Criminal Practice

  • August 13, 2026

    4th Circ. Won't Rehear Tort Atty's $25M Extortion Conviction

    The Fourth Circuit has declined to reconsider its affirmance of the conviction of a prominent medical malpractice attorney for attempting to extort the University of Maryland Medical System for $25 million.

  • August 13, 2026

    Mich. Panel Says Rape-Shield Rules Don't Apply At Prelims

    A Michigan appellate panel ruled that the procedural requirements of the state's rape-shield law do not apply during preliminary examinations, finding that defendants in criminal sexual conduct cases do not have to file a written motion and offer of proof at that stage before seeking to introduce certain evidence of an accuser's past sexual conduct.

  • August 13, 2026

    DOJ Fraud Division To Reach 500 Staffers This Month

    By the end of the month, there will be about 500 attorneys and staff in the U.S. Department of Justice's new fraud division, with more to come as time goes on.

  • August 13, 2026

    9th Circ. Won't Revive Hemp Co.'s $2.75M Destruction Suit

    The Ninth Circuit won't reinstate a suit against the city of Tacoma, Washington, by the owner of a hemp company who alleges the city's police department illegally destroyed $2.75 million worth of industrial hemp as illegal cannabis, saying he failed to establish municipal liability.

  • August 12, 2026

    DHS Can't Shake Suit Over Suspicionless Stops, Atty Access

    A California federal judge has allowed a lawsuit accusing federal immigration agents of stopping people without reasonable suspicion and preventing immigration detainees from speaking with attorneys to proceed.

  • August 12, 2026

    Panel OKs Bowling Alley's Win In Alcohol Overserving Case

    A Florida appeals court on Wednesday cleared a bowling alley of liability in a suit accusing it of overserving alcohol to a customer who later caused a fatal crash while driving drunk, saying an amended complaint alleging new facts was filed too late.

  • August 12, 2026

    Ariz. Justices Rule Clergy Privilege Is Only For Confessions

    A Phoenix church pastor charged with sexually abusing a child cannot block prosecutors from using a recording of him admitting to the crime, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled Wednesday, saying the recording was not made during a protected religious confession.

  • August 12, 2026

    9th Circ. Backs Extradition For Al Qaeda In Iraq-Linked Killings

    The Ninth Circuit said Wednesday that a U.S. citizen can't escape his extradition to Iraq to be tried for the murders of two Iraqi police officers because the killings constitute international terrorism, meaning he is not protected by a political-offense exception to the relevant extradition treaty.

  • August 12, 2026

    10th Circ. Upholds Phone Search In Child Porn Case

    The Tenth Circuit upheld an Oklahoma man's child pornography convictions Wednesday, rejecting his arguments that police unlawfully prolonged a traffic stop and obtained an overly broad warrant to search his cellphone.

  • August 12, 2026

    Moving Co. Says Chubb Owes Coverage For Employee Theft

    A moving company said its insurer wrongfully refused to cover a loss resulting from a former manager's fabrication of time sheets for an independent contractor in exchange for kickbacks, telling a Washington state court that the scheme triggered its policy's $2 million employee theft coverage.

  • August 12, 2026

    Wheelchair Isn't A 'Vehicle' For DUI Test Consent In PA

    A Pennsylvania appeals court on Wednesday rolled out its finding that a man's wheelchair does not constitute a vehicle and that his use of the device to leave the scene of a car crash did not imply consent for a blood test as part of a DUI investigation.

  • August 12, 2026

    Rob Reiner's Son Indicted In Parents' Killings

    A California grand jury indicted Nick Reiner on charges for the murders of his parents, film director Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, with the addition of a special circumstance that could carry the death penalty, according to documents unsealed Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court.

  • August 12, 2026

    Lindberg Sidekick 'Haunted' By $2B Fraud Gets 2 Years

    The former right-hand man to convicted insurance mogul Greg Lindberg was sentenced Wednesday to two years in federal prison for his role in a $2 billion scheme that prosecutors say defrauded thousands of policyholders.

  • August 12, 2026

    Phone Data OK Despite Warrant Delays, Mass. Justices Say

    Four months was not an unreasonable delay between police taking a suspect's cellphone and obtaining a warrant to search its contents, Massachusetts' highest court ruled Wednesday, reversing suppression of phone evidence in two unrelated cases. 

  • August 12, 2026

    3rd Circ. Revives Inmate's Claim Officials Blocked Grievance

    The Third Circuit ruled Wednesday that an incarcerated man in Pennsylvania must be given a second shot at bringing claims that a prison administrator violated his constitutional rights by calling him a "snitch" for filing previous federal lawsuits against the prison.

  • August 12, 2026

    Justices To Hear Ex-Fulton County DA Aide's Bias Case

    The U.S. Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments for a former Fulton County District Attorney's Office aide's appeal seeking to revive her pregnancy discrimination claim against her employer.

  • August 12, 2026

    1st Circ. Says NH Witness Retaliation Is No Basis For Removal

    A conviction for witness retaliation did not make a Liberian citizen living in New Hampshire removable from the U.S., a First Circuit panel ruled, overturning a Board of Immigration Appeals decision to the contrary.

  • August 12, 2026

    DOJ Charges 11 For 1,000+ 'Sham Marriages'

    Manhattan federal prosecutors have charged 11 people with running a decade-long scheme that allegedly took in tens of millions of dollars to facilitate over 1,000 "sham marriages to fraudulently obtain immigration status," primarily for Chinese nationals.

  • August 12, 2026

    MSC Cruises Chair Asks UK To Block US Me-Too Suit

    The executive chairman of MSC Cruises has asked a London court to block an American tech entrepreneur's sexual misconduct suit, arguing that her case violates a non-disclosure agreement they signed during business talks.

  • August 11, 2026

    Red States Back DA's Office In High Court Bias Carveout Fight

    A group of mostly Republican state attorneys general backed a Georgia prosecutor's office, urging the U.S. Supreme Court to reject a former aide's argument she wasn't covered by a Title VII exemption for the personal staff of elected officials.

  • August 11, 2026

    ICE Officer Says Minn. Can't Immunize Assault Witnesses

    A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent charged with brandishing a gun at people in another car urged a Minnesota federal judge to deny immunity to his two alleged victims, saying state prosecutors bringing the case lack the authority to request use immunity for witnesses.

  • August 11, 2026

    Mich. Appeals Panel Restores Ethnic Threat Jury Standard

    Semantics matter, a Michigan Court of Appeals panel said in an unpublished opinion Monday, reversing a trial court's order regarding jury instruction language used in an ethnic intimidation trial.

  • August 11, 2026

    9th Circ. Blocks Hawaii Gun Rule Following High Court Ruling

    The Ninth Circuit has stopped Hawaii from enforcing portions of a gun law that banned firearms on private property without the property owner's consent, after the U.S. Supreme Court held a gun rights group and three state residents were likely to succeed in their lawsuit challenging that component of the law.

  • August 11, 2026

    NC Wants A Retrial In Killing Of NBA Star's Grandfather

    State prosecutors told a North Carolina Court of Appeals panel during arguments on Tuesday that a trial court judge overstepped by vacating the convictions of four men found guilty as teenagers of murdering NBA star Chris Paul's grandfather in 2002, saying the only remedy was to order a new trial.

  • August 11, 2026

    8th Circ. Says Rape Kit Victim Can't Sue Over Delay

    The Eighth Circuit has ruled that a Minnesota woman lacks standing to sue a police department that failed to test her rape kit evidence for over 16 years, because police decisions on how or whether to investigate a crime are discretionary functions.

Expert Analysis

  • Laptop Farms Highlight Identity Fraud Risks Of Remote Work

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    Two U.S. nationals' recent sentencing in Massachusetts federal court for a scheme that enabled foreign operatives to obtain remote jobs at U.S. companies using stolen identities is a reminder that employers must recalibrate their remote hiring, onboarding and monitoring practices to mitigate evolving cybersecurity and geopolitical risks, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.

  • 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.

  • Fighting The Evidentiary Risks Of Deepfakes In Court

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    Though courts and federal rules are only slowly developing frameworks for assessing digital evidence that could have been created or generated by artificial intelligence, litigators should understand what steps they'll likely need to take to successfully challenge potentially deepfaked exhibits — and fight questions about the authenticity of their own, say attorneys at MoFo.

  • 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.

  • Justices' Concurrences Foretell Fault Line On Appeal Waivers

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    The U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled 8-1 in Hunter v. U.S. that appeal waivers that produce a miscarriage of justice are unenforceable, but the decision's concurrences indicate future divisions over whether this exception will be used as a rare safety valve or to police ordinary but troubling plea errors, say attorneys at RJO.

  • Series

    Choral Singing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Singing in the New York City Bar Chorus — a hobby partly inspired by the late U.S. District Judge Richard Owen, who infused my clerkship year with opera music — has improved my legal career by refining my abilities to listen, exude confidence and develop emotional intelligence, says Bonnie Baker at Friedman Kaplan.

  • Attorney Mental Health Is An Ethical Obligation In The AI Era

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    As attorneys cope with the increasing unpredictability that artificial intelligence and constant policy changes have created, particularly in practice areas where they carry the emotional weight of clients’ most consequential life events, otherwise soft discussions about self-care are a matter of professional competence, says attorney Jack Jrada.

  • 3 Litigation Strategies To Stay Ahead Of Bad Facts

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    A case with damaging facts can still be won if, instead of avoiding the facts, attorneys proactively address them by carefully selecting a strategy of confronting, containing or reframing, says Allison Rocker at Baker McKenzie.

  • Series

    Power To The Paralegals: Burnout As A Structural Problem

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    Law firm leadership can best retain their paralegals not by encouraging self-care, but by seeking top-down structural solutions for the quiet proliferation of responsibilities and the vicarious exposure to client trauma that particularly drive burnout in this vital role, says Erika Sneeringer at Brockstedt Mandalas.

  • Ill. Law Firm MSO Bill Clashes With Court Power, Ethics Rules

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    An Illinois bill prohibiting law firms from certain business arrangements with management service organizations, sent to the governor for signature last week, encroaches upon the courts' constitutional powers and goes beyond the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct in regulating investment in law-related services, says Matthew O’Hara at Smith Gambrell.

  • How McDonnell Still Shapes Bribery Defense Strategy

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    The pending federal bribery allegations against Washington, D.C., Council member Trayon White Sr. highlight for defense counsel the importance of overcoming the “official act” requirement established by the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in McDonnell v. U.S., and juries' critical role in distinguishing between official and unofficial acts, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Opinion

    State Courts Must Be Gatekeepers Of Expert Testimony

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    Based on my experience in the state judiciary, emulating federal courts' role as gatekeepers of expert witness testimony would help state court judges maintain the appearance of impartiality and assist juries, thus enhancing the overall confidence people have in their justice system, says Lorie Gildea at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Series

    Moshing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Entering a mosh pit is much like entering the practice of law — it is difficult, you have to know both the written and unwritten rules, and conduct yourself according to the expectations of each community, says Christopher Deubert at Constangy Brooks.

  • High Court Ruling Casts Doubt On Status-Based Gun Bans

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in U.S. v. Hemani demonstrates that the justices are increasingly skeptical of broad theories of categorical disarmament and clarifies that dangerousness cannot simply be presumed from one's status or membership in a statutory category, such as illegal drug use, says Lee Francis at Widener Law.

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