Massachusetts

  • October 31, 2025

    Gov't Owes $330K In Fees For NSF Funding Fight, Court Told

    A higher education association seeks more than $330,000 in attorney fees and costs from the government after winning a ruling blocking the Trump administration from cutting certain National Science Foundation funding, according to a memorandum filed in Massachusetts federal court.

  • October 31, 2025

    Trump Admin Must Keep SNAP Running, Federal Judges Say

    A Rhode Island federal judge Friday ordered the Trump administration to use contingency funds to sustain Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits amid the ongoing government shutdown, while a Boston federal judge gave the government until Monday to choose one of two paths to keep the program running to some degree.

  • October 31, 2025

    First Trans Judge In Mass. Advocates Courtroom Courtesy

    Boston Municipal Court Judge Connor M. Barusch spent nearly two years navigating the complicated process to become a judge in Massachusetts. In this interview with Law360, they say their path to becoming the first judge in state history who identifies as nonbinary and transgender will help diversify the bench and better serve the community.

  • October 31, 2025

    Judges See An Immigration Court Gutted From Inside

    Eight former immigration judges who spoke to Law360 say the rough treatment of the immigration courts in President Donald Trump's second term poses an unprecedented threat to judicial independence and is eroding immigrants' due process rights.

  • October 31, 2025

    1st Circ. Refuses To Transfer FCC Prison Phone Rate Case

    The First Circuit declined Friday to move multidistrict litigation over prison phone rate caps to the Fifth Circuit, rejecting an argument from phone service providers.

  • October 31, 2025

    Hub Hires: Cooley, Hinckley Allen, Weil Gotshal

    The month of October brings with it shorter days, crisp fall weather, and a handful of fresh legal homes for some of Boston's top talent. Cooley boosted its life sciences practice, Hinckley Allen strengthened its litigation team, and Weil snagged an appellate pro.

  • October 31, 2025

    4 Mass. Rulings You May Have Missed In October

    Massachusetts state court judges in October dealt with missing details in a trade secrets case, missing lawyers in a proposed class action over COVID-19-related refund demands, and missing evidence during summary judgment proceedings.

  • October 31, 2025

    Office Building REIT Hits Ch. 11 In Texas With $1B+ Debt

    A Massachusetts-based real estate investment trust with 124 office properties nationwide has filed for Chapter 11 protection in a Texas bankruptcy court carrying more than $1 billion in debt and an equity swap agreement with its creditors in hand.

  • October 30, 2025

    Feds Rest $25M Crypto Theft Case Against MIT Grads

    Manhattan federal prosecutors Thursday rested their case against two MIT-educated brothers accused of leveraging an Ethereum software glitch to fraudulently obtain $25 million in cryptocurrency, signing off with a series of the defendants' Google searches following the alleged theft that referred to famous white collar criminals and their prison terms.

  • October 30, 2025

    2nd Ex-Magellan Exec Avoids Jail Over Faulty Lead Tests

    A second former Magellan Diagnostics executive ducked prison time Thursday for his role in an alleged scheme to hide a defect in the company's lead-testing devices ahead of its sale in 2016.

  • October 30, 2025

    Atty Accused Of Embezzling $2M Can't Avoid GPS Monitoring

    A Boston attorney accused of embezzling nearly $2 million from clients before being arrested en route to Iran must remain monitored while awaiting trial, Massachusetts' highest court ruled Thursday, denying his request to remove his GPS tracking device or expand the area he is allowed to traverse.

  • October 30, 2025

    Takeda Fails In Bid To Avoid IBS Drug Antitrust Trial

    A Massachusetts federal judge has teed up Takeda Pharmaceutical for trial next year on claims from health insurers, self-insured employers, retailers and wholesalers accusing it of paying Par Pharmaceuticals to delay generic competition to anticonstipation drug Amitiza, rejecting competing motions from the drugmaker and plaintiffs for early wins.

  • October 30, 2025

    Universal Music Settles Copyright Claims With Udio

    Universal Music Group has settled copyright infringement claims it had brought along with several other large music labels in New York federal court against AI music creation startup Udio and said the two will collaborate to create a licensed AI music service.

  • October 30, 2025

    Judge Unpauses 'Important' Suit Over Vax Guidelines

    A Massachusetts federal judge agreed Thursday to lift a government shutdown-related stay of litigation challenging new COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for children and pregnant women, calling the case a "matter of national importance" that warrants keeping the case moving over the U.S. Department of Justice's objection.

  • October 30, 2025

    Health Group Urges 1st Circ. To Deny FCA Suit Fee Challenge

    A Massachusetts health network has asked the First Circuit to deny a whistleblower's attempt to secure more attorney fees for a False Claims Act suit, arguing that a federal judge properly denied numerous claims for fees after a $2.5 million settlement.

  • October 29, 2025

    DOJ Says State AGs Can't 'Second-Guess' HPE Merger Deal

    The U.S. Department of Justice and Hewlett Packard Enterprise separately urged a California federal judge Tuesday not to let a dozen state attorneys general peek behind the controversial settlement clearing HPE's $14 billion purchase of Juniper Networks, arguing public comment, not direct intervention, is their appropriate role.

  • October 29, 2025

    Beyond Meat, Rival Headed To Trial After Mixed TM Ruling

    Meat substitute maker Beyond Meat Inc. has lost a final attempt to avoid a trademark infringement trial slated to get underway next month in a Massachusetts federal courtroom, following a mixed ruling on cross-motions for summary judgment Wednesday.

  • October 29, 2025

    Dems Spotlight Risks Of Crypto, Private Equity In 401(k) Plans

    The Trump administration's support for cryptocurrency and other private market investments in American retirement plans is "dangerous," a group of Democratic senators told two agencies tasked with carrying out an executive order that aims to make it easier for retirement plans to feature such assets.

  • October 29, 2025

    Full 9th Circ. To Rehear Portland National Guard Challenge

    The full Ninth Circuit court will reconsider last week's panel ruling that was poised to allow the Trump administration to federalize and deploy National Guard troops to Portland, Oregon, according to an order issued Tuesday by Chief U.S. Circuit Judge Mary Helen Murguia.

  • October 29, 2025

    3 Firms Guide Thermo Fisher On $8.9B Clario Deal

    Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. said on Wednesday it will acquire Clario Holdings Inc., a provider of endpoint data solutions for clinical trials, from a shareholder group led by Astorg, Nordic Capital, Novo Holdings and Cinven for $8.875 billion in cash.

  • October 28, 2025

    5 Federal Circuit Clashes To Watch In November

    The Federal Circuit's argument calendar for November includes a challenge to an Idaho state law aimed at hindering "patent trolls," and a bid to revive a $40 million jury verdict against Shopify that a judge discarded, citing "unclear" testimony from the patent owner's expert.

  • October 28, 2025

    Va. Justices Urged To Restore Record $2B Trade Secrets Win

    A software company fighting to regain a $2 billion trade secrets award urged the Virginia Supreme Court on Tuesday to affirm the verdict, arguing that an appellate court was wrong to disturb the conclusions from jurors and the trial judge.

  • October 28, 2025

    1st Circ. Rejects Ex-SSA Atty's Appeal Over Firing

    A mistakenly issued decision by one administrative review panel does not reopen the door for a former Social Security Administration staff attorney to challenge another panel's confirmation of his firing, the First Circuit ruled.

  • October 28, 2025

    26 AGs Sue USDA Over Suspension Of Nutrition Benefits

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture's decision to suspend Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits amid the ongoing government shutdown is an abuse of discretion that threatens to take food away from millions of people, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday by 25 states and the District of Columbia.

  • October 28, 2025

    HHS Can't Yet Yank Sex Ed Grants Over 'Gender Ideology' Info

    An Oregon federal judge has halted the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' plans to revoke federal funding for teen sexual health education programs that included "gender ideology," agreeing with states that this is likely a case of executive overreach.

Expert Analysis

  • AG Watch: Texas Embraces The MAHA Movement

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    Attorneys at Kelley Drye examine Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's actions related to the federal Make America Healthy Again movement, and how these actions hinge on representations or omissions by the target companies as opposed to specific analyses of the potential health risks.

  • Opinion

    Bar Exam Reform Must Expand Beyond A Single Updated Test

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    Recently released information about the National Conference of Bar Examiners’ new NextGen Uniform Bar Exam highlights why a single test is not ideal for measuring newly licensed lawyers’ competency, demonstrating the need for collaborative development, implementation and reform processes, says Gregory Bordelon at Suffolk University.

  • How States Are Regulating Health Insurers' AI Usage

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    The absence of a federal artificial intelligence framework positions states as key regulators of health insurers’ AI use, making it important for payors and service providers to understand the range of state AI legislation being passed in California and elsewhere, and consider implementing an AI-focused compliance infrastructure, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • A Simple Way Courts Can Help Attys Avoid AI Hallucinations

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    As attorneys increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence for legal research, courts should consider expanding online quality control programs to flag potential hallucinations — permitting counsel to correct mistakes and sparing judges the burden of imposing sanctions, say attorneys at Lankler Siffert & Wohl and Connors.

  • Series

    Creating Botanical Art Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Pressing and framing plants that I grow has shown me that pursuing an endeavor that brings you joy can lead to surprising benefits for a legal career, including mental clarity, perspective and even a bit of humility, says Douglas Selph at Morris Manning.

  • Compliance Is A New Competitive Edge For Mortgage Lenders

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    So far, 2025 has introduced state and federal regulatory turbulence that is pressuring mortgage lenders to reevaluate the balance between competitive and compliant employee and customer recruiting practices, necessitating a compliance recalibration that prioritizes five key strategies, say attorneys at Mitchell Sandler.

  • Opinion

    The Legal Education Status Quo Is No Longer Tenable

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    As underscored by the fallout from California’s February bar exam, legal education and licensure are tethered to outdated systems, and the industry must implement several key reforms to remain relevant and responsive to 21st century legal needs, says Matthew Nehmer at The Colleges of Law.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Rulings On Relevance Redactions

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    In recent cases addressing redactions that parties sought to apply based on the relevance of information — as opposed to considerations of privilege — courts have generally limited a party’s ability to withhold nonresponsive or irrelevant material, providing a few lessons for discovery strategy, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Opinion

    Section 1983 Has Promise After End Of Nationwide Injunctions

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    After the U.S. Supreme Court recently struck down the practice of nationwide injunctions in Trump v. Casa, Section 1983 civil rights suits can provide a better pathway to hold the government accountable — but this will require reforms to qualified immunity, says Marc Levin at the Council on Criminal Justice.

  • Series

    Playing Soccer Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Soccer has become a key contributor to how I approach my work, and the lessons I’ve learned on the pitch about leadership, adaptability, resilience and communication make me better at what I do every day in my legal career, says Whitney O’Byrne at MoFo.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Learning From Failure

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    While law school often focuses on the importance of precision, correctness and perfection, mistakes are inevitable in real-world practice — but failure is not the opposite of progress, and real talent comes from the ability to recover, rethink and reshape, says Brooke Pauley at Tucker Ellis.

  • Midyear Rewind: How Courts Are Reshaping VPPA Standards

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    The first half of 2025 saw a series of cases interpreting the Video Privacy Protection Act as applied to website tracking technologies, including three appellate rulings deepening circuit splits on what qualifies as personally identifiable information and who qualifies as a consumer under the statute, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From ATF Director To BigLaw

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    As a two-time boomerang partner, returning to BigLaw after stints as a U.S. attorney and the director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, people ask me how I know when to move on, but there’s no single answer — just clearly set your priorities, says Steven Dettelbach at BakerHostetler.

  • 4 In-Flux Employment Law Issues Banks Should Note

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    Attorneys at Ogletree provide a midyear update on employment law changes that could significantly affect banks and other financial service institutions — including federal diversity equity and inclusion updates, and new and developing state and local artificial intelligence laws.

  • New DOJ Penalty Policy Could Spell Trouble For Cos.

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    In light of the U.S. Department of Justice’s recently published guidance making victim relief a core condition of coordinated resolution crediting, companies facing parallel investigations must carefully calibrate their negotiation strategies to minimize the risk of duplicative penalties, say attorneys at Debevoise.

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