Hospitality

  • March 27, 2024

    Vrbo Host Is Breaking Zoning Regs, Conn. High Court Told

    Some justices of the Connecticut Supreme Court signaled on Wednesday that a lower court may have failed to provide a workable definition of the word "residence" when deciding that a Branford-based zoning board's regulations allowed short-term rentals through services like Vrbo and Airbnb.

  • March 27, 2024

    DoorDash, Grubhub Want Docs From NY Restaurant Lobbyists

    DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats have urged a Manhattan federal judge to let them subpoena the trade group executives who allegedly "worked closely" with officials on challenged New York City caps on fees that food delivery apps can charge restaurants.

  • March 27, 2024

    Marriott Hit With Negligence Suit After Break-In, Sex Assault

    An Air Force major and his wife are accusing Marriott International Inc. and owners of a hotel in Charlotte, North Carolina, of negligent security, alleging that a repeat trespasser well known to hotel staff sexually assaulted and robbed the major in his room, according to a newly filed federal lawsuit.

  • March 27, 2024

    HR Services Co. May Be Liable In Harassment Suit, Court Says

    A Texas appellate court said Wednesday that more fact-finding is needed to determine whether a professional employer organization could be on the hook for a sexual harassment claim brought by a cafeteria worker, but found that the company is, legally, an employer.

  • March 27, 2024

    9th Circ. Judge Doubts Feds' Gambling Stance Matches Tribe's

    A Ninth Circuit judge pushed back Wednesday against a gambling company's argument that a particular Washington tribe did not need to be a part of its lawsuit over state gambling compacts, pointing out that the federal government is expected to balance competing interests — not necessarily mirror the tribes' position.

  • March 27, 2024

    On Deck In JPML: Baby Food, 23andMe Privacy, NCAA

    The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation's packed meeting Thursday in South Carolina will see the panel mulling consolidation of privacy litigation against 23andMe, claims of heavy metals in baby food, and scholarship-fixing claims by student athletes against the NCAA — and that's just for starters.

  • March 27, 2024

    Casino Beats Suit Over Diabetic Customer's Fall

    A now-shuttered floating casino that was moored in Lake Michigan can't be held liable for the fall of a longtime patron who injured her hip after tripping in a hallway that connected two boats, an Illinois federal court has ruled, finding the patron couldn't support any element of her premises liability claim.

  • March 26, 2024

    Albright Told That Choice Hotel's Alice Ax Is 'Premature'

    Patent Armory has told Texas federal Judge Alan D. Albright that a bid to dismiss its patent lawsuit against Choice Hotels International is "premature" and should be set aside at least until fact discovery is done and claim construction has been issued.

  • March 26, 2024

    Ski Resort Corp. Says Sheep Used As Pretext To Ruin Project

    Ski resort corporation The Vail Corp. told the Colorado Court of Appeals Monday to revive its workforce housing project after the town of Vail allegedly gave into local opposition against the project and used a local bighorn sheep herd as pretext to condemn the 23.3 acres of land that the ski resort corporation planned to use for the project.

  • March 26, 2024

    Marriott Guests Call For Sanctions In Discrimination Suit

    Marriott Detroit guests claim they are being "improperly" denied discovery in their discrimination and harassment lawsuit against the hotel chain and urged a federal court on Sunday to issue sanctions as a result.

  • March 26, 2024

    Starbucks Settles Worker's Suit Alleging Manager Groped Her

    Starbucks Corp. has settled a lawsuit with an employee who alleged her reports of groping and harassment by a manger resulted in a retaliatory investigation, stunting her career with the coffee chain.

  • March 26, 2024

    Insurer's Intervention In Sex-Trafficking Coverage Suit Limited

    Starr Indemnity & Liability Co. can intervene in another insurer's suit against a hospitality company over coverage for sex trafficking allegations, but only if the other carrier's policy isn't rescinded and the case proceeds to a second phase of litigation, a Texas federal court has ruled.

  • March 25, 2024

    Texas Hotel REIT Says Blackwells Wants Illegal Proxy Contest

    A Texas hotel real estate investment trust asked a Texas federal court Sunday to stop a shareholder vote "from being infected with deception and misinformation," saying a New York-based hedge fund wants to run an illegal proxy contest to take control of the company's board of directors while hiding plans to buy it.

  • March 22, 2024

    Special District Members Seek To Block Disney Depo Request

    Members of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District asked a state court to block Disney's attempt to depose them in its suit trying to revoke two land use agreements the company signed with the predecessor district board over the property surrounding Walt Disney World.

  • March 22, 2024

    Ohio Board Upholds $2.2M Hotel Value Cut Due To COVID

    The Ohio Board of Tax Appeals upheld a local tax board's decision to lower the value of a hotel property by $2.2 million, saying in an order Friday that the hotel proved COVID-19 led to a reduction in value.

  • March 22, 2024

    Chancery Denies Midcase Appeal In TripAdvisor Dispute

    The Delaware judge who gave TripAdvisor Inc. the go-ahead to convert its corporate home to Nevada while upholding most of a shareholder lawsuit challenging the proposed move has refused to certify a midcase appeal of his ruling, despite what he called "disproportionate media attention" about companies fleeing Delaware.

  • March 22, 2024

    Del. Courts Examining 'Colonoscopy'-Like Bylaw Rules

    Invasive advance-notice bylaws that some observers say make shareholder board nominations as intrusive as a "colonoscopy" are reviving old questions in Delaware courts about how far boards can go to protect themselves against shareholder activism.

  • March 21, 2024

    Burford, Sysco Get OK To Swap Bid In Price-Fixing Cases

    An Illinois federal judge on Thursday agreed to allow an affiliate of legal investment firm Burford Capital to substitute for food giant Sysco in price-fixing litigation against broiler chicken producers, a ruling that comes a month after a Minnesota federal judge refused to allow the same Burford unit to substitute for Sysco in similar pork and beef price-fixing litigation.

  • March 21, 2024

    8th Circ. Backs Attys' Win In COVID Hotel Eviction Challenge

    Two government attorneys did not violate the U.S. Constitution when they gave the green light to a Minnesota police department to forcibly remove a resident from a Super 8 motel in June 2020 amid a COVID-19 era eviction ban, the Eighth Circuit ruled in a precedential opinion Thursday, citing a "dearth of precedent."

  • March 21, 2024

    Chicago Restaurant Biz Sanctioned For Missing Discovery

    A Cook County judge on Wednesday sanctioned the former management group behind celebrated Chicago eatery Maple & Ash and two associated entities for discovery violations, ordering them to pay attorney fees and costs spent seeking their compliance to information requests and warning that escalating penalties could be imposed if violations continue.

  • March 21, 2024

    Manhattan Pizzeria Owner Indicted On Wage Theft Charges

    The owner and a manager of a well-known Manhattan pizzeria were indicted in New York state court Thursday on charges of stealing more than $30,000 in wages from seven employees.

  • March 21, 2024

    Pa. Justices Won't Review If 'Skill Games' Are Gambling

    The Pennsylvania Supreme Court's decision not to hear an appeal from state officials contesting the legality of Pennsylvania Skill games, which are commonly found in bars and restaurants, lets stand a ruling that such games are not illegal gambling machines.

  • March 21, 2024

    Fla. High Court Won't Take Up Gambling Compact Challenge

    The Florida Supreme Court refused Thursday to take up a challenge by two casino operators over the state's gambling pact with the Seminole Tribe, declaring the petition — which says the governor exceeded his authority in signing the pact — is the improper vehicle for assessing the constitutionality of the pact.

  • March 20, 2024

    7th Circ. Closes Door On Italian Hotel's Virus Coverage Bid

    A luxury Italian hotel has no coverage for certain coronavirus-related losses, the Seventh Circuit affirmed on Wednesday, saying that the hotel's own filings contradicted its claim that it suffered a covered physical loss.

  • March 20, 2024

    Health And Safety Top Risk For Directors, Global Survey Says

    Health and safety is the top risk for directors and officers worldwide, according to a survey published Wednesday, in a "surprise" result partly attributed to the lingering impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on businesses and increasing mental health considerations.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Spray Painting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My experiences as an abstract spray paint artist have made me a better litigator, demonstrating — in more ways than one — how fluidity and flexibility are necessary parts of a successful legal practice, says Erick Sandlin at Bracewell.

  • Where 9th Circ. Lowe's Ruling Leaves PAGA Jurisprudence

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    Leah Kennedy and Carolyn Wheeler at Katz Banks discuss the legal landscape and controlling precedent around the Private Attorneys General Act that led to the Ninth Circuit's Johnson v. Lowe's decision last month on individual PAGA wage claims, and explore the open questions that it leaves.

  • TTAB Ruling May Broaden Alcohol Trademark Analysis

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    A February U.S. Trademark Trial and Appeal Board decision that wine is inherently related to bars and cocktail lounges for trademark protection purposes appears to broaden the scope of exclusivity, highlighting that the more similar the marks, the less related the products must be for the TTAB to refuse registration, says William Borchard at Cowan Liebowitz.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Independence Is Imperative This Election Year

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    As the next election nears, the judges involved in the upcoming trials against former President Donald Trump increasingly face political pressures and threats of violence — revealing the urgent need to safeguard judicial independence and uphold the rule of law, says Benes Aldana at the National Judicial College.

  • Series

    Riding My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Using the Peloton platform for cycling, running, rowing and more taught me that fostering a mind-body connection will not only benefit you physically and emotionally, but also inspire stamina, focus, discipline and empathy in your legal career, says Christopher Ward at Polsinelli.

  • Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents

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    Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.

  • What Recent Study Shows About AI's Promise For Legal Tasks

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    Amid both skepticism and excitement about the promise of generative artificial intelligence in legal contexts, the first randomized controlled trial studying its impact on basic lawyering tasks shows mixed but promising results, and underscores the need for attorneys to proactively engage with AI, says Daniel Schwarcz at University of Minnesota Law School.

  • Business Litigators Have A Source Of Untapped Fulfillment

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    As increasing numbers of attorneys struggle with stress and mental health issues, business litigators can find protection against burnout by remembering their important role in society — because fulfillment in one’s work isn’t just reserved for public interest lawyers, say Bennett Rawicki and Peter Bigelow at Hilgers Graben.

  • Series

    Skiing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    A lifetime of skiing has helped me develop important professional skills, and taught me that embracing challenges with a spirit of adventure can allow lawyers to push boundaries, expand their capabilities and ultimately excel in their careers, says Andrea Przybysz at Tucker Ellis.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Forget Everything You Know About IRAC

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    The mode of legal reasoning most students learn in law school, often called “Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion,” or IRAC, erroneously frames analysis as a separate, discrete step, resulting in disorganized briefs and untold obfuscation — but the fix is pretty simple, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • How Firms Can Ensure Associate Gender Parity Lasts

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    Among associates, women now outnumber men for the first time, but progress toward gender equality at the top of the legal profession remains glacially slow, and firms must implement time-tested solutions to ensure associates’ gender parity lasts throughout their careers, say Kelly Culhane and Nicole Joseph at Culhane Meadows.

  • 7 Common Myths About Lateral Partner Moves

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    As lateral recruiting remains a key factor for law firm growth, partners considering a lateral move should be aware of a few commonly held myths — some of which contain a kernel of truth, and some of which are flat out wrong, says Dave Maurer at Major Lindsey.

  • Series

    Cheering In The NFL Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Balancing my time between a BigLaw career and my role as an NFL cheerleader has taught me that pursuing your passions outside of work is not a distraction, but rather an opportunity to harness important skills that can positively affect how you approach work and view success in your career, says Rachel Schuster at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Keeping Up With Class Actions: Data Breach Litigation In Flux

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    In this monthly look at notable class action decisions, Gerald Maatman at Duane Morris examines a recent mixed-bag data breach ruling from an Illinois federal court — in the context of case law developments over the last year — which illustrates the range of issues confronting litigants going forward.

  • Series

    ESG Around The World: Gulf Cooperation Council

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    The Gulf Cooperation Council is in the early stages of ESG policy implementation, but recent commitments by both states and corporations — including increases in sustainable finance transactions, environmental commitments, female representation on boards and human rights enforcement — show continuing progress toward broader ESG goals, say attorneys at Cleary.

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