Conn. Seems Open To Limits On Drug Price Cap Enforcement

By Aaron Keller

The state of Connecticut suggested Tuesday that drug sales to the state were not the same as drug sales "in this state" as defined by state law, a stance drug manufacturers promised to leverage in their efforts to block an impending drug price cap.

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Mistrial Declared In Fla. Opioid Case Against Pharmacies

By David Minsky

A Florida state judge declared a mistrial following a hung jury after two weeks of deliberations in a lawsuit brought by hospitals alleging that Walmart, Walgreens and CVS pharmacies negligently doled out painkillers and contributed to the opioid crisis. 

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Cooley Adds 30-Person Life Sciences IP Team From Dechert

By Christine DeRosa

A trio of Dechert LLP partners, including the co-chair of its global intellectual property practice, have joined Cooley LLP alongside a team of special counsel, associates and patent agents, the firm announced Tuesday.

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Analysis

Hagens Berman's Novel DOJ Referral May Have Chilling Effect

By Emma Cueto

A Pennsylvania federal judge's unusual decision to refer prominent plaintiffs firm Hagens Berman LLP to the U.S. Department of Justice for possible criminal investigation over its pursuit of claims related to morning sickness drug thalidomide could have a chilling effect on lawyers' advocacy, law professors and attorneys said.

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Generic-Drug Group Backs House Bill On Skinny Labels

By Elliot Weld

An industry group representing the generic and biosimilar drug manufacturing sector has applauded the introduction of a U.S. House of Representatives bill titled The Skinny Labels, Big Savings Act, saying it will reduce prices across healthcare.

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Medical Appliance Co. Seeks Coverage For SEC Investigation

By Mark Payne

A Connecticut-based medical device technology company told a federal court that its insurer wrongfully denied coverage for an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, alleging in a new lawsuit that the federal government's inquiry into the company's insured members triggered its directors and officers policy. 

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Expert Invoices Discoverable In J&J Talc MDL, Judge Says

By George Woolston

A New Jersey federal judge said Monday that the plaintiffs steering committee can receive invoices for Johnson & Johnson's experts' work relating to multidistrict litigation alleging the use of talcum powder caused ovarian cancer and mesothelioma, but only after it produces its own expert invoices.

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Brief

NJ Drugmaker, Chubb Settle $6.5M Defense Costs Suit

By Mark Payne

A New Jersey pharmaceutical company and Chubb have reached a settlement to end a lawsuit alleging the insurer owes nearly $6.5 million in outstanding legal fees stemming from a multibillion-dollar arbitration dispute over the development of a COVID-19 drug, according to a stipulation of dismissal from the companies. 

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Teleflex To Divest Multiple Units In Deals Topping $2B

By Al Barbarino

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP-advised Teleflex Inc. said Tuesday it has agreed to sell several units to private equity firms Montagu and Kohlberg, and to Britain's Intersurgical Ltd., for a combined $2.03 billion in cash.

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Adapting To A Plaintiff-Side Mindset For Patent Monetization

A recent decrease in risk for patent owners at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, combined with increased corporate interest in monetizing patent assets, creates an attractive case for evaluating patents from a plaintiff-side mindset, but in-house counsel transitioning from a defense-side mindset to a plaintiff-side mindset should study certain considerations, says Kate Tellez at Steptoe.

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AI Evidence Rule Tweaks Encourage Judicial Guardrails

Recent additions to a committee note on proposed Rule of Evidence 707 — governing evidence generated by artificial intelligence — seek to mitigate potential dangers that may arise once machine outputs are introduced at trial, encouraging judges to perform critical gatekeeping functions, say attorneys at Lankler Siffert & Wohl.

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Bonus Spotlight

Litigation Shops Paying Above-Market Bonuses, Reports Say

By Andrea Keckley

Litigation boutiques Yetter Coleman LLP and Dunn Isaacson Rhee LLP are giving above-market bonuses to their associates, according to reports from Above the Law and Bloomberg.

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Jack Smith To Launch Firm With Willkie Partner, 2 Ex-Deputies

By Jack Rodgers

Jack Smith, the former Justice Department special counsel appointed to investigate President Donald Trump, is set to launch his own firm alongside two of his former top deputies and the co-chair of Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP's investigations and enforcement practice.

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Judge Bove Faces Complaint Over Trump Rally Attendance

By Courtney Bublé

U.S. Circuit Judge Emil Bove, who previously served as President Donald Trump's personal defense attorney and a top official at the U.S. Department of Justice, has been hit with a judicial misconduct complaint for his appearance at a Trump event on Tuesday night.

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Analysis

Wanted: Temporary US Attorney, No Experience Needed

By Phillip Bantz

Frustrated by a string of court rulings disqualifying several of his U.S. attorney picks, President Donald Trump lamented recently that he might "just have to keep appointing people for three months and then just appoint another one, another one." Experts say the idea raises legal and practical issues.

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Akerman Beats Healthcare Cos.' Bid To Escape Fee Suit

By Madison Arnold

Akerman LLP can continue its fees lawsuit against Rennova Health Inc. and other defendants after they lost their motion to dismiss the suit for being "facially time-barred, factually flawed and legally indefensible," a Florida state judge has ruled.

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Fla. Atty Faces Bar Referral Over 'Hallucinated' Case In Filing

By Madison Arnold

A Florida appeals court will refer an attorney to the state's Bar after she filed a brief that included a "hallucinated" case.

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AGs Say Judicial Safety Threats Reaching 'All-Time Highs'

By Matthew Santoni

Attorneys general for 43 states, three territories and the District of Columbia signed a letter to Congress urging more financial support for judicial security in the face of threats against judges, including funding for a program that lets judges scrub addresses and personal information from online databases.

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Disciplined Attys Want High Court's Take On Judge Criticism

By David Minsky

A father-daughter team of attorneys have brought a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court challenging their suspensions for criticizing a Florida state judge who reversed a $2.75 million jury verdict in favor of their client in a racial discrimination lawsuit, saying their comments are protected by the First Amendment. 

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McIver's Immunity Disputed In Detention Center Assault Case

By Elizabeth Daley

Federal prosecutors asked a New Jersey federal judge to maintain all charges against U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver, who was accused in an indictment of assaulting federal officers outside an immigration detention center during a scrum in which the mayor of Newark was arrested in May.

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Regulate AI With Existing Regs, Financial Industry Lobby Says

By Sarah Jarvis

The Financial Services Institute on Wednesday recommended that regulators apply existing rules and standards to artificial intelligence, saying they should use new rules only when AI brings "genuinely new issues or significantly alters existing risks."

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