Massachusetts

  • November 04, 2025

    Mass. Attys Split As Punitive Damages Rules Go To Top Court

    A case before Massachusetts' top appellate court over whether more safeguards are needed to cap runaway punitive damage awards has divided attorneys, with some saying the big-dollar verdicts can be skewed by improper evidence and others calling the matter a solution in search of a problem.

  • November 04, 2025

    Industry, Enviros Oppose EPA Plan To Ditch GHG Reporting

    Industry and environmental groups alike are pushing back against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's proposal to repeal a program that requires power plants, fossil fuel and natural gas suppliers, and other facilities to report their greenhouse gas emissions.

  • November 04, 2025

    DC Circ. Backs DOE's Tougher Furnace Efficiency Rules

    The D.C. Circuit on Tuesday upheld the U.S. Department of Energy's tighter energy efficiency standards for furnaces and water heaters, rejecting arguments from gas utility and industry groups that the rules unlawfully force an expensive switch to new appliances.

  • November 04, 2025

    Confirmation Ends Dem-Appointed Judges' Lock On 1st Circ.

    The Senate voted 52-46 on Tuesday to confirm Joshua D. Dunlap, a partner at Pierce Atwood LLP, to the First Circuit.

  • November 04, 2025

    2 Facing Charges In Harvard Medical School Explosion

    Two college-age men from southeastern Massachusetts were arrested Tuesday on charges that they used a commercial-grade firework to set off an explosion inside a Harvard Medical School lab early Saturday morning, the U.S. attorney's office announced.

  • November 04, 2025

    BU Law Will Start Offering AI Certificate In Fall 2026

    Boston University School of Law will begin offering a certificate in artificial intelligence for law practice in fall 2026 to prepare students for using the technology in their legal careers.

  • November 04, 2025

    Mass. Developer, Wife Sue Hotel Over Fall At Award Gala

    A prominent Massachusetts real estate developer and his wife have filed a negligence lawsuit against Boston's Seaport Hotel, claiming she was seriously injured when she fell onto a partially obscured staircase during an event.

  • November 03, 2025

    MIT Bros Rest, Expert Says $25M Crypto Score Was Aboveboard

    Two MIT-educated brothers accused of using an unlawful crypto trading strategy to steal $25 million from other traders on Monday rested their case without taking the stand, after a defense expert witness said they didn't violate any rules of the Ethereum blockchain.

  • November 03, 2025

    Justices Urged To Rethink Baseball's Antitrust Shield, Again

    Three baseball players have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to rehear their petition to stop major league organizations from restricting their salaries, noting another similar pending petition and saying the issue will persist until the justices undo baseball's exemption from antitrust laws.

  • November 03, 2025

    Mass. Justices Hint Charter Schools Must Obey Records Law

    Justices on Massachusetts' highest court on Monday appeared skeptical of arguments that a publicly funded charter school, unlike its city- and town-operated counterparts, is not subject to the state's public records law.

  • November 03, 2025

    Fla. Pain Doc Was 'Pawn' In Kickback Scheme, 11th Circ. Told

    A Florida pain management doctor on Monday urged the Eleventh Circuit to reverse his conviction in a conspiracy to accept kickbacks for prescribing a liquid fentanyl drug, arguing that he was merely a "pawn" in the scheme.

  • November 03, 2025

    Cannabis Cos. Allege Hinckley Allen Malpractice Cost $25M

    A group of cannabis companies have claimed that Hinckley Allen & Snyder LLP's alleged malpractice stemming from the purported decision to prioritize the personal interests of a manager in a 2017 investor suit ended up costing them over $25 million in damages.

  • November 03, 2025

    Black Man Granted New Trial In Mass. Over Lawyer's Bias

    A Black man who pled guilty to firearms offenses in 2018 after consulting with his lawyer — who was found to have made racist social media posts — is entitled to a new trial, Massachusetts' intermediate-level appeals court said Monday, unanimously reversing a lower court's decision.

  • November 03, 2025

    New Loan Forgiveness Rule Targets Trump Critics, States Say

    Two lawsuits filed Monday, one by a coalition of states and the other by a group of cities, unions and advocacy organizations, are challenging a new Trump administration rule imposing "intentionally vague" and allegedly illegal restrictions on student loan forgiveness for public employees intended to stifle dissent.

  • November 03, 2025

    Removal Dooms Brown Univ. Prof's Habeas Bid, Judge Rules

    A Lebanese professor at Brown University has seen her challenge to a five-year ban on reentering the United States dismissed as a Massachusetts federal judge ruled that her deportation leaves the court without any jurisdiction.

  • October 31, 2025

    Wheeling & Appealing: The Latest Must-Know Appellate Action

    In this installment of Wheeling & Appealing, November's appellate calendar features a Trump lawsuit against Hillary Clinton, New York City housing disputes, drug pricing battles, immigrant rights cases, and challenges to so-called patent troll laws.

  • October 31, 2025

    Real Estate Recap: Retail Rebirth, Data Center Outlier, SCIFs

    Catch up on this past week's key developments by state from Law360 Real Estate Authority — including a look at how recent big-box store bankruptcies could usher in a retail sector revival, Florida's comparative inertia building data centers, and a rise in the niche asset class known as "sensitive compartmented information facilities."

  • 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.

Expert Analysis

  • 5 Ways Lawyers Can Earn Back The Public's Trust

    Author Photo

    Amid salacious headlines about lawyers behaving badly and recent polls showing the public’s increasingly unfavorable view of attorneys, we must make meaningful changes to our culture to rebuild trust in the legal system, says Carl Taylor at Carl Taylor Law.

  • Notable Q2 Updates In Insurance Class Actions

    Author Photo

    Vehicle valuation challenges regarding the use of projected sale adjustments continued apace in insurance class actions this quarter, where insurers have been scoring victories on class certification decisions in federal circuit courts, says Mathew Drocton at BakerHostetler.

  • Series

    Hiking Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    On the trail, I have thought often about the parallels between hiking and high-stakes patent litigation, and why strategizing, preparation, perseverance and joy are important skills for success in both endeavors, says Barbara Fiacco at Foley Hoag.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Negotiation Skills

    Author Photo

    I took one negotiation course in law school, but most of the techniques I rely on today I learned in practice, where I've discovered that the process is less about tricks or tactics, and more about clarity, preparation and communication, says Grant Schrantz at Haug Barron.

  • AG Watch: Texas Embraces The MAHA Movement

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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

    Author Photo

    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.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Massachusetts archive.