions of the California Invasion of Privacy Act, uncovering the path toward a narrow interpretation of the law will largely depend on how these cases proceed, say Matthew Pearson and Kareem Salem at BakerHostetler.

  • Sentencing Shift Might Not Help Most White Collar Defendants

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    Many have lauded the new zero-point offender adjustment in the U.S. sentencing guidelines, which may provide a pathway for noncustodial sentences for first-time offenders — but given the types of cases federal prosecutors often pursue, it likely won't offer much relief to white collar defendants, says Saurish Appleby-Bhattacharjee at BCLP.

  • Del. Ruling Adds Momentum For Caremark Plaintiffs

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    The Delaware Supreme Court's recent opinion in Lebanon County Employees' Retirement Fund v. Collis could be viewed as expanding plaintiffs' ability to viably plead a Caremark claim against directors, so Delaware companies should be on heightened alert and focus on creating a record of board oversight, say attorneys at V&E.

  • What's At Stake In High Court NLRB Injunction Case

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    William Baker at Wigdor examines the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to hear Starbucks v. McKinney — where it will consider a long-standing circuit split over the standard for evaluating National Labor Relations Board injunction bids — and explains why the justices’ eventual decision, either way, is unlikely to be a significant blow to labor.

  • Opinion

    High Court's Gifts Problem Taints Public Corruption Cases

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    A history of U.S. Supreme Court justices failing to disclose luxurious gifts from wealthy donors coincides with a troubling line of court precedent overturning jury convictions in public corruption cases, indicating that perhaps justices aren't presently fit to be making these decisions, says Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.

  • The Legal Industry Needs A Cybersecurity Paradigm Shift

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    As law firms face ever-increasing risks of cyberattacks and ransomware incidents, the legal industry must implement robust cybersecurity measures and privacy-centric practices to preserve attorney-client privilege, safeguard client trust and uphold the profession’s integrity, says Ryan Paterson at Unplugged.

  • UK Court Ruling Reinforces CMA's Info-Gathering Powers

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    An English appeals court's recent decision in the BMW and Volkswagen antitrust cases affirmed that the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority can request information from entities outside the U.K., reinstating an important implement in the CMA's investigative toolkit, say lawyers at White & Case.

  • Fed. Circ. In Jan.: One Word Can Affect Claim Construction

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    The Federal Circuit's recent Pacific Biosciences v. Personal Genomics decision highlights how even construction of a simple term can be dispositive, and thus disputed, in view of the specific context provided by the surrounding claim language, say Jeremiah Helm and Sean Murray at Knobbe.

  • 5 Reasons Associates Shouldn't Take A Job Just For Money

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    As a number of BigLaw firms increase salary scales for early-career attorneys, law students and lateral associates considering new job offers should weigh several key factors that may matter more than financial compensation, say Albert Tawil at Lateral Hub and Ruvin Levavi at Power Forward.

  • 1869 Case May Pave Off-Ramp For Justices In Trump DQ Fight

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    In deciding whether former President Donald Trump is disqualified from Colorado's Republican primary ballots, the U.S. Supreme Court could rely on due process principles articulated in a Reconstruction-era case to avert a chaotic or undemocratic outcome, says Gordon Renneisen at Cornerstone Law Group.

  • Series

    Playing Competitive Tennis Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My experience playing competitive tennis has highlighted why prioritizing exercise and stress relief, maintaining perspective under pressure, and supporting colleagues in pursuit of a common goal are all key aspects of championing a successful legal career, says Madhumita Datta at Lowenstein Sandler.

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