NY Judge Says He May Nix $110M Mango Markets Fraud Verdict

By Stewart Bishop

A Manhattan federal judge on Thursday suggested that he may grant all or part of a crypto trader's motion for acquittal or a new trial over allegations that he defrauded Mango Markets investors out of $110 million by manipulating the price of the exchange's native token, in a ruling that would likely center on issues involving mixed swaps or venue.

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Ex-FirstEnergy Execs Object To Possible Sanctions Order

By Jessica Corso

Two former FirstEnergy Corp. executives indicted over their alleged roles in a $1 billion bribery scandal objected Thursday to the possibility they could be sanctioned for failing to produce certain information in a civil suit brought by FirstEnergy investors, calling language in a special master's report "inappropriate" and potentially prejudicial.

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Claims Against Attys In $2.6B Casino Merger Row Get Tossed

By Emily Sawicki

A Manhattan federal judge on Thursday permanently ended claims a real estate investor in a botched $2.6 billion Philippine casino deal brought against attorneys from Sadis & Goldberg LLP, finding that claims that they allowed a fraud to unfold and breached their fiduciary duties were too vague.

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Del. Justices OK Mid-Case Appeal In Paramount Doc Suit

By Jeff Montgomery

Delaware's Supreme Court on Wednesday approved a mid-case review for a Paramount Global stockholder suit seeking books and records on the company's proposed $8 billion tie-up with Skydance Media.

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FINRA Fines Interactive Brokers Over Complaint Reporting

By Sydney Price

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority announced online broker-dealer Interactive Brokers LLC will pay $400,0000 to settle claims it failed to report regulatory complaints and customer grievances regarding the functionality of its virtual platform to FINRA over an 11-year period.

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4th Circ. Affirms Ex-Crypto COO's Fraud Conviction

By Ryan Harroff

The Fourth Circuit found no error in a former cryptocurrency executive's conviction for fraud and conspiracy related to his time working at a foreign currency and cryptocurrency trading investment firm that the panel said was actually just a Ponzi scheme that never made any trades.

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SEC Drops Case Against Crypto Promoter Ian Balina

By Katryna Perera

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission moved Thursday to drop its suit over cryptocurrency influencer Ian Balina's alleged promotion of so-called SPRK tokens, about a month after Balina's attorneys said the federal regulator planned to walk away from the case.

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FTC, Nevada Accuse Trading Training Biz Of $1.2B Scam

By Rae Ann Varona

The Federal Trade Commission and Nevada on Thursday filed suit in federal court against an investment training company they alleged scammed more than $1.2 billion out of consumers, mostly young adults, by selling trading courses taught by "bogus" instructors and encouraging consumers to participate in a multi-level marketing scheme.

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AT&T Win Is FDIC's Loss On In-House Cases, 5th Circ. Told

By Katryna Perera

A banker challenging the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s use of in-house proceedings to level a fraud judgment against him told the Fifth Circuit that its recent decision overturning a $57 million Federal Communications Commission fine against AT&T confirms that the FDIC cannot rely on a "public rights" exemption to impose fines without a jury trial.

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Chancery Finds Contract Bars Appeal In Med Co. Merger

By Jeff Montgomery

Private equity-tilted limited liability company contract terms beat minority investor challenges to the fairness of the $8.9 billion merger in January 2023 that joined Summit Health-CityMD and VillageMD, a Delaware vice chancellor ruled late Wednesday.

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Generator Co. Wants Plug Pulled On COVID-Era Investor Suit

By Sydney Price

Power generator maker Generac Holdings Inc. asked a Wisconsin federal judge to permanently toss an investor suit over the company's alleged failure to keep up with a surge in business during the COVID-19 pandemic, arguing the proposed class repeats arguments about Generac's sales disclosures that were previously dismissed.

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Death Bond Fund Manager Inflated Asset Values, Suit Says

By Lauraann Wood

An Illinois fund that invests in life insurance policies has been hit with securities fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and several other claims in a suit seeking at least $50 million that alleges it manipulated the value of illiquid assets to collect inflated fees from investors.

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2 Firms To Co-Lead Block Investor Suit Over Cash App

By Emilie Ruscoe

Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC and Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP will represent a proposed class of investors in a suit alleging Jack Dorsey's fintech company Block Inc. created a "haven for criminal and illicit activities" on its Cash App and Square payment platforms despite touting its anti-money laundering protocols.

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PetroSaudi Insists Pause Not Warranted In $380M Award Suit

By Joyce Hanson

A PetroSaudi unit continues fighting the Trump administration's bid to pause litigation to seize a $380 million arbitral award while related proceedings in Switzerland play out, saying a California federal judge has already denied its stay request once before.

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High Court Urged To Skip $272M Hertz 'Solvent Debtor' Appeal

By Clara Geoghegan

Wells Fargo has urged the U.S. Supreme Court to reject Hertz's appeal of a Third Circuit ruling that the car rental giant owes $272 million in make-whole payments and interest to noteholders following a Chapter 11 case it launched in 2020.

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Series

Teaching College Students Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Serving as an adjunct college professor has taught me the importance of building rapport, communicating effectively, and persuading individuals to critically analyze the difference between what they think and what they know — principles that have helped to improve my practice of law, says Sheria Clarke at Nelson Mullins.

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A Primer On The Trading And Clearing Of Perpetual Contracts

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission recently released a request for comment on the trading and clearing of perpetual-style derivatives, most common in the cryptocurrency market, necessitating a deep look at how these contracts operate and their associated risks, say attorneys at Moore & Van Allen.

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Despite SEC Climate Pause, Cos. Must Still Heed State Regs

While businesses may have been given a reprieve from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's rules aimed at standardizing climate-related disclosures, they must still track evolving requirements in states including California, Illinois, New Jersey and New York that will soon require reporting of direct and indirect carbon emissions, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

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Attys Join Nationwide 'Day Of Action' Rallies For Rule Of Law

By Ryan Boysen and Jack Rodgers

Thousands of attorneys gathered at rallies across the country on Thursday to oppose what they called the Trump administration's "assault" on the rule of law — a rare public demonstration for the normally buttoned-down and risk-averse professionals that they said "sounds the alarm of a looming constitutional crisis."

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Analysis

Hair, Makeup, Legal: The Lawyering Behind The Met Gala

By Theresa Schliep

While the red carpet arrivals of the biggest names in the entertainment industry are sure to win the most attention at the Met Gala on Monday, attorneys also play a significant role in advising the brands and celebrities at the center of fashion's biggest night.

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20 Former Federal Judges Launch Group To Defend Judiciary

By Jake Maher

Twenty former federal district and circuit judges on Thursday launched a coalition to speak out about and defend the federal judiciary as political impeachment attempts against judges increase and the federal courts system faces heightened scrutiny.

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Paul Hastings, GenapSys Settle Calif. Legal Malpractice Suit

By James Mills

The legal malpractice suit in which gene sequencing company GenapSys Inc. argued Paul Hastings LLP caused GenapSys' bankruptcy appears to have been settled.

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GOP Seeks To Stop 'Frivolous Lawsuits' With Reconciliation

By Courtney Bublé

The House Judiciary Committee approved along party lines a proposal they say will prevent "frivolous lawsuits" by barring courts from enforcing contempt citations for failure to comply with injunctions if the plaintiff has not posted a bond for litigation costs.

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5 Fed. Circ. Clashes To Watch This Month

By Ryan Davis

The Federal Circuit's argument calendar for May includes appeals of two nine-figure patent verdicts — one against Apple and one against Medtronic — and Roku's bid to revive its remote control patent suit at the U.S. International Trade Commission after a loss tied to the commission's domestic industry requirement.

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Senate Panel Delays A Vote On Martin Nomination For US Atty

By Courtney Bublé

The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday held off for now a vote to call for a hearing on Ed Martin's nomination for U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, a move Democrats say would allow more time to review his record and, they hope, convince enough Republicans to help them block his nomination.

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Ex-Exec's Claims Against Dechert Still No Good, 2nd Circ. Told

By Pete Brush

A North Carolina trade executive's latest trip to the Second Circuit in his quest to win damages for alleged hacking by a private investigator on Dechert LLP's behalf should end like the others, with a dismissal, defense counsel argued Thursday.

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New Bill Holds Judges Accountable Even After They Retire

By Hailey Konnath

A Georgia Congressman on Thursday introduced legislation that would ensure misconduct complaints against judges would still be investigated, even if the judge has resigned, retired or even died.

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Colo. Judge Resigns Amid Allegations Over Misuse Of Bench

By Thy Vo

A Colorado state judge resigned on Wednesday amid a disciplinary complaint accusing him of misusing his position to help a former client that he exchanged sexual and flirtatious texts with, telling an independent panel in a brief that it no longer needs to hear a disciplinary case against him.

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The Top In-House Hires Of April

By Michele Gorman

Legal department hires over the past month included high-profile appointments at FanDuel's parent company, American Airlines and soda business Swig. Here, Law360 Pulse looks at some of the top in-house announcements from the first full month of spring.

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