Hospitality

  • April 26, 2024

    Blackstone Must Face Claims Of Price-Fixing At Vegas Hotels

    A Las Vegas hotel price-fixing suit against Blackstone and others has survived the private equity firm's motion to dismiss, with a Nevada federal judge ruling the plaintiffs had shown enough to allege Blackstone was in control of one of the target hotels, the Cosmopolitan Hotel, at the time of the alleged scheme.

  • April 26, 2024

    Flight Attendants Seek Class Status In FMLA Penalty Suit

    Former and current Southwest flight attendants have asked a California federal judge for class status in their suit claiming the airline punished workers who took family or medical leave by blocking them from improving their disciplinary records, arguing that their allegations are best resolved collectively.

  • April 25, 2024

    Rubrik Leads Trio Of IPOs That Buoy Recovering Market

    Three companies debuted trading Thursday following initial public offerings that raised nearly $1.4 billion combined under guidance from six total law firms, including two offerings that priced above range by data security firm Rubrik and aerospace company Loar, providing fresh energy for a strengthening IPO market.

  • April 25, 2024

    Celebrity Cruises' Morgues Are 'Run To Fail,' Family Claims

    The family of a man who died aboard a Celebrity Cruises ship and whose body decomposed after being stored in an ill-equipped cooler is urging a Florida federal judge to reject the cruise line's bid for an exit from its suit, arguing the company's "run-to-fail" maintenance programs for its shipboard morgues made it inevitable a morgue would break while storing a body.

  • April 24, 2024

    Filipino Workers' $730K Trafficking Deal Gets Judge's Initial OK

    An Oklahoma federal court preliminarily approved a $730,000 settlement on Wednesday that would resolve Filipino workers' claims that a local couple tricked them into paying steep immigration and recruitment fees to come work for them in the U.S.

  • April 24, 2024

    9th Circ. Says NLRB Can Enforce Starbucks Bargaining Order

    The Ninth Circuit said Wednesday that Starbucks must recognize its Seattle roastery workers' April 2022 vote to unionize, overruling the coffee giant's contention that ballots should have been cast in person and concluding a National Labor Relations Board manager had discretion to call the mail-in election because of COVID-19 case counts at the time.

  • April 24, 2024

    Hawaii High Court Affirms Timeshare Property Tax Is Legal

    Timeshares in Maui County, Hawaii, were properly taxed using a timeshare property classification because the classification is both constitutional and in line with the county's code, the state Supreme Court affirmed.

  • April 24, 2024

    Bill O'Reilly Can't Duck Canceled Cruise Suit, Customer Says

    Bill O'Reilly cannot use his New York ties to shrug off a proposed class action, a man denied refunds for a canceled cruise has told an Arkansas federal court, arguing the former Fox News host and others gave the court jurisdiction when they launched a nationwide marketing campaign for the trip that reached Arkansas residents.

  • April 23, 2024

    Investor Seeks Recovery From R. Kelly, Foxwoods Fallouts

    An investor has filed a Connecticut suit to recover a New York settlement worth nearly $877,000 after revolving credit deals and a security agreement surrounding a concert series that was headlined by since-imprisoned R&B artist R. Kelly at the Foxwoods Resort Casino fell apart.

  • April 23, 2024

    Justices Probe NLRB's Burden In Starbucks' Injunction Appeal

    The U.S. Supreme Court appears likely to hold that the courts' traditional factors apply when the National Labor Relations Board pursues injunctions, though it's unclear from Tuesday's argument how closely it will direct courts to examine a key factor: the strength of the board's case.

  • April 23, 2024

    Judge Overturns Biz's H-2B Ban, Blaming 'Gaslighting' Atty

    A U.S. Department of Labor administrative law judge overturned a decision to debar a Minnesota concessions stand company from the H-2B visa program over its failure to pay back wages and penalties, saying the small business's owner had only followed his attorney's advice — right into a legal disaster.

  • April 23, 2024

    Firefighters Want LA County's Early Win Bid Axed In Hotel Suit

    Los Angeles County firefighters urged a California federal judge to deny the county's bid for an early win in their suit alleging they weren't paid for time they spent quarantined in hotels during the COVID-19 pandemic, saying the motion attempts to use the courts as a "pawn to escape liability."

  • April 23, 2024

    Pa. Roller Coaster Closure Throws Pass Buyers For A Loop

    The flagship roller coaster at a Pittsburgh-area amusement park has had its ups and downs since its opening, but a last-minute announcement that it would be closed all year left season pass customers jolted and jilted, according to a potential class action one pass holder filed in state court.

  • April 23, 2024

    Migrant-Hiring Crimes And Tax Evasion Get Pair Prison, $1.8M Fine

    A Florida federal judge has ordered two men to pay $1.8 million to the U.S. government and sentenced them to three years in prison after they confessed to recruiting migrants without employment authorization and failing to report workers' wages for tax purposes.

  • April 23, 2024

    Judge Quiets NY Outdoor Stadium For Frazzled Neighbors

    A state judge has temporarily muffled the activities of a century-old outdoor stadium in New York, ordering it to hire an independent contractor to monitor noise levels and to place barricades that prevent concert-goers from wandering into nearby neighborhoods.

  • April 23, 2024

    Downtown Chicago Hotel Hits Ch. 11 With Up To $50M In Debt

    A defunct hotel near Chicago's commercial center has applied for Chapter 11 protection in Delaware bankruptcy court, disclosing between $10 million and $50 million in debt, a few months after the city government converted the property into a shelter for unhoused people.

  • April 22, 2024

    Judge Finds Feds Own Historic Virgin Islands Resort

    A U.S. Virgin Islands federal judge has found the government owns the title to the historic Caneel Bay resort on a St. John peninsula, ruling against an operator in a dispute that arose after the resort suffered damage from back-to-back Category 5 hurricanes in 2017.

  • April 22, 2024

    Seattle Property Owners Can't Use COVID To Stop $160M Tax

    A Washington appeals court said on Monday that Seattle can keep a $160 million property tax to pay for waterfront improvements, in an opinion that rejected an argument that diminished property values after COVID-19 should force the city to recalculate the tax.

  • April 22, 2024

    Gambling Co., Casinos Battle Over Shuffler Antitrust Claims

    Scientific Games successor Light & Wonder has urged an Illinois federal judge not to certify a class of automatic card shuffler buyers, even as the riverboat casinos accusing it of tricking the patent office into shoring up its shuffler monopoly argued that their claims should go to trial.

  • April 22, 2024

    Ralph Lauren Can Continue Appeal Of COVID Coverage Loss

    The Third Circuit on Monday lifted a stay that sidelined a Ralph Lauren Corp. appeal of a district judge's ruling that the fashion retailer failed to show insurable physical damage to stores from the COVID-19 pandemic, sending the case to an appellate motions panel with three similar actions.

  • April 22, 2024

    Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

    Last week, Delaware's Chancery Court news included a Tesla announcement about moving to Texas, a midcase appeal of Tripadvisor's move to Nevada, and United Airlines' escape from a stockholder suit. Disputes about board entrenchment, squeeze-out mergers, co-founder fallouts and deadly ice cream moved ahead.

  • April 22, 2024

    PE-Backed Cruise Operator Viking Sets Sights On $1B IPO

    Private equity-backed cruise operator Viking Holdings Ltd. on Monday set a price range on an estimated $1 billion initial public offering, represented by Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP and underwriters counsel Latham & Watkins LLP, marking the latest test of the IPO market's nascent recovery.

  • April 19, 2024

    5th Circ. Revives Six Flags Investor Suit Again

    The Fifth Circuit has once again restored a securities fraud class action against Six Flags over the amusement corporation's botched plans to expand in China, saying the lower court inappropriately decided the lead plaintiff lacked standing and wrongly denied another plaintiff a chance to lead the suit.

  • April 19, 2024

    Casino SPAC Can Return Money, Not Shares, Chancery Rules

    Stockholders in a blank-check company that failed to merge with a Philippines-based casino are entitled to a distribution from $37.5 million sitting in trust, but the company may not redeem any shares until an investor's Delaware lawsuit plays out, a Chancery Court vice chancellor said Friday.

  • April 19, 2024

    Tex-Mex Chain Tijuana Flats' New Owner Puts It In Ch. 11

    Fast-casual Tex-Mex dining chain Tijuana Flats said Friday it has changed ownership and filed for Chapter 11 protection in Florida bankruptcy court with more than $10 million in debt.

Expert Analysis

  • 6 Pointers For Attys To Build Trust, Credibility On Social Media

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    In an era of information overload, attorneys can use social media strategically — from making infographics to leveraging targeted advertising — to cut through the noise and establish a reputation among current and potential clients, says Marly Broudie at SocialEyes Communications.

  • A Post-Mortem Analysis Of Stroock's Demise

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    After the dissolution of 147-year-old firm Stroock late last year shook up the legal world, a post-mortem analysis of the data reveals a long list of warning signs preceding the firm’s collapse — and provides some insight into how other firms might avoid the same disastrous fate, says Craig Savitzky at Leopard Solutions.

  • USCIS Fee Increases May Have Unintended Consequences

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    U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ new fee schedule, intended to provide the agency with needed funds while minimizing the impact of higher fees on individual immigrants and their families, shifts too much of the burden onto employers, say Juan Steevens and William Coffman at Mintz.

  • Series

    Coaching High School Wrestling Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Coaching my son’s high school wrestling team has been great fun, but it’s also demonstrated how a legal career can benefit from certain experiences, such as embracing the unknown, studying the rules and engaging with new people, says Richard Davis at Maynard Nexsen.

  • SG's Office Is Case Study To Help Close Legal Gender Gap

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    As women continue to be underrepresented in the upper echelons of the legal profession, law firms could learn from the example set by the Office of the Solicitor General, where culture and workplace policies have helped foster greater gender equality, say attorneys at Ocean Tomo.

  • A Refresher On Alcohol Sponsorships Before The Super Bowl

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    As millions of people will see in Super Bowl commercials Sunday, celebrity sponsorships continue to be a valuable tool for alcohol beverage marketers — and those looking to better target audiences must understand how regulation of the alcohol industry affects these deals, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • Reimagining Law Firm Culture To Break The Cycle Of Burnout

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    While attorney burnout remains a perennial issue in the legal profession, shifting post-pandemic expectations mean that law firms must adapt their office cultures to retain talent, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.

  • Series

    ESG Around The World: Brazil

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    Environmental, social and governance issues have increasingly translated into new legislation in Brazil since 2020, and in the wake of these recently enacted regulations, we are likely to see a growing number of legal disputes in the largest South American country related to ESG issues such as greenwashing if companies are not prepared to adequately adapt and comply, say attorneys at Mattos Filho.

  • Vagueness In Calif. Climate Law Makes Compliance Tricky

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    California's recently enacted Voluntary Carbon Market Disclosures Act requires companies making claims of carbon neutrality, or significant greenhouse gas emissions reductions, to disclose information supporting those claims — but vague and conflicting language in the statute poses multiple problems for businesses, say John Rousakis and Chris Bowman at O'Melveny.

  • Series

    Competing In Dressage Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My lifelong participation in the sport of dressage — often called ballet on horses — has proven that several skills developed through training and competition are transferable to legal work, especially the ability to harness focus, persistence and versatility when negotiating a deal, says Stephanie Coco at V&E.

  • Algorithmic Pricing Programs Caught In Antitrust Crosshairs

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    The Justice Department's investigation into software company RealPage follows a host of federal antitrust cases alleging that property owners and casino hotel operators use the same proprietary software programs to fix and maintain pricing, which means algorithmic pricing programs are considered a key price-fixing tool in the digital age, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.

  • What's At Stake In High Court NLRB Injunction Case

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    William Baker at Wigdor examines the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to hear Starbucks v. McKinney — where it will consider a long-standing circuit split over the standard for evaluating National Labor Relations Board injunction bids — and explains why the justices’ eventual decision, either way, is unlikely to be a significant blow to labor.

  • The Legal Industry Needs A Cybersecurity Paradigm Shift

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    As law firms face ever-increasing risks of cyberattacks and ransomware incidents, the legal industry must implement robust cybersecurity measures and privacy-centric practices to preserve attorney-client privilege, safeguard client trust and uphold the profession’s integrity, says Ryan Paterson at Unplugged.

  • 5 Reasons Associates Shouldn't Take A Job Just For Money

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    As a number of BigLaw firms increase salary scales for early-career attorneys, law students and lateral associates considering new job offers should weigh several key factors that may matter more than financial compensation, say Albert Tawil at Lateral Hub and Ruvin Levavi at Power Forward.

  • Series

    Playing Competitive Tennis Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My experience playing competitive tennis has highlighted why prioritizing exercise and stress relief, maintaining perspective under pressure, and supporting colleagues in pursuit of a common goal are all key aspects of championing a successful legal career, says Madhumita Datta at Lowenstein Sandler.

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