Wilcox Case Dims Amazon NLRB Injunction Hopes At 9th Circ.

By Braden Campbell

A Ninth Circuit panel appeared unlikely Thursday to block the National Labor Relations Board from pressing a case against Amazon, as judges noted the company appears to already have the prize its suit seeks: an end to the bar on the president removing NLRB members.

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Ed. Dept. Effort To Bar School Diversity Programs Blocked

By Hailey Konnath

A Maryland federal judge on Thursday held that the U.S. Department of Education violated the constitution and Administrative Procedure Act when it issued guidance that took aim at school diversity programs, ruling that the "law does not countenance the government's hasty and summary treatment of these significant issues."

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DHS Can't Ax Suit Challenging Dissolution Of TSA Union Deal

By Beverly Banks

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security can't defeat unions' suit alleging the agency's move to end a collective bargaining agreement covering Transportation Security Administration workers is retaliatory, a Washington federal judge ruled, finding the district court has jurisdiction to weigh in on the case.

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11th Circ. Partly Revives Day Labor Protections Suit

By Max Kutner

A Florida federal court erred by dismissing a worker protections suit against a staffing company instead of first addressing a subject matter jurisdiction dispute, the Eleventh Circuit ruled, although it affirmed the dismissal of two individual defendants for lack of personal jurisdiction.

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Ga. Court Secretary's Pregnancy Bias Suit Gets Dismissed

By Emily Johnson

A Georgia federal judge has dismissed a former secretary's pregnancy discrimination suit against a county and the chief judge of its juvenile court, adopting a magistrate judge's recommendation that found the secretary didn't prove that her pregnancy led to her being fired.

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9th Circ. OKs Returning Calif. Farm Wage Suit To State Court

By Emily Brill

A California farmworker's wage and hour suit against Sunsweet Growers Inc. can proceed in state court, a Ninth Circuit panel ruled Thursday, rejecting the company's argument that the suit belongs in federal court and should be dismissed.

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Grubhub, Driver Ink $24.8M Deal To End Decade-Long Dispute

By Rae Ann Varona

Grubhub Inc. and a former delivery driver who accused the mobile food delivery platform of misclassifying him as an independent contractor have reached a $24.75 million settlement in his nearly decade-old lawsuit, with the driver deeming the deal an "excellent result" for a proposed settlement class of California drivers.

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Trans Teacher's Battle Over Restrictive Fla. Law Put On Ice

By Carolina Bolado

A Florida federal judge ruled Wednesday that a state law regulating workplace pronouns violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act but paused a lawsuit by a transgender public school teacher while the Eleventh Circuit considers another suit brought by a transgender sheriff's deputy in Georgia.

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ESPN Vaccine Mandate Violated Religious Law, Worker Claims

By Aaron Keller

A South Carolina-based remote ESPN video operator says the sports network, its corporate parent Walt Disney and their executives fired him for refusing a third COVID-19 vaccine dose, resurrecting "state actor" allegations similar to claims in a separate, since-withdrawn lawsuit by the same attorneys in 2023.

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Bid To Block Alabama's Anti-DEI Law Rejected

By Sarah Jarvis

An Alabama federal judge has rejected a bid to block a state law banning certain diversity, equity and inclusion-related activities at state schools and college campuses, finding the Alabama NAACP and the students and professors who filed suit didn't show that the law is unconstitutionally vague.

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Ex-Diversity Officer Sues NJ Hospital, Claiming Harassment

By Carla Baranauckas

The former diversity and inclusion officer at New Jersey's only public acute-care hospital claimed she endured sexist and racial harassment before she was unlawfully pushed out of her job in violation of the state's Law Against Discrimination, according to a lawsuit filed in state court.

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Lizzo Touring Co. Wants Designer Sanctioned Over Health Info

By Gina Kim

Lizzo's touring company urged a California federal judge to sanction a former designer for failing to disclose records of receiving mental health treatment to support her emotional distress claim, arguing Wednesday it was forced to hire its own expert to examine her and prepare a rebuttal without those records. 

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Crypto Co. Slams Canadian Consultant's Unpaid Wages Claims

By Sydney Price

Cryptocurrency startup Unicoin Inc. and its CEO have asked a New York federal judge to dismiss a former consultant's lawsuit alleging he's owed wages and coin commissions for his work facilitating the firm's Canadian presence, arguing the consultant quit last summer and has no enforceable contract.

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Maryland Budtenders Win Class Cert. In Curaleaf Tip Suit

By Jonathan Capriel

Budtenders who work for Curaleaf Inc.'s Maryland dispensaries scored conditional class certification in their lawsuit accusing the company of taking their tips and paying them to managers in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

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Lead Generation Workers Seek OK For $600K OT Deal

By P.J. D'Annunzio

A class of salespeople and account representatives who sued Market Resource Partners LLC, a lead generation software company based in Philadelphia, for failing to pay them overtime have asked a Philadelphia judge to sign off on a $600,000 settlement.

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Planet Fitness Shorted OT Pay, Ex-General Manager Says

By Gina Kim

A onetime Planet Fitness general manager has filed a collective action in Ohio federal court, alleging the gym failed to pay nonexempt employees overtime in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act, and failed to maintain accurate records of time worked and amounts earned by and paid to employees.

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Staffing Co. Says Ex-Partner Stole Tech For Rival Product

By Ivan Moreno

A company that connects staffing agencies to temporary workers in real time has accused a onetime business partner of stealing trade secrets to build a competing platform, alleging in a complaint in Seattle federal court that the defendant has filed patents that falsely claim ownership of the technology.

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Mich. Panel Greenlights 911 Dispatcher's Whistleblower Suit

By Carolyn Muyskens

A Michigan appellate panel said Wednesday that a former 911 operator may be protected by a whistleblower law for criticizing a supervisor's handling of a 911 call, clearing the way for his lawsuit to move forward.

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Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: August Lessons

In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy discusses key takeaways from federal appellate decisions involving topics including antitrust, immigration, consumer fraud, birthright citizenship under the Fourteenth Amendment, and product defects.

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Series

Hiking Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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.

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Willkie Lays Off Staff After San Francisco Group Departs

By Aebra Coe

Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP has laid off five staff members in San Francisco following the departure of a group of 20 lawyers from the office amid discord over the law firm's decision to ink a deal with the Trump administration to avoid an executive order, sources say.

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DOJ Employee Fired After Alleged Sandwich Assault On Agent

By Craig Clough

A man charged with felony assault for allegedly throwing a sandwich at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent was a member of the U.S. Department of Justice and has been fired, Attorney General Pam Bondi said Thursday.

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Trump Picks Ex-Scalia, Kavanaugh Clerk For 7th Circ.

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump announced on Thursday evening he would be nominating Rebecca Taibleson, an assistant U.S. attorney in Wisconsin, to the Seventh Circuit.

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Boston Firm Says Personal Injury Rival Stole 'Secret Sauce'

By Julie Manganis

A Boston personal injury firm that pioneered the use of television ads in legal marketing in the 1980s is seeking $11 million from a newer Massachusetts competitor that allegedly copied and repeatedly used its "secret sauce" digital operating playbook and other materials.

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Analysis

Who Owns A Beat? The Dispute Over Reggaeton's Core Sound

By Ivan Moreno

The origin of the rhythm that underpins much of reggaeton music is at the center of a copyright lawsuit from Jamaican artists who claim a loop from an instrumental song they released in 1989 has become foundational to reggaeton, which thousands of songs have copied without permission.

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Bipartisan Lawmaker Groups Lambaste Habba's Reappointment

By Adrian Cruz

A bipartisan group of current and former members of Congress on Wednesday criticized the Trump administration's appointment of acting New Jersey U.S. Attorney Alina Habba, saying doing it without congressional approval is unconstitutional.

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Fla. Bar Fights Demand For Bondi Ethics Probe

By Ryan Boysen

The Florida Bar has again pushed back on a request to investigate U.S. Attorney Pam Bondi for alleged unethical conduct, telling the Supreme Court of Florida that a group of complainants can't bulldoze past its policy of not investigating sitting government officials.

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Feds Urge Court Not To Toss Rep. Cuellar's Bribery Case

By Catherine Marfin

Allowing U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, to escape bribery charges under the Constitution's speech and debate clause would "eviscerate" several precedents set under the provision, prosecutors told a federal judge on Thursday.

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Senate Democrats Urge 'Robust' Funding For US Defenders

By Courtney Bublé

Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday implored congressional appropriators to ensure that the federal public defender program has adequate funding for fiscal year 2026 after budget shortfalls. 

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