Pennsylvania

  • April 26, 2024

    Law360 Reveals Titans Of The Plaintiffs Bar

    In the past year, plaintiffs have won settlements and judgments for millions and billions of dollars from companies such as Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, Facebook and Fox News, with many high-profile cases finally wrapping up after years of fighting. Such cases — involving over-the-top compensation packages, chemical contamination, gender discrimination and data mining — were led by attorneys whose accomplishments earned them recognition as Law360's Titans of the Plaintiffs Bar for 2024.

  • April 26, 2024

    Thomas' Long Quest To Undo A 'Grave Constitutional Error'

    A quarter-century after Justice Clarence Thomas cast a pivotal vote against jury trial rights and rapidly regretted it, his relentless campaign to undo the controversial precedent is suddenly center stage with a serious shot at succeeding, as judges and lawyers increasingly deem the decision dubious and the U.S. Supreme Court chips away at its edges.

  • April 26, 2024

    Republic First Bank Fails In Biggest Bust Since 2023 Turmoil

    Republic First Bank, a roughly $6 billion bank based in Philadelphia, was shuttered Friday by Pennsylvania state banking regulators and sold to Fulton Bank NA, capping off a prolonged decline that only worsened in the wake of last spring's regional bank failures.

  • April 26, 2024

    Health Co. Not Liable For Cigna Underpayment, 3rd Circ. Says

    The Third Circuit on Friday backed a win for a healthcare cost management company in a suit over Cigna's alleged underpayment for plastic surgery, finding the contract between the company and a plastic surgery practice did not guarantee a set payment rate.

  • April 26, 2024

    Doctor Keeps Trial Win In Death Suit Over Patient's Blood Clot

    A Pennsylvania appeals panel has let a primary care physician keep his trial win in a suit over the death of one of his patients from a blood clot, rejecting arguments that the trial court wrongly excluded evidence and unfairly allowed separate attorneys to make opening and closing statements for the doctor and his practice group.

  • April 26, 2024

    NJ Solar Co. To Settle Claims It Ignored Do Not Call List

    Apollo Energy Co. and the Pennsylvania man who accused it of repeatedly calling consumers who had put their phone numbers on the national Do Not Call registry or who had already asked not to call them again have agreed to settle their dispute, the parties said.

  • April 26, 2024

    Investors Ask 3rd Circ. To Revive Row With Maiden Holdings

    Investors urged the Third Circuit to revive their suit claiming that reinsurance company Maiden Holdings Ltd. misrepresented its underwriting and risk management practices, saying the lower court's erroneous discovery restriction prevented them from proving their case.

  • April 26, 2024

    CVS Customers Say Colo. Co. 'Eavesdrops' On Web Activity

    Two consumers who used CVS.com to order prescription refills have filed a putative class action against a Colorado software service provider claiming it illegally eavesdrops on visitors' interactions with the website without their knowledge, even gathering information about specific drugs and dosages they purchased.

  • April 26, 2024

    $2.3B Roundup Win 'Unconstitutionally Excessive,' Judge Told

    Counsel for Roundup maker and Bayer AG unit Monsanto asked a Philadelphia judge on Friday to undo a $2.25 billion award to a man who claimed the weed killer caused him to develop lymphoma, calling the massive verdict "unconstitutionally excessive" during a state court hearing.

  • April 26, 2024

    UPMC To Face New Trial Over Claims It Missed Man's Stroke

    A Pennsylvania appeals panel has ordered a new trial over a man's claims that he was left with permanent brain injuries after doctors at UPMC Bedford Memorial failed to diagnose a stroke in progress, saying he should have been allowed to rebut a new theory the hospital first presented at trial.

  • April 26, 2024

    Philly Mayor Creates Property Assessment Task Force

    Philadelphia will designate a task force to study and address inequities in the city's residential property tax assessments, the mayor announced Friday.

  • April 26, 2024

    Pa. Regulators To Probe FirstEnergy's $503M Rate Hike Bid

    The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission is opening an investigation into a FirstEnergy unit's proposed annual rate increase that would boost its revenue by over $503 million and raise consumer power bills in four districts by between 9.2% and 11.8%, according to a new order from the regulator.

  • April 25, 2024

    Ex-Philly Union Leader's 3rd Trial Ends In Deadlock

    A Pennsylvania federal jury on Thursday night was unable to reach a verdict in the government's case alleging former Philadelphia labor leader John Dougherty threatened a Live! Casino construction contractor with "financial ruin" if he didn't pay his electrician nephew for work he didn't perform, marking a mistrial for the previously twice-convicted union figurehead and his relative.

  • April 25, 2024

    3rd Circ. Lets Mallinckrodt Off Sanofi's Royalty Hook

    A Third Circuit panel said Thursday that Mallinckrodt PLC's Chapter 11 bankruptcy could sever its obligation to pay Sanofi-Aventis US LLC royalties on sales of an autoimmune disease drug, finding that Sanofi's contract to sell Mallinckrodt the rights to the drug created a claim ripe to be extinguished.

  • April 25, 2024

    Philips Gets $506M Economic Loss Deal OK'd In CPAP MDL

    A Pennsylvania federal judge on Thursday gave final approval to a $506.3 million settlement to end economic loss claims in multidistrict litigation over Philips' recalled CPAP breathing machines, including $94.4 million for the plaintiffs' attorneys.

  • April 25, 2024

    Dems Press DEA To Move Quickly On Rescheduling Marijuana

    A coalition of Democratic U.S. senators and House members are urging the U.S. Department of Justice to complete swiftly its review of marijuana's legal status and remove the drug from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act.

  • April 25, 2024

    DOD Unblocks Cohen Seglias From Emails Following Lawsuit

    Cohen Seglias Pallas Greenhall & Furman PC on Thursday dropped its lawsuit against the Defense Information Systems Agency after the agency acknowledged it mistakenly flagged the firm for malware and blocked it from government emails, the firm's attorney told Law360.

  • April 25, 2024

    EEOC Urges 3rd Circ. To Revive Fired Worker's Reprisal Suit

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission urged the Third Circuit to reinstate a former manager's lawsuit accusing a glass company of firing him because he refused to fire his plant's only two Black workers, saying a jury should hear the dispute.

  • April 25, 2024

    Emotional Damages Not Covered In OD Suit, Pa. Justices Rule

    The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has reversed a lower court's ruling that a Nationwide unit had a duty to defend two homeowners in a suit over a man's fatal overdose under their roof, holding Thursday that underlying emotional distress damages don't fall within the policy's definition of bodily injury.

  • April 25, 2024

    Pa. Justices OK Teacher 'Character' Test For Suspended Atty

    The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania on Thursday upheld a lower court's ruling that an ex-attorney's disciplinary records can be used by the state Department of Education when evaluating whether that attorney has the "good moral character" to get a teaching license.

  • April 25, 2024

    3 Things Attys Should Know About Pa.'s $48B Spending Plan

    Several areas of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's proposed $48 billion budget for 2024-2025 could result in more work for the legal industry, including more opportunities for crafting economic development deals, getting a recreational cannabis industry off the ground, and speeding up environmental permit applications, experts tell Law360.

  • April 24, 2024

    Motley Rice, Morgan & Morgan Among Ozempic MDL Leaders

    The Pennsylvania federal judge overseeing multidistrict litigation over alleged risks associated with Ozempic and similar drugs has appointed lawyers from Motley Rice LLC, Morgan & Morgan PA and six other firms to leadership roles, according to an order issued Tuesday.

  • April 24, 2024

    Pa. Court Revives Malpractice Suit Over Hip Implant Surgeries

    The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Pinnacle Hospitals, an orthopedic surgeon and a physician-owned clinic can't escape a malpractice suit over two hip replacements that left a woman with one leg shorter than the other, a Pennsylvania Superior Court panel has ruled, saying a jury must decide when the clock started on her claims.

  • April 24, 2024

    3 Takeaways On How AI Is Forcing Publicity Rights To Evolve

    As digital replicas of someone's voice, image or likeness become easier to create with the help of artificial intelligence, this new era of deepfakes is shining a spotlight on the nation's patchwork of right-of-publicity laws and raising questions over when Congress may act to pass a national framework.  

  • April 24, 2024

    DOL Says Firm 'Repeatedly' Misclassified Highway Workers

    The U.S. Department of Labor recently determined that a subcontractor "repeatedly misclassified" employees who worked on 25 federal highway construction projects in Pennsylvania, according to a notice filed in Pennsylvania federal court Wednesday in a lawsuit against three construction firms.

Expert Analysis

  • AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier

    Author Photo

    Legal professionals without programming expertise can use generative artificial intelligence to harness the power of automation and other technology solutions to streamline their work, without the steep learning curve traditionally associated with coding, says George Zalepa at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World

    Author Photo

    As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.

  • General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI

    Author Photo

    With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.

  • Rite Aid's Reasons For Ch. 11 Go Beyond Opioid Suits

    Author Photo

    Despite opioid-related lawsuits being the perceived reason that pushed Rite Aid into bankruptcy, the company's recent Chapter 11 filing reveals its tenuous position in the pharmaceutical retail market, and only time will tell whether bankruptcy will right-size the company, says Daniel Gielchinsky at DGIM Law.

  • Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information

    Author Photo

    As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.

  • Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD

    Author Photo

    Given the prevalence of ADHD among attorneys, it is imperative that the legal community gain a better understanding of how ADHD affects well-being, and that resources and strategies exist for attorneys with this disability to manage their symptoms and achieve success, say Casey Dixon at Dixon Life Coaching and Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • Employers Should Review Training Repayment Tactics

    Author Photo

    State and federal examination of employee training repayment agreements has intensified, and with the potential for this tool to soon be severely limited, employers should review their options, including pivoting to other retention strategies, says Aaron Vance at Barnes & Thornburg.

  • Opinion

    Courts Shouldn't Credit Allegations From Short-Seller Reports

    Author Photo

    Securities class actions against public companies can extend for years and lead to significant settlements, so courts should not allow such cases with allegations wholly reliant on reports by short-sellers, who have an economic interest in seeing a company's stock price decline, to proceed past the motion to dismiss stage, says Richard Zelichov at DLA Piper.

  • Handling Religious Objections To Abortion-Related Job Duties

    Author Photo

    While health care and pharmacy employee religious exemption requests concerning abortion-related procedures or drugs are not new, recent cases demonstrate why employer accommodation considerations should factor in the Title VII standard set forth by the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 Groff v. DeJoy ruling, as well as applicable federal, state and local laws, say attorneys at Epstein Becker.

  • Attorneys, Law Schools Must Adapt To New Era Of Evidence

    Author Photo

    Technological advancements mean more direct evidence is being created than ever before, and attorneys as well as law schools must modify their methods to account for new challenges in how this evidence is collected and used to try cases, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • The Growing Need For FLSA Private Settlement Rule Clarity

    Author Photo

    A Pennsylvania district court's recent ruling in Walker v. Marathon Petroleum echoes an interesting and growing trend of jurists questioning the need for — and legality of — judicial approval of private Fair Labor Standards Act settlements, which provides more options for parties to efficiently resolve their claims, says Rachael Coe at Moore & Van Allen.

  • Tips For Litigating Against Pro Se Parties In Complex Disputes

    Author Photo

    Litigating against self-represented parties in complex cases can pose unique challenges for attorneys, but for the most part, it requires the same skills that are useful in other cases — from documenting everything to understanding one’s ethical duties, says Bryan Ketroser at Alto Litigation.

  • Compliance Primer: Foreign Investment In US Real Property

    Author Photo

    The rise in foreign investment in U.S. real property, especially agricultural land, has led to increased national security concerns, meaning it’s important to understand reporting requirements under the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act and state-level statutes, and to monitor legislative proposals that could create more stringent reporting and review processes, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • Pro Bono Work Is Powerful Self-Help For Attorneys

    Author Photo

    Oct. 22-28 is Pro Bono Week, serving as a useful reminder that offering free legal help to the public can help attorneys expand their legal toolbox, forge community relationships and create human connections, despite the challenges of this kind of work, says Orlando Lopez at Culhane Meadows.

  • Series

    Playing In A Rock Cover Band Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Performing in a classic rock cover band has driven me to hone several skills — including focus, organization and networking — that have benefited my professional development, demonstrating that taking time to follow your muse outside of work can be a boon to your career, says Michael Gambro at Cadwalader.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Pennsylvania archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!