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Massachusetts
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September 20, 2024
Tribe's Stateless Status Undoes $1.9M Construction Suit
A Massachusetts federal judge on Thursday tossed a New York construction company's $1.9 million lawsuit against the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, finding the tribe's stateless position leaves the court with no jurisdiction to decide the case.
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September 19, 2024
Dems Seek School Lunch 'Junk Fee' Ban After CFPB Report
A group of Democratic senators has called on the Biden administration to crack down on payment processing fees in school lunch programs, citing a recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau report that raised concerns about the charges parents pay to fund their kids' online lunch money accounts.
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September 19, 2024
Ch. 7 Trustee Urges Justices To Uphold Return Of Taxes
The bankruptcy trustee of a defunct Utah transportation company warned the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday that overturning a decision forcing the IRS to return tax payments made by company directors to cover their personal debts would encourage shareholder fraud.
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September 19, 2024
Potomac Law Group Adds Morgan Lewis Partner
A former Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP real estate attorney has joined Potomac Law Group, framing the move as a strategic shift out of BigLaw amid a "sluggish" transactional environment.
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September 19, 2024
Senate Panel Holds Steward CEO In Contempt After No-Show
A U.S. Senate committee voted unanimously Thursday to hold Steward Health Care CEO Ralph de la Torre in civil and criminal contempt after he defied a subpoena to testify about the bankrupt health system's downfall.
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September 19, 2024
No Coverage For Santander Shareholder Suit, Allianz Says
Allianz told a Massachusetts federal court that it doesn't owe coverage to Santander Holdings for an underlying class action brought by shareholders over the company's $2.5 billion deal to take its consumer finance entity private, arguing that multiple exclusions bar coverage for claims arising from the transaction.
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September 19, 2024
Nantucket Festival Owner Says Rival Exploiting Discovery
The longtime operator of a wine and food festival on Nantucket says a competitor who started a similarly named event is now trying to take advantage of a court order by making "improperly broad and harassing discovery requests" to further undermine her business.
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September 18, 2024
IP Firm Prevails In Malpractice Suit Over Dueling Patent Apps
A Boston intellectual property law firm on Wednesday ducked a legal malpractice suit brought by a Colorado technology company alleging the firm betrayed it while filing patents on behalf of another client, after a Massachusetts federal judge found an absence of attorney-client relationship sunk the claims.
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September 18, 2024
Harvard Rips Morgue Theft Appeal's Immunity Claim
Harvard University told Massachusetts' intermediate-level appeals court that litigation over the alleged theft and sale of cadaver body parts from its medical school's morgue relies on a "crabbed" reading of an immunity law related to anatomical gifts.
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September 18, 2024
Mass. Appeals Court Backs Pot Shop's Arbitration Agreement
A Massachusetts medical marijuana dispensary can enforce an arbitration clause in its employment agreement even when it did not specify the rights a worker was waiving, an intermediate state appellate court has said.
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September 18, 2024
Thermo Fisher Late To Pay Departing Workers, Engineer Says
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. and a subsidiary failed to promptly pay all final wages and unused vacation time to departing employees and must now cough up three times the amount of that compensation because of its violation of Massachusetts law, according to a proposed class action filed in state court.
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September 18, 2024
Massachusetts Powerhouse: Foley Hoag
With some of the state's household-name clients under its belt and a former Massachusetts attorney general on its roster, Foley Hoag LLP is one of the state's premier law firms in a number of growing sectors.
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September 18, 2024
Netflix's 'Varsity Blues' Setback Puts Media On Watch
Netflix Inc.'s failure to bring about dismissal of a defamation suit brought by a private equity executive tied to the "Varsity Blues" college admissions case is a warning to media companies when blurring the line between documentary and drama, experts told Law360.
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September 18, 2024
Biotech Co. Escapes Stock-Drop Suit Over COVID-19 Drug
A Massachusetts biotech company won dismissal Wednesday from a proposed class action by investors who say their shares tanked in value after it allegedly came to light that executives had falsely touted an unproven prospective COVID-19 medicine.
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September 18, 2024
DraftKings Fired Engineer After Leave Request, Suit Says
A former senior engineer for DraftKings Inc. says he was fired in retaliation for asking to take parental leave last year, according to a lawsuit filed in Massachusetts state court.
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September 18, 2024
British Packaging Co. To Buy US Conveyor Biz For $17M
British packaging business Mpac Group PLC said Wednesday that it has agreed to acquire U.S.-based Boston Conveyor & Automation Inc. for $17 million in a cash-and-stock deal from its sole owner, Jim Laverdiere, expanding Mpac's footprint in North America.
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September 17, 2024
Ex-Manager of Dartmouth Student Paper Gets Prison For Theft
A Vermont woman was sentenced Monday to 15 months in prison for stealing over $223,000 from Dartmouth College's student newspaper, where she had worked for nearly a decade as office manager.
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September 17, 2024
Univ. Can Expand Coastal Campus, Mass. Appeals Court Says
A Massachusetts university has no obligation to preserve for public use 12 acres of land in a coastal town just north of Boston, the state's intermediate-level appeals court ruled.
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September 17, 2024
Mass. Contractor Owes $77K For Violating Davis-Bacon Act
Five construction workers recovered $77,206 after they were stiffed of prevailing wages and fringe benefits on a Davis-Bacon Act project in Boston, the U.S. Department of Labor announced Monday.
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September 17, 2024
Massachusetts Powerhouse: Ropes & Gray
Massachusetts stalwart Ropes & Gray LLP put another year in the books as the state's largest law firm, leading blockbuster transactions and advising some of the most powerful companies driving the booming health and life sciences industry.
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September 17, 2024
Conn. AG Balks At Avangrid's $2.55B Take-Private Deal
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong and Consumer Counsel Claire E. Coleman want the state's utility watchdog to probe a Spanish energy firm's $2.55 billion proposal to take a Constitution State-based utility private, citing fears about reduced regulatory oversight amid soaring electricity and gas prices.
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September 16, 2024
Insurers Bring Curtain Down On 'Cats' Tour Injury Dispute
Two insurers agreed to settle a dispute in Massachusetts federal court over coverage for a touring production of "Cats" at a Rhode Island theater where an employee was severely injured by set equipment.
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September 16, 2024
Mass. Accounting Firm Hit With Data Breach Class Claims
Accounting firm Katz Nannis + Solomon PC failed to safeguard sensitive client information and enabled a 2023 data breach, according to a proposed class action in Massachusetts federal court.
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September 16, 2024
Why A Tactic In The Youth Climate Change Battle Is Risky
Young people suing the federal government for sweeping changes to climate policy are trying a new tactic, filing a mandamus petition in the U.S. Supreme Court in an effort to get their case to trial. But some lawyers are worried the tactic may backfire, limiting the opportunity for others to use the courts to wage climate battles, experts told Law360.
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September 16, 2024
Pall Corp. Shorts Workers By Rounding OT, Suit Says
A proposed class action filed Sept. 12 alleges that biotech supplier Pall Corp. followed a time-rounding policy that systematically undercompensated employees, and accused the company of improperly deducting 30 minutes from employees' pay for meal breaks, even when employees took shorter breaks.
Expert Analysis
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How Law Firms Can Avoid 'Collaboration Drag'
Law firm decision making can be stifled by “collaboration drag” — characterized by too many pointless meetings, too much peer feedback and too little dissent — but a few strategies can help stakeholders improve decision-making processes and build consensus, says Steve Groom at Miles Mediation.
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Election Outlook: A Precedent Primer On Content Moderation
With the 2024 election season now in full swing, online platforms will face difficult and politically sensitive decisions about content moderation, but U.S. Supreme Court decisions from last term offer much-needed certainty about their rights, say Jonathan Blavin and Helen White at Munger Tolles.
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Opinion
Litigation Funding Disclosure Key To Open, Impartial Process
Blanket investor and funding agreement disclosures should be required in all civil cases where the investor has a financial interest in the outcome in order to address issues ranging from potential conflicts of interest to national security concerns, says Bob Goodlatte, former U.S. House Representative for Virginia.
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What NFL Draft Picks Have In Common With Lateral Law Hires
Nearly half of law firm lateral hires leave within a few years — a failure rate that is strikingly similar to the performance of NFL quarterbacks drafted in the first round — in part because evaluators focus too heavily on quantifiable metrics and not enough on a prospect's character traits, says Howard Rosenberg at Baretz+Brunelle.
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Replacing The Stigma Of Menopause With Law Firm Support
A large proportion of the workforce is forced to pull the brakes on their career aspirations because of the taboo surrounding menopause and a lack of consistent support, but law firms can initiate the cultural shift needed by formulating thoughtful workplace policies, says Barbara Hamilton-Bruce at Simmons & Simmons.
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Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: August Lessons
In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy considers certification cases touching on classwide evidence of injury from debt collection practices, defining coupon settlements under the Class Action Fairness Act, proper approaches for evaluating attorney fee awards in class action settlements, and more.
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Planning Law Firm Content Calendars: What, When, Where
During the slower month of August, law firms should begin working on their 2025 content calendars, planning out a content creation and distribution framework that aligns with the firm’s objectives and maintains audience engagement throughout the year, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.
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Notable Q2 Updates In Insurance Class Actions
Mark Johnson and Mathew Drocton at BakerHostetler discuss the muted nature of the property and casualty insurance class action space in the second quarter of the year, with no large waves made in labor depreciation and total-loss vehicle class actions, but a new offensive theory emerging for insurance companies.
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Series
Playing Golf Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Golf can positively affect your personal and professional life well beyond the final putt, and it’s helped enrich my legal practice by improving my ability to build lasting relationships, study and apply the rules, face adversity with grace, and maintain my mental and physical well-being, says Adam Kelly at Venable.
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Law Firms Should Move From Reactive To Proactive Marketing
Most law firm marketing and business development teams operate in silos, leading to an ad hoc, reactive approach, but shifting to a culture of proactive planning — beginning with comprehensive campaigns — can help firms effectively execute their broader business strategy, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.
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Opinion
The Big Issues A BigLaw Associates' Union Could Address
A BigLaw associates’ union could address a number of issues that have the potential to meaningfully improve working conditions, diversity and attorney well-being — from restructured billable hour requirements to origination credit allocation, return-to-office mandates and more, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.
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Opinion
It's Time For A BigLaw Associates' Union
As BigLaw faces a steady stream of criticism about its employment policies and practices, an associates union could effect real change — and it could start with law students organizing around opposition to recent recruiting trends, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.
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Takeaways From Virginia's $2B Trade Secrets Verdict Reversal
The Virginia Court of Appeals' recent reversal of the $2 billion damages award in Pegasystems v. Appian underscores the claimant's burden to show damages causation and highlights how an evidentiary ruling could lead to reversible error, say John Lanham and Kamran Jamil at Morrison Foerster.
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How Justices Upended The Administrative Procedure Act
In its recent Loper Bright, Corner Post and Jarkesy decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court fundamentally changed the Administrative Procedure Act in ways that undermine Congress and the executive branch, shift power to the judiciary, curtail public and business input, and create great uncertainty, say Alene Taber and Beth Hummer at Hanson Bridgett.
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Mirror, Mirror On The Wall, Is My Counterclaim Bound To Fall?
A Pennsylvania federal court’s recent dismissal of the defendants’ counterclaims in Morgan v. Noss should remind attorneys to avoid the temptation to repackage a claim’s facts and law into a mirror-image counterclaim, as this approach will often result in a waste of time and resources, says Matthew Selmasska at Kaufman Dolowich.