California

  • October 29, 2025

    Netflix Settles Former India Legal Director's Gender Bias Suit

    Netflix has settled a wrongful termination and gender discrimination suit filed by the company's former director of business and legal affairs in India, according to a Los Angeles County Superior Court filing.

  • October 29, 2025

    Alston & Bird Sanctioned $10K For LinkedIn Juror Research

    A California federal judge has sanctioned Alston & Bird LLP $10,000 for conducting juror research on LinkedIn ahead of a trial in which it fended off $174 million in patent infringement claims against GoPro, saying privacy has been eroded in the age of the internet, and he considers LinkedIn research to be juror contact because of the notifications it sends to users.

  • October 29, 2025

    Calif. Co. Cites Export Ban In Bid To Block $490K Judgment

    A Los Angeles boat builder that supplies law enforcement agencies and the U.S. military asked a California federal judge to block a Chinese company's attempt to enforce a $490,000 arbitral award, saying payment would violate federal export controls.

  • October 28, 2025

    LA's Acting US Atty Essayli 'Not Lawfully Serving,' Judge Says

    Bill Essayli "is not lawfully serving" as the acting U.S. attorney in Los Angeles, a federal judge ruled Tuesday evening, disqualifying President Donald Trump's pick from serving in that role while declining to outright toss indictments in three criminal cases under his supervision.

  • October 28, 2025

    CVS, Ad Partner Can't Shake Suit Over User Data Tracking

    A California federal judge has refused to release CVS Pharmacy Inc. and a marketing partner from a putative class action accusing them of illegally intercepting personal health information from those who visited the retail chain's website, finding that the plaintiff had sufficiently alleged the disclosure of sensitive information and that consumers' loss of control of this data caused concrete harm.

  • October 28, 2025

    9th Circ. Upholds NLRB Ruling On Wage Talk Firing

    The Ninth Circuit on Tuesday backed the National Labor Relations Board's order finding that a Phoenix apartment complex manager illegally terminated an employee for discussing his wages with colleagues, which qualifies as protected activity, rejecting the manager's argument the employee was fired because of the quality of his work.

  • October 28, 2025

    Google Accused Of Stealing USC Patents For Map Platforms

    The University of Southern California has accused Google in Texas federal court of willfully infringing two of the university's image overlaying patents through Google Earth, Google Maps and Street View, noting that the tech giant previously awarded USC and a professor for a project that led to the patents.

  • October 28, 2025

    Social Media Apps Say Section 230 Halts Mental Health Claims

    Attorneys for Meta Platforms, YouTube, Snap and TikTok on Tuesday urged a Los Angeles judge to toss claims against them from an upcoming bellwether trial over the platforms' alleged harm to youth mental health, arguing that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act should prevent many of the claims from reaching a jury.

  • October 28, 2025

    Jewish Heirs Sue Met Over Nazi-Looted Van Gogh Painting

    A Jewish couple's estate sued the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a Greek art foundation and others in New York federal court Monday, demanding they return a Vincent van Gogh oil painting that the couple was forced to leave in Germany when they fled to California ahead of World War II.

  • October 28, 2025

    Apple Spared From Some Masimo Patent Claims Before Trial

    A California federal judge issued a mixed ruling in Masimo's case claiming Apple infringed its patents covering pulse oximetry technology for smartwatches, dismissing certain infringement theories but preserving other parts of the case for next week's trial.

  • October 28, 2025

    Court OKs $80M Deal Over Life Policy Lapses, Terminations

    A California federal court officially approved an $80 million settlement over claims that Protective Life Insurance Co. and a subsidiary violated state law by failing to provide proper notice before they declared insurance policies lapsed or terminated because of premium nonpayment.

  • October 28, 2025

    Trump Admin Ordered To Halt Some Shutdown-Linked Layoffs

    A California federal judge on Tuesday granted a preliminary injunction to eight unions for federal workers who lost their jobs during the government shutdown, saying they were likely to succeed on their claims that the Trump administration's actions were "political retribution" and unlawful.

  • October 28, 2025

    2 Firms Guide FirstSun, First Foundation Bank Merger

    FirstSun Capital Bancorp, the holding company of Dallas-based Sunflower Bank NA, and First Foundation Inc., the parent company to Irvine, California-based First Foundation Bank, have announced plans to combine in an all-stock merger guided by Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP and Alston & Bird LLP.

  • October 28, 2025

    Snap Cuts $65M Deal To End Investor Suit Over Privacy Tools

    Snapchat investors urged a California federal judge on Monday to preliminarily approve a $65 million settlement to resolve a proposed securities class action that was recently revived by the Ninth Circuit alleging the social media company downplayed the negative impact Apple's 2021 privacy changes would have on its advertising business.

  • October 28, 2025

    Activists Drop Challenge To FDA Inaction On Menthol Cigs

    A lawsuit accusing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration of slow-walking the Biden administration's proposed ban of menthol cigarettes was voluntarily dismissed, months after the Trump administration withdrew the ban entirely.

  • October 28, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Won't Send Background Check Patent Fight To Okla.

    The Federal Circuit on Tuesday shot down a background check software company's request to override a California federal court's refusal to ship a suit challenging the validity of its patents to Oklahoma.

  • October 28, 2025

    Monopolization Claims Against SAP Survive Dismissal

    A California federal judge has refused to toss technology company Celonis' claims accusing software giant SAP of pushing it out of a market for business process analysis services after dismissing a previous version of the allegations.

  • October 28, 2025

    26 AGs Sue USDA Over Suspension Of Nutrition Benefits

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture's decision to suspend Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits amid the ongoing government shutdown is an abuse of discretion that threatens to take food away from millions of people, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday by 25 states and the District of Columbia.

  • October 28, 2025

    USPTO Seeks Office Location Input After Denver Closure

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued a request for feedback Tuesday on locations for community outreach offices in the eight states formerly serviced by the Rocky Mountain Regional Outreach Office in Denver, after the regional office was closed this month, just before the federal government shutdown.

  • October 28, 2025

    Calif. Atty Seeks $25K As Fee Sanction For AI Error

    A California attorney representing a mobile app platform in a small-time copyright and contract suit playing out in Oakland federal court has asked for $25,000 as reimbursement for work he said went into responding to an error-ridden motion and subsequent time spent on the matter.

  • October 28, 2025

    Feds Rip Calif.'s Bid To Halt $4B Bullet Train Funds Reshuffle

    The Trump administration has told a federal judge that California is not entitled to billions in continued funding for its beleaguered high-speed rail project, firing back at what it describes as the Golden State's attempt to hoard grant funds that could be allocated to other projects.

  • October 28, 2025

    Democratic Sens. Seek Probe Of Nat'l Guard Deployment Cost

    Democratic senators called for the Congressional Budget Office to investigate the cost of President Donald Trump's deployment of National Guard troops in five U.S. cities, saying the mobilization of military forces raises serious fiscal, legal and constitutional concerns.

  • October 28, 2025

    Texas Co.'s Lack Of Counsel Sinks Perplexity AI TM Suit

    A Texas company suing Perplexity AI Inc. for trademark infringement had its case tossed by a California federal judge who said it had ignored warnings that it couldn't proceed without representation.

  • October 28, 2025

    Dental Co. Tells Chancery Ex-Executive Stole Business

    A California dental lab sued the former CEO of one of its subsidiaries in the Delaware Chancery Court, saying he violated a multimillion-dollar sale agreement when he resigned, purchased a rival business using information he collected through his former job and is now after its customers.

  • October 28, 2025

    Del. Gives Nod To OpenAI Public Benefit Corp. Restructuring

    Artificial intelligence giant OpenAI reported Tuesday that it will convert its Delaware-chartered LLC into a public benefit corporation in the same state after months of wide-ranging negotiations with civic and industry leaders and state justice officials in Delaware and California.

Expert Analysis

  • Anthropic Ruling Creates Fair Use Framework For AI Training

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    A California federal court’s recent ruling that Anthropic’s use of copyrighted books to train its large language model qualified as fair use provides important guidance for both artificial intelligence developers and copyright holders because it distinguishes between transformative uses and unauthorized uses involving pirated or format-shifted works, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • How Property Insurers Serve As Climate Change Harbingers

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    Thomas Dawson at McDermott discusses the role that U.S. property insurers may play in identifying and assessing climate risk, as well as in financing climate change adaptation projects, in light of global warming and shifting geopolitical realities.

  • Series

    Playing Baseball Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing baseball in college, and now Wiffle ball in a local league, has taught me that teamwork, mental endurance and emotional intelligence are not only important to success in the sport, but also to success as a trial attorney, says Kevan Dorsey at Swift Currie.

  • APA Relief May Blunt Justices' Universal Injunction Ruling

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    The Administrative Procedure Act’s avenue for universal preliminary relief seems to hold the most promise for neutralizing the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Trump v. CASA to limit federal district courts' nationally applicable orders, say attorneys at Crowell.

  • Managing Risks As State AGs Seek To Fill Enforcement Gap

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    Given an unprecedented surge in state attorney general activity resulting from significant shifts in federal enforcement priorities, companies must consider tailored strategies for navigating the ever-evolving risk landscape, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Skillful Persuasion

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    In many ways, law school teaches us how to argue, but when the ultimate goal is to get your client what they want, being persuasive through preparation and humility is the more likely key to success, says Michael Friedland at Friedland Cianfrani.

  • Litigation Inspiration: How To Respond After A Loss

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    Every litigator loses a case now and then, and the sting of that loss can become a medicine that strengthens or a poison that corrodes, depending on how the attorney responds, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

  • Tips For Cos. From California Climate Reporting FAQ

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    New guidance from the California Air Resources Board on how businesses must implement the state's sweeping climate reporting requirements should help companies assess their exposure, understand their disclosure obligations and begin documenting good-faith compliance efforts, says Thierry Montoya at Frost Brown.

  • What Calif. Insurance Ruling Means For Smoke Damage Limits

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    As California continues to grapple with an increasing number of wildfire claims, a state court's recent Aliff v. California FAIR Plan decision serves as a clear directive to insurers that policy language that narrows the scope of fire coverage below the California Insurance Code's minimum standards is impermissible, say attorneys at Wood Smith.

  • How NJ's Proposed Privacy Rules Could Reshape AI Data Use

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    Although not revolutionary, New Jersey's proposed privacy rules would create obligations around the management and processing of consumer personal data that will require careful planning before they can be successfully implemented, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • The Metamorphosis Of The Major Questions Doctrine

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    The so-called major questions doctrine arose as a counterweight to Chevron deference over the past few decades, but invocations of the doctrine have persisted in the year since Chevron was overturned, suggesting it still has a role to play in reining in agency overreach, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • What 9th Circ. Ruling Shows About Rebutting SEC Comments

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    The Ninth Circuit's June opinion in Pino v. Cardone Capital suggests that a company's lack of pushback to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission comment may be evidence of its state of mind for evaluating potential liability, meaning companies should consider including additional disclosure in SEC response letters, say attorneys at Barnes & Thornburg.

  • Business Takeaways Following CCPA Enforcement Actions

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    Advisories and recent enforcement activity by the California Privacy Protection Agency against Honda and Todd Snyder underscore the agency's enforcement interest in the intersection of data minimization and consumer rights, and could make it more challenging for a business to provide a streamlined consumer rights process, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Compliance Lessons From 1st-Ever Product Safety Sentences

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    A California federal judge’s recent sentencing of two former Gree USA executives in a landmark Consumer Product Safety Act case serves as a reminder of the federal government’s willingness to pursue criminal prosecution of individuals who fail to report safety hazards, as well as companies’ need to strengthen their reporting and compliance programs, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • 9th Circ. Decisions Help Clarify Scope Of Legal Lab Marketing

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    Two Ninth Circuit decisions last week provide a welcome development in clarifying the line between laboratories' legal marketing efforts and undue influence that violates the Eliminating Kickbacks in Recovery Act, and offer useful guidance for labs seeking to mitigate enforcement risk, says Joshua Robbins at Buchalter.

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