Hospitality

  • January 31, 2024

    Insomnia Cookies Founders Settle For $3.5M With Jury Out

    Amid jury deliberations Wednesday, the CEO of Insomnia Cookies agreed to pay $3.5 million to his former business partner to resolve their yearslong dispute over the share of profits from Krispy Kreme's acquisition of the late-night cookie delivery business.

  • January 31, 2024

    Servers' Sanctions Bid Smacks SF Hilton Over Discovery Docs

    A Hilton hotel in San Francisco has failed to produce "responsive and highly relevant" documents during discovery in a suit accusing the hotel operator of pocketing tips meant for banquet servers, workers said in a motion to impose sanctions filed in California federal court Wednesday.

  • January 31, 2024

    Disney Loses Free Speech Suit Against DeSantis

    A Florida federal judge Wednesday rejected claims from Disney that Gov. Ron DeSantis stepped on its free speech rights by replacing a local oversight board with company critics in retaliation for Disney's opposition to the governor's "Don't Say Gay" law that restricts teaching about gender and sexual orientation in public schools.

  • January 31, 2024

    Mass. Eateries Blocked From Interfering In DOL Probes

    A Massachusetts federal court issued an order Wednesday restraining a pair of jointly operated restaurants from retaliating against workers looking to assert their Fair Labor Standards Acts rights to representatives of the U.S. Department of Labor.

  • January 30, 2024

    Ohio Operator Settles Choice Hotels' TM Suit For $400K

    A former Comfort Inn location operator has agreed to pay lodging franchisor Choice Hotels $400,000 to settle claims in Ohio federal court that the operator continued to use the Choice Hotel's marks and signage after their franchise agreement was scrapped.

  • January 30, 2024

    McDonald's CEO Can Be Deposed In Race Bias Suit

    McDonald's Corp. CEO Christopher Kempczinski can be deposed in a discrimination suit filed by a Black former security executive who claimed he was fired because of his race and for speaking out against his former boss during a company meeting, an Illinois federal magistrate judge ruled Tuesday.

  • January 30, 2024

    Calif. Audit Says Anaheim Misspent Millions In Tourism Money

    The city of Anaheim, home to the Disneyland Resort, has mismanaged millions of tourism dollars it gave to two business nonprofits by signing public funding contracts that lacked a proper monitoring process and resulted in corruption investigations of local leaders, California's state auditor reported Tuesday.

  • January 30, 2024

    Biden Admin. Finalizes Immigration Fee Hikes

    U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on Tuesday firmed up immigration fee increases that will significantly raise the costs for employers to hire noncitizen workers, but offered some concessions in response to criticism that earlier proposed rates were too high.

  • January 30, 2024

    Real Estate Rumors: Eldawy, Wake Stone, Ohio Police & Fire

    Developer Mohamed Eldawy is said to be seeking city approval for a $250 million mixed-use project in Galveston, Texas, Wake Stone Property is reportedly investing $48 million toward expanding an industrial park in North Carolina, and the Ohio Police & Fire Pension Fund could be investing up to $275 million in real estate this year.

  • January 30, 2024

    Irked NC Judge Pushes Deal To End Derelict 'Ghost' Park Spat

    A North Carolina state court judge irritated with the legal antics surrounding an abandoned theme park targeted for dissolution warned the parties Tuesday that a settlement may be their best path forward to avoid a decision that may be "mostly unsatisfactory for both of you."

  • January 30, 2024

    Trump Golf Club Says Atty Pushing NDA Was On Her Own

    A former server who says a Trump Organization golf resort fraudulently induced her to sign a nondisclosure agreement after she accused a manager of sexually harassing her should have her suit tossed from New Jersey state court, the resort is arguing, saying her allegations were against a third-party attorney not working as "an employee or agent of the club."

  • January 29, 2024

    Couple To Pay $730K To End Filipino Workers' Trafficking Case

    An Oklahoma couple has agreed to pay $730,000 to end allegations that they made false promises of fair wages to lure Filipino workers and then charged steep recruitment fees that made the workers indebted to them, according to a federal court filing.

  • January 29, 2024

    Increase In Trafficking Reveals Hospitality Coverage Concerns

    As human trafficking continues to increase and travel returns to prepandemic levels, hospitality industry policyholders may see more direct trafficking exclusions and increased education requirements as the insurance industry works to address this growing risk, experts said.

  • January 29, 2024

    Judge Won't Pause Ohio Trafficking Case For Centralization

    An Ohio federal judge denied a woman's bid to pause her sex trafficking lawsuit while she awaits a decision to have her case centralized with other trafficking cases because it would delay efficient resolution.

  • January 29, 2024

    Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

    A transportation services company and cryptocurrency fund both exited litigation, a grill maker and EV-charging company fired up new cases, and biotechs bandaged old wounds while judges fast-tracked a musical power struggle and unwound a REIT deal. All told, a typical week for Delaware's court of equity.

  • January 29, 2024

    Trump Assails Fraud Monitor For 'Misleading' Final Report

    Counsel for former President Donald Trump denounced the independent monitor overseeing his businesses on Monday, accusing her of seeking to extend her term and get more money by bolstering the New York attorney general's civil fraud case as a decision looms.

  • January 29, 2024

    KSL Closes $3B Continuation Fund To Invest In Ski Resort Biz

    Private equity shop KSL Capital Partners, advised by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP and Hogan Lovells, on Monday announced that it closed its single-asset continuation vehicle after securing over $3 billion in commitments to invest in Alterra Mountain Co.

  • January 26, 2024

    Trump Org. Monitor Flags Financial 'Errors' As Ruling Looms

    An independent monitor overseeing the Trump Organization's finances amid the New York attorney general's civil fraud suit reported Friday she found multiple errors and misstatements in disclosures sent to third-party lenders, including underreporting the organization's liabilities by millions of dollars and hiding $40 million recently sent directly to the former president.

  • January 26, 2024

    Museums Cover Native Exhibits In Renewed Repatriation Push

    Museums and other institutions throughout the country are covering exhibits that display Indigenous artifacts as updates to a federal law governing the repatriation of remains and culturally affiliated objects has gone into effect.

  • January 26, 2024

    2 Business Owners Get Jail Time For Bribing DC Tax Official

    A concert operator and a bar owner have been hit with sentences of two years or longer in the District of Columbia for participating in separate conspiracies focused on evading business tax obligations via bribes to a former employee of the D.C. Office of Tax and Revenue.

  • January 26, 2024

    Casino To End Del. SPAC Suit Despite Hedge Fund Butting In

    A New York hedge fund that helped draft a failed $2.6 billion deal to take a casino in the Philippines public by merging with a special-purpose acquisition company is now trying to intervene in the company's Delaware lawsuit against the casino's operators, challenging a pending settlement that would end their Chancery Court litigation.

  • January 26, 2024

    Mich. Justices To Hear Disney, Eatery Group's Escheat Fight

    The Michigan Supreme Court agreed Friday to review a lower court's finding that audits that the state Department of Treasury initiated against Disney and a restaurant company paused the statute of limitations for the agency to demand that the businesses turn over unclaimed property to the state.

  • February 08, 2024

    Law360 Seeks Members For Its 2024 Editorial Boards

    Law360 is looking for avid readers of its publications to serve as members of its 2024 editorial advisory boards.

  • January 26, 2024

    Carnival Beats Suit Over Passenger's Dining Area Fall

    A Florida federal court has thrown out a passenger's claims that a Carnival Corp. cruise liner had a dangerous threshold to its dining area that caused him to trip and suffer a brain injury, saying he hasn't offered evidence that shows the company was aware the walkway was dangerous.

  • January 25, 2024

    MrBeast Says Restaurant Co.'s Suit Is Trying To 'Gaslight' Court

    YouTube megastar MrBeast urged a New York state court to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the virtual restaurant company he partnered with and then sued for damaging his brand by allegedly making bad food, arguing the company's countersuit attempts to both unlawfully silence him and "gaslight" the court and the public.

Expert Analysis

  • Employment-Related Litigation Risks Facing Hospitality Cos.

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    A close look at recent hospitality industry employment claims highlights key issues companies should keep an eye out for, and insurance policy considerations for managing risk related to wage and hour, privacy, and human trafficking claims, say Jan Larson and Huiyi Chen at Jenner & Block.

  • What Could Lie Ahead For Prop 22 After Calif. Appellate Ruling

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    On the heels of a California appeals court’s recent decision to uphold Proposition 22 — which allows gig companies to classify workers as independent contractors — an analysis of related rulings and legislation over the past five years should provide context for the next phase of this battle, says Rex Berry at Signature Resolution.

  • How Bank Turmoil Is Affecting Real Estate Purchases, Sales

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    The new uncertainty in the availability of financing from bank lenders that were previously considered "money good," spurred by the bank crisis, has inserted a wrinkle in the commercial real estate market that alters some of the dynamics between a buyer and seller, says Simran Bindra at Thompson Coburn.

  • Don't Let Client Demands Erode Law Firm Autonomy

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    As clients increasingly impose requirements for attorney hiring and retention related to diversity and secondment, law firms must remember their ethical duties, as well as broader issues of lawyer development, culture and firm integrity, to maintain their independence while meaningfully responding to social changes, says Deborah Winokur at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Fla. Restaurants Need To Prep For Liquor License Changes

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    As Florida restaurant operators face potential legislative changes to special food service liquor licenses, applicants should take care to ensure that their local zoning office will be able to issue clearance based on square footage and the number of people served at one time, says Grace Yang at GrayRobinson.

  • Workers, Labor Take Center Stage At ABA Antitrust Meeting

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    The American Bar Association’s antitrust spring meeting had a heavy emphasis on upstream markets affecting employees and talent, and prosecutors sent a clear message that they view no-solicitation, no-poach and no-hire agreements as criminal violations, even in the face of several jury trial setbacks, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • Opinion

    Federal Judge's Amici Invitation Is A Good Idea, With Caveats

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    An Arkansas federal judge’s recent order — inviting amicus briefs in every civil case before him — has merit, but its implementation may raise practical questions about the role of junior attorneys, economic considerations and other issues, says Lawrence Ebner at the Atlantic Legal Foundation.

  • Fox Ex-Producer Case Is A Lesson In Joint Representation

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    A former Fox News producer's allegations that the network's lawyers pressured her to give misleading testimony in Fox's defamation battle with Dominion Voting Systems should remind lawyers representing a nonparty witness that the rules of joint representation apply, says Jared Marx at HWG.

  • Opinion

    Stanford Law Protest Highlights Rise Of Incivility In Discourse

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    The recent Stanford Law School incident, where students disrupted a speech by U.S. Circuit Judge Kyle Duncan, should be a reminder to teach law students how to be effective advocates without endangering physical and mental health, says Nancy Rapoport at the University of Nevada.

  • Dispute Prevention Strategies To Halt Strife Before It Starts

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    With geopolitical turbulence presenting increased risks of business disputes amid court backlogs and ballooning costs, companies should consider building mechanisms for dispute prevention into newly established partnerships to constructively resolve conflicts before they do costly damage, say Ellen Waldman and Allen Waxman at the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution.

  • What The 3rd McD's Ruling Means For Claims Against Officers

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    The Delaware Chancery Court's third decision in the McDonald's stockholder litigation related to sexual harassment at the company indicates that plaintiff stockholders bringing Caremark claims against officers are not likely to be successful if the board acted properly, say attorneys at Fried Frank.

  • Practical Skills Young Attorneys Must Master To Be Happier

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    For young lawyers, finding happiness on the job — with its competitive nature and high expectations for billable hours — is complicated, but three skills can help them gain confidence, reduce stress and demonstrate their professional value in ways they never imagined, says career counselor Susan Smith Blakely.

  • What Calif. Employers Need To Know About Wage Theft

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    With the attention of the media, as well as California's state and local governments, now focused on wage theft, more Golden State employers face a dual threat of enforcement and negative publicity, so companies should take specific steps to make sure they don't find their name in the next story, say attorneys at Buchanan Ingersoll.

  • ABA Opinion Should Help Clarify Which Ethics Rules Apply

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    A recent American Bar Association opinion provides key guidance on interpreting ABA Model Rule 8.5's notoriously complex choice-of-law analysis — and should help lawyers authorized to practice in multiple jurisdictions determine which jurisdiction's ethics rules govern their conduct, say attorneys at HWG.

  • 4 Ways To Reboot Your Firm's Stalled Diversity Program

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    Law firms that have failed to see real progress despite years of diversity initiatives can move forward by committing to tackle four often-taboo obstacles that hinder diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, says Steph Maher at Jaffe.

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