DOJ Demand For Pa. Transgender Patient Records Blocked

By Hannah Albarazi

A Pennsylvania federal judge partially quashed part of a U.S. Department of Justice subpoena seeking health records for minors receiving gender-affirming care at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, ruling that the department lacked the statutory authority "for a rambling exploration" of medical files involving state-sanctioned medical care.

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

Firstrust Savings Bank Hit With 401(k) Investment Suit

By P.J. D'Annunzio

A former Firstrust Savings Bank employee has brought class claims against the bank, alleging it mismanaged workers' retirement savings plans by making employees invest in the bank's underperforming proprietary fund.

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

Mass. Judge Says States Can Fight Planned Parenthood Cuts

By Julie Manganis

A Massachusetts federal judge on Monday chided a Trump administration lawyer for continuing to argue that a coalition of states lacks standing to seek to block what it says is the effective defunding of Planned Parenthood, even as it only just received a lengthy list of new requirements for Medicaid reimbursement.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Penn State Says Ex-Trustee Posted Damning Letter First

By Matthew Santoni

The Pennsylvania State University sought to dismiss a former trustee's lawsuit over alleged retaliation for his investigating fees it paid and its finances, arguing in part that a letter he claimed had defamed him was one he had first made public himself.

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

Pittsburgh Paper Can't Beat Healthcare Order As Strike Ends

By Braden Campbell

Workers who returned to work at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Monday after a three-year strike must be reverted to their old healthcare plans, as the Third Circuit denied the company a stay of an order making it comply with a National Labor Relations Board ruling.

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

Pa. Panel Upholds Trustee's Conviction Over Drained Account

By Matthew Santoni

A Pennsylvania appellate panel upheld a business owner's conviction and sentence for draining his grandparents' investment account to support his floundering seafood company, finding Monday that he never got the needed approvals from his father and uncle.

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

PJM Says FERC Wrongly Nixed Grid Planning Change

By Keith Goldberg

PJM Interconnection has told the D.C. Circuit that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission wrongly rejected a plan the regional grid operator brokered with transmission owners to make grid planning decisions without the approval of its members committee.

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

1st Trial After FCPA Pause Offers Clues On DOJ Priorities

After surviving a government review of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement, the U.S. v. Zaglin case reveals the U.S. Department of Justice still appears willing to prosecute individuals for conduct broadly consistent with classic priorities, despite the agency's new emphasis on foreign policy priorities, say attorneys at Debevoise.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

What To Know As Rulings Limit NLRB's Expanded Remedies

Two recent appellate decisions strongly rebuke the National Labor Relations Board's expansion of remedies beyond reinstatement and back pay under Thryv, which compensated employees for all direct or foreseeable pecuniary harms, signaling increased judicial skepticism toward the board's broadened remedial authority, says Shay Billington at CDF Labor.

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

Series

The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Making The Case To Combine

When making the decision to merge, law firm leaders must factor in strategic alignment, cultural compatibility and leadership commitment in order to build a compelling case for combining firms to achieve shared goals and long-term success, says Kevin McLaughlin at UB Greensfelder.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Bonus Spotlight

5 BigLaw Firms Match Prevailing Year-End, Special Bonuses

By Anna Sanders

BigLaw continues to dole out extra cash for attorneys just in time for the holidays, with five more firms matching the year-end and special bonuses previously announced by their peers.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Feds' Claim Against Judge Weighing Trans Troops Ban Tossed

By Lauren Berg

The D.C. Circuit's chief judge tossed the U.S. Department of Justice's misconduct complaint against the federal judge overseeing litigation challenging the Trump administration's ban on transgender troops serving in the military, saying judicial misconduct proceedings are not the appropriate avenue to address concerns about a judge's impartiality.

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

Comey, James Defeat Charges Over Halligan's Appointment

By Ryan Boysen

A federal judge on Monday dismissed the headline-grabbing indictments of former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, finding the controversial prosecutor handling both cases was not properly appointed.

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

Calif. Personal Injury Law Firm Sued Over Ransomware Attack

By Gina Kim

A former Adamson Ahdoot LLP client lodged a proposed class action in California state court on Friday over a Nov. 3 ransomware attack, alleging the law firm failed to protect his personal information despite touting on its website that it follows industry standards to do so.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Feature

Prep, Panic & Poise: Inside An Associate's First Oral Argument

By Jeff Overley

Fraser M. Holmes followed a long professional path to a Texas court's lectern. He'd been a baseball blogger, travel writer and social studies teacher before appellate law beckoned. After years of toil, a milestone moment — his first oral argument — finally arrived, but as justices took the bench, his heart sank: "Oh, my God. I think I've just forgotten my entire argument."

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Google Calls Rumble's Recusal Bid Irrelevant To Its Appeal

By Andrea Keckley

Google is urging the Ninth Circuit to disregard concerns Rumble has raised about the trial judge's relationship with the tech giant's litigation vice president, saying Friday that the information is irrelevant to the YouTube rival's appeal of the court's ruling that its antitrust lawsuit was filed too late.

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

Oversight Chair Seeks USPTO Briefing On Litigation Funding

By Courtney Bublé

U.S. Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is seeking a briefing by the end of the month from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on third-party litigation funding and reforms the agency is working on.

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

8th Circ. Won't Force Judge's Recusal In Pork Price-Fixing Case

By Matthew Perlman

The Eighth Circuit has denied a mandamus petition from Agri Stats Inc. and major pork producers who are seeking a Minnesota federal judge's recusal in price-fixing litigation based on a law clerk's previous work on a related case.

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

Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court last week delivered a packed mix of fraud allegations, merger fallout, corporate-governance reforms and jurisdictional fights, while a new academic report ignited debate over attorney fee awards in Delaware's influential corporate forum.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »