Commercial Contracts

  • August 04, 2026

    5th Circ. Revives Penske Vicarious Liability Suit

    The Fifth Circuit Tuesday revived a lawsuit alleging trucking services giant Penske Logistics LLC and its freight broker affiliate Penske Transportation Management LLC are vicariously liable for a fatal 2018 Texas collision, after the U.S. Supreme Court's recent Montgomery ruling reshaped brokers' liability exposure.

  • August 04, 2026

    Construction Co. Insurers Denied NYU Settlement Clawback

    A construction company's insurers cannot recoup $50 million they paid to resolve a lawsuit from New York University over project damage, the Delaware Superior Court has ruled, finding New York law would not allow insurers to recover payments made under a reservation of rights when the policy didn't expressly allow it.

  • August 04, 2026

    UMB Bank Suit Over Failed Hard Rock Hotel Headed To Trial

    UMB Bank NA's lawsuit over a failed $80 million development of a Hard Rock hotel and events center in Kansas is set to proceed to trial, with a federal judge holding that the suit asserts triable issues regarding whether some of the defendants shared a common purpose to defraud and to participate in a fraudulent enterprise. 

  • August 04, 2026

    Stripe Seeks OK Of $1.4M Arb. Award In Chargeback Dispute

    Payment processing company Stripe has asked a California federal court to confirm an arbitration award of more than $1.3 million in fees and costs that it won after beating claims from a merchant, whose payment processing account was terminated due to an extremely high volume of chargebacks.

  • August 04, 2026

    Navigation Product Co. Says $12.7M Feud Must Be Litigated

    Emcore LLC has urged a New Jersey federal court to reject a Turkish electronics company's bid to arbitrate claims seeking at least $12.7 million, arguing the sales representative agreement underlying those claims contains no arbitration clause.

  • August 04, 2026

    Day Pitney Dropped From Suit Over Ex-Justice's Involvement

    A Connecticut state court judge allowed Day Pitney LLP to withdraw from a $1.3 million corporate windup feud after the involvement of one of its partners, a former chief justice on the state Supreme Court, came to light, negating the defendants' call for an evidentiary hearing on a motion to disqualify the firm.

  • August 04, 2026

    Developer Sunk $10.5M Into Contaminated Land, NC Suit Says

    An environmental consulting company allegedly failed to warn a real estate developer that property in North Carolina was contaminated with dry-cleaning chemicals until after the developer sunk $10.5 million into trying to develop the land, according to a state Business Court lawsuit.

  • August 04, 2026

    Digital Marketing Co. Ibotta Beats Shareholder's IPO Action

    Digital consumer discount company Ibotta Inc. has escaped a proposed shareholder class action accusing it of misleading investors in the lead-up to the company's 2024 initial public offering, with a Colorado federal court ruling the allegations do not connect the defendants to intentions to defraud.

  • August 04, 2026

    Judge Undoes Default Order Against Hemp Co. In CBD Oil Suit

    A federal judge set aside a default order against a Washington cannabis grower that failed to timely answer counterclaims in a dispute over a multimillion-dollar hemp biomass purchase agreement, finding the company's late filing was due to attorney and staff error rather than willful misconduct.

  • August 04, 2026

    Teams In Flores' Bias Suit Take Arbitration Denial To 2nd Circ.

    Three NFL teams bidding to send their portion of a racial discrimination suit by former head coach Brian Flores back to league-run arbitration have appealed a New York federal judge's ruling against them to the Second Circuit.

  • August 04, 2026

    Dominican Republic Looks To Nix $44M Award

    The Dominican Republic has urged the D.C. Circuit to overturn a Washington federal court's confirmation of a nearly $44 million arbitral award in favor of billionaire businessman Michael Lee-Chin, arguing the lower court improperly deferred to the arbitral tribunal on threshold questions of arbitrability and allowed enforcement of an award issued without a valid agreement to arbitrate.

  • August 04, 2026

    Del. Chancery Partly Revives HKA's Employment Contract Suit

    The Delaware Chancery Court on Monday let HKA Global LLC revive parts of its suit against three former partners and Accuracy US LLC, allowing several new claims while refusing to reinstate contract theories the court had already rejected after voiding key restrictive covenants.

  • August 04, 2026

    $15M Deal In PVC Pipe Price-Fixing Case Gets Initial OK

    An Illinois federal judge on Tuesday granted early approval to a $15 million deal purchasers struck with plastic pipe system supplier Pipelife Jet Stream, allowing it to soon exit antitrust litigation accusing major polyvinyl chloride pipe producers of fixing prices.

  • August 03, 2026

    DOJ, Rocket Mortgage See 'Reasonable' Chance To Settle

    The U.S. Department of Justice has asked a Colorado federal court to pause deadlines in its appraisal discrimination case against Rocket Mortgage LLC, saying both sides agree there's a "reasonable prospect" for a settlement and want time to explore it further.

  • August 03, 2026

    Shipbuilder Ditches Pa. Suit Over Baltimore Bridge Collapse

    A Pennsylvania federal judge on Monday dismissed a lawsuit alleging South Korean shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. designed and built a "fatally flawed" container ship that subsequently slammed into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge. 

  • August 03, 2026

    AT&T Can't Cut Claims From Cellular Partnership Suit

    The Delaware Chancery Court has refused to toss two new claims from companies suing AT&T over rural Oklahoma cellular partnerships, saying the telecom titan "appears to have drafted an ambiguous contract and must now live with the results."

  • August 03, 2026

    Pot Investor Says Partners Diverted $1.1M In Grow Site Funds

    Three entrepreneurs face claims they misused $1.1 million in seed money meant to launch a Merced, California, cannabis cultivation facility, according to a lawsuit filed by an investor who says the grow site never materialized and the funds were diverted for personal use.

  • August 03, 2026

    Students' Assault Suit Must Be Arbitrated, Fla. School Says

    A Florida boarding school accused of allowing the sexual assault of two male students urged a state court Monday to move their lawsuit into arbitration, arguing that each of their fathers signed contracts agreeing to resolve their claims out of court. 

  • August 03, 2026

    Samsung Unit, Mousterian Ink US Floating Data Center Deal

    Shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. and Mousterian Corp. Inc. have signed an engineering agreement for their first moored U.S. floating data center project, the two companies announced Monday.

  • August 03, 2026

    4 Mass. Rulings You May Have Missed In July

    A Massachusetts judge affirmed her self-described "eye-popping" $91 million judgment against insurance companies, a private lender was freed from fraud claims after a loan recipient's emails told a different story, and a venture capital pro was denied a jury for his upcoming trial, among other recent state court rulings.

  • August 03, 2026

    Legal Questions Michigan Is Still Facing In 2026

    Michigan's legal sector can expect answers on several burning legal questions in the remainder of 2026, with major litigation over the Flint water crisis nearing an end, and the state's enforcement push against prediction market purveyors just getting started. Some of the biggest questions, however, will be answered not in court, but at the ballot box, where Michigan Supreme Court justices are up for election and a potential constitutional convention will be put to voters.

  • August 03, 2026

    9th Circ. Won't Toss Ex-LA Supervisor's Fraud Conviction

    The Ninth Circuit on Monday denied former Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas' bid to escape his fraud, bribery and conspiracy convictions, finding that his "funneling" scheme of giving $100,000 to the University of Southern California before it facilitated the same amount moving to his son's nonprofit constituted a "thing of value."

  • August 03, 2026

    Judge Denies Bid To Oust Kirkland From Trade Secret Feud

    A California federal judge has denied a healthcare software company's attempt to disqualify Kirkland & Ellis LLP from representing Commure Inc. in a trade secret lawsuit, ruling that the plaintiff failed to prove that information it disclosed during a prospective client consultation was materially harmful enough to warrant disqualification.

  • August 03, 2026

    Conn. Atty Says Deal Bars Fidelity's $920K Malpractice Claim

    A Connecticut lawyer has sought an early win on Fidelity National Title Insurance Co.'s malpractice case surrounding a $2.5 million mortgage refinancing loan, arguing that a claim over a forged mortgage release and a $920,000 payout is barred by the passage of time and a prior settlement.

  • August 03, 2026

    NJ Panel Revives Bank's Greenbaum Rowe Malpractice Suit

    First Bank's legal malpractice suit against Greenbaum Rowe Smith & Davis LLP over a botched loan for a Lexus dealership was revived by a Garden State appeals court Monday, with the panel ruling that the trial court should not have barred the bank's expert report.

Expert Analysis

  • Nuclear Power Pitfalls And Opportunities To Watch For In 2026

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    Shepherding nuclear power projects to completion requires navigating more risks and obligations than almost any other infrastructure undertaking, but with the right strategies, states, developers, vendors and contractors can overcome these hurdles in 2026 and beyond, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • 2025 Calif. Banking Oversight Centered On Consumer Issues

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    The combination of statutory reform, registration mandates and enforcement activity in 2025 signals that California's financial regulatory landscape is focused on consumer protection, particularly in the areas of crypto kiosk fee practices, earned wage access providers and elder fraud, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • How Fractional GCs Can Manage Risks Of Engagement

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    As more organizations eliminate their in-house legal departments in favor of outsourcing legal work, fractional general counsel roles offer practitioners an engaging and flexible way to practice at a high level, but they can also present legal, ethical and operational risks that must be proactively managed, say attorneys at Boies Schiller.

  • Series

    Nature Photography Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Nature photography reminds me to focus on what is in front of me and to slow down to achieve success, and, in embracing the value of viewing situations through different lenses, offers skills transferable to the practice of law, says Brian Willett at Saul Ewing.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Practical Problem Solving

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    Issue-spotting skills are well honed in law school, but practicing attorneys must also identify clients’ problems and true goals, and then be able to provide solutions, says Mary Kate Hogan at Quarles & Brady.

  • How Workforce, Tech Will Affect 2026 Construction Landscape

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    As the construction industry's center of gravity shifts from traditional commercial work to infrastructure, energy, industrial and data-hosting facilities, the effects of evolving technology and persistent labor shortages are reshaping real estate dealmaking, immigration policy debates and government contracting risk, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Contract Disputes Recap: Delay, Plain Text, Sovereign Acts

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    Three recent decisions addressing familiar pressure points show that even well-worn doctrines evolve, and both contractors and the government should reexamine their assumptions, says Zachary Jacobson at Seyfarth.

  • Opinion

    A Uniform Federal Rule Would Curb Gen AI Missteps In Court

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    To address the patchwork of courts’ standing orders on generative artificial intelligence, curbing abuses and relieving the burden on judges, the federal judiciary should consider amending its civil procedure rules to require litigants to certify they’ve reviewed legal filings for accuracy, say attorneys at Shook Hardy.

  • Series

    The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Integrating Practice Groups

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    Enacting unified leadership and consistent client service standards ensures law firm practice groups connect and collaborate around shared goals, turning a law firm merger into a platform for growth rather than a period of disruption, says Brian Catlett at Fennemore Craig.

  • Opinion

    Supreme Court Term Limits Would Carry Hidden Risk

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    While proposals for limiting the terms of U.S. Supreme Court justices are popular, a steady stream of relatively young, highly marketable ex-justices with unique knowledge and influence entering the marketplace of law and politics could create new problems, say Michael Broyde at Emory University and Hayden Hall at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

  • Series

    Knitting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Stretching my skills as a knitter makes me a better antitrust attorney by challenging me to recalibrate after wrong turns, not rush outcomes, and trust that I can teach myself the skills to tackle new and difficult projects — even when I don’t have a pattern to work from, says Kara Kuritz at V&E.

  • The Hidden Pitfalls Of Letters Of Credit In Lease Negotiations

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    Amid a surge in commercial office leasing driven by artificial intelligence firms, it's crucial for landlords to be aware of the potential downside of accepting letters of credit — in particular, for amounts of security that are less than the statutory bankruptcy claim cap, say attorneys at Allen Matkins.

  • Series

    The Biz Court Digest: Welcome To Miami

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    After nearly 20 years in operation, the Miami Complex Business Litigation Division is a pioneer upon which other jurisdictions in the state have been modeled, adopting many innovations to keep its cases running more efficiently and staffing experienced judges who are accustomed to hearing business disputes, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • What Law Firm Liability Risks In 2025 Signal For Year To Come

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    Trends and statistics reveal that law firms of all sizes and practice areas remained attractive litigation targets this year, so firms must take concrete steps to avoid professional liability risks in the year to come, say Douglas Richmond and Andrew Ricke at Lockton Companies.

  • 1st-Of-Its-Kind NIL Claim Raises Liability Coverage Questions

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    The University of Georgia Athletic Association recently sought to compel arbitration against former UGA football player Damon Wilson in a first-of-its-kind legal action for breach of a name, image and likeness contract, highlighting questions around student-athlete employment classification and professional liability insurance coverage, says Sarah Abrams at Baleen Specialty.

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