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TOP NEWS Analysis High Court May Upend TCPA Litigation Landscape
The U.S. Supreme Court's impending decision on how much deference courts should give to the Federal Communications Commission on the Telephone Consumer Protection Act is poised to change the way plaintiffs and defendants frame key issues that have fueled an explosion of litigation under the statute, attorneys say.
Fed Circ. Won't Stay Immunity Ruling For Allergan's Appeal
The Federal Circuit has said it wouldn't stay its ruling that sovereign immunity doesn't apply in inter partes reviews while Allergan PLC and the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Tax-Free Travel Payments Count As Wages, 8th Circ. Says
The Eighth Circuit ruled Wednesday that tax-exempt payments made by Werner Enterprises Inc. to tens of thousands of truck drivers for anticipated travel costs could be used in calculating their pay rates, upholding the dismissal of a class action alleging the payments were wrongly used to offset minimum wages the drivers were owed.
9th Circ. Creates New Role To Tackle Workplace Harassment
In a first for the federal judiciary, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has created the new position of director of workplace relations to confront workplace harassment issues in the appellate, trial and bankruptcy courts within the circuit’s jurisdiction.
7th Circ. OKs Sanctions Over Atty's Post-Settlement Fee Filing
The Seventh Circuit on Wednesday agreed with a lower court that an Indiana lawyer's request for fees in a copyright suit was sanctionable because he did not reveal in his filing that his client had paid to settle the case with prejudice.
Justices Urged To Nix Tenn. Valley Authority’s Injury Immunity
A sport fisherman seriously injured due to the Tennessee Valley Authority’s alleged negligence urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to revive his suit, saying a lower appeals court applied the wrong sovereign immunity standard to the federally owned power utility.
Rimini Kicks Off Copyright Costs Fight At High Court
Six weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear its copyright battle with Oracle, technical support service Rimini Street Inc. urged the justices Tuesday to overturn an earlier ruling that put the company on the hook for more than $12 million in so-called nontaxable costs.
Fed. Circ. Says NY Court Can't Hear Verizon Unit Patent Suit
Verizon subsidiary Oath Holdings Inc. does not have to defend a patent lawsuit over advertisement technology in the Eastern District of New York, the Federal Circuit ruled Wednesday, finding a lower court failed to follow its decision that TC Heartland was a change in the law.
Toy Company Wins $1M Attys' Fees In Board Game IP Row
Toymaker MGA Entertainment Inc. must pony up about $1 million in attorneys’ fees in a game patent infringement suit after rival Innovention Toys LLC requested additional fees for a case that went up to the U.S. Supreme Court, a Louisiana federal judge said Tuesday.
3rd Circ. Won't Revive Stock-Drop Suit Against Ocwen Affiliate
The Third Circuit on Wednesday affirmed the dismissal of a securities fraud class action against an Ocwen Financial Corp. affiliate whose stock tumbled following its parent company's regulatory troubles stemming from the housing crisis in the mid-2000s, ruling in a precedential decision that the suing funds didn't plausibly allege the fraud cost investors billions.
3rd Circ. Urged To Back Ruling In $377M Foreign Income Row
The Internal Revenue Service urged the Third Circuit on Wednesday to uphold a U.S. Tax Court decision finding an additional $377 million in taxable income for a U.S. shareholder, saying that loan guarantees from offshore subsidiaries trigger a requirement to include the subsidiaries’ earnings.
Standard Too High On ND Drs. Group Merger, 8th Circ. Told
A pair of North Dakota health-care providers urged an Eighth Circuit panel Tuesday to upend a preliminary injunction blocking their proposed merger, asserting in oral arguments that a federal judge improperly required them to show their tie-up would have no detrimental effect on competition.
9th Circ. Judge Doubts Bio-Rad Appeal Of Ex-GC's $11M Win
A Ninth Circuit judge appeared skeptical Wednesday of Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc.'s arguments in favor of overturning an $11 million whistleblower judgment against the company, repeatedly questioning its counsel during a hearing on how an erroneous jury instruction would change the outcome of the verdict.
Disney Investor Faces Uphill 9th Circ. Fight In No-Poach Row
A Ninth Circuit judge on Wednesday appeared unswayed by a Disney shareholder's bid to revive a derivative shareholder lawsuit claiming board members breached their fiduciary duties by agreeing not to poach other studios’ animators, saying during a hearing that “nothing in the complaint says the board knew about this conspiracy.”
Rate-Setting Makes Insurer ERISA Fiduciary, 10th Circ. Told
Counsel for a class of 270,000 retirement plan participants urged a Tenth Circuit panel to revive their suit against Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Co. over its distribution of investment profits Wednesday, arguing that the insurer must be considered a fiduciary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
Navajo Landowners Ask 10th Circ. To Allow Oil, Gas Drilling
A Navajo Nation landowners group has urged the Tenth Circuit to rule against environmental groups and another Navajo tribal group seeking to block the Bureau of Land Management from allowing further oil and gas drilling in New Mexico’s Mancos Shale, saying it’s essential to the local economy.
KKR, Macquarie Say Auction-Rigging Claims Merit Dismissal
KKR & Co. Inc. and the Australian investment bank Macquarie told a New York state appeals panel on Wednesday that a lower court erred by failing to dismiss claims that they rigged an auction for 11 Texas apartment complexes, saying their accuser did not follow auction rules.
Texas Court Spikes Med-Mal Claim Over Vague Expert Report
A Texas appeals court held Tuesday that a trial court erred when it declined to dismiss a malpractice suit against an orthopedic surgeon who allegedly failed to prevent a bacterial infection, saying an expert report did not support the claims.
Texas Panel Tosses Claim Doc Tricked Mistress Into Abortion
The former mistress of a doctor cannot bring claims alleging that the doctor lied to her about the health of the baby she was carrying and tricked her into getting an abortion because those are health care liability claims that needed an expert report to proceed, a Texas appellate court held Wednesday.
Pa. Panel Urged To Revive Risperdal Breast-Growth Case
A Philadelphia judge’s mid-trial decision axing claims against a Johnson & Johnson unit over breast growth allegedly linked to the antipsychotic medication Risperdal came under fire Wednesday as a state appeals court heard arguments that the case had been improperly dismissed for lack of scientific proof.
NJ Attys Duck Malpractice Suit After Clients' Filing Delay
A New Jersey state appeals court on Wednesday refused to revive a malpractice action against lawyers and accountants over the administration of an estate and trusts, saying co-executors of the estate could not pursue their claims after failing to refile them within 360 days of a consent order dismissing the case.
Colo. DA Asks State High Court For Atty Fees In Ethics Row
The former district attorney for a pair of Colorado counties asked the state’s Supreme Court on Wednesday to revive his lawsuit for $300,000 in attorneys’ fees he incurred while fighting ethics complaints brought by the attorney regulatory council, saying the counties must pay for expenses related to his job.
On Appeal, Wash U. Defeats Jury Award In Disability Bias Suit
A Missouri appeals court reversed a former Washington University employee's win in her suit alleging that she was fired in retaliation for requesting a disability accommodation, ruling that the jury that awarded her $769,000 hadn't been properly instructed.
Wyo. Tells Justices Crow Tribe's Hunting Right Is Finished
Wyoming urged the U.S. Supreme Court not to overturn a Crow tribe member’s state court conviction for illegal elk hunting in the Bighorn National Forest, saying the tribe and its member are trying to revive a treaty hunting right that federal courts long ago found has ceased to exist.
Assessing Atomic Energy Act's Reach At High Court
Based on last week's U.S. Supreme Court oral arguments in Virginia Uranium v. Warren, it appears the court will reject the Fourth Circuit’s reasoning that Virginia’s purpose is irrelevant to the question of whether the state's ban on mining is preempted by the Atomic Energy Act, says Michael Murphy of Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP.
Don't Panic: Harvey Doesn't Alter Florida's Bad Faith Standard
Despite the Florida Supreme Court’s consistency with 80 years of precedent in its latest bad faith ruling, Harvey v. Geico, the dissenting opinions — and recent commentary — predict that “mere negligence has now become bad faith” and warn of fabricated claims and market chaos. Stephen Marino and Benjamin Hassebrock of Ver Ploeg & Lumpkin PA disagree.
When A Patent Disclosure Is Not A Disclosure
The Federal Circuit has explained that patent descriptions do not require any particular form of disclosure. However, the court's recent decision in FWP IP v. Biogen points to a heightened scrutiny of descriptions when an applicant amends or adds new claims to cover a competitor’s activities, say Martin Pavane and Darren Mogil of Cozen O’Connor.
Sekura Case Expands Scope Of Illinois Biometric Privacy Law
An Illinois state appeals court's recent decision in Sekura v. Krishna Schaumburg Tan appears to break from multiple Biometric Information Privacy Act cases that had required plaintiffs to allege some harm beyond mere technical violations to qualify as “aggrieved,” say attorneys with Faegre Baker Daniels LLP.
Simple Secrets For Improving Your CLE
With few cases going to trial, many attorneys keep their oral-presentation skills sharp by teaching continuing legal education programs. To avoid giving a CLE that falls flat and damages your reputation, you must fashion a thoughtful message, control its presentation, and nail the beginning and ending, says Daniel Karon of Karon LLC.
In Leap To Plaintiffs Boutique, Munger Vet Makes Rare Move
It's uncommon for attorneys to jump from the world of defending corporations in bet-the-company litigation to pursuing those same suits, but former Munger Tolles & Olson LLP partner Marc Dworsky has made that 180-degree turn and says he's thrilled with the decision. 5 Law Firms Named The Savviest At Social Media Marketing
Five BigLaw firms have been named the savviest at social media marketing this year in a report released Wednesday that compares the Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and online thought-leadership skills of the largest firms in the United States. Ex-Paul Weiss, Munger Atty Tapped For Calif. High Court
California Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday picked his own senior adviser, who previously worked at both Munger Tolles & Olson LLP and Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison LLP, to fill an associate justice seat on the California Supreme Court. Avenatti Arrested On Felony Domestic Violence Charge
Michael Avenatti, the attorney representing adult film actress Stormy Daniels in her now-dismissed defamation suit against President Donald Trump, was arrested on a felony domestic violence charge, the Los Angeles Police Department said Wednesday. Most Law Firms' Cybersecurity Not Up To Par As Risk Grows
Most law firms are underprepared for cybersecurity threats, despite a sharp spike in cyberattacks against the industry in 2017, according to a new report from information technology consulting firm LogicForce. White & Case Revamped Parental Leave Policy For 2018
White & Case LLP rolled out a new parental leave policy in 2018 for its U.S. offices that offers 12 weeks of paid leave to all legal and business employees regardless of their gender, the firm confirmed on Wednesday. Ex-Dewey Exec Trying To Ax $1M Fine Deserves Jail, DA Says
Counsel for Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP's former chief financial officer will square off Thursday in Manhattan with prosecutors who claim the ex-executive should be jailed after asking a New York state judge to toss or reduce the $1 million fine he was sentenced to pay following his fraud conviction last year. Law Firm Leaders: Brownstein Hyatt's Adam J. Agron
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP managing partner Adam J. Agron spoke to Law360 in the final year of his six-year tenure as firm leader about the challenges facing the legal industry and why he believes the Denver-based firm is well positioned to grow its success.
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