Appellate

  • October 23, 2026

    IRS Fights For Microcaptive Reporting Rules In 5th Circuit

    The Fifth Circuit should restore a vacated regulation that required disclosure of certain microcaptive transactions due to the risk of tax avoidance and uphold another related rule that carried a lower penalty for reporting failures, the government said Friday, arguing against a plastics manufacturer fighting to eliminate both.

  • October 23, 2026

    1st Circ. Says Sinovac Investor's Fraud Suit Came Too Late

    The First Circuit found that investment management firm MW Gestion was a few months too late to sue an investor and his firm on a claim they hid their growing stake in China-based biopharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech Ltd., upholding a lower court's ruling that ended MW Gestion's proposed class action on behalf of Sinovac shareholders.

  • October 23, 2026

    Copyright Ruling Leaves Worldwide Rights In Legal Limbo

    The U.S. Supreme Court left music publishers, creators and catalog buyers facing potentially different rules for worldwide copyright termination after an unusual quorum failure ended the entertainment industry's bid to overturn a Fifth Circuit ruling allowing authors to recapture foreign rights included in worldwide grants.

  • October 23, 2026

    NC Asks 4th Circ. To Undo Atty Fees In Prison Trans Care Row

    North Carolina urged the Fourth Circuit on Friday to reverse over half a million dollars in legal fees awarded to a formerly incarcerated transgender woman alleging she was wrongly denied gender-affirming surgery at a state prison, arguing the award defies U.S. Supreme Court precedent.

  • October 23, 2026

    NY Panel Orders New Trial After Unrecorded Jury Remarks

    A New York state appeals court has ruled that a man is entitled to a new trial on drug possession charges after it was discovered that a trial judge had an off-the-record conversation with a juror to resolve a dispute about how to decide the case.

  • October 23, 2026

    Tax Court Misread Easement Rules, 4th Circ. Told

    The U.S. Tax Court imposed conservation easement donation requirements beyond what the law allows in evaluating a property's condition and potential mining value, a partnership told the Fourth Circuit, seeking to overturn the 2025 denial of its charitable deduction.

  • October 23, 2026

    Mich. Appeals Court Upholds Indigent Defense Fee

    Criminal defendants can be required to reimburse the full cost of their court-appointed attorneys even when most of those expenses are covered by state indigent defense grants, a Michigan appeals court ruled after rejecting a woman's argument that the arrangement allows counties to recover the same costs twice.

  • October 23, 2026

    DC Circ. Lets 1929 Census Descendants Join Miwok Vote

    The D.C. Circuit allowed descendants of people listed in a 1929 census of local Native Americans to have a say in the California Valley Miwok Tribe's constitution and bylaws Friday, rejecting a rival faction's bid to restrict the process to a smaller group and settling — for now — a decades-long fight tied to state gaming funds.

  • October 23, 2026

    Feds Want Grant Ruling Foiling Priorities Stayed For Appeal

    The Trump administration asked a Massachusetts federal judge to pause a decision declaring that a grant termination clause does not allow agencies to scrap awards not aligned with its new priorities, claiming it is likely to prevail in a First Circuit appeal.

  • October 23, 2026

    Verisk Must Pursue $2.35B AccuLynx Deal, Del. Court Says

    The Delaware Supreme Court on Friday upheld a ruling that Verisk Analytics Inc. improperly abandoned its $2.35 billion acquisition of roofing software company AccuLynx, leaving the data analytics company obligated to keep pursuing federal antitrust clearance and close the deal if regulators approve it.

  • October 23, 2026

    Pa. Panel Finds Delays Doom Demand To Widen Private Road

    A Pennsylvania township can't make a developer spend $1.2 million widening a private access road because it had ignored the road's alleged noncompliance with the town's code for nearly 20 years, a state appellate court panel said Friday.

  • October 23, 2026

    Atty Beats Contempt For Not Identifying Herself In Ga. Court

    The Georgia Court of Appeals has tossed a contempt order against a Fenwick & West LLP attorney for not identifying herself at a hearing she attended on behalf of an interested nonparty where confidential documents were displayed, saying the presiding judge "did not clearly and definitely inform" her that she needed to do so.

  • October 23, 2026

    Loan Dispute Axed By Mass. Panel Over 2-Year Service Delay

    A Massachusetts appellate panel threw out a judgment against a woman for defaulting on a mortgage loan Friday because it took the lender more than two years to serve the complaint.

  • October 23, 2026

    Insurer Can't Exit Captive Carrier Fight, NC Justices Rule

    The North Carolina Supreme Court on Friday backed a state Business Court decision denying a Georgia insurance company's bid to dismiss third-party claims brought against it in a shareholder dispute over the demise of a defunct captive insurer.

  • October 23, 2026

    9th Circ. Fast-Tracks Trump Admin's Student Speech Appeal

    The Ninth Circuit granted the Trump administration's request to expedite its appeal of an August district court's ruling in a suit brought by the Stanford Daily newspaper that the federal government effort to deport foreign students over their pro-Palestinian speech is unconstitutional.

  • October 22, 2026

    'Grave Errors': 5th Circ. Boots Judge After AI 'Botch Job'

    A Mississippi federal judge's careless use of artificial intelligence tools led to "sloppy edicts" riddled with "falsehoods and fabrications," the Fifth Circuit held in a Thursday night opinion removing the judge from litigation over an anti-DEI law in the Magnolia State because of his "extraordinarily grave errors."

  • October 22, 2026

    8th Circ. Told EPA Misread Aquifer Rule For SD Uranium Mine

    Opponents of a proposed uranium mine in South Dakota told the Eighth Circuit that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency did not deserve judicial deference regarding its reasons for exempting an aquifer from Safe Drinking Water Act protections.

  • October 22, 2026

    Feds Ask 9th Circ. To Scrap Migrant Kids' Legal Aid Injunction

    The federal government urged a Ninth Circuit panel on Thursday to let the Trump administration end legal services programs for unaccompanied immigrant minors, arguing the case is a contract dispute the court lacks authority over and the lower court is "micromanaging" the government, which "should end."

  • October 22, 2026

    5th Circ. Says Feds Liable For Hostage Death, But Cuts Award

    A Fifth Circuit panel has affirmed the government's Federal Tort Claims Act liability for the death of a kidnapping victim who was shot by an FBI agent, but held that a district court judge erred in increasing the damages award to the victim's family after the government challenged the attorney fees.

  • October 22, 2026

    Reed Smith Seeks 2nd Circ. Emergency Stay In Eletson Row

    Reed Smith urged the Second Circuit in an emergency motion to pause lower court decisions requiring the firm to turn over client files related to shipping company Eletson, saying the courts have "presumed the outcome" of a bankruptcy appeal before scheduled December oral arguments.

  • October 22, 2026

    Investor Says $68M Bulgaria Award Can't Be Nixed

    A renewable energy investor asked the D.C. Circuit to enforce a €61 million ($68 million) arbitral award it won from Bulgaria, arguing Bulgaria's accession to the European Union did not render the treaty under which that award was granted inapplicable.

  • October 22, 2026

    States Ask DC Circ. To Ban Google From Paying To Be Default

    If the D.C. Circuit doesn't ban Google from paying to be the default search engine on people's cellphones after it was found to have illegally maintained a monopoly, state enforcers say the tech titan will remain "free to buy tomorrow's defaults with the fruits of yesterday's anticompetitive conduct."

  • October 22, 2026

    Colo. Justices Skeptical Of Facility's COVID-Tied Coverage Bid

    Colorado justices expressed skepticism Thursday toward a retirement facility owner's bid for the high court to find it's owed coverage for physical damage losses sustained early in the pandemic, pressing counsel on what physical injury COVID-19 caused to the facility's property.

  • October 22, 2026

    6th Circ. Says Gang Member Can't Nix Group Chat Warrant

    The Sixth Circuit has ruled that a man convicted for his role in a gang kidnapping did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in an Instagram group chat log seized from another street gang member, so he could not challenge search warrants for other members' social media accounts.

  • October 22, 2026

    Aeropostale Shopper Can Amend Discount Suit, 9th Circ. Says

    A divided Ninth Circuit panel gave an Aeropostale customer another chance to lay out her claim that the clothing brand's allegedly false discount scheme violated Washington state law, ruling in an unpublished opinion Wednesday that the customer can amend her complaint that she paid too much for a pair of leggings.

Expert Analysis

  • Amazon v. Perplexity Ruling Limits CFAA Reach Over AI Tools

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    The Ninth Circuit's recent decision in Amazon v. Perplexity provides important early guidance on how the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act applies to agentic artificial intelligence, and is the latest in a line of rulings in which courts have declined to stretch existing statutes to broadly regulate AI, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Managing OSHA Mental Illness Logs After 5th Circ. Vacatur

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    Employers with facilities in multiple states need to carefully weigh their recordkeeping procedures following the Fifth Circuit’s recent decision that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration cannot require employers to log work-related mental illness, as inconsistent logs across facilities may raise other issues, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.

  • Expect More Probes After 3rd Circ. Algorithmic Pricing Ruling

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    The Third Circuit's recent decision in Cornish-Adebiyi v. Caesars Entertainment, allowing algorithmic price-fixing claims to proceed past motions to dismiss, may serve as a road map for how to contend with increased litigation risk in this developing area of antitrust law, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

  • Series

    Being In A Band Made Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing shows in storied New York City venues and rehearsing with my bandmates in poorly ventilated rooms helped develop the professional qualities I rely on as a litigator, including an ability to collaborate with strong-minded equals and the determination to treat each client with singular focus, says Eliad Shapiro at Herrick Feinstein.

  • Notable Q2 Updates In Insurance Class Actions

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    After 2026's second quarter, there is more authority rejecting class certification on total loss valuation theories from courts at the federal circuit, federal district and state appellate level — along with a resolution of a novel issue of depreciation on a wildfire claim, says Kevin Zimmerman at BakerHostetler.

  • 10th Circ. Ruling Undermines False Ad 'Two Clicks' Rule

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    The Tenth Circuit’s recent ruling in KetoNatural Pet Foods v. Hill's Pet Nutrition substantially challenges a long-standing assumption that a company can avoid responsibility for promotional claims simply because the consumer encountered them by clicking a hyperlink to a third-party website, say attorneys at Venable.

  • How Drug Trial Prediction Markets Pose Insider Trading Risks

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    Multiple prediction market platforms have recently announced plans to offer event contracts related to clinical trial outcomes and regulatory decisions, creating new insider trading risks by expanding the group of people possessing related material nonpublic information far beyond traditional corporate insiders, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • Mich. Ruling Gives Consumer Protection Law Its Teeth Back

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    The Michigan Supreme Court's recent decision in Attorney General v. Eli Lilly, overruling key holdings in two earlier cases, means that Michigan businesses can no longer defeat allegations of deceptive conduct under the state's consumer protection law simply by pointing to any governmental regulation of the business, say attorneys at DiCello Levitt.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Surviving A Long Trial

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    Most of law school trial advocacy is geared toward the sprint of trying a short case, but beyond managing a cross-examination or closing argument, effectively handling the marathon of a lengthy trial requires the ability to maintain composure, organization and credibility with the jury, says Mihir Elchuri at Hirschler.

  • A Deepening Patent-Trademark Divide Over Irreparable Harm

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    Recent Federal Circuit decisions, along with legislation being considered in Congress, may exacerbate the differences that patent owners and trademark owners face when seeking to stop infringement before irreparable harm is caused, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

  • 7th Circ. Ruling May Reduce Litigation Risk For Text Marketers

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    The recent Seventh Circuit holding in Steidinger v. Blackstone Medical Services that unwanted marketing text messages are not telephone calls under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act may strengthen companies' responses to presuit demand letters and early-stage litigation claims premised on do-not-call text theories, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • How Calif. Ruling Defines Drug Cos.' R&D Responsibilities

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    The California Supreme Court's recent ruling in the Gilead Tenofovir Cases, which held that drugmakers have no duty to bring allegedly safer alternatives to market more quickly, is a win for pharmaceutical companies — but not a grant of blanket immunity for all early-stage drug development decisions, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • Whiskey Business: Parsing The 9th Circ. Jack Daniel's IP Toss

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    The Ninth Circuit's recent ruling in VIP Products v. Jack Daniel's, holding a toy did not tarnish the whiskey maker's trademarks, gives fact-finders great latitude by showing that there may exist no categories of per se tarnishing content, says attorney Sara Gold.

  • Calif. Justices' Ruling Reshapes Midcase Appeal Strategy

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    The California Supreme Court's recent decision in Maniago v. Desert Cardiology Consultants holds that voluntary dismissal cannot be used as a shortcut to appellate review of interlocutory orders, resolving a long-running appellate split and pushing litigants to use alternative procedural tools, says Josh Patashnik at Ashurst Perkins Coie.

  • Fed. Circ.'s Thermostat Ruling Holds Patent Jury Trial Lessons

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Ollnova v. Ecobee, throwing out a $11.5 million patent infringement award, clarifies key rules for jury verdict forms and sends an important message on patent subject matter eligibility, says Bijal Vakil at Skadden.

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