Appellate

  • January 07, 2025

    10th Circ. Says Age Bias Didn't Drive Aircraft Co. Layoffs

    The Tenth Circuit declined Tuesday to revive a lawsuit from former Spirit AeroSystems Inc. workers who said the aircraft maker targeted older workers during a workforce reduction, ruling they hadn't shown the company was motivated by age discrimination.

  • January 07, 2025

    Surgeon Says Unprovided Report Should Nix Transplant Suit

    A lawsuit from the families of three patients who died on a Texas hospital's liver transplant waiting list should have been tossed because the families failed to provide an expert report to a surgeon accused of tampering with their data, the surgeon argued to a state appeals court Monday.

  • January 07, 2025

    9th Circ. To Let Feds Argue In Wash. ICE Inspection Law Fight

    The Ninth Circuit has said the U.S. government can participate in oral arguments over a blocked Washington law that allowed the state to inspect conditions at a privately-run immigration detention facility in Tacoma.

  • January 07, 2025

    AT&T, Biz Groups Urge Justices To Back Cornell's ERISA Win

    Top business and employee benefits industry lobbying groups along with telecommunications giant AT&T urged the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold Cornell University's victory over a federal benefits lawsuit alleging retirement plan mismanagement, in a flood of amicus briefs at the high court before arguments later this month.

  • January 07, 2025

    4th Circ. Says Farm Bill Does Not Preempt Va. Hemp Law

    The Fourth Circuit affirmed Tuesday that the federal farm bill legalizing hemp nationwide did not preempt Virginia's new law reining in intoxicating products containing THC derived from hemp.

  • January 07, 2025

    Detroit Flooding Class Quizzed On Decision To Skip Expert

    A Michigan appellate panel pressed flooding victims Tuesday to explain why they didn't use an expert to bolster their case that a regional water authority's neglect led to a mass flooding event in 2021, with the judges giving away little about whether they would ultimately revive the claims.

  • January 07, 2025

    'Unflattering' Story Not Defamatory, Gannett Says

    A tax firm's defamation suit against USA Today should be tossed, the newspaper's owner told Texas justices Monday, arguing that a 2021 investigative series was not defamatory even if its "gist" was "unflattering."

  • January 07, 2025

    Coinbase Judge Sends Crypto's Howey Question To 2nd Circ.

    A New York federal judge Tuesday waved through a request from Coinbase to have the Second Circuit weigh in on whether the cryptocurrency transactions on its platform are investment contracts, putting the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's ongoing registration suit against the crypto exchange on ice for now.

  • January 07, 2025

    Fla. Crash Victims Can't Get Insurer Payout In Revised Suits

    A Florida state appellate panel has blocked three vehicle crash victims' attempts to collect $16 million from an insurer, saying that the company wasn't properly joined as a party by the time settlements were reached and that final judgments were issued in two separate lawsuits over the same incident.

  • January 07, 2025

    Biotech Co. Urges NC Panel To Revive Legal Malpractice Suit

    A biotech company that lost a $22 million libel suit brought by a pharmaceutical executive has asked a North Carolina appeals panel for another shot at legal malpractice claims against its former legal counsel, arguing that a savings provision expands the statute of repose for the voluntarily dismissed claim to be revived.

  • January 07, 2025

    Texas Gov. Appoints District Judge To State Appellate Court

    Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has appointed a Hill County district judge to the Tenth Court of Appeals.

  • January 07, 2025

    Ga. Court Backs Trial Judge's Atty Fees Award In Crash Case

    The Georgia Court of Appeals has affirmed an award of $424,000 in additional attorney fees and costs in a car crash suit that ended in a $3 million verdict and $1.25 million in fees and costs, rejecting the plaintiff's argument that the trial court should have made a larger award but used the wrong legal standard.

  • January 07, 2025

    Ford Tells NJ Justices Car Group Can't Rely On Franchise Law

    Ford Motor Co. told the New Jersey Supreme Court during oral argument Tuesday that a coalition of car dealerships can't sue it under the state's franchising law, arguing the plain language of the law only allows for franchisees to bring a cause of action against franchisors.

  • January 07, 2025

    US Postal Service Faces 3rd Circ. Fight Over Philly Injury

    A woman who slipped and fell inside a Philadelphia post office more than six years ago told the Third Circuit that a federal judge erred in dismissing her lawsuit as untimely, arguing in a brief Monday that the court ignored factual disputes over the postal service's delays and missteps in issuing an administrative denial of her claim.

  • January 07, 2025

    Trump Names Classified Docs Case Atty For White House Role

    Stanley Woodward Jr. of Brand Woodward Law LP is the latest attorney from Trump world to be tapped for a role for the incoming administration.

  • January 07, 2025

    Law Firm Sought To Collect Expired Debts, 3rd Circ. Told

    A New Jersey woman has urged the Third Circuit to revive her proposed class action against Garden State law firm Cohn Lifland Pearlman Herrmann & Knopf LLP over its debt collection practices, arguing a lower court was too loose with its standard for the timeliness of the two lawsuits involved.

  • January 07, 2025

    No New Money For More Colo. Judges, Chief Justice Told

    Colorado budget leaders told the state's chief justice Tuesday that her $13 million ask for more judges and staff next year was a nonstarter unless she proposed offsetting cuts, with one lawmaker saying the requested increase was "not going to happen" amid the state's $750 million shortfall.

  • January 07, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Rejects Software Co.'s Bid For $86M From Navy

    A Federal Circuit panel affirmed a decision holding that the U.S. Navy owes a software company just $154,000 for its infringing use of a 3-D virtual reality program, and not the nearly $86 million the company sought based on installations on more than 429,000 computers.

  • January 07, 2025

    DC Circ. OKs FERC's Approval For Indiana Pipeline

    A D.C. Circuit panel on Tuesday rejected a challenge to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's approval of a 24-mile pipeline serving two new natural gas turbines in Indiana, ruling that an advocacy group wrongly suggested FERC could "second-guess" state regulators' choice of energy generation.

  • January 07, 2025

    Osage Nation Asks Court To Confirm Reservation Boundaries

    The Osage Nation has urged an Oklahoma federal court to acknowledge its reservation's continued existence, arguing that a conclusion the Tenth Circuit reached 15 years ago saying the tribe's boundaries were disestablished was based entirely on extratextual factors.

  • January 07, 2025

    NC Justices Pause Certification Of Contested Top Court Race

    North Carolina's top court on Tuesday stopped the state Board of Elections from certifying the results of a hotly contested associate justice race, granting a temporary stay to the losing Republican candidate in the midst of his ballot challenge seeking to throw out scores of votes.

  • January 07, 2025

    No Problem With $217M Dam Repair Tax, Mich. Panel Says

    A Michigan appellate panel on Monday said a $217 million special assessment levied on property owners for dam repairs and lake level restoration after devastating 2020 floods was established through a legally sound process, ruling the owners were never entitled to have a pseudo-judicial review of the tax.

  • January 07, 2025

    Ga. Judge's Ethics Case Gets March Hearing Date

    A hearing has been set for March in the ethics case against a Georgia state judge accused of improperly allowing her personal friendship with an attorney to influence her role as a judge during a child custody case and of initiating and participating in ex parte communications.

  • January 07, 2025

    Landowner Gets Pot Farm Transport Easement Nixed

    A California state appeals court has vacated a conditional use permit that the County of Santa Barbara issued to a cannabis farm, finding that a nearby landowner can deny the use of an easement on its property to transport the federally illegal goods.

  • January 07, 2025

    Religious Schools Ask 1st Circ. To Gut 'Poison Pill' Law

    Two religious schools in Maine asked a First Circuit panel on Tuesday to strike down a "poison pill" passed by state lawmakers to blunt a U.S. Supreme Court decision affirming that the schools may participate in a government tuition program.

Expert Analysis

  • New TCPA Rule Faces Uncertain Future Post-Loper Bright

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    The Federal Communications Commission's new rule aiming to eliminate lead generators' use of unlawful robocalls is now in doubt with the U.S. Supreme Court's Loper Bright decision, and the Eleventh Circuit's Insurance Marketing Coalition v. FCC is poised to be a test case of the agency's ability to enforce the Telephone Consumer Protection Act post-Chevron, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • 6th Circ. Preemption Ruling Adds Uncertainty For Car Cos.

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    Automakers and their suppliers need uniformity under the law to create sufficient scale and viable markets — but the Sixth Circuit's recent decision in Fenner v. General Motors creates more uncertainty around the question of when state law consumer claims related to violations of federal vehicle emissions and fuel economy standards are preempted, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Can SEC's Consolidated Audit Trail Survive Post-Chevron?

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is currently in a showdown at the Eleventh Circuit over its authority to maintain a national market system and require that the industry spend billions to maintain its consolidated audit trail, a case that is further complicated by the Loper Bright decision, says Daniel Hawke at Arnold & Porter.

  • 'Minimum Contacts' Issues At Stake In High Court FSIA Case

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    In CC/Devas v. Antrix, the U.S. Supreme Court must decide whether a "minimum contacts" requirement should be implied in the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, with the potential to dramatically change the legislative landscape through the establishment of a new and significant barrier to U.S. suits against foreign states, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • 2nd Circ. American Girl Ruling Alters Test Purchase Norms

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    The Second Circuit's recent ruling in American Girl v. Zembrka overturns years of precedent that required completed test purchase shipments to establish jurisdiction in infringement cases, but litigators shouldn't abandon the strategy entirely, say Robert Wasnofski and Sara Gates at Dentons.

  • State Of The States' AI Legal Ethics Landscape

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    Over the past year, several state bar associations, as well as the American Bar Association, have released guidance on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in legal practice, all of which share overarching themes and some nuanced differences, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law Group.

  • Cos. Face Increasing Risk From Environmental Citizen Suits

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    Environmental citizen suits stepping in to fill the regulatory vacuum concerning consumer goods waste may soon become more common, and the evolving procedural landscape and changes to environmental law may contribute to companies' increased exposure, say J. Michael Showalter and Bradley Rochlen at ArentFox Schiff.

  • 11th Circ. Kickback Ruling May Widen Hearsay Exception

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    In a $400 million fraud case, U.S. v. Holland, the Eleventh Circuit recently held that a conspiracy need not have an unlawful object to introduce co-conspirator statements under federal evidence rules, potentially broadening the application of the so-called co-conspirator hearsay exception, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • 8 Childhood Lessons That Can Help You Be A Better Attorney

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    A new school year is underway, marking a fitting time for attorneys to reflect on some fundamental life lessons from early childhood that offer a framework for problems that no legal textbook can solve, say Chris Gismondi and Chris Campbell at DLA Piper.

  • 2 Rulings Show How Courts Assess Health Benefit Denials

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    Two recent decisions from federal appeals courts offer important insights into how courts are assessing denials of health benefit claims brought under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, including guidance on how plan administrators should evaluate claims and what documents must be disclosed, says Mark DeBofsky at DeBofsky Law.

  • 2nd Circ. Provides NY Pathway For Fighting Foreign Infringers

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    A recent decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit provides a road map for expeditiously obtaining personal jurisdiction in New York against foreign trademark infringers based on a single purchase of counterfeit goods, meaning the Second Circuit could now be the preferred venue for combating foreign infringement, says Jeffrey Ratinoff at Spencer Fane.

  • Recent Securities Cases Highlight Risks In AI Disclosures

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    Increasing public disclosure about the use and risks of artificial intelligence, and related litigation asserting that such disclosures are false or misleading, suggest that issuers need to exercise great care with respect to how they describe the benefits of AI, say Richard Zelichov and Danny Tobey at DLA Piper.

  • Sublimit And Policy Interpretation Lessons From Amtrak Case

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    The recently settled dispute between Amtrak and its insurers over sublimit coverage illustrates that parties with unclear manuscript policies may wish to avoid litigation in favor of settlement — as the New York federal court declined to decide the case by applying prior term interpretations, says Laura Maletta at Chartwell Law.

  • 3rd Circ. Hertz Ruling Highlights Flawed Bankruptcy Theory

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    The Third Circuit, in its recent Hertz bankruptcy decision, became the latest appeals court to hold that noteholders were entitled to interest before shareholders under the absolute priority rule, but risked going astray by invoking the flawed theory of code impairment, say Matthew McGill and David Casazza at Gibson Dunn.

  • Opinion

    Barrett Is Right: Immunity Is Wrong Framework In Trump Case

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    Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s concurrence in Trump v. U.S., where the majority opinion immunized former presidents almost entirely from criminal prosecution for official actions, rests on a firmer constitutional foundation than the majority’s immunity framework, says Matthew Brogdon at Utah Valley University.

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