Appellate

  • May 14, 2025

    Florida Appeals Court Says Pastor's Testimony Is Privileged

    A Florida appeals court on Wednesday reversed convictions for a man found guilty of sexual abuse of a minor after finding that his pastor's testimony should not have been allowed at trial because it was protected by the clergy communications privilege.

  • May 14, 2025

    Fla. Court Rules Trust Wasn't Entitled To Jury Trial Over $8.9M

    A Florida state appeals court ruled Wednesday that a charitable trust wasn't entitled to a jury trial in a lawsuit alleging Brown Brothers Harriman Trust Co. improperly withheld and invested $8.9 million, saying the complaint falls "within the exclusive jurisdiction of equity."

  • May 14, 2025

    RJ Reynolds Can Keep Trial Win In Engle Case, Court Says

    A Florida appeals court on Wednesday affirmed a verdict in favor of R.J. Reynolds in an Engle progeny suit over a longtime smoker's death, saying counsel's failure to use all their juror challenges invalidates an argument that a juror was unfairly selected.

  • May 14, 2025

    Chicken Price-Fixing Atty Fees Challenged Again At 7th Circ.

    A class objector in Chicago's massive consolidated suit over broiler chicken price-fixing is again urging the Seventh Circuit to vacate an attorney fee award for class counsel in a $181 million deal for chicken buyers, saying the district court erred in calculating the $51.66 million awarded on remand.

  • May 14, 2025

    Texas Appeals Court Asks If It Can Flip Arbitration Order

    A Texas appeals court questioned Wednesday whether it can flip an order compelling several whistleblowers at the center of a $14 million settlement with JPMorgan Chase Bank NA into arbitration, saying it may not have jurisdiction.

  • May 14, 2025

    Keep DOGE Out Of Social Security Data, Unions Tell Justices

    The U.S. Supreme Court has no reason to lift a ban on the Department of Government Efficiency accessing Social Security data, four unions argued in an amicus brief, backing two other unions in their bid to protect the injunction from the Trump administration's bid to defeat it.

  • May 14, 2025

    9th Circ. Doubts Wash. Anti-Vaxxers' Stance In Med Board Suit

    A Ninth Circuit judge expressed skepticism on Wednesday that the federal appellate court could revive Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s suit against the Washington Medical Commission for initiating disciplinary proceedings against physicians who publicly aired anti-vaccination views, pointing out that federal courts generally "don't interfere" with ongoing state litigation.

  • May 14, 2025

    Oilify Cleared Of Infringement In Oil Field Product Patent Suit

    A Texas federal court has granted a win to the designer and distributor of a device used to separate gas and solids from oil collection in a suit accusing them of infringing a trio of patents.

  • May 14, 2025

    Ga. Justices Consider Sovereignty In Telecom Permits Case

    Georgia's justices were urged by the state Wednesday to overturn a trial court order granting summary judgment to telecommunications providers that sued to enforce prior contracts with the Georgia Department of Transportation that did not include increased permitting fees.

  • May 14, 2025

    5th Circ. Declines To Rehear SEC's Kroger Proxy Decision

    The Fifth Circuit on Wednesday declined to rehear conservative shareholders' case against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over a shareholder proposal from Kroger Co.'s 2023 ballot, following a November opinion that rejected the shareholders' challenge.

  • May 14, 2025

    Colo. Justices Leery Of Speaker's Motive In Anti-SLAPP Test

    The Colorado Supreme Court on Wednesday pressed a veterinary clinic on its position that courts should consider a speaker's motivations to determine if their comments involve issues of public interest, with some justices wondering if that would create too high a bar to trigger an anti-SLAPP law.

  • May 14, 2025

    Gaming Co. Asks High Court To Undo Wash. Compacts' Order

    A casino owner and operator is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to undo a Ninth Circuit ruling that dismissed its challenge to Washington state tribal gaming compacts, arguing the case implicates an acknowledged conflict about the interplay of the Administrative Procedure Act.

  • May 14, 2025

    2nd Circ. Has Tough Questions On Nixing Medical Imaging Award

    The Second Circuit appeared divided on Wednesday on whether parties to a medical imaging joint venture could agree to designate New York courts to decide whether to vacate an arbitral award issued in Switzerland under their contract without violating an underlying treaty.

  • May 14, 2025

    Alex Jones Can't Duck $1B Sandy Hook Payout During Appeal

    Infowars host Alex Jones cannot avoid a $1.3 billion defamation judgment favoring the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary massacre while he crafts an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court in the hopes it accepts his final challenge to the record-breaking verdict, a Connecticut appeals court has ruled.

  • May 14, 2025

    Feds Say Ex-BigLaw Atty Must Start Prison In OneCoin Case

    Prosecutors asked a Manhattan federal judge on Wednesday to set a date for a former Locke Lord LLP partner to begin serving his 10-year prison sentence after he was convicted of helping to launder about $400 million in proceeds of the OneCoin cryptocurrency scheme.

  • May 14, 2025

    10th Circ. Chilly To Biotech's SEC Asset Freeze Challenge

    A panel of Tenth Circuit judges seemed skeptical Wednesday that a lower court had abused its discretion in granting a freeze of a biotech firm's assets in a suit brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission accusing the company and its founders of misappropriating roughly $9 million.

  • May 14, 2025

    7th Circ. Partially Revives Pregnancy Bias Suit Against Ill. DHS

    A Seventh Circuit panel on Wednesday partially reversed an Illinois federal court's decision giving the Illinois Department of Human Services a win on two former workers' claims of illegal pregnancy-related firings, saying that there are still open factual questions as to one worker.

  • May 14, 2025

    Fla. Court Won't Let State High Court Weigh Taking Query

    An en banc Florida appellate court on Wednesday refused to certify the city of Marathon's question about a factor for determining whether a taking happened to the state's high court.

  • May 14, 2025

    8th Circ. Dismisses North Dakota Native Voting Rights Dispute

    An Eighth Circuit panel vacated a North Dakota Native American voting rights dispute over whether the state's legislative body's drawing of redistricting maps violated federal law on Wednesday, saying parties don't have a private right to sue state officials over dilution claims under the Civil Rights Act.

  • May 14, 2025

    Shaky Docs Undermine SEC's $2M Trial Win, 11th Circ. Told

    A South Florida financial adviser accused of funneling investors into the $500 million Par Funding fraud scheme urged the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday to order a do-over of a civil trial that ended with him being required to pay more than $2 million to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

  • May 14, 2025

    Risks Abound For Higher Ed As Top Court Ruling Turns 2

    Since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in higher education admissions, schools around the country have been looking for innovative ways to achieve diversity on campus amid constant threats of additional litigation that could make them the next high-profile high court case.

  • May 14, 2025

    11th Circ. Won't Reopen White DOD Worker's Race Bias Suit

    The Eleventh Circuit refused to revive a commissary worker's lawsuit claiming the U.S. Department of Defense threatened to suspend her over a Black colleague's false accusations that she'd used a racial slur, ruling Wednesday that she failed to show the agency proposed the discipline because she's white.

  • May 14, 2025

    9th Circ. Says Trustee Is Liable Under New Social Media Test

    A California school board member violated the First Amendment when she blocked two parents from making comments on her public Facebook and Twitter pages, the Ninth Circuit ruled Wednesday, reaffirming a district court's judgment after applying the U.S. Supreme Court's new state-action test.

  • May 14, 2025

    Retrial Needed After Juror's Indecision, Conn. Justices Told

    A convicted murder defendant asked the Connecticut Supreme Court on Wednesday to grant him a new trial, arguing that a Superior Court judge did not do enough to question whether a juror who wasn't sure about her verdict while being polled might have been coerced during deliberations.

  • May 14, 2025

    3M Payment Satisfied Policy Requirements, Del. Justices Told

    An attorney for 3M and its subsidiary Aearo Technologies argued that the parent company's payment of defense costs in multidistrict litigation over combat earplugs satisfied the self-insured retention of the subsidiary's insurance policies, telling the Delaware Supreme Court on Wednesday the insurers "got exactly what they bargained for."

Expert Analysis

  • What To Expect From Federal Cybersecurity Policy In 2025

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    There are 12 cyber policy questions to keep an eye on as the new administration and Republican control of Congress present an opportunity to advance less regulatory approaches and revisit some choices from the prior administration, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Bid Protest Spotlight: Certification, Lateness, SBA Eligibility

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    In this month's bid protest roundup, Cody Fisher at MoFo examines three recent decisions from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Government Accountability Office that address the treatment of a proposal that was timely submitted but received late, and highlight nuances of certification and small business eligibility requirements.

  • How Decline Of Deference Will Affect Trump Policymaking

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    An administrative law regime without Chevron deference may limit the Trump administration’s ability to implement new policies in the short term, but ultimately help it in the long term, and all parties with an interest in regulatory changes will have to take a fresh approach to litigation, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Series

    Ohio Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q4

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    Ohio's banking and financial services sector saw several significant developments in the fourth quarter of 2024, including a landmark Uniform Commercial Code ruling, adjustments to the state's Homebuyer Plus Program and the launch of the state's first women-led bank, says attorney Alex Durst.

  • 6 Predictions For Cyber Risk And Insurance In 2025

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    This year is likely to bring with it some thorny and expensive cyber challenges, including increased ransomware activity, more data breach class actions and continued efforts to define business interruption loss calculations, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • 7 Ways 2nd Trump Administration May Affect Partner Hiring

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    President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House will likely have a number of downstream effects on partner hiring in the legal industry, from accelerated hiring timelines to increased vetting of prospective employees, say recruiters at Macrae.

  • Opinion

    Courts Must Curb The Drug Price Negotiation Program

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    The Inflation Reduction Act's drug price negotiation program upends incentive structures that drive medical innovation, and courts must act appropriately to avoid devastating consequences for American healthcare and the pharmaceutical industry, says Jeff Stier at the Consumer Choice Center.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Rulings On Custodian Selection

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    Several recent rulings make clear that the proportionality of additional proposed custodians will depend on whether the custodians have unique relevant documents, and producing parties should consider whether information already in the record will show that they have relevant documents that otherwise might not be produced, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Opinion

    Section 230 Debates Will Continue, With Or Without TikTok

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    Regardless of whether TikTok is forced to shut down in the U.S. in the coming weeks, legal disputes will continue over social media platforms' responsibility under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act for harms allegedly caused by content shared on their apps, says Carla Varriale-Barker at Segal McCambridge.

  • Surprise NC COVID Ruling Revises Reasonable Expectations

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    The North Carolina Supreme Court's recent finding in favor of policyholders in a suit for business interruption coverage due to COVID-19 shutdown orders runs contrary to most other state and federal courts' holdings on the issue, and may revitalize the reasonable expectations doctrine in the state, say attorneys at Goldberg Segalla.

  • Impact Of Successful Challenges To SEC's Rulemaking Ability

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    In 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission faced significant legal challenges to its aggressive rulemaking agenda as several of its rules were vacated by the Fifth Circuit, which could hinder the SEC's ability to enact rules extending beyond express statutory authority in the future, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • 5 Transition Tools Trump Could Use To Implement His Agenda

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    President-elect Donald Trump will have several tools available to him to halt or otherwise claw back federal regulations promulgated during the Biden administration, including reconciliation, executive orders and memoranda, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • When Judging Product Label Claims, Follow The Asterisk

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    A recurring question in false advertising class actions is whether misleading or ambiguous statements on a product's front label can be cured by information on the back label — but recent decisions from the Ninth Circuit suggest that a front-label asterisk can help alert consumers to seek further clarification, say attorneys at Hunton.

  • Justices Seem Focused On NEPA's Limits In Utah Rail Case

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    After last month's oral argument at the U.S. Supreme Court in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, Colorado, the court appears poised to forcefully reiterate that the National Environmental Policy Act requires federal agencies to review only those environmental impacts within their control, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • Fed. Circ. Patent Decisions In 2024: An Empirical Review

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    Despite an ever-increasing backlog of argument-ready cases, the Federal Circuit issued fewer decisions in 2024 than in previous years, and the decisions' overall friendliness toward patent owners and applicants was low, says Dan Bagatell at Perkins Coie.

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