Mamdani Transition Team Includes Dozens Of Attorneys

By Anna Sanders

New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani appointed dozens of nonprofit leaders, BigLaw attorneys, law professors and other lawyers to transition committees that will help advise the incoming administration.

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Feds Run Table In Housing Bribery Case With 70th Conviction

By Pete Brush

A former public housing superintendent from Brooklyn admitted accepting bribes in exchange for handing out no-bid work contracts Tuesday, as federal prosecutors secured the convictions of all 70 New York City Housing Authority workers arrested last year in an anticorruption sweep.

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Democrats Seek Documents On Emil Bove's DOJ Tenure

By Courtney Bublé

Senate Democrats are turning to public records requests to learn more about the controversial tenure of U.S. Circuit Judge Emil Bove while he served at the U.S. Department of Justice, claiming that they're being "stonewalled" by the department.

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HUD Housing Aid Limits Will Drive Homelessness, States Say

By Rachel Riley

Washington and 19 other states launched a lawsuit Tuesday against the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in Rhode Island federal court, seeking to stop abrupt policy changes they claim will result in tens of thousands of formerly homeless people being ousted from publicly subsidized housing and onto the streets.

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Unions Say More Info Is Needed In DOGE Data Access Dispute

By Emily Brill

A union coalition urged a New York federal judge Monday to order the federal government to disclose how much access to federal workers' personal information it gave the Department of Government Efficiency and what the White House unit formerly headed by Elon Musk did with that information.

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$255K In Fees To Google For 'Frivolous' Ramey Case Upheld

By Ryan Davis

The Federal Circuit on Tuesday affirmed a California judge's decision that a client of embattled intellectual property firm Ramey LLP must pay nearly $255,000 in fees and sanctions for bringing a "frivolous" patent suit against Google, finding the award to be "entirely proper."

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2nd Circ. Won't Revive NYC Income Source Ban Challenge

By Nate Beck

A Second Circuit panel has sided with the City of New York and a housing nonprofit in tossing arguments from a landlord that a law to prevent discrimination against the use of housing vouchers is unconstitutional.

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$2.6M Coverage Suit Over Bronx School Collapse Paused

By Mark Payne

A New York federal judge paused a $2.6 million lawsuit Tuesday against Zurich Insurance over unpaid insurance coverage following the collapse of a Bronx school construction site after both parties asked for a stay pending the outcome of a state court lawsuit involving the same claims. 

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NYC Boutique Hotel Can't Undo $1.6M Sex Assault Verdict

By Y. Peter Kang

A New York federal judge has denied a Manhattan boutique hotel's bid to vacate a $1.6 million judgment awarded to a hotel guest who was sexually assaulted by an unlicensed massage therapist in 2018, saying a seven-figure award for pain and suffering was reasonable.

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Bloomberg Can't Nix Mike Huckabee's IP Suit Over AI Training

By Gina Kim

Bloomberg must face a proposed copyright infringement class action led by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee alleging the media company used e-books to train its large language model, after a New York federal judge said Monday she can't determine whether the fair use defense applied without "a robust factual record."

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MSG Seeks To Boot Atty From Ex-Exec's Bias, Retaliation Suit

By Patrick Hoff

A Reavis Page Jump LLP attorney representing a former Madison Square Garden security executive in a discrimination suit is too enmeshed in the facts of the case, MSG said, urging a New York federal court to kick the lawyer and firm off the suit if it's not outright dismissed.

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CSX Must Face Jury On Retaliation Claim, 2nd Circ. Says

By Aaron Keller

Overruling its own precedent governing Federal Railroad Safety Act claims, the Second Circuit on Tuesday said a jury should decide whether CSX Transportation Inc. used a safety violation to justify firing a freight train conductor who had accused two supervisors of ordering him to falsify performance records.

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StubHub Hit With Investor Suit Over Pre-IPO Disclosures

By Sydney Price

Online ticket reseller Stubhub was hit with a proposed shareholder class action in New York federal court accusing it and several of its executives and underwriters of concealing changes to the company's operations that would impact its free cash flow ahead of its initial public offering earlier this year.

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Investors Say Alexandria Overhyped Leasing, NYC Project

By Katryna Perera

Alexandria Real Estate Equities Inc. investors filed suit in California federal court Tuesday, claiming the real estate investment trust overstated the strength of its leasing business and the projected value of a New York City property, causing the company's stock price to drop once the truth came to light.

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Sustainability-Focused SPAC Invest Green Raises $150M

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Special purpose acquisition company Invest Green Acquisition began trading publicly on Tuesday after raising $150 million in its initial public offering built by Greenberg Traurig LLP, Mourant Ozannes (Cayman) LLP and Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP.

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2nd Circ. Backs Jury's $3.85M Verdict In Sex Trafficking Case

By Brian Steele

A New York jury had enough evidence to hold retired financier Howard Rubin liable for sex trafficking after six women testified that he lured them with promises of money, travel and modeling opportunities and then subjected them to violent, nonconsensual acts, the Second Circuit has ruled in upholding a $3.85 million civil verdict.

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Ex-Bank GC Faces Garnishments After $7M Restitution Order

By Aaron Keller

Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC has told the Connecticut federal court it blocked a former Webster Bank general counsel from drawing money from five accounts totaling close to $178,000 in response to recent garnishment actions, presumably filed by prosecutors to satisfy part of a $7.4 million fraud restitution order.

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Brief

MoonPay Secures NY Trust Charter For Crypto Custody

By Aislinn Keely

Cryptocurrency firm MoonPay announced Tuesday that New York State Department of Financial Services has given it the green light to provide crypto custody and over-the-counter trading services as a New York limited purpose trust company.

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Split 2nd Circ. Faults Immigration Courts' Torture Review

By Tom Lotshaw

A split Second Circuit panel revived a Guatemalan man's bid for deportation relief under the United Nations Convention Against Torture, ruling immigration courts used the wrong standard to consider whether he would be tortured by gang members if returned there.

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Cruz Says Biden DOT Pressured Airports To House Migrants

By Britain Eakin

A new report spearheaded by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, concluded that the Biden administration pressured several airports to house migrants and let poorly vetted migrants board domestic flights, despite security risks associated with doing so.

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Winston & Strawn Promotes 18 To Partner

By Matt Perez

Winston & Strawn LLP has elevated 18 attorneys to partner, two shy of last year's class.

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How 2nd Circ. Decision Extends CFTC's Extraterritorial Reach

The Second Circuit recently concluded in U.S. v. Phillips that the Commodity Exchange Act extends to entirely foreign conduct if a victim of the conduct is based in the U.S., suggesting there is a heightened risk that foreign swap transactions will be susceptible to U.S. regulation when U.S. counterparties are involved, say attorneys at Skadden.

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NBA Gambling Probes Highlight Sports Betting's Broad Risks

Recent NBA gambling scandals illustrate the integrity risks arising from legal sports betting, but organizations, which must navigate a patchwork of state laws, can protect their reputations by drafting and enforcing internal policies to address betting-related risks and complying with league and institutional rules, say attorneys at Littler.

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Considerations When Invoking The Common-Interest Privilege

To successfully leverage the common-interest doctrine in a multiparty transaction or complex litigation, practitioners should be able to demonstrate that the parties intended for it to apply, that an underlying privilege like attorney-client has attached, and guard against disclosures that could waive privilege and defeat its purpose, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

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Bonus Spotlight

Magic Circle Firms Enchant Associates With Top-Tier Bonuses

By Tracey Read

U.S. associates at Linklaters LLP and Clifford Chance LLP have a lot to be thankful for this holiday season, as the Magic Circle firms Wednesday became the latest to match the BigLaw standard for this year's associate bonuses.

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Analysis

After Big Win For 2 Trump Foes, A Third Faces 'Tougher Job'

By Phillip Bantz

The recent dismissal of federal criminal charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI director James Comey does little to help President Donald Trump's ex-national security adviser John Bolton, whose defense in a classified-materials case presents a thornier set of legal and factual issues, experts say.

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Roundup

Up Next At High Court: ISP Liability & State Subpoena Suits

By Katie Buehler

The U.S. Supreme Court will return Monday for the first week of its December oral argument session, during which the justices will consider whether internet service providers can be held liable for contributing to their customers' infringing activity online and whether the subjects of state subpoenas are required to first challenge them in state court. 

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Interview

For Covington's Adrian Perry, Music Is A Family Affair

By Theresa Schliep

Despite having a famous rock star dad, Covington & Burling LLP partner Adrian J. Perry wasn't all that interested in being a musician as a young child, but he knew as early as 6 years old that he wanted to be a lawyer.

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Analysis

Calif. Privacy Agency Gaining Steam Ahead Of 5th Anniversary

By Allison Grande

California's data privacy regulator has taken several notable steps in recent months, including handing down its first penalty upward of $1 million dollars and finalizing long-awaited rules on topics such as cybersecurity audits and technologies that use artificial intelligence, and the groundbreaking agency shows no signs of slowing down as its fifth anniversary approaches. 

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Split 6th Circ. Shields Baker Donelson, Not City Councilman

By Matt Perez

In a published opinion, the Sixth Circuit has found that Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz PC is shielded by qualified immunity as outside counsel for the city of Nashville in litigation over the law firm's firing of a city election commission chair and member of the firm.

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Foley & Lardner Hit With Malpractice Suit Over Chancery Loss

By Rose Krebs

Foley & Lardner LLP has been sued in Delaware Superior Court by three officers of a now-defunct food recycling company who say the firm was negligent when representing them in a Chancery Court case that led to a $1.6 million judgment against them and another officer.

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DOJ Asks Court If It Can Release Epstein Files Under New Law

By Lauren Berg

The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking a New York federal court's permission to publicly release the files related to the investigation of late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, clarifying Wednesday that it wants to release search warrant results, travel and financial records, police reports, and other materials.

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Keesal Young Poaching Suit Against Stradley Ronon Trimmed

By Madison Arnold

A California state judge cleared Keesal Young & Logan to pursue most of its lawsuit alleging Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young crossed the line when it recruited 10 former Keesal Young attorneys, finding that claims such as inducing breach of contract could move forward, in part, because of conversations among the attorneys.

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DOJ Says Ex-Employees Can't Challenge Firings In Fed. Court

By Rose Krebs

The government says a D.C. federal court lacks jurisdiction to adjudicate a lawsuit filed by a former assistant U.S. attorney who prosecuted defendants charged in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and two other ex-Department of Justice employees, alleging they were unlawfully fired.

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Hub Hires: Todd & Weld, Freshfields, Shipman

By Julie Manganis

It was a busy November in Boston's legal community as another firm expanded into the market, and a longtime judge traded his gavel for the ability to address his growing concerns about the Trump administration.

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