Judge Again Rejects Title IX, Class Rep Objections To NIL Deal

By David Steele

The NCAA's $2.78 billion settlement with college athletes who sought compensation for their name, image and likeness survived objections from seven athletes who lodged various claims of discrimination and inadequate representation for future athletes.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

FTC To Make Valvoline, Greenbriar Divest 45 Oil Shops

By Rae Ann Varona

The Federal Trade Commission said Friday that it will require Valvoline Inc. and Greenbriar Equity Group LP to divest 45 quick oil change shops to resolve antitrust concerns surrounding the automotive services company's planned acquisition of Breeze Autocare from the private equity firm for $625 million.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

NC, Utah Attorneys General Launch Nationwide AI Task Force

By Matt Perez

Democratic North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson and Republican Utah Attorney General Derek Brown have announced the formation of a nationwide artificial intelligence task force in collaboration with developers OpenAI and Microsoft, as well as the Attorney General Alliance, a nonprofit group of bipartisan state attorneys general.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Texas Judge Rejects Bid To Block Kenvue's $398M Dividend

By Jonathan Capriel

Texas can't stop the makers of Tylenol from marketing the drug as safe for children and pregnant women or halt a nearly $400 million payment to shareholders, a state court ruled on Friday, rejecting arguments by Attorney General Ken Paxton's motion.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Amazon Blasts Claim It Destroyed Evidence In Labeling Suit

By Ben Adlin

Amazon.com Services LLC is fighting calls for sanctions in a proposed class action accusing it of failing to follow federal labeling laws for dietary supplements, saying it shouldn't be penalized for allegedly failing to preserve online product pages for the supplements.

Response attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Customer PFAS Cases Against Conn. Water Cos. Can Proceed

By Brian Steele

Connecticut's utility and public health regulators do not have the authority to grant the relief that customers are seeking through two proposed class actions alleging The Connecticut Water Co. and Aquarion Water Co. sold water contaminated with "forever chemicals," a state court judge ruled in declining to dismiss each case.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Lowe's Sheds Suit Over TikTok, Microsoft Trackers

By Allison Grande

A California federal judge has thrown out a proposed class action accusing home improvement retailer Lowe's of illegally sharing website visitors' personal data with TikTok and Microsoft, finding that while the plaintiffs had adequately laid out their wiretap claim, they failed to allege the type of concrete injury necessary to sustain their suit.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DoorDash Inks $18M Deal With Chicago Over Fee Practices

By Gina Kim

DoorDash will pay $18 million to resolve the city of Chicago's suit in Illinois federal court alleging it fooled diners into paying higher prices, charged hidden fees, used tips to subsidize its own costs and took advantage of restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the city's announcement Friday. 

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

FCC Urged To Add Tribal Window To C-Band Sale

By Christopher Cole

A public interest group has urged the Federal Communications Commission to add a tribal priority window as the agency develops a plan required by Congress to auction off rights to upper C-band spectrum.

Letter attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

NextNav Asks FCC To Act Now On GPS Backup Proposal

By Nadia Dreid

Geolocation service provider NextNav is butting heads with an artificial intelligence company at the Federal Communications Commission about whether the agency should act now to establish a spectrum-based alternative to GPS or wait and see how an AI-based alternative works out.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Google Offers EU Ad Tech Fixes Without Breakup

By Bryan Koenig

Google tried to mollify European Union antitrust enforcers Friday with the promise of "immediate product changes" to its advertising placement technology business, while arguing against "a disruptive break-up" called for when the European Commission fined the technology giant €2.95 billion ($3.5 billion).

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Google, TikTok, Meta Fight Calif. Law Over Kids' Online Feeds

By Bonnie Eslinger

TikTok, Meta and Google filed separate suits against California Attorney General Rob Bonta in federal court on Thursday seeking to block the state from enforcing a new law's requirement for parental consent before online platforms can deliver personalized content feeds to children, saying the provision infringes on their First Amendment rights.

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Camp Lejeune Plaintiffs Say Feds' Overlong Briefs Risk Delays

By Mike Curley

Attorneys representing Camp Lejeune toxic water litigants are urging a North Carolina federal court to expedite the upcoming set of bellwether cases, saying the government shouldn't be allowed to cause delay through unnecessary and excessive briefs that together are longer than "Moby Dick."

Motion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Families' 5th Circ. Bid To Void Boeing-DOJ Deal A Long Shot

By Linda Chiem

Families of victims of the 737 Max 8 crashes have asked the Fifth Circuit to overrule the U.S. Department of Justice's refusal to criminally prosecute Boeing for conspiring to defraud safety regulators, but experts say such a move may be a long shot.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

ByHeart Sued Over Baby Food Botulism Contamination

By Mike Curley

A proposed class of consumers is suing ByHeart Inc., alleging that the company failed to warn buyers that its baby formula is contaminated with Clostridium botulinum, which can cause rare but potentially fatal infant botulism.

Complaint attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Stanford Credit Union Says Pig Butchering Scam Suit Misfires

By Sydney Price

Stanford Federal Credit Union has asked a federal judge to toss claims alleging it failed to reasonably investigate fraud allegations by a couple who claim they lost $600,000 in a so-called pig butchering investing scam, arguing the wire transfers are outside the Fair Credit Billing Act's scope.

Motion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Texas Justices Wall Off Shareholder Claims Against 3rd Party

By Spencer Brewer

The Texas Supreme Court found that individual shareholders have no right to bring direct claims against an outside party that has an agreement with the shareholders' company, saying Friday that they instead must file suit on behalf of the company they hold ownership in.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Consumers Want 9th Circ. To Recertify Apple IPhone Class

By Bryan Koenig

Apple users want the Ninth Circuit to restore the certification of their antitrust class accusing the technology giant of trapping them within the App Store, arguing a California federal judge improperly front-loaded the identification of individual members, when all that matters is that "nearly 200 million" users were harmed.

Petition attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Costco Tequila Buyers Say They Were Misled About Quality

By Hailey Konnath

A group of consumers accused Costco of falsely marketing its Kirkland Signature tequila as pure agave when, in fact, its tequila products feature a "significant presence" of non-agave sugars, according to a proposed class action filed Friday in Washington federal court.

Complaint attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Safeway Beats Claims It Falsely Advertised Wine Discount

By Gina Kim

Grocery chain Safeway beat a proposed class action alleging that it hawks bogus, limited-time discounts on wine for its rewards members, after a California federal judge said Thursday that the members don't specifically allege how Safeway's representations were false or misleading, since higher, nonmember prices are unquestionably real prices charged to nonmembers. 

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Cannabis Co. Green Thumb Seeks Toss Of THC Potency Suit

By Jonathan Capriel

Green Thumb has urged an Illinois state court to permanently end a proposed class action accusing the cannabis giant and its subsidiaries of mislabeling their products to get around state-mandated THC potency limits, arguing that what the plaintiff-consumers have described is a mistake in law, which is not fraud.

1 document attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

SeaWorld Faces Fla. Suit Over 'Bait-And-Switch' Fees

By David Minsky

A Florida woman has brought a federal proposed deceptive business practices class action against SeaWorld, alleging that the theme park uses "bait-and-switch" tactics to lure customers and tacks on junk fees for ticket purchases.

Complaint attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Drug Buyers Defend Class Cert. In 3rd Circ. Generics Case

By P.J. D'Annunzio

Direct purchasers and end-payers in the sprawling multidistrict litigation over alleged price-fixing of generic drugs are fighting requests from Actavis and Mylan to undo class certification in the cases, arguing to the Third Circuit that the litigation is a classic example of a class action matter.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ex-CFPB Atty Joins Duane Morris' DC Trial Practice

By Jack Rodgers

Duane Morris LLP has hired a senior litigation counsel from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau who for more than three years in the agency's enforcement division litigated matters related to mortgage fraud, small-dollar lending and a range of related matters.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

The Legal Issues With AI Agents In Consumer Transactions

Enabling artificial intelligence agents to handle not just research and recommendations, but the execution of purchases themselves, fundamentally alters commercial relationships and introduces new practical and legal questions for card issuers, merchants, acquirers and consumers, say attorneys at Davis Wright.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

UK Firms Drive Transatlantic Appetite For M&A Dealmaking

By Aebra Coe and Chris Villani

The merger announced Monday between British legal giant Ashurst LLP and American law firm Perkins Coie LLP is the latest in a spate of deals driven, in part, by an appetite among global firms to gain a strong presence in the U.S.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

'Astounding' Holland & Knight Conduct Drives Liability Ruling

By Ryan Boysen

Holland & Knight LLP has forfeited a malpractice lawsuit in Alaska by refusing to turn over information to a Native American tribal corporation, with a state judge entering a default judgment as a sanction and calling the firm's conduct "a head scratcher" and "astounding."

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Brief

ABA Decries Lawmaker Calls For Impeachments Of Judges

By Courtney Bublé

The American Bar Association said on Monday it's "alarmed" by lawmakers' interest in impeaching judges just because they don't like their rulings.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Judge Orders Grand Jury Docs Released In Comey Case

By Brandon Lowrey

A Virginia federal magistrate judge Monday ordered the disclosure of all grand jury materials related to the indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, saying government misconduct may have tainted the grand jury proceedings.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DOJ Backs White House's Military Lawyer Transfers

By Courtney Bublé

A newly released legal opinion from the U.S. Department of Justice says the Trump administration is allowed to detail military lawyers to serve as immigration judges and special assistant U.S. attorneys in the District of Columbia.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Senator Slams Trump For 'Blowing Up' Wis. US Atty Process

By Courtney Bublé

Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., accused President Donald Trump on Monday of skirting the process to nominate U.S. attorneys in Wisconsin with his pick of a failed Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate for the office that covers Milwaukee.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court and Delaware Supreme Court last week had a dense slate of fiduciary duty battles, merger-process challenges, post-bankruptcy fights and a series of cases probing the limits of fraud pleading, credible-basis inspections and board-level disclosure duties.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Law School Admission Council Pushes To Toss Antitrust Suit

By Andrea Keckley

The Law School Admission Council is continuing its push to toss a proposed class action accusing it of fixing application fees with its member schools, saying in a Pennsylvania federal court filing last week that the applicant's opposition to its dismissal motion "entirely fails to engage with the incoherence at the core of his case."

Brief attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Holyoak Leaves FTC For Interim US Atty In Utah

By Bryan Koenig

Melissa Holyoak left the Federal Trade Commission on Monday to become Utah's interim U.S. attorney, leaving the FTC down to two commissioners, both Republicans, in the Trump administration's latest use of interim U.S. attorney appointments.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »