Meet The Atty Repping OpenAI In Florida's Lawsuit

By Madison Arnold

The attorney representing OpenAI Global LLC and its CEO in the lawsuit brought by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier earlier this month over artificial intelligence concerns has deep ties to Gov. Ron DeSantis' administration.

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Palisades Fire Jury Says It Can't Agree On Arson Verdict

By Rae Ann Varona

Federal jurors in Los Angeles were at a standstill Thursday on whether Florida resident Jonathan Rinderknecht is guilty of setting what would later become the deadly Palisades Fire in January 2025, clarifying they "cannot reach a unanimous verdict" when asked if the court could give them any assistance.

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Monsanto Wins High Court Fight Over Roundup Cancer Warnings

By Emily Field

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday handed Monsanto a win in its long-running litigation battle over the labeling of alleged cancer risks of its bestselling weedkiller Roundup, clearing the path for a $7.25 billion settlement to end thousands of suits facing the Bayer AG unit by finding that the state law claims underlying a $1.25 million jury verdict are barred.

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NJ Justices Say EMTs Immune In Brain Injury Suit

By Y. Peter Kang

The New Jersey Supreme Court on Thursday held that paramedics who treated a toddler's head injury, which led to a permanent brain injury, are entitled to immunity under a state statute governing emergency medical treatment, saying they acted in good faith and in accordance with the law's requirements.

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Feds Pay $17M To More Than 600 Plaintiffs Over Fuel Spills

By Ganesh Setty

The U.S. Department of Justice says it has issued settlement payments totaling roughly $17 million to more than 600 plaintiffs who asserted tort claims against the government over jet fuel spills from a since-shuttered U.S. Navy storage facility in Hawaii.

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NY Prosecutors Drop Weinstein Rape Charge After Mistrial

By Frank G. Runyeon

Prosecutors told a New York judge Thursday that they will drop a third-degree rape charge against Harvey Weinstein after two consecutive juries deadlocked on the allegation by actor Jessica Mann.

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Mich. Justices Revive BAC Proof In Fatal Crash Prosecution

By Susan Smiley

The Michigan Supreme Court ruled that a jury should be allowed to hear evidence that a motorcyclist killed in a traffic collision may have been intoxicated at the time of the crash, reversing lower court decisions that excluded the evidence from a criminal prosecution against the driver of the other vehicle.

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8th Circ. Backs Immunity In DAPL Protest Injury Dispute

By Crystal Owens

A panel of the Eighth Circuit has upheld a decision to dismiss a challenge by an environmentalist who was severely injured by North Dakota law enforcement during a protest over the Dakota Access pipeline, finding the officers are entitled to immunity and her claims of 14th Amendment violations do not meet a "shocks the conscience" threshold.

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Epstein Survivors Sue 'Longest Banking Partner' FirstBank

By Hailey Konnath

FirstBank Puerto Rico was hit with a proposed class action Wednesday in New York federal court over its alleged role as Jeffrey Epstein's "longest banking partner," becoming the latest financial institution to be sued by survivors who say it was "integral in helping him fuel his international sex trafficking operation."

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Fla. Panel Affirms Walmart Liability In Contractor Shock Injury

By David Minsky

A Florida appellate court affirmed a final judgment finding Walmart negligent for a service technician's shock-induced injury during the installation of an automatic door, ruling that an exception barred the retailer from asserting an independent contractor defense to avoid a duty owed to the worker.

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Trucking Co. Can't Nix $2.8M Crash Judgment, 5th Circ. Says

By Jonathan Capriel

A trucking company accused of triggering a pileup on Interstate 20 in Mississippi cannot evade a $2.8 million default judgment, the Fifth Circuit ruled in a published opinion, saying "equity and justice do not compel giving" the company "a do-over now."

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Tesla Autopilot Crash Killed Grandmother, Lawsuit Claims

By Jonathan Capriel

A crash where a Tesla Model 3 plowed through a Texas family's home, fatally wounding a 76-year-old grandmother, is currently the subject of a federal probe and a wrongful death lawsuit, the latter of which claims the automaker knowingly sold dangerously defective self-driving systems.

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Lack Of Evidence Sinks Insurance Fraud Case, Atty Says

By Emily Sawicki

A Louisiana law firm and lawyer found guilty of criminal conspiracy and wire fraud for staging vehicle crashes as part of a scheme to defraud insurance carriers and trucking companies are seeking acquittal or a new trial, arguing that federal prosecutors failed to support their claims with evidence.

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Series

Moshing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Entering a mosh pit is much like entering the practice of law — it is difficult, you have to know both the written and unwritten rules, and conduct yourself according to the expectations of each community, says Christopher Deubert at Constangy Brooks.

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Groombridge Wu Tops Milbank Pay Scale For Associates

By Kevin Penton

Groombridge Wu Baughman & Stone LLP is the latest firm to top the pay scale for associates announced earlier this month by Milbank LLP, with attorneys set to earn as much as $470,000.

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Senate Confirming Judges Faster Than In Trump's 1st Term

By Courtney Bublé

The Senate has confirmed 45 judges in the second Trump term, outpacing the rate of his first administration, Senate Republicans announced on Thursday.

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Attys Urged To Challenge Clients Who Demand AI Research

By Aaron Keller

A Connecticut federal judge urged attorneys during a Thursday sanctions hearing to push back against clients who demand lawyers use generative artificial intelligence tools to conduct legal research, saying the technology is no substitute for professional judgment and discretion because it "aims to please" and can misstate the law.

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SCOTUSblog Founder Goldstein Blasts 'Inflated' DOJ Tax Math

By Jared Foretek

Convicted SCOTUSblog founder Tom Goldstein and federal prosecutors are clashing again over their dramatically divergent sentencing recommendations, with the defense accusing the government of presenting a "one-dimensional caricature" of the famed lawyer in seeking an eight-year sentence, and prosecutors accusing him of potentially deleting "secret chats" with his gambling backers.

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Feds Say Would-Be Kavanaugh Assassin Was Let Off Easy

By Nadia Dreid

Both federal prosecutors and a Stephen Miller-founded public interest group believe that a Maryland federal judge let a woman accused of trying to kill U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh off too easy because of her gender identity and want the Fourth Circuit to order resentencing.

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Quinn Emanuel Says 3M Fee Proposal Undervalues Its Work

By Carolina Bolado

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP has objected to a special master's recommendation on the allocation of common benefit fees in the $6 billion settlement that ended multidistrict litigation against 3M over allegedly faulty combat earplugs, saying the amount doesn't value the "length, extent and impact" of the firm's work.

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