Appellate

  • February 03, 2025

    Texas Can Help Feds With Noncitizen Arrests, Judge Says

    A Texas federal judge has modified an injunction blocking a controversial Texas immigration law to clarify that law enforcement in the Lone Star State can help federal agencies with initiatives to arrest and detain unauthorized immigrants.

  • February 03, 2025

    CFPB Small Biz Rules Outstrip Authority, 5th Circ. Hears

    The Texas Bankers Association asked a Fifth Circuit panel on Monday to kill the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's new small business minority data rule during oral arguments, while the panel questioned what to do with the case given the agency's leadership change.

  • February 03, 2025

    11th Circ. Bias Fight Could Set Bar For Trans Benefits Suits

    The full Eleventh Circuit will hear arguments Tuesday from a Georgia county looking to overturn a trial court's ruling that found its health plan's denial of gender-affirming surgery violated federal anti-discrimination law, in a case that could help clarify how a 2020 U.S. Supreme Court decision impacts employee benefits.

  • February 03, 2025

    QBE Insurance, Walmart Cite Pending Opioid Appeal In Ark.

    Walmart Corp. and a fleet of insurers notified Delaware's Supreme Court Monday that they are awaiting an Arkansas Court of Appeals hearing on challenges to a lower court's finding that Walmart is entitled to excess coverage for state and local government insurance suits arising from the opioid epidemic.

  • February 03, 2025

    NC Justices Urged To Reject Appeal Over Rate Hike Approvals

    North Carolina's insurance commissioner urged the state's highest court to reject a policyholder's appeal challenging a series of insurer rate hike approvals in court, saying an appeals panel correctly found that the policyholder failed to support his claims that intervening in the preceding approval process was impossible.

  • February 03, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Questions Mitek's Fears Of USAA Check Patent Suit

    A Federal Circuit panel appeared skeptical of banking software company Mitek Systems Inc.'s effort to revive a suit seeking a declaration that it is not infringing check deposit patents United Services Automobile Association has won millions from suing over, suggesting Monday it seems like Mitek won't also be sued.

  • February 03, 2025

    Attys Hope Ballot Case Clarifies Pennsylvania Constitution Clause

    A Pennsylvania Supreme Court case questioning the constitutionality of a rule requiring undated or misdated mail-in ballots to be discarded is likely the last, and best, chance to settle one of the few open issues over voting in Pennsylvania, experts told Law360.

  • February 03, 2025

    PharmacyChecker's Legality Weighed In 9th Circ. Appeal

    Judges on the Ninth Circuit went back and forth with lawyers on both sides of online drug comparison site PharmacyChecker's antitrust suit against LegitScript on Monday, questioning the latter's claims that PharmacyChecker's entire business is illegal because it facilitates the unsanctioned importation of foreign pharmaceuticals.

  • February 03, 2025

    9th Circ. Revives Church's Copyright Feud With Ex-Member

    A Ninth Circuit panel on Monday gave new life to a copyright dispute between a Washington religious group and a former member who said he had the legal right to use the spiritual teachings of the group's founder, with an opinion noting the case's "strange bedfellow" mix of intellectual property law, estate law and religious writings.

  • February 03, 2025

    USAA Fails To Flip PTAB Loss In $218M EDTX Case

    Federal Circuit judges decided Monday to affirm an administrative board's rulings that wiped out claims in two patents, including one that is tied to a $218.45 million jury verdict leveled against PNC Bank in a patent case in the Eastern District of Texas.

  • February 03, 2025

    Child Porn Victims Urge 9th Circ. To Revive Claims Against X

    Child sex trafficking survivors urged the Ninth Circuit on Monday to revive allegations that X Corp. defectively designed its platform and knowingly benefited from sex trafficking when it refused to remove pornographic videos of the 13-year-old boys, arguing that X isn't shielded under Section 230.

  • February 03, 2025

    DC Circ. Rejects Newman's Bid To Unseal Suspension Docs

    The D.C. Circuit on Monday denied U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman's request to unseal documents about her suspension for refusing to participate in an investigation into her fitness, saying such documents are confidential unless both the judge under investigation and the chief judge agree to release them.

  • February 03, 2025

    Del. Justices Uphold $10.4B Anaplan Inc.'s Thoma Bravo Sale

    Agreeing that a fully informed "Corwin cleansing" vote washed away stockholder objections to a post-signing $400 million trimming of a $10.7 billion deal, Delaware's Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a challenge to Thoma Bravo's acquisition of software-as-a-service company Anaplan Inc. in June 2022.

  • February 03, 2025

    7th Circ. Says Row Over Pilot Contracts Belongs In Arbitration

    The Seventh Circuit has ruled that the Teamsters' challenge to prehire employment agreements with two airlines providing for incentive payments to newly hired pilots must be resolved in arbitration rather than federal court, saying the airlines did enough to show that the incentives are justified by the collective bargaining agreements.

  • February 03, 2025

    Feds Back Out Of Trans Ga. Deputy's 11th Circ. Rehearing

    The U.S. Department of Justice said Friday that it was pulling out of supporting a Georgia transgender sheriff's deputy's bid to have gender-affirming surgery covered by her county government, just days before her case is set to be reheard by the full Eleventh Circuit.

  • February 03, 2025

    Sotomayor Clears Path For Retrial In Landmark Graft Case

    U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor lifted a temporary pause Monday on a public corruption case that resulted in a landmark 2023 decision eliminating the right-to-control theory of fraud, clearing the way for a retrial on a traditional theory of property fraud.

  • February 03, 2025

    Trial Court Won't Pause Google Search Case For Apple Appeal

    A D.C. federal court refused on Sunday to pause the remedies phase of the landmark monopolization case targeting Google's search dominance while Apple appeals a decision refusing to allow it to participate.

  • February 03, 2025

    Texas Appeals Court Wipes Exxon's $2.5M Oil Cleanup Verdict

    A Texas appeals court has wiped a more than $2.5 million verdict for ExxonMobil Pipeline Co., finding that successive owners of its pipeline hadn't agreed to assume the cleanup costs of an oil spill.

  • February 03, 2025

    NC Justice Urges 4th Circ. To Keep Vote Battle In Federal Court

    An incumbent North Carolina justice urged the Fourth Circuit on Monday to keep control of her opponent's challenge to November's election results, rejecting the challenger's claim that developments in state court have rendered the federal case moot.

  • February 03, 2025

    COVID Test Row Hinges On Appeal Notice, 2nd Circ. Hints

    A Second Circuit appellate judge suggested Monday that a union benefit plan may not have been acting fully aboveboard when it did not notify a Connecticut medical practice of an appeal process after it denied reimbursements for COVID-19 testing, but he also met the practice's accusations with skepticism.

  • February 03, 2025

    Panel Backs Sanctions For Frivolous Bid In Malpractice Case

    A New Jersey appeals court said Monday that a New York attorney's motion to vacate an almost $450,000 judgment after a jury found him negligent in a divorce action could only be seen as frivolous, affirming the trial court's award of nearly $8,000 in attorney fees as a sanction.

  • February 03, 2025

    2nd Circ. Affirms Lawyer's Asylum Fraud Conviction

    The Second Circuit on Monday affirmed the convictions of an immigration attorney and the former CEO of an immigration services firm for coaching asylum-seekers to lie about facing persecution in their home countries, rejecting the pair's arguments that there was insufficient evidence and that the jury was given improper instructions.

  • February 03, 2025

    Power Cos., States Ask DC Circ. To Dispose Of Coal Ash Rule

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency acted arbitrarily and well beyond its authority when it enacted a new rule to strengthen federal regulations for coal ash, a score of electric utility entities and Republican-led states told the D.C. Circuit.

  • February 03, 2025

    Calif. City On The Hook In Contractor Wage Fight, Panel Says

    The city of Long Beach, California, could be required to foot the bill for arbitration awards rendered against an oil company subcontractor in workers' wage lawsuits, a state appellate panel ruled, saying an arbitration decision holds as much weight as any other court order and can trigger liability for indemnity.

  • January 31, 2025

    Pipeline Inspector Asks Justices To Deem Him An Employee

    A former pipeline inspector for energy industry service provider Killick Group has petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Fifth Circuit decision classifying him as an independent contractor not eligible for overtime, saying Friday the high court should resolve a circuit split on the factors determining employee status.

Expert Analysis

  • Justices Mull Sex-Based Classification In Trans Law Case

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    After the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in U.S. v. Skrmetti this week, it appears that the fate of the Tennessee law at the center of the case — a law banning gender-affirming healthcare for transgender adolescents — will hinge on whether the majority read the statute as imposing a sex-based classification, says Alexandra Crandall at Dickinson Wright.

  • Corporate Liability Issues To Watch In High Court TM Case

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    The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a trademark dispute between Dewberry Group and Dewberry Engineers next week, presenting an opportunity for the court to drastically alter the fundamental approach to piercing the corporate veil, or adopt a more limited approach and preserve existing norms, say attorneys at Bracewell.

  • Trending At The PTAB: Collateral Estoppel Continues Evolving

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    We are starting to see brighter lines on collateral estoppel involving Patent Trial and Appeal Board proceedings, illustrated by two recent cases that considered whether collateral estoppel should apply to factual findings on prior art from the PTAB in a later district court litigation, say attorneys at Finnegan.

  • Series

    Gardening Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Beyond its practical and therapeutic benefits, gardening has bolstered important attributes that also apply to my litigation practice, including persistence, patience, grit and authenticity, says Christopher Viceconte at Gibbons.

  • Takeaways From DOJ's Intervention On Pricing Algorithm Use

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    A recent U.S. Justice Department amicus brief arguing that a Nevada federal judge wrongly focused on the nonbinding aspect of software company Cendyn Group's pricing algorithm underscores the growing challenge of determining when, if ever, pricing algorithms are legal, say attorneys at Rule Garza.

  • ERISA Ruling Is A Win For DOL Regulatory Authority

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    In Rappaport v. Guardian Life Insurance, a New York federal court recently issued a notable disability benefits ruling in finding that the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright opinion does not affect how existing U.S. Department of Labor regulations apply in Employee Retirement Income Security Act litigation, says Mark DeBofsky at DeBofsky Law.

  • Litigation Inspiration: Reframing Document Review

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    For attorneys — new ones especially — there is much fulfillment to find in document review by reflecting on how important, interesting and pleasant it can be, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

  • What Fed. Circ. Ruling Means For Patent Case Dismissals

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    ​​​​​​​The Federal Circuit's recent decision in UTTO v. Metrotech is significant because it specifically authorizes district courts to dismiss patent infringement lawsuits without a separate Markman hearing, but only when the meaning of a claim term is clear and case-dispositive, says Peter Gergely at Merchant & Gould.

  • 7th Circ. Travel Time Ruling Has Far-Reaching Implications

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    In a case of first impression, the Seventh Circuit’s recent holding in Walters v. Professional Labor Group will have significant implications for employers that must now provide travel time compensation for employees on overnight assignments away from home, says Anthony Sbardellati at Akerman.

  • The Fed. Circ. In October: Anti-Suit Injunctions And SEPs

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    The Federal Circuit's holding in Ericsson v. Lenovo, a complex global case involving standard-essential patents, will likely have broad consequences for practitioners, including by making it easier to obtain an anti-suit injunction, say attorneys at Knobbe Martens.

  • IP Ruling Likely To Limit Arguments Against Qualified Experts

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Osseo v. Planmeca, clarifying when experts may offer testimony from the perspective of a skilled artisan, provides helpful guidance on expert qualifications and could quash future timing arguments regarding declarants' expertise, says Whitney Jenkins at Marshall Gerstein.

  • Unpacking Arguments From High Court's Rural Hospital Case

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    During oral arguments in Advocate v. Becerra, the U.S. Supreme Court justices focused questions on the meaning of being "entitled to" supplementary security income assistance, and there's reason for optimism that the likely split decision will break in favor of hospitals, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • Args In 2 High Court Cases May Foretell Clarity For Employers

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    Mary Anna Brand at Maynard Nexsen examines possible employment implications of two cases argued before the Supreme Court this fall, including a higher bar for justifying employees as overtime exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act, and earlier grants of prevailing party status for employee-plaintiffs seeking attorney fees.

  • California Supreme Court's Year In Review

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    Attorneys at Horvitz & Levy highlight notable decisions on major questions from the California Supreme Court's last term, including voter initiatives, hostile work environment and the economic loss rule.

  • DC Circ. Decision Opens Door To NEPA Regulation Litigation

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    A recent D.C. Circuit decision in Marin Audubon Society v. Federal Aviation Administration could open the door to more litigation over the White House Council on Environmental Quality's National Environmental Policy Act regulations, and could affect how many agencies conduct and interpret environmental assessments, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

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