Appellate

  • October 06, 2026

    Mass. Justices Say Image Sent To Victim Not 'Dissemination'

    Sending a secretly recorded nude image only to the subject of that photo does not amount to "dissemination" under a 2008 anti-voyeurism law, Massachusetts' highest court said Tuesday.

  • October 06, 2026

    Judge Backs Va. Tuition Pathway For Unauthorized Students

    A federal judge in Richmond rejected the Trump administration's bid to strike down Virginia laws allowing students who are unauthorized to be in the U.S. to pay in-state tuition at public universities, breaking with a Fifth Circuit ruling on Texas tuition rules and ruling that federal law doesn't preempt the state statutes.

  • October 06, 2026

    10th Circ. Says Courts Can Review Refugee Terminations

    A divided Tenth Circuit panel ruled that federal courts can review the government's finding that a refugee did not qualify for that status at the time of admission, finding that the threshold decision is nondiscretionary and thus not barred by a federal law restricting review of discretionary immigration decisions.

  • October 06, 2026

    Mich. Top Court To Hear If Touching Vehicle Is 'Occupying' It

    The Michigan Supreme Court will consider whether physical contact with a vehicle is enough to receive uninsured motorist coverage, as it hears an injured driver's plea to overturn a decision denying him coverage because only his hand was touching his truck when he was hit.

  • October 06, 2026

    7th Circ. Judge Hints Precedent Dooms Worker's Vax Fight

    A Seventh Circuit judge appeared disinclined Tuesday to restart a religious discrimination suit brought by a hospital pharmacy technician who was fired for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine, emphasizing that the same employer's recent win in a similar appeal is "binding authority."

  • October 06, 2026

    DC Circ. Not Sure Challenge To Border Wall Halt Still Has Legs

    The D.C. Circuit didn't seem convinced Monday morning it should breathe new life into a suit claiming that the Biden administration caused people legal injury and broke the law by not considering the environmental effects of reversing the Trump administration's border policies.

  • October 06, 2026

    Justices Seem To Support End To Intel 401(k) Fund Suit

    The U.S. Supreme Court appeared likely Tuesday to affirm a Ninth Circuit decision ending a federal benefits dispute against Intel Corp. from ex-workers who alleged that underperforming 401(k) funds breached fiduciary duties, as multiple justices indicated support for requiring that claims predicated on underperformance include meaningful comparisons.

  • October 05, 2026

    Justices Fret Any Climate Tort Ruling Will Open Pandora's Box

    U.S. Supreme Court justices Monday pondered the risks of far-reaching fallout whether they allow or restrict burgeoning lawsuits targeting oil companies, acknowledging fears of near-limitless litigation but also struggling to distinguish climate torts from famous legal battles involving tobacco and opioids.

  • October 05, 2026

    Judge Clevenger's Intellect Defined His Time On Fed. Circ.

    Newly retired Federal Circuit Judge Raymond Clevenger has an "exceptionally keen intellect" that allowed him to spot holes or new paths in cases that the parties or fellow panel members hadn't explored, his former colleagues told Law360.

  • October 05, 2026

    9th Circ. Says PREP Act Bars Pasadena COVID Policy Suit

    The Ninth Circuit on Monday refused to revive a Pasadena employee's suit challenging the city's COVID-19 safety policy for unvaccinated city employees, ruling that the city is immune from his claims under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act.

  • October 05, 2026

    Masimo's $634M Apple IP Win Boosted By $184M In Interest

    A California federal judge on Monday ordered Apple Inc. to pay Masimo Corp. $184 million in prejudgment interest on top of a $634 million damages award for infringing a Masimo pulse oximetry patent through an Apple Watch feature, rejecting Apple's contention that such interest was not warranted.

  • October 05, 2026

    9th Circ. Revives Antitrust Suits Against Invisalign

    The Ninth Circuit on Monday reversed Invisalign-maker Align's summary judgment win in two class actions accusing the company of monopolizing the clear teeth aligner market, saying in a published opinion that Align's true reason for ending tech interoperability with a rival is still up for dispute.

  • October 05, 2026

    What The Justices Won't Hear: A Roundup Of Cert Denials

    The U.S. Supreme Court declined to grant a writ of certiorari to dozens of applicants Monday, including in cases involving criminal convictions and sentences, antitrust actions, and employment bias disputes.

  • October 05, 2026

    5th Circ. Hints CMS Medicare Advantage Rule May Violate APA

    A Fifth Circuit panel seemed hesitant to buy an argument that a rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services dealing with Medicare Advantage plan overpayments went through proper rulemaking steps, asking Monday if the agency's argument that it can change its rationale "upends" rulemaking procedures.

  • October 05, 2026

    Sotomayor Warns Judges: Don't Scare Your Jurors

    U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Monday criticized an Alabama trial court judge who frightened a pool of prospective jurors by ordering the arrest of a latecomer to jury selection, saying in a statement accompanying a denial of certiorari in the case that fear can undermine a defendant's right to an impartial jury.

  • October 05, 2026

    Insurer's Late Filing Doesn't Doom Crash Deal, Ga. Court Says

    A Georgia appeals court found Monday that an insurer's late delivery of a coverage statement did not prevent the enforcement of a settlement in a suit stemming from a car collision, sending the case back to a lower court to determine whether the deal was validly rescinded.

  • October 05, 2026

    5th Circ. Wonders If Flock Cameras Align With 4th Amendment

    A Fifth Circuit panel on Monday pressed the federal government to explain how law enforcement's use of Flock cameras to track criminal suspects without obtaining a search warrant doesn't run afoul of the Fourth Amendment, questioning prosecutors' assertion that publicly observable movements enjoy no protections.

  • October 05, 2026

    Mich. High Court To Weigh Retroactivity Of Sentencing Rule

    The Michigan Supreme Court has taken up an appeal asking it to decide if a landmark decision that bans the inclusion of previously acquitted charges as a factor for sentencing applies retroactively even after a sentence has been appealed.

  • October 05, 2026

    5th Circ. Backs Surgical Stapler Death Suit Dismissal

    The Fifth Circuit on Friday upheld a lower court's decision to dismiss a suit against Johnson & Johnson and its medical device subsidiary Ethicon Endo-Surgery Inc. over a surgical stapler implicated in a man's death for failing to provide notice before filing suit.

  • October 05, 2026

    Justices Mull Courts' Authority To Hear Vets' Benefits Suit

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday appeared split on whether the Veterans' Judicial Review Act bars federal district courts from presiding over constitutional challenges to statutes affecting veterans' benefits, with justices questioning both sides' interpretation of the law's no-review clause.   

  • October 05, 2026

    Youths Lose Bid To Stay Repeal Of Climate Finding

    A D.C. Circuit panel on Monday denied youth plaintiffs' request to stay the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's repeal of a landmark finding that greenhouse gas pollution endangers people's health while they pursue a legal challenge.

  • October 05, 2026

    Justices Unsure Climate Lawsuits Are A Constitutional Matter

    U.S. Supreme Court justices on Monday appeared reluctant to endorse the argument that climate change lawsuits brought by state and local governments against fossil fuel companies are constitutionally prohibited, even as they questioned whether such lawsuits can be sustained.

  • October 05, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Partially Revives Wall Outlet Cover Patent Suit

    The Federal Circuit on Monday revived part of SnapRays LLC's case accusing O'Reilly Winship LLC of infringing patents covering a type of plastic plate that covers wall outlets, saying a Texas federal court messed up a piece of claim construction in the case.

  • October 05, 2026

    'Encouraging' Signs By 10th Circ. In Opt-Out Suit, Banks Say

    Banking industry stakeholders and their counsel spoke candidly Monday about their pending challenge before the Tenth Circuit to a Colorado law intended to curb high-cost lending in the state, saying the law instead harms consumers and that the en banc court seemed inclined to side with the banking groups.

  • October 05, 2026

    Justices Won't Block Paramount's $110B WB Deal

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday quickly rejected a request by consumers to immediately block Paramount Skydance's $110 billion purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery, which is expected to close Tuesday, while a lower court adjudicates their antitrust claims challenging the merger.

Expert Analysis

  • Mapping 5 Fronts Of The Prediction Markets Regulatory Battle

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    The legal framework governing prediction markets is under simultaneous challenge in five independent areas, and the outcomes will determine not just who can operate prediction markets, but the compliance obligations of every participant in the ecosystem, says Ivor Wolk at Manatt.

  • Patent Ruling Highlights Risks Of Late Inventorship Fixes

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Implicit v. Sonos demonstrates the risk of forfeiture with retroactive correction of inventorship in inter partes review proceedings, with a clear message to the patent community that potential inventorship issues should be considered at every stage of a patent's life cycle, say attorneys at BCLP.

  • Adjusting IPR Tactics As Google Fights 'Settled Expectations'

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    Google’s petition for the U.S. Supreme Court to scrutinize the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's so-called settled expectations practice underscores why accused infringers facing older asserted patents should treat discretionary denial as a case-dispositive risk from day one, says attorney Abdul Abdullahi.

  • 3 Misconceptions About Justices' FCC Fines Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's June 4 Federal Communications Commission v. AT&T decision rejecting AT&T’s and Verizon’s argument that the commission's forfeiture process violates the Seventh Amendment has yielded three common reactions that misunderstand the decision as a matter of law and how the FCC actually operates, says Samuel Feder at Jenner & Block.

  • SEC Disgorged Fund Distribution Is Next Query After Sripetch

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    Following the Supreme Court's Sripetch v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission decision, investor harm isn't required for the SEC to obtain a disgorgement award, but future cases must resolve whether the commission will be freed from a requirement to distribute disgorged funds to the victims of alleged misconduct, says Daniel Walfish at Katsky Korins.

  • If Upheld, Wash. Millionaire Tax Could Upend State Law

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    The Washington Supreme Court could open the door to broader income, rental and corporate taxes if it defies precedent and the historically established desires of voters by redefining the state constitution's concepts of “income” and “property” to uphold a new tax on wages over $1 million, says Richard Birmingham at Davis Wright.

  • Trump Admin's Agency Records Purge Tests Judicial Notice

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    While courts commonly take judicial notice of data in government websites and reports, the Trump administration's recent modification or wholesale deletion of these sources means that litigants must look elsewhere to support trial admission of this information, says Jon Gryskiewicz at Lewis Baach.

  • Series

    Cow Horse Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Moving an unwilling 800-pound cow while riding a horse at high speed is exhilarating, a little unhinged and, at least for me, a surprisingly effective training ground for litigation — both demand focus, preparation over rigid planning and the willingness to act despite fear, says Ashley Zitrin at Glenn Agre.

  • Fla. Driver Ruling Shows Renewed Focus On Privacy Standing

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    A Florida federal court's recent dismissal of a class action alleging that private driving records had been improperly used in violation of the Driver's Privacy Protection Act suggests that companies defending against privacy class actions in Florida may reconsider Article III challenges at the dismissal stage, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Vax Ruling Offers Employer Tips For Handling Political Speech

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    A California appeals court's recent decision in Rademacher v. ABC, rejecting a "General Hospital" actor's suit alleging he was terminated for opposing a vaccine policy, demonstrates the importance of the employer's process, including neutral policies, documentation, and evidence of who knew what and when, say attorneys at Krevolin Horst.

  • O Brother, Where Art DAO? Jurisdiction Issues Abound

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    While there is a dearth of decisions examining a decentralized autonomous organization's citizenship for diversity jurisdiction purposes, Second Circuit case law has defined citizenship for other unincorporated entities, which may guide how courts evaluate an increasing number of cases involving DAOs, says Michael Mix at Morrison Cohen.

  • Protecting AI-Driven Innovation In Life Sciences IP

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    Recent developments, including the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's evolving inventorship standards, and the impact of artificial intelligence on the "person of ordinary skill in the art" standard demand that life sciences companies elevate AI patent strategy to a top priority, says Sandra Haberny at Quinn Emanuel.

  • 2nd Circ. Ruling Notably Limits Sentencing Courts' Discretion

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    The Second Circuit’s recent decision in U.S. v. Dralle clarifies the bounds of sentencing courts’ ability to consider uncharged or co-defendant conduct without tying it to statutory sentencing factors, and it may have broader implications for limiting loss attribution in white collar and other criminal cases, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • High Court's Hikma Decision Reshapes 'Skinny Label' Suits

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Hikma v. Amarin marks a significant victory for generic drug manufacturers, but rather than putting an end to so-called skinny label inducement claims, it narrows and refocuses them, say attorneys at Sterne Kessler.

  • Opinion

    At High Court, Oil Cos.' Suncor Preemption Claims Fall Short

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    In Suncor Energy v. Boulder County, pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, oil and gas companies argue that municipalities' climate deception claims are equivalent to emissions standards for their industry — but the suit is ultimately incapable of imposing such standards, say Thomas McGarity at the University of Texas School of Law and James Goodwin at the Center for Progressive Reform.

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