Social Media Addiction MDL Judge Picks Bellwether Trial Pool

By Dorothy Atkins

A California federal judge on Friday narrowed the pool of cases set for the first bellwether trials in sprawling multidistrict litigation by school districts and personal injury plaintiffs over claims social media is addictive, choosing six bellwether school districts in Maryland, Georgia, Kentucky, New Jersey, North Carolina and Arizona.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

$1.6M Verdict Should've Been Trimmed Sooner, NJ Panel Says

By Ganesh Setty

A New Jersey trial court should've reduced a $1.6 million jury verdict to $200,000 sooner in an automobile accident dispute after the plaintiff told both the trial judge and judge in the defendant's bankruptcy proceedings he would seek only $200,000, a state appeals court ruled Friday.

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

2nd Circ. Won't Rehear Trump Appeal Of $5M Assault Verdict

By Cara Salvatore

The full Second Circuit refused Friday to revisit President Donald Trump's challenge to writer E. Jean Carroll's $5 million sexual assault finding against him, with two judges dissenting.

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

Wash. Judge Tosses IUD Suit Against Bayer For Good

By Jonathan Capriel

Bayer has beat a negligence lawsuit filed by a woman who claims its Mirena IUD perforated her uterus and migrated after the patient failed to oppose the company's motion to dismiss, a Washington federal judge ruled.

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

10th Circ. Affirms Expert DQ In Sig Sauer Gun Discharge Suit

By Jonathan Capriel

Gunmaker Sig Sauer Inc. scored a win at the Tenth Circuit on Friday with the panel disqualifying two experts who were ready to testify that its P320 pistol was defectively designed, giving the company an appeals court ruling to lean on as it continues to fend off a rash of suits claiming the gun fires unintentionally.

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

1st Amendment Shields MyPillow CEO From Claims, Jury Told

By Zach Dupont

Attorneys representing MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell in his defamation trial told a Colorado federal jury on Friday that their client's words are shielded by the First Amendment, urging the eight-person panel to ignore a former Dominion Voting Systems employee's attempts to confuse them.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Trucker Avoids Sanctions In Fla. Suit Over Deadly I-95 Crash

By David Minsky

A Florida state court judge on Friday refrained from penalizing a freight company and driver for reneging on drawn-out challenges to discovery requests in a lawsuit accusing them of negligence in a multi-vehicle crash that killed four people along Interstate 95, but overruled some objections after deeming the information relevant.

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

Repair Co. Must Still Fight Air Charter Co.'s 'Hot Start' Suit

By Mike Curley

A Kansas federal judge on Friday refused to hand a full win to a repair company in a suit by a charter flight company alleging one of its planes was damaged by a faulty part causing a "hot start," after a magistrate judge declined to exclude the charter company's expert.

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

Judge Upholds Dallas Ordinance Limiting Adult Biz Hours

By Rae Ann Varona

A Texas federal judge upheld a Dallas ordinance requiring sexually oriented businesses to close for four early morning hours as a bid to reduce crime, shooting down a trade association and adult businesses' attempt to cast doubt on the city's rationale for the measure.

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

Pa. Court Faults Agency For Rebuffing Late Child-Death Filing

By Matthew Santoni

Pennsylvania's labor regulator should have at least considered accepting a business's late submission of a response to accusations of child labor stemming from a fatal accident with a wood chipper, a state appellate panel ruled Friday in an opinion that clarified when to make exceptions to agency filing deadlines.

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

Michigan AG Sues Auto Suppliers Over Toxic Pollution

By Danielle Ferguson

The Michigan Attorney General's Office alleged two auto parts suppliers illegally discharged untreated contaminated water that reached multiple bodies of water and emitted an unlawful amount of air pollutants in a new complaint seeking civil penalties and contamination cleanup costs.

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

Electronic Tablets Allow Inmates To Connect — With A Cost

By Jack Karp

Authorities say the increased use of electronic tablets in prisons and jails helps inmates communicate with family and access entertainment, but advocates warn that the tablets lead to less connection, more surveillance and greater profits for prison telecoms.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ga. Landowners Sue Carpet, Chemical Makers Over PFAS

By Kelcey Caulder

Shaw Industries, Mohawk Industries, 3M Co. and several other major carpet manufacturers and chemical makers face a trio of new lawsuits accusing them of contaminating soil, dust and water across north Georgia with so-called forever chemicals.

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

Brief

Texas Justices Pass On Final 'Love Is Blind' Appeal

By Catherine Marfin

The Texas Supreme Court on Friday declined for the third time to intervene in a suit between the producers of Netflix's "Love Is Blind" and a former contestant who says she was sexually assaulted while filming the show.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Brief

3rd Circ. Won't Rehear Bid To Toss Boy Scouts' Ch. 11 Plan

By Ryan Harroff

The Third Circuit declined to hold a panel or full court rehearing of its May decision to uphold the Boy Scouts of America's Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan in a pair of Friday orders rejecting petitions by two sets of abuse survivors, with the orders implying some judges on the court had supported taking another look.

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

IRS, Law Firm Settle $790K Worker Credit Refund Suit

By Anna Scott Farrell

The Internal Revenue Service settled a lawsuit seeking more than $790,000 in pandemic-era worker tax credits by a law firm that had claimed the agency was delaying paying out, according to a dismissal order Friday by a Pennsylvania federal court.

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

Chervon, Lowe's Say Recall Blocks Explosive Battery Suit

By Mike Curley

Chervon North America Inc. and Lowe's Home Centers LLC urged an Illinois federal court Friday to throw out a proposed class action alleging they made and sold lithium-ion batteries that were prone to overheating and combusting, saying a December recall already provided all the relief the plaintiffs could receive.

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

Perspectives

The Reforms Needed To Fight Sexual Abuse By Prison Staff

Prisoners sexually assaulted by corrections staff, such as the California women who recently won a consent decree against FCI Dublin, often delay reporting out of fear of retaliation by their abusers, but several practical reforms could empower prisoners to disclose abuse while the evidence necessary to indict perpetrators is still available, says Jaehyun Oh at Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Series

Volunteering At Schools Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Speaking to elementary school students about the importance of college and other opportunities after high school — especially students who may not see those paths reflected in their daily lives — not only taught me the importance of giving back, but also helped to sharpen several skills essential to a successful legal practice, says Guillermo Escobedo at Constangy.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

7 Willkie Partners Join Cooley Over Trump EO Deal

By Aebra Coe

Seven partners have left Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP, including both managing partners of the firm's San Francisco office, to join Cooley LLP, reportedly over their former employer's decision to strike a deal with the Trump administration related to a potential executive order.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

The Law Firm Loophole: How Debt Cos. Snare NC Consumers

By Daniel Connolly

To get around bans in North Carolina and many other states, debt relief companies set up facade law firms — companies that are law firms in name only, with a tiny number of lawyers nominally serving thousands of clients, consumer advocates and regulators say.

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

Pro Bono Spotlight

Mayer Brown Helps Get Man Off Death Row After 21 Years

By Lynn LaRowe

A team of Mayer Brown LLP attorneys fought for decades to get the death sentence of a Houston man commuted to life in light of the inmate's intellectual disability, in a case that shows how legal standards have evolved in an area once known as "death county."

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Quinn Emanuel Drops Binance Founder Amid $8M Fraud Suit

By Chris Villani

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP has withdrawn as counsel for the founder of Binance amid an $8.1 million lawsuit against him, telling a Massachusetts federal judge that the former cryptocurrency exchange executive has breached an agreement with the law firm and moved for arbitration against it.

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

Analysis

Vought's CFPB Finds Industry Fans In Rule Repeal Effort

By Jon Hill

Financial industry groups are lining up behind the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's push to scrap a trio of Biden-era policies that they say overexpanded its supervisory and enforcement toolkit, urging on the agency's newfound deregulatory zeal.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Jackson Walker, Ex-Judge Facing Class Action Over Romance

By Catherine Marfin

A former bankruptcy judge and Jackson Walker LLP have been hit with another lawsuit over the judge's secret romance with a former firm partner, this time a proposed class action from a group of bondholders of financial company GWG Holdings Inc.

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

Analysis

SEC Scrubs Biden-Era Agenda To Give Atkins A 'Clean Slate'

By Jessica Corso

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is backing away from promised Biden-era regulations on cybersecurity risk management, environmental disclosures and equity market reform, withdrawing over a dozen rule proposals as newly appointed Chair Paul Atkins seeks to rewrite the agency's agenda.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Calif. State Bar Is Immune From Atty's ADA Suit, 9th Circ. Says

By Gina Kim

The Ninth Circuit on Friday declined to revive an attorney's claims alleging the California State Bar violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by not granting extra time to respond to disciplinary action based on outstanding debt, finding the bar, as an arm of the state, is entitled to sovereign immunity.

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

Akerman Seeks To Move Malpractice Suits From Medical Cos.

By Madison Arnold

Akerman LLP has asked to have two malpractice cases from medical laboratories moved from Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade County, where the firm's related unpaid fees case against Rennova Health Inc. is being litigated.

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

Grassley Budget Bill Calls For More Use Of Injunction Bonds

By Courtney Bublé

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has released his portion of the budget reconciliation text, which would bolster the use of injunction bonds to raise the stakes for plaintiffs seeking to halt White House initiatives.

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

UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

By Max Austin

This past week in London has seen Tottenham Hotspur FC kick off against Manchester United co-owner Ineos Automotive following a soured sponsorship deal, Acer and Nokia clash over patents for video coding technology, and two investors reignite litigation against the founders of an AI exercise bike business that unlawfully pocketed $1.2 million in investments to fund their own lifestyles. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

By Michele Gorman

Compliance experts say corporate leaders with business interests south of the border are worried about possible terrorism-related charges under the Trump administration for inadvertently working with the cartels. Meanwhile, the head of Glass Lewis pushed back against allegations from some lawmakers concerning the firm's "expansive, opaque and ideologically driven influence" on companies. These are some of the stories in corporate legal news you may have missed in the past week.​

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Kevin Penton

The Institute for Justice, Mitchell Shapiro Greenamyre & Funt LLP, Spears & Filipovits LLC and attorney Lisa Lambert lead this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Constitution's supremacy clause cannot shield the federal government from Federal Tort Claims Act suits.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

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.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »