California

  • September 12, 2024

    Google Hit With 'Gemini' TM Suit Over AI Program Name

    Google LLC is facing a trademark infringement suit in California federal court by a small business that claims the tech giant made "the calculated decision to bulldoze over" its intellectual property rights by rebranding Google's large language model artificial intelligence program to Gemini.

  • September 12, 2024

    Pillsbury Hires King & Spalding Atty To Lead Appellate Team

    Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP on Wednesday named a new leader for its U.S. appellate practice, tapping a veteran litigator and former prosecutor who joined the firm's Silicon Valley office from King & Spalding LLP.

  • September 12, 2024

    Disneyland Performers Can Join Colleagues In Existing Union

    Certain Disneyland performers can have the opportunity to vote to join an existing bargaining unit, the National Labor Relations Board ruled, overturning an NLRB judge's decision that they didn't share enough in common with existing members of the union to be part of their unit.

  • September 12, 2024

    Medline Can't Force Arbitration In Transportation Wage Suit

    Medical supply giant Medline can't compel a warehouse employee to arbitrate her wage-and-hour claims, the Ninth Circuit ruled, upholding a lower court's decision that she's exempted under the interstate-commerce exemption of the Federal Arbitration Act because she loads goods that cross state lines.

  • September 12, 2024

    Feds Eye Nixing Girardi's Ill. Case After Calif. Theft Conviction

    The federal government might drop its criminal charges in Illinois against disbarred attorney Tom Girardi following his recent conviction in California on similar charges of stealing millions from clients, a prosecutor indicated Thursday during a status hearing in the Prairie State matter.

  • September 12, 2024

    Buchanan Ingersoll Looks Inward For New COO

    Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC didn't have to look far for its new chief operating officer.

  • September 12, 2024

    Faegre Drinker Adds White Collar Trio From Greenberg Traurig

    Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP is building out its white collar team with former veteran prosecutors, announcing Wednesday it had added two partners and an associate from Greenberg Traurig LLP who will bolster its San Francisco and Philadelphia offices

  • September 12, 2024

    Calif. OTA Denies Refund For Criminal Restitution Payments

    California's Office of Tax Appeals said it is unable to refund criminal restitution payments to a couple who operated 21 Subway franchises in the southern part of the state between 2003 and 2010 and pleaded guilty to tax fraud and evasion for some of those years.

  • September 12, 2024

    Weinstein Hit With New Charges In NY Ahead Of Retrial

    Harvey Weinstein was charged in a new indictment Thursday as Manhattan prosecutors prepare to retry the disgraced Hollywood mogul after his previous sex-crimes conviction was overturned.

  • September 11, 2024

    Litigation Spending To Rise As Cases Grow More Aggressive

    A substantial number of large companies are expecting to increase their litigation spending by double digits next year in the face of more complex and hard-fought cases — and they are more open to bringing in new legal talent to navigate the matters, according to a report released Thursday. 

  • September 11, 2024

    The Firms That Handle The Most Trade Secrets Work

    Gordon Rees remains the most active law firm representing plaintiffs in trade secrets disputes, according to a new report by Lex Machina analyzing a three-year period from 2021 to 2023, while Littler Mendelson continues to lead the pack on the defendants' side during that same timeframe.

  • September 11, 2024

    Dua Lipa Can't Slip Copyright Claim In 'Levitating' IP Suit

    Pop singer Dua Lipa wasn't able to persuade a California federal judge to toss a copyright infringement claim in a suit over her hit song "Levitating" by a producer who alleges some of his samples were used without permission, but did get an accounting claim thrown out.

  • September 11, 2024

    Sprout Foods Can't Get 9th Circ. Redo In Baby Food Label Suit

    A split Ninth Circuit panel declined Tuesday to rethink its decision that federal law doesn't preempt a couple's California state law claim over allegedly misleading nutrition labels on Sprout Foods baby food labels.

  • September 11, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Lets Roku IP Dispute Move From Texas To Calif.

    The Federal Circuit on Wednesday declined to reverse a Texas district court's transfer of a suit accusing Roku of infringing patents on automatic content recognition technology for commercial advertising, holding the Texas court wasn't wrong to find California had a stronger local interest in the dispute.

  • September 11, 2024

    Cedars-Sinai Workers Seek Class In Retirement Plan Case

    A pair of former Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Inc. workers asked a California federal judge to greenlight a 16,000-person class in a lawsuit claiming their retirement plan was burdened with excessive fees and subpar investment options.

  • September 11, 2024

    Top Calif. Biz Bills Sitting On Gov. Newsom's Desk

    Among the hundreds of bills awaiting California Governor Gavin Newsom's signature are a number that would create new guidelines for Golden State employers, healthcare industry players, as well as artificial intelligence labeling, textile recycling and increasing criminal penalties for corporate malfeasance by tens of millions of dollars.

  • September 11, 2024

    Uber, Postmates Ask Justices To Address AB 5 Classifications

    Postmates and Uber urged the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse the Ninth Circuit's decision dismissing their constitutional challenge to California's worker classification law, arguing that A.B. 5 singles them out and strips them of equal protection under the law, according to their petition to the high court.

  • September 11, 2024

    Studio Behind 'Sound Of Freedom' Worth $1.6B In SPAC Deal

    Angel Studios, which released the controversial 2023 film "Sound Of Freedom" about human trafficking, will go public through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company in a deal announced Wednesday that stands to value the combined company at $1.6 billion.

  • September 11, 2024

    San Diego Utility Hit With Suit Over Wood Waste Runoff

    San Diego Gas & Electric is using a wood treatment mixture on its power poles and in its facilities that includes toxic chemicals that poison the environment and pose a danger to humans and animals nearby, according to a suit filed in California federal court Tuesday.

  • September 11, 2024

    Reality Star Says Cosmetic Co. Can't 'Give Them Lala'

    Lala Kent, one of the stars of Bravo's "Vanderpump Rules," has hit a cosmetic company with a suit alleging it violated her intellectual property rights by selling an unauthorized lip product under her "Give Them Lala" brand.

  • September 11, 2024

    Kirkland Can't Shake Former Associate's Bias Suit

    A California federal judge has mostly rejected efforts by Kirkland & Ellis to pare down the discrimination suit of a former intellectual property associate, while also backing a prior order that prevented the firm from subpoenaing her former BigLaw employers for confidential personnel information.

  • September 11, 2024

    Sanford Heisler Taps Whistleblower Leader As Named Partner

    Sanford Heisler Sharp LLP has tapped a co-leader of its whistleblower practice group to be a named partner and co-vice chair of the firm, promoting an attorney whose record includes helping to secure a $3 billion settlement with Wells Fargo over its sales practices.

  • September 11, 2024

    Sidley, Other Attys Get $850K In Fees For Migrant Family Suit

    A California federal judge signed off on $850,000 in legal fees for Sidley Austin LLP's and Public Counsel's work advising plaintiffs in a class action that saw the federal government ordered to provide mental health treatment for migrant families separated at the border.

  • September 11, 2024

    Calif. Judge Admonished For Silencing Harassment Defendant

    A California state judicial ethics watchdog publicly reprimanded a San Mateo County judge on Tuesday over her refusal to hear evidence from a defendant who had failed to show up to a previously scheduled civil restraining order proceeding in the judge's court.

  • September 11, 2024

    Constangy Brings On More Jackson Lewis Attys In San Diego

    Three former Jackson Lewis PC attorneys have come aboard at the San Diego office of labor and employment firm Constangy Brooks Smith & Prophete LLP, joining four onetime Jackson Lewis colleagues who arrived at Constangy this summer. 

Expert Analysis

  • Proposed NIL Deal Leaves NCAA Antitrust Liability Door Open

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    The proposed House v. NCAA settlement filed in California federal court creates the possibility of significant direct payments to student-athletes for the first time, but the resulting framework is unlikely to withstand future antitrust scrutiny because it still represents an agreement among competitors to limit labor cost, says Yaman Desai at Lynn Pinker.

  • Series

    A Day In The In-House Life: Block CLO Talks Problem-Solving

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    Amid the busy summer months, Block Inc. Chief Legal Officer Chrysty Esperanza chronicles a typical Wednesday where she conquered everything from unexpected fintech regulatory issues and team building to Bay Area commutes and school drop-off.

  • Shipping Containers As Building Elements Require Diligence

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    With the shipping container market projected to double between 2020 and 2028, repurposing containers as storage units, office spaces and housing may become more common, but developers must make sure they comply with requirements that can vary by intended use and location, says Steven Otto at Crosbie Gliner.

  • Drip Pricing Exemption Isn't A Free Pass For Calif. Eateries

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    A new exemption relieves California bars and restaurants from the recently effective law banning prices that don't reflect mandatory fees and charges — but such establishments aren't entirely off the hook for drip pricing, due to uncertainty over disclosure requirements and pending federal junk fee regulations, say Alexandria Ruiz and Amy Lally at Sidley.

  • Justices' Intent Witness Ruling May Be Useful For Defense Bar

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    At first glance, the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Diaz v. U.S. decision, allowing experts to testify to the mental state of criminal defendants in federal court, gives prosecutors a new tool, but creative white collar defense counsel may be able to use the same tool to their own advantage, say Jack Sharman and Rachel Bragg at Lightfoot Franklin.

  • How To Grow Marketing, Biz Dev Teams In A Tight Market

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    Faced with fierce competition and rising operating costs, firms are feeling the pressure to build a well-oiled marketing and business development team that supports strategic priorities, but they’ll need to be flexible and creative given a tight talent market, says Ben Curle at Ambition.

  • Why Calif. Courts Are Split On ERISA Forfeited Contributions

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    A split between two California federal courts, in deciding whether an employer’s use of forfeited retirement plan contributions to offset future costs violates the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, suggests employers should soon expect more ERISA cases to advance this novel legal theory when making anti-inurement and breach of fiduciary duty claims, says Blake Crohan at Alston & Bird.

  • Series

    Rock Climbing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Rock climbing requires problem-solving, focus, risk management and resilience, skills that are also invaluable assets in my role as a finance lawyer, says Mei Zhang at Haynes and Boone.

  • How 5 States' Deal Notification Laws Are Guiding Healthcare

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    Healthcare transaction notification laws at various stages of implementation in California, Illinois, Indiana, Oregon and Washington are shaping sector mergers and acquisitions, with significant transparency, continuity of care and compliance implications as providers tackle complex regulatory requirements, says Melesa Freerks at DLA Piper.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Dance The Legal Standard Two-Step

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    From rookie brief writers to Chief Justice John Roberts, lawyers should master the legal standard two-step — framing the governing standard at the outset, and clarifying why they meet that standard — which has benefits for both the drafter and reader, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Alice Step 2 Trends Show Courts' Extrinsic Evidence Reliance

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    A look at recent trends in how district courts are applying Step 2 of the Alice framework shows that courts have increasingly relied on extrinsic evidence to help determine whether a claimed invention is "well-understood, routine, and conventional," says Jonathan Tuminaro at Sterne Kessler.

  • What To Know As Children's Privacy Law Rapidly Evolves

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    If your business hasn't been paying attention to growing state and federal efforts to protect children online, now is the time to start — there is no sign of this regulation slowing down, and more aggressive enforcement actions are to be expected in the coming year, says Susan Rohol at Willkie Farr.

  • What Cos. Should Know About New Global Plastics Regs

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    As the global regulatory landscape for plastics and recycling changes rapidly — with new policies coming into effect in California, at the federal level, in the European Union and at the United Nations — businesses that operate across jurisdictions must stay informed to remain compliant, mitigate legal risk and achieve stewardship goals, say attorneys at O'Melveny.

  • How Calif. Ruling Alters Worker Arb. Agreement Enforcement

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    The California Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Ramirez v. Charter Communications should caution employers that while workers’ arbitration agreements will no longer be deemed unenforceable based on their number of unconscionable provisions, they must still be fair and balanced, says Sander van der Heide at CDF Labor.

  • The Rise Of State And Local Environmental Leadership

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    While Congress is deadlocked, and a U.S. Supreme Court with a hostility toward the administrative state aggressively dismantles federal environmental oversight, state and local governments are stepping up with policies to shape a more sustainable future for all species, says Jonathan Rosenbloom at Albany Law School.

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