California

  • September 25, 2026

    Balancing The Scales: Concealed Carry, 'Weird' Arguments

    The Eleventh Circuit ruled that police spotting a gun protruding from a defendant’s pocket wasn’t enough to trigger reasonable suspicion in Florida, a state where concealed carry is treated as presumptively legal, and the Fifth Circuit rejected a “weird” argument from a person convicted of being a felon in possession. Here, Law360 highlights access to justice stories arising from litigation, verdicts and judgments you may have missed.

  • September 25, 2026

    How A Calif. Ruling May Ease Court Reporter Shortage Effect

    A recent California Supreme Court ruling could help low-income litigants overcome a court reporter shortage that has left millions of hearings without an official record, undermining their chances of successfully appealing court decisions. For domestic violence survivors, advocates say, that record can mean the difference between challenging a potentially dangerous court order and having no viable path to appeal.

  • September 25, 2026

    Calif. Appealing Order Faulting Cannabis Tracking System

    California's cannabis regulator will appeal a state court's judgment finding that the agency failed to implement a system highlighting suspicious marijuana transactions as it was required to do so by state law.

  • September 25, 2026

    Driscoll's Hit With NY Suit Over Alleged PFAS On Berries

    A consumer on Thursday hit California-based Driscoll's Inc. with a proposed class action in New York federal court, alleging the berry-producing giant failed to disclose the presence of PFAS residue from pesticides on its strawberries.

  • September 25, 2026

    DC Circ. Backs Buy America Waiver For Brightline Trains

    The D.C. Circuit on Friday rejected Alstom Transportation Inc.'s challenge of a Buy America waiver approved for trains for a high-speed rail project linking Las Vegas to Southern California, holding that the waiver is reasoned and aligns with federal requirements.

  • September 25, 2026

    9th Circ. OKs Class Cert. In Classmates.com Name Use Case

    The Ninth Circuit has approved a lower court's certification of a class of Californians suing over their names appearing in the yearbooks platform Classmates.com, rejecting a number of challenges from the website's operator, including that the lead plaintiff couldn't adequately represent the class.

  • September 25, 2026

    Detractors Tell Court Paramount Deal Fails To Fix Concerns

    Civil rights and public interest groups have told a California federal court the settlement ending a challenge of Paramount Skydance's purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery fails to address the concerns state enforcers raised in the first place.

  • September 25, 2026

    AI Mishap Has Judge Questioning 'Our Collective Character'

    A California attorney was barred from representing the plaintiffs in a Massachusetts insurance coverage dispute and ordered to pay legal costs of up to $10,000 to opposing counsel, after a federal judge found he relied on "inaccurate and fictitious" case cites and holdings in three filings.

  • September 25, 2026

    Google Win Over Online Ad Patent Case Upheld By Fed. Circ.

    The Federal Circuit on Friday refused to revive an advertising management system company's infringement suit against Google and YouTube, agreeing with a California federal judge's finding that the claims at issue were invalid under the U.S. Supreme Court's Alice precedent.

  • September 25, 2026

    Clorox Sued Over 6.3M-Bottle Bacteria Risk Recall

    A pair of Puerto Rican buyers are suing The Clorox Co. in California federal court over the recent recall of 6.3 million bottles of Mistolin and Lestoil cleaners for bacterial contamination risks, saying the company should have been aware of the risk sooner and its recall falls well short of making consumers whole.

  • September 25, 2026

    Cooley, Latham Steer RNA Drugmaker's Upsized $446M IPO

    San Diego-based biotechnology company ADARx Pharmaceuticals began trading publicly on Friday after raising $446 million in its initial public offering steered by Cooley LLP and Latham & Watkins LLP, adding to the growing list of biotech IPOs recently.

  • September 25, 2026

    California Powerhouse: Munger Tolles

    Munger Tolles, over the past year, took on the Trump administration in multiple high-profile battles involving Susman Godfrey and the New York attorney general, and defended the University of California in litigation following student protests over the war in Gaza, making the firm one of the Law360 2026 Regional Powerhouses in California.

  • September 25, 2026

    Calif. Justices Name New Top Judge For State Bar Court

    The Supreme Court of California has appointed a new presiding judge for the State Bar Court, selecting a jurist with experience reviewing high-profile attorney ethics matters like the disbarment of President Donald Trump's former attorney John Eastman.

  • September 25, 2026

    Meta Lied About Data Privacy, New Mexico Jury Finds

    A New Mexico jury said Friday that Meta lied willfully on 26 different occasions regarding data privacy, hate speech, misinformation and Facebook's outside investigation of third-party app developers after the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

  • September 25, 2026

    Duane Morris To Settle Employee's Tax Withholding Claim

    Duane Morris LLP has agreed to private mediation to settle a proposed class action by an employee who alleged that the firm failed to withhold taxes for workers who were misclassified as partners, according to a notice.

  • September 25, 2026

    Prediction Market Regulators, Bad Actors In AI Arms Race

    Artificial intelligence is playing an increasingly important role in policing prediction markets, and attorneys say that regulators and investigators are starting to effectively use the same technology that would-be bad actors have leveraged to try to score big with their bets.

  • September 25, 2026

    Brightline Florida To Continue Operating While In Ch. 11

    Florida's Brightline rail service will continue operating during the Chapter 11 cases of its parent entities, as they pursue a restructuring of more than $1 billion of bond debt with the support of its creditors.

  • September 24, 2026

    Apple Pay Antitrust Class Wins Cert. In Wallet Monopoly Suit

    A California federal judge Wednesday certified a class of thousands of financial institutions in a suit accusing the company of monopolizing mobile wallet technology for its devices, even though some of the lead plaintiffs said they weren't going to pass transaction fees off to consumers.

  • September 24, 2026

    Buzzkill For Big Sipz As BuzzBallz Gets Big Domain Row Win

    A California federal judge tossed Big Sipz maker Patco Brands' remaining counterclaims against rival BuzzBallz on Thursday, finding that its "Big Sipz" trademark was not distinctive when BuzzBallz acquired two related web domains and redirected visitors to its own site.

  • September 24, 2026

    Paramount Judge Won't 'Rubber Stamp' States' Merger Deal

    A California federal judge questioned state enforcers Thursday about the details of their proposed settlement to resolve antitrust litigation challenging Paramount Skydance's planned $110 billion purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery, telling counsel, "The court isn't a rubber stamp," and "I've got questions, and I'm not the only one."

  • September 24, 2026

    ITC Takes On Patents, Trade Secrets In Large Decision Drop

    The U.S. International Trade Commission issued a flood of decisions this week on investigations in which imports are being evaluated to see if they infringe patents or misappropriate secrets, including three cases where it will reconsider holdings from administrative law judges.

  • September 24, 2026

    Ex-Google CEO's Rape Accuser Can't Undo $12M Arb. Loss

    A California judge on Thursday told a woman who accused former Google CEO Eric Schmidt of sexual assault that he will not vacate a $12 million arbitration award in Schmidt's favor, saying she appeared to have ignored the arbitrator's orders just like she disregarded his own, and asking, "Why did you do that?"

  • September 24, 2026

    Calif. Bill Deals Blow, But Not Knockout, To Tracking Suits

    A California bill awaiting the governor's signature is poised to reduce the swell of litigation under the California Invasion of Privacy Act, but the narrow scope of the pending lawsuit ban leaves open other avenues for plaintiffs to target the widespread use of website tracking technologies.

  • September 24, 2026

    Feds Fight Bid To DQ Top LA Prosecutor After 9th Circ. Ruling

    The top federal prosecutor in the Central District of California has asked a district judge to delay following a Ninth Circuit ruling against his Nevada counterpart that would bar him from overseeing criminal cases until the U.S. Supreme Court weighs in.

  • September 24, 2026

    Full 9th Circ. Asked To Revisit $2B Devas Arbitral Award

    An Indian state-owned aerospace company has urged the full Ninth Circuit to review a three-judge panel's unanimous decision to enforce a $2 billion arbitral award issued to a Bangalore-based satellite communications company, saying the decision raises important questions about the constitutional limits on jurisdiction of foreign disputes with no connection to the U.S.

Expert Analysis

  • Opinion

    Shareholder Derivative Litigation Needs A Better Framework

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    Uncoordinated, multiforum shareholder derivative litigation is a growing issue for corporate defendants that have little to no recourse for organizing and consolidating actions, but several commonsense steps should be utilized to preempt such disputes, say attorneys at Sullivan & Cromwell.

  • Occupier Contract Strategies For Locking In Expansion Rights

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    In a market defined by record-setting demand, shrinking availability and rising rents, large commercial office occupiers must treat expansion space planning as a strategic priority, including by auditing existing rights, understanding the competitive landscape within their buildings and exploring creative lease provisions, says Josh Winefsky at HSF Kramer.

  • How State, Local Rules Are Expanding Debt Collection Reach

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    Consumer protection rules recently enacted by several states signal that the rules of debt collection are being rewritten at a pace that should command the attention of every creditor, servicer, debt buyer, collection agency and collection law firm operating across state lines, says Weldianne Scales at Reed Smith.

  • 2 AI Washing Rulings Apply Familiar Securities Fraud Rules

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    Two recent federal court decisions to allow AI washing complaints to proceed begin to clarify the line between nonactionable optimism and actionable misstatements by framing the core issue as not overstating the promise of artificial intelligence, but misrepresenting the current state of a company's products, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • A New Regulatory Environment For PE In Calif. Healthcare

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    The California Office of Health Care Affordability's proposed revisions to its cost and market impact review regulations, amid broader state scrutiny of private equity-backed healthcare arrangements, represent a qualitative shift in California's regulatory posture toward institutional healthcare investment, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • CFIUS' Mandate Misses Foreign Risk In Project Subcontracts

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    Recent calls for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to review equity transactions like the Paramount Skydance-Warner Bros. deal miss a consequential oversight gap — CFIUS' inability to review the subcontracting layer of U.S. infrastructure projects, says Thibaut Giret at Alstef Group.

  • AI Governance Tips For Avoiding Securities Suits

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    A recent securities class action in California federal court against lending platform Upstart highlights how statements about artificial intelligence are increasingly being scrutinized not only by regulators, but also by shareholders, meaning companies should ensure oversight frameworks keep pace with the technology, say attorneys at Akerman.

  • How Cos. Can Prep For Ultra-Processed Food Legal Risks

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    A wave of litigation and government scrutiny directed against ultra-processed foods is now gaining momentum, following patterns seen previously in other industries — and food companies that recognize those patterns early will be better positioned to manage the increasing risks, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Series

    Bass Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Landing a trophy striped bass and closing a big deal both require cultivating the patience to finesse — not force — your way to desired outcomes, changing course when your old approach isn’t working and learning from the ones that got away, says Jon Ruiss at Alston & Bird.

  • Roundup

    The Most Talked-About Supreme Court Decisions Of 2026

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    This term, 11 U.S. Supreme Court decisions quickly became hot topics among Law360's guest writers.

  • Pregnancy Bias Suits Highlight EEOC's Expanding Reach

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    Recent U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suits show that enactment of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act has drawn scrutiny to a wider range of employment decisions and an increasing focus on individual decisions as indicators of whether an employer's policies comply with evolving federal requirements, say attorneys at Krevolin Horst.

  • Series

    Calif. Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

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    The year's second quarter brought several noteworthy financial services developments to California, including activity around a commercial finance oversight bill, the former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau head's appointment to lead a new consumer agency, and a ruling reinforcing viable bank-fintech partnerships, say attorneys at Manatt.

  • What Ex-CFPB Head's Calif. Role May Foretell For Oversight

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    California Gov. Gavin Newsom's selection of former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra to lead a new consumer agency signals tougher state financial services oversight, especially for fintechs, as well as heightened enforcement activity and larger penalties, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • Justices Stand On Statutory Specifics In Cisco And Landor

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    With its June 23 decisions in Cisco Systems Inc. v. Doe and Landor v. Louisiana Department of Corrections and Public Safety, the U.S. Supreme Court doubled down on the critical point that the statute invoked in a federal claim must authorize a private lawsuit and the remedy sought, says Patrick Judd at Phelps Dunbar.

  • Immigration Ruling Maps Alternative To Universal Injunctions

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    A Rhode Island federal court's decision in Dorcas International Institute of Rhode Island v. USCIS vacating policies that froze key immigration adjudications for nationals of 39 countries, and paused asylum applications altogether, suggests how practitioners might press for the Administrative Procedure Act's bad faith exception to record review and seek vacatur as a viable alternative to universal injunctions, says Kemal Hepsen at Mandamus Lawyers.

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