'Cheap' Judge OKs $19.5M Snap Deal Fees But 'No Bentleys'

By Craig Clough

After warning counsel who negotiated a $65 million securities settlement with Snap that he is "notoriously cheap," and in a tentative order gave a "haircut" to their $19.5 million fee request, a California federal judge talked himself out of the trim at a hearing Thursday but quipped, "No Bentleys."

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'Serious Misconduct' At Live Nation, Ex-VP Says In $35M Suit

By Bonnie Eslinger

Live Nation has been sued in California state court for $35 million by a former vice president claiming it fired him for blowing the whistle on company-wide corporate misconduct, including project revenues that were inflated to score business deals and venue development projects, as well as hiding "junk fees" for tickets.

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Humiliated Delta Flyer Asks 9th Circ. For New Trial

By Dorothy Atkins

A Delta Air Lines passenger who defecated on himself after he was handcuffed and denied the opportunity to use the bathroom urged the Ninth Circuit on Thursday to give him another trial after a judge scrapped his $7.2 million verdict, arguing that the court wrongly tossed the verdict after trial.

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Ex-DA's Defamation Claims Tied To Menendez Work Risk Toss

By Rae Ann Varona

A Los Angeles County prosecutor-turned-public defender fought uphill Thursday to pursue defamation claims against a former colleague who criticized her advocacy for the release of Erik and Lyle Menendez, with a California state court judge saying that alleged comments like calling the attorney a "quisling" — or traitor — were nonactionable opinions.

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9th Circ. Revives County's $162M Environmental Coverage Bid

By Abraham Gross

The Ninth Circuit on Thursday revived a California county's suit seeking coverage of up to $162 million for environmental remediation efforts at an airport, reversing a lower court ruling that the policies were capped by an annual limit.

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GOP-Led States Back Trump In Dem AGs' Mail-In Ballot Suit

By Joyce Hanson

A group of 12 Republican-led states have asked a Massachusetts federal judge to let them intervene as defendants in 23 Democratic-led states' lawsuit over President Donald Trump's March 31 executive order placing limits on mail-in voting.

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AIG Unit Denies Coverage For $5.4M Casino Sprinkler Repair

By Mark Payne

An AIG unit told a California federal court that it owes no coverage for a $5.4 million award against a subcontractor for the cost of repairing and replacing an allegedly defective sprinkler system in a Las Vegas hotel, saying that defective work did not constitute covered property damage. 

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9th Circ. Revives Princess Cruise Guest's Trip-And-Fall Suit

By Gina Kim

The Ninth Circuit revived a Princess Cruise Line guest's negligence suit alleging he injured his neck after falling backward from tripping over an uneven shower ledge in his hotel room bathroom, ruling Thursday there is a genuine factual dispute whether the company knew the bathroom's design was unreasonably dangerous.

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Meta, 4 Food Banks Have Upper Hand In Privacy Suit, For Now

By Bonnie Eslinger

A California federal judge indicated on Thursday she will dismiss a proposed class action against Meta Platforms Inc. and four California food banks alleging the tech giant collected personal information about visitors to food assistance websites, but said she would let the plaintiffs amend the suit and try again.

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OpenAI Barred From Using 'IO' As TM In Dispute With IYO

By Ivan Moreno

A California federal judge on Thursday prohibited OpenAI from using "IO" as a trademark for AI hardware, finding that the branding is likely to be confused with startup IYO Inc. 

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Amazon Urges 9th Circ. To Uphold Block On Perplexity AI Bot

By Hailey Konnath

Amazon on Wednesday pressed the Ninth Circuit to leave in place an injunction blocking a startup's artificial intelligence tool, Comet, from purchasing items on Amazon.com, calling the tool "a textbook violation" of federal and state law and arguing that the injunction is backed by a robust record.

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Fed. Circ. Backs Wins For Pokemon Go Maker In Patent Fight

By Adam Lidgett

A startup founded by biotech billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong lost its bid Thursday to revive claims in a pair of patents it alleged were infringed by smartphone games Pokemon Go and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite as the Federal Circuit upheld findings that the claims were invalid.

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Wildfire App Can't Get Competitor's Launch Blocked

By Elliot Weld

A California federal judge has declined to issue a preliminary injunction at the behest of a competitor to block the launch of an app that gives out information about wildfires, saying this competitor had not adequately explained the delay between when it learned of the planned app's launch and when it filed suit.

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Bassist's Suit Against Metal Band Can Rock On, Judge Says

By Brian Steele

A Connecticut judge has refused to strike six counts from a bassist's lawsuit challenging his ejection from the Grammy-nominated metal band Hatebreed, finding the musician properly pleaded claims that he was harmed by his 2024 removal after a decades-long business relationship.

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Robinhood Hit With Class Action Over Illegal Sports Betting

By Tom Lotshaw

A proposed class action California, Michigan, New Jersey and New York residents filed against Robinhood Markets Inc. accuses the company of deceptively running an unlicensed sports gambling operation and seeks to recover billions of dollars in lost wagers and damages.

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9th Circ. Seems Willing To Revive Ex-Seattle Worker's DEI Suit

By Vin Gurrieri

A Ninth Circuit panel appeared receptive Thursday to reopening a former Seattle employee's suit alleging that the city's workplace diversity program was discriminatory, but strongly pushed back against the federal government's contention that he was improperly held to a higher legal bar because he is white. 

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DOJ Says Beverly Hills Mansion Bought With Bribe Money

By Elaine Briseño

The U.S. Department of Justice has asked a California federal court to allow the government to take possession of a Beverly Hills mansion alleged to have been purchased and then renovated with $30 million in illegally obtained and laundered funds.

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Judge Questions DOJ Bid To End Suit Over Trans Care Memo

By Carolyn Muyskens

A Massachusetts federal judge appeared unmoved Thursday by a U.S. Department of Justice lawyer's argument that a suit challenging directives on prosecuting providers of gender-affirming care for transgender children is an abstract debate, noting that some providers have deemed the care too risky and stopped services. 

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Robinhood Investors Warn Of Nvidia Redux Before High Court

By Jessica Corso

Robinhood Markets Inc. investors urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday not to hear a dispute revolving around the trading platform's $2.1 billion initial public offering, arguing that the case the company presents is "in the same mold" as those that the justices threw out against Meta and Nvidia two years ago.

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Enovix Investors Denied Class Cert. Under Goldman Standard

By Emilie Ruscoe

A proposed class of investors in lithium battery manufacturer Enovix Corp. can't be certified, a California federal judge has determined, finding the suit doesn't show how declines in trading price cited in the complaint were caused by the sole remaining alleged misrepresentation in the matter.

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Meta Defends Toss Of Consumer Antitrust Case At 9th Circ.

By Matthew Perlman

Meta told the Ninth Circuit a lower court was right to find no support for an expert's theory that Facebook would have paid users $5 a month for using the service if it didn't misrepresent its privacy and data practices.

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Carbon Health Floats $100M Credit Bid To Hedge Plan Fight

By Ben Zigterman

Bankrupt urgent care facility operator Carbon Health Technologies Inc. proposed in Texas court a $100 million credit bid sale from its prepetition lender, saying it is still pursuing its Chapter 11 reorganization plan but that opposition from its unsecured creditors is leading to ballooning administrative costs.

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Lender's COVID Boom Bars $5M Worker Credit Claim, US Says

By Jack McLoone

A mortgage lender isn't entitled to a $5 million refund for denied COVID-19 worker tax credits because the company's true business was never halted by a government order, the U.S. government told a California federal court, noting that the company's revenue actually increased by 600%.

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9th Circuit Clash Flares Over Idaho Tribal Land Swap Decision

By Crystal Owens

The Ninth Circuit's rejection of a global agribusiness' efforts to reverse the invalidation of an Idaho federal land transfer drew the ire of seven Republican-appointed judges, who said in a dissent that the majority is blocking the government's administration of the property that was once owned by an Indigenous nation.

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Orrick Hires Former Head Of Meta Youth Safety Policy

By Andrea Keckley

Orrick announced Thursday that it hired the former global director of youth safety policy and leader of global youth litigation strategy at Meta Platforms Inc. amid growing U.S. focus on keeping minors safe online.

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Jones Day Adds Labor Attorney From McDermott In SF

By Katherine Smith

Jones Day has added a former McDermott Will & Schulte partner who advises leading companies on a wide range of labor and employment matters as a partner in its labor and employment practice in its San Francisco office, the firm has announced.

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Morgan & Morgan Taps Seyfarth Atty For Employment Push

By Rose Krebs

Morgan & Morgan PA has added a Seyfarth Shaw LLP attorney to lead and build a California employment division for the injury law firm.

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Series

Officiating Football Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Though they may seem to have little in common, officiating football has sharpened many of the same skills that define effective lawyering in management-side labor and employment: preparation, judgment, composure, credibility and ability to make difficult decisions in real time, says Josh Nadreau at Fisher Phillips.

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DLA Piper Clears Vote To End Verein, Unify Leadership

By Tracey Read

DLA Piper announced Friday that firm partners on both sides of the Atlantic have "overwhelmingly approved" a plan to dissolve its Swiss verein structure effective May 1.

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Commerce Department's General Counsel Departs

By Christine DeRosa

The U.S. Department of Commerce's general counsel has left the agency after just over a year, the agency confirmed on Friday.

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UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

By Laura Stewart Liberty

The past week in London has seen a Hong Kong company sue the government and a COVID-19 PPE company linked to Tory peer Michelle Mone, an oligarch bring a fresh claim against a rival in a long-running feud, a rugby league club sue over a cancelled mass dance event, and Visa and Mastercard hit with legal action from H&M, Eurostar, and Bang & Olufsen. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

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