Mich. High Court Fast-Tracks Appeal Over 24% Cannabis Tax

By Melanie Dorsey

The Michigan Supreme Court has ordered the state's intermediate appeals court to accelerate a closely watched constitutional challenge to the state's 24% cannabis tax that went into effect earlier this year, halting trial court proceedings as the appeal unfolds. 

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NASCAR Not Required To Defend Manager In Harassment Suit

By Susan Smiley

NASCAR and Michigan International Speedway do not have to defend a MIS supervisor or pay his legal fees in a sexual harassment suit filed by a former MIS security guard, a Michigan federal judge said Thursday.

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Meijer Escapes Most Claims In Tobacco Fee ERISA Suit

By Grace Elletson

A Michigan federal judge significantly narrowed a proposed class action that accused Meijer Inc. of charging employees an illegal health plan fee for using tobacco, ruling Thursday that the shopping center company complied with federal benefits law by giving workers a six-month window to dodge the full charge.

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Hotel Developer's Suit Against Mich. City Revived On Appeal

By Susan Smiley

The Michigan Court of Appeals has reinstated a developer's suit over a failed deal with the city of Jackson to renovate a historic and long-vacant hotel, ruling that the trial court ignored an amended complaint when it granted summary disposition to the city.

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Bosch And Other HVAC Leaders Accused Of Price-Fixing

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

Bosch Inc. and six other leading heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment businesses are facing a proposed antitrust class action in Michigan federal court alleging they conspired to fix the prices of HVAC equipment.

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Mich. Councilman Says Suit Over 'Legislative Speech' Barred

By Melanie Dorsey

A Hillsdale city councilman has urged a Michigan federal court to dismiss a businessman's $1.5 million suit over remarks made during a library board appointment debate, arguing the claims are barred by absolute legislative immunity and rest on speculation rather than plausible facts. 

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Judge Questions DOJ Bid To End Suit Over Trans Care Memo

By Carolyn Muyskens

A Massachusetts federal judge appeared unmoved Thursday by a U.S. Department of Justice lawyer's argument that a suit challenging directives on prosecuting providers of gender-affirming care for transgender children is an abstract debate, noting that some providers have deemed the care too risky and stopped services. 

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Robinhood Hit With Class Action Over Illegal Sports Betting

By Tom Lotshaw

A proposed class action California, Michigan, New Jersey and New York residents filed against Robinhood Markets Inc. accuses the company of deceptively running an unlicensed sports gambling operation and seeks to recover billions of dollars in lost wagers and damages.

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6th Circ. Hints Support For Superintendent's Suit Over Leave

By Anne Cullen

A Sixth Circuit panel signaled during a hearing Thursday that a trial court prematurely dismissed a school superintendent's lawsuit challenging her continued placement on leave, but the judges wondered if the school official had enough evidence to win at a later phase of litigation.

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Mich. Brokers Appeal Tossed Antitrust Claims Over NAR Rules

By Nate Beck

A group of Michigan real estate brokers and agents on Thursday said they would ask the Sixth Circuit to review a March decision rejecting the proposed antitrust class action over rules set by the National Association of Realtors and its local affiliates for accessing online home listing services.

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6th Circ. Revives Mich. Debt Collection Suit Against Okla. Firm

By Emily Sawicki

A Detroit federal court holds specific jurisdiction over a fair debt collection complaint that a Michigan autoworker launched after his wages were garnished by an out-of-state law firm, according to a precedential ruling by the Sixth Circuit, which found the state's long-arm statute keeps claims alive.

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Brief

Acting Patent Commissioner To Retire From The USPTO

By Theresa Schliep

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's acting patent division leader is leaving the agency and will be replaced by a current deputy commissioner, Law360 confirmed Thursday.

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Series

Officiating Football Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Though they may seem to have little in common, officiating football has sharpened many of the same skills that define effective lawyering in management-side labor and employment: preparation, judgment, composure, credibility and ability to make difficult decisions in real time, says Josh Nadreau at Fisher Phillips.

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DLA Piper Clears Vote To End Verein, Unify Leadership

By Tracey Read

DLA Piper announced Friday that firm partners on both sides of the Atlantic have "overwhelmingly approved" a plan to dissolve its Swiss verein structure effective May 1.

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Exclusive

Judge Albright Reflects On 8 Years Shaping Patent Law

By Dani Kass

U.S. District Judge Alan Albright will be walking away from the Western District of Texas at the end of the summer, ready to head back into patent litigation work. He talked with Law360 on Friday about the rockier elements of his judgeship and lessons he'll take into private practice.

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Commerce Department's General Counsel Departs

By Christine DeRosa

The U.S. Department of Commerce's general counsel has left the agency after just over a year, the agency confirmed on Friday.

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GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

By Sue Reisinger

In what may be a first, a federal judge has ordered BJ's Wholesale Club to put an investor's climate-related proxy proposal up for a vote of the shareholders at the company's annual meeting. And a new study shows that more in-house counsel are staying in place despite pay increases slowing amid less competition for talent.

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Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Kevin Penton

Consovoy McCarthy PLLC, Butler Prather LLP, Bowen Painter LLC and Cannella Snyder LLC lead this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Fluor Corp. can be held liable for a veteran's state-based injury claims stemming from a 2016 suicide bombing in Afghanistan.

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

By Laura Stewart Liberty

The past week in London has seen a Hong Kong company sue the government and a COVID-19 PPE company linked to Tory peer Michelle Mone, an oligarch bring a fresh claim against a rival in a long-running feud, a rugby league club sue over a canceled mass dance event, and Visa and Mastercard hit with legal action from H&M, Eurostar, and Bang & Olufsen. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

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Oregon Lawyer Ordered To Pay Attorney Fees For Use Of AI

By Matt Perez

An Oregon attorney was sanctioned by a state appellate court for filing a brief containing a fabricated list of authorities because she used generative artificial intelligence, marking the first case in the jurisdiction to present the option of awarding attorney fees as a sanction as opposed to fines payable to the court.

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Akin Can't 'Recast' Appeal As Good-Faith Effort, 9th Circ. Told

By Lauren Berg

A European winemaker slammed attempts by a U.S. importer and its Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP attorneys to "recast a frivolous appeal as a good-faith effort," saying they should have to pay monetary sanctions for pursuing what the Ninth Circuit called a "self-indulgent" appeal of a valid arbitration award.

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Atty, Brother Say Father's Last Will Altered In Secret

By Emily Sawicki

A Blank Rome LLP attorney and his brother have sued the attorney who executed their father's will in New Jersey federal court, alleging the lawyer preyed on their ailing father toward the end of his life to alter his beneficiaries through undue influence, forgery and fraud.

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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.

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