3rd Circ. Backs Sentence Bump For Gun's 1 Marred Serial No.

By Elizabeth Daley

A Third Circuit panel upheld a Pennsylvania man's sentence for possessing a firearm as a felon on Wednesday, finding that an enhancement applied since his pistol had one serial number defaced.

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Kroger Inks $1.65B Giant Eagle Deal With Planned Divestitures

By Al Barbarino

The Kroger Co. said Wednesday it will acquire regional grocer Giant Eagle in a deal worth $1.65 billion, with Jones Day advising Kroger and Giant Eagle tapping WilmerHale as lead counsel and Troutman Pepper Locke LLP as local counsel.

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USPS Mail-In Ballot Plan Breaches NAACP Deal, Judge Says

By Bonnie Eslinger

A D.C. federal judge Wednesday told the U.S. Postal Service it couldn't go forward with a proposed rule governing the delivery of mail-in ballots, saying it would violate the terms of the federal agency's 2021 settlement with the NAACP in its voting rights litigation.

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Pa. Court's Verizon Tower Approval Comes With New Test

By Matthew Santoni

A Pennsylvania appellate court Wednesday set new standards for wireless providers like Verizon to seek local zoning variances, upholding approval of a Lehigh County cell tower while throwing out old Federal Communications Commission guidance on interpreting the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

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Sign Co. Says WSFS Sanctions Bid Violates Mediation Deal

By George Woolston

A sign company asked a New Jersey federal court to sanction Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB over claims that it violated mediation confidentiality in the bank's suit alleging breach of contract and professional negligence after part of the signage on its Philadelphia building broke off and fell 40 stories to the ground.

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3rd Circ. Nixes Life Term In Fatal Drug Sale Case

By Elizabeth Daley

The Third Circuit vacated a life sentence issued to a man convicted of selling drugs that ultimately killed the buyer, ruling Wednesday that while his conviction was valid, the lower court improperly considered prior state law drug convictions in fashioning the sentence.

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3rd Circ. Says Hidden Bank Accounts Count As Tax Evasion

By Kat Lucero

The Third Circuit found a Pennsylvania insurance business owner guilty of two counts of tax evasion, affirming Wednesday a lower court jury's conclusion that he willfully concealed a bank account on 2016 tax forms while the IRS was pursuing collection action against him.

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3rd Circ. Tests FERC's Attention To Public Input In Hydro Case

By P.J. D'Annunzio

A Third Circuit panel Wednesday dug into whether the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission really listened to the concerns of residents of York County, Pennsylvania, about its initial approval of a hydroelectric project they claimed could lead to ecological and property damage.

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Medical Marijuana Cos. Seek To Back DOJ In DC Circ.

By Sam Reisman

Two medical marijuana companies are seeking to intervene in a pending legal challenge to a U.S. Department of Justice final rule loosening federal restrictions on state-sanctioned medical cannabis, saying they would be harmed by the rule's rescission.

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Split Fed. Circ. Backs Block On Generic Of Otsuka Neuro Drug

By Theresa Schliep

A split Federal Circuit panel on Wednesday supported a lower court's temporary block on Hetero Labs from selling a generic version of Otsuka's neurological disorder drug, even as it disagreed with the decision to waive Otsuka's requirement to post a bond while the case proceeds.

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Attorney Mental Health Is An Ethical Obligation In The AI Era

As attorneys cope with the increasing unpredictability that artificial intelligence and constant policy changes have created, particularly in practice areas where they carry the emotional weight of clients’ most consequential life events, otherwise soft discussions about self-care are a matter of professional competence, says attorney Jack Jrada.

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Legal Sector Jobs Spike With Work 'Churning Right Along'

By Aebra Coe

The legal sector added 5,100 jobs in June, the largest increase the industry has seen in more than two years, according to preliminary, seasonally adjusted data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Thursday.

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Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Kevin Penton

The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, the Asian Law Caucus and the Democracy Defenders Fund lead this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected President Donald Trump's bid to limit birthright citizenship.

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Feds Seek Up To 21 Months For Ex-Judge On ICE Obstruction

By Elizabeth Daley

A former Wisconsin judge who was convicted of obstructing ICE officers' courthouse arrest of a man facing misdemeanor charges by pointing him to a side door should spend up to 21 months in prison, the government said in a sentencing memo, recommending she be made an example.

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GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week 

By Sue Reisinger

Amid the changes coming for general counsel, the policies and enforcement priorities of federal regulators may fluctuate more rapidly after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling this week that could dramatically remake independent government agencies. And the EEOC rescinded affirmative action documents that have guided employers for decades.

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Georgia Atty Can't Revive Defamation Suit Over Ethics Case

By Emily Johnson

The Georgia Court of Appeals has upheld the dismissal of a Georgia attorney's defamation suit against two people involved in an unsuccessful disciplinary action against her, saying her rambling appeal failed to prove that the trial court erred in dismissing her claims.

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When Does A Firm's 'Breakup' Fee-Split Contract Go Too Far?

By Rachel Rippetoe

It looked like a win for plaintiffs' firms when the Kentucky Supreme Court recently upheld a firm's 75% claim on fees from cases an attorney took with him when he launched his own practice, but the narrow ruling may leave room for lawyers to challenge similar agreements as penalties for leaving their firms.

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Judges To Tour Rust Belt To Build Trust In Courts

By James Boyle

Days after the Fourth of July celebration of America's 250th birthday, a group of current and retired judges will lead a four-day bus tour through three states to promote one of the bedrock principles of the country's independence: the rule of law.

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Analysis

Breaking Down The Vote: The High Court Term In Review

By Jack Karp

The U.S. Supreme Court's stark ideological divisions were on full display this term, particularly as it issued long-awaited rulings in the last few days of June. Here, Law360 dives into the numbers behind this court term.

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Mass Tort Titan Paul J. Napoli Dies

By Daniel Moritz-Rabson

Paul J. Napoli, an influential plaintiffs attorney who worked on some of the nation's highest-profile mass tort matters in recent decades, died on Tuesday at the age of 58.

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Skadden Adds Mass Torts Litigator As Partner In Chicago

By Christine DeRosa

Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP has grown its mass torts litigation offerings in Chicago with the addition of a Goldman Ismail Tomaselli Brennan & Baum LLP attorney, the firm said.

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'Embarrassed' Conn. Atty Details ChatGPT Briefing Errors

By Aaron Keller

With a sanctions hearing on the horizon, a Connecticut attorney has told the state's highest court he is "extremely embarrassed" by artificial intelligence errors in briefs filed in two recently decided cases, explaining he used ChatGPT to edit his research without knowing it could make "unprompted changes to the content."

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Del. Magistrate Orders JPMorgan To Advance Javice Fees

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court ruled Thursday that JPMorgan Chase & Co. must advance millions more in disputed legal fees to cover the appeal of the convicted founder of college financial aid startup Frank, concluding the bank failed to meet Delaware's demanding standard for withholding advancement by showing the billing requests reflected "clear abuse."

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Ex-DOJ Fraud Section Chief Joins Fried Frank

By Nadia Dreid

Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson LLP has added a veteran litigator from the U.S. Department of Justice who also brings more than a decade of experience representing financial institutions in white collar, enforcement and complex litigation spaces.

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Reed Smith Adds Ex-Norton Rose Partner, RE Atty In Munich

By Nate Beck

Reed Smith LLP has bolstered its private equity practice with the hire of a former Norton Rose Fulbright group leader in Munich.

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McCarter Atty Knew 'Magic Words' For $20M Deals, Court Told

By Brian Steele

If a onetime McCarter & English LLP partner had raised a single red flag about a Long Island town's legally flimsy agreement to repay $20 million worth of a businessman's loans, the ill-fated deals never would have gone forward, a Connecticut court heard Thursday.

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In Case You Missed It: Hottest Firms And Stories On Law360

For those who missed out, here's a look back at the law firms, stories and expert analyses that generated the most buzz on Law360 last week.

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