Appellate

  • February 12, 2026

    5th Circ. Upholds Texas Ban On Compensated Vote Harvesting

    The Fifth Circuit on Thursday reinstated enforcement of Texas' felony ban on compensated vote harvesting, saying that hypothetical scenarios are not enough to claim that a law is unconstitutional.

  • February 12, 2026

    7th Circ. Takes Up BIPA Amendment's Retroactivity

    The Seventh Circuit heard arguments Thursday over whether a liability-limiting amendment to Illinois' biometric privacy law has retroactive application to lawsuits filed before it took effect, with one judge on the panel saying it seemed like "billions of dollars of consequences turn on how we label the change."

  • February 12, 2026

    Challenge To 3D-Printed Gun Law Fails, 3rd Circ. Rules

    The First Amendment does not protect the distribution of "purely functional code" that would allow for the 3D printing of guns, the Third Circuit ruled Thursday, ending a challenge to a New Jersey law from a Texas-based firearm company and a gun rights group.

  • February 12, 2026

    Pa. Panel Says Parolee Can't Have Probation Term Revoked

    A Pennsylvania appeals court vacated a sentence of a man sent back to prison for a probation violation, holding that because he was still serving a parole term when he failed to appear in court, he did not violate the terms of his probation.

  • February 12, 2026

    Row Over Forensic Expert Testimony Hits NC High Court

    Prosecutors are urging North Carolina's highest court to uphold a drug conviction thrown out on appeal, saying an appellate court deemed a key forensic expert's trial testimony unconstitutional using a flawed interpretation of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2024 decision in Smith v. Arizona.

  • February 12, 2026

    12 Questions For FCC Chair Brendan Carr

    It's been a "banger" of a year at the Federal Communications Commission, says agency chief Brendan Carr, who took over at the outset of President Donald Trump's second term with the goal of cutting regulations and quickly turning over more spectrum to the private sector.

  • February 12, 2026

    Wash. Justices To Hear Gym's Suit Over COVID-Era Inspection

    Washington's highest court will review an appellate ruling that state labor department inspectors violated an Anytime Fitness owner's reasonable expectation of privacy when they tailgated a gym member who used a key card to enter the facility during the COVID-19 pandemic, when businesses were supposed to be shuttered.

  • February 12, 2026

    Tesla Says Case Transfer Boosts Mandamus Bid In PTAB Fight

    A Texas federal judge's decision to send patent infringement litigation against Tesla Inc. to California strengthens the automaker's mandamus petition claiming the Patent Trial and Appeal Board wrongly turned away its challenges, Tesla told the Federal Circuit.

  • February 12, 2026

    DC Circ. Judge Rips Into Insurer In CMS Rating Case

    A Louisiana insurer found a tough critic in one D.C. Circuit judge Thursday as it argued that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services used an unfair method to assess its "star ratings" for insurance plans, with the jurist saying the company seemed like it "just wanted whatever interpretation will give you a higher score."

  • February 12, 2026

    Split 4th Circ. Denies Stay Lift In CertainTeed Unit's Ch. 11

    A split panel of the Fourth Circuit on Wednesday upheld lower court rulings that left in place a stay of asbestos injury litigation facing the bankrupt affiliate of building material maker CertainTeed, with the majority ruling the debtor filed its case in good faith.

  • February 12, 2026

    DC Circ. Is Asked To Vet New DOT Immigrant Truck Driver Rule

    Drivers and labor unions on Thursday petitioned the D.C. Circuit to review the U.S. Department of Transportation's new final rule tightening states' screening procedures and eligibility criteria for nondomiciled commercial driver's licenses issued to immigrants.

  • February 12, 2026

    9th Circ. Judges Doubt AG-Picked Nevada US Atty Can Serve

    Two judges on a Ninth Circuit panel doubted Thursday the government's argument that a lower court erred by finding the U.S. Attorney General wrongly appointed Nevada's top federal prosecutor, with both judges repeatedly noting that the government's legal theory suggests that U.S. attorneys could circumvent the nomination process indefinitely.

  • February 12, 2026

    NC Justices Asked To Decide Gov.'s Power To Appoint Judges

    North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein is asking the state's top court to review a decision that let lawmakers curtail his ability to fill judicial vacancies in appellate courts, arguing the ruling defies precedent as well as the state Constitution and must be reversed.

  • February 12, 2026

    10th Circ. Says Papa John's Franchise Can't Dodge Wage Suit

    New Mexico federal court correctly lifted a stay in a delivery driver's wage and hour suit against a Papa John's franchisee because the entity was in default after it failed to pay the arbitration fees, the Tenth Circuit ruled Thursday.

  • February 12, 2026

    Vape Co. Seeks Stay Of $1.6M Judgment In Battery Blast Suit

    A vape wholesaler is asking the North Carolina Supreme Court to stay a $1.6 million judgment it was ordered to pay to the estate of a man who suffered burns when a lithium ion battery exploded in his pocket, while the estate on Thursday filed an opposition to the stay.

  • February 12, 2026

    NY Court Orders Ineffective-Counsel Hearing In Murder Case

    A New York appeals court ordered a lower court to hold a hearing for a man convicted of murder to present his case that he was given ineffective assistance of counsel when his trial attorney refused to request a lesser included offense in his case.

  • February 12, 2026

    2nd Circ. Rejects EEOC's Bid To End 55-Year-Old Bias Case

    The Second Circuit on Thursday rejected the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's bid to close the door on a more than half-century-old race discrimination case against a union and its affiliated apprenticeship program, upholding a lower court's determination that a proposed settlement in the case falls short.

  • February 12, 2026

    Town Officials Off Hook For Railroad's Axed Superfund Deal

    A Massachusetts intermediate appellate panel affirmed that two Hopedale officials are immune from claims that they torpedoed a railroad's contract to ship uranium-contaminated soil through their town of 6,000, saying the officials "had every right" to ask questions.

  • February 12, 2026

    11th Circ. Upholds Arbitration Order In Hospital-Union Row

    The Eleventh Circuit has affirmed an order sending 17 HCA Florida hospitals to arbitration to resolve a Service Employees International Union affiliate's grievances about legal fees tied to a dues deduction dispute.

  • February 12, 2026

    Ga. Panel Says Jury Confusion Perhaps Caused $113M Verdict

    A Georgia appellate panel threw out a $113 million judgment Thursday awarded to a construction worker who was struck by a passing car, ordering a new trial after finding that vague instructions may have caused the jury to double-count its attorney fee award.

  • February 12, 2026

    Former NJ AG Matthew Platkin Launches Litigation Boutique

    Former New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin on Thursday announced the launch of Platkin LLP, a litigation boutique made up of former state prosecutors looking to take on cases touching on consumer protection, the rule of law and other public interest causes.

  • February 12, 2026

    Watchdog Defends Ex-Alex Jones Atty's Conn. Suspension

    A Connecticut judge did not abuse her discretion when she suspended an attorney who formerly represented conspiracy broadcaster Alex Jones in a $1.4 billion defamation case, the state's professional misconduct watchdog has told the Connecticut Supreme Court in asking the justices to skip Norman A. Pattis' appeal.

  • February 12, 2026

    5th Circ. Won't Revive Firing Claim Against American Airlines

    The Fifth Circuit won't revive an airline mechanic's claim that American Airlines fired him because of his work as a union representative, agreeing with a Texas federal judge that the claim belongs in arbitration rather than federal court.

  • February 12, 2026

    5th Circ. Won't Block Miss. E-Cig Law During Appeal

    The Fifth Circuit won't block enforcement of a Mississippi law that prohibits the sale of unauthorized e-cigarettes in the state, saying that the vape interests challenging the law haven't established standing to do so.

  • February 12, 2026

    2nd Circ. Seems Wary Of Restarting Norfolk Derailment Suit

    The Second Circuit appeared skeptical Thursday of investors' bid to revive a proposed class action against Norfolk Southern alleging that the company botched disclosures about how an efficiency plan might cause derailments, as judges seemed open to a lower court's interpretation that railroad statements about safety were puffery.

Expert Analysis

  • 2nd Circ. Peloton Ruling Emphasizes Disclosure Context

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    The Second Circuit’s recent decision to revive shareholders’ suit alleging that Peloton made materially misleading statements makes clear that public companies must continually review risk disclosures to determine if previous hypotheticals have materialized, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

  • Series

    Mindfulness Meditation Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Mindful meditation enables me to drop the ego, and in helping me to keep sight of what’s important, permits me to learn from the other side and become a reliable counselor, says Roy Wyman at Bass Berry.

  • Lessons From 7th Circ. Decision Affirming $183M FCA Verdict

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    The Seventh Circuit's decision to uphold a $183 million False Claims Act award against Eli Lilly engages substantively with recurring materiality and scienter questions and provides insights into appellate review of complex trial court judgments, say Ellen London at London & Naor, Li Yu at Bernstein Litowitz and Kimberly Friday at Osborn Maledon.

  • How Calif. High Court Is Rethinking Forum Selection Clauses

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    Two recent cases before the California Supreme Court show that the state is shifting toward greater enforcement of freely negotiated forum selection clauses between sophisticated parties, so litigators need to revisit old assumptions about the breadth of California's public policy exception, says Josh Patashnik at Perkins Coie.

  • AI Litigation Tools Can Enhance Case Assessment, Strategy

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    Civil litigators can use artificial intelligence tools to strengthen case assessment and aid in early strategy development, as long as they address the risks and ethical considerations that accompany these uses, say attorneys at Barnes & Thornburg.

  • Attys Beware: Generative AI Can Also Hallucinate Metadata

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    In addition to the well-known problem of AI-generated hallucinations in legal documents, AI tools can also hallucinate metadata — threatening the integrity of discovery, the reliability of evidence and the ability to definitively identify the provenance of electronic documents, say attorneys at Law & Forensics.

  • How 9th Circ. Ruling Deepens SEC Disgorgement Circuit Split

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    The Ninth Circuit's recent decision in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Sripetch creates opposing disgorgement rules in the two circuits where the SEC brings a large proportion of enforcement actions — the Second and Ninth — and increases the likelihood that the U.S. Supreme Court will step in, say attorneys at Cahill Gordon.

  • Calif. Justices Continued Anti-Arbitration Trend This Term

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    In the 2024-2025 term, the California Supreme Court justices continued to narrow arbitration's reach under state law, despite state courts' extreme caseload backlog and even as they embraced contractual autonomy in other contexts, says Josephine Petrick at The Norton Law Firm.

  • DC Circuit Charts Path On FERC Orders In Loper Bright Era

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    The D.C. Circuit's recent decision in Solar Energy Industries Association v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, upholding the agency's assessment of a power production facility's output, laid out an approach for addressing statutory interpretation in FERC appeals in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's game-changing Loper Bright decision, say attorneys at Bracewell.

  • Lessons From Fed. Circ. On Expert Testimony In Patent Cases

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    Several recent decisions from the Federal Circuit are notable for their treatment of expert testimony, with relevance to the three pillars of every patent case — infringement, invalidity and damages — and offer lessons on ensuring that expert testimony is both admissible and sufficient to support the jury's verdict, say attorneys at Honigman.

  • When Atty Ethics Violations Give Rise To Causes Of Action

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    Though the Model Rules of Professional Conduct make clear that a violation of the rules does not automatically create a cause of action, attorneys should beware of a few scenarios in which they could face lawsuits for ethical lapses, says Brian Faughnan at Faughnan Law.

  • Fed. Circ. In September: The Printed Matter Doctrine Expands

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    The Federal Circuit’s recent decision in Bayer v. Mylan represents an extension of the doctrine that adding new words to an existing product or method will not support patentability unless there is a functional relationship, bringing new considerations for both patent holders and challengers, say attorneys at Knobbe Martens.

  • Justices' LabCorp Punt Leaves Deeper Class Cert. Circuit Split

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    In its ruling in LabCorp v. Davis, the U.S. Supreme Court left unresolved a standing-related class certification issue that has plagued class action jurisprudence for years — and subsequent conflicting decisions among federal circuit courts have left district courts and litigants struggling with conflicting and uncertain standards, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • State Of Insurance: Q3 Notes From Pennsylvania

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    Todd Leon at Marshall Dennehey discusses three notable Pennsylvania auto insurance developments from the third quarter, including the Third Circuit weighing in on actual cash value, a state appellate court opining on the regular use exclusion and state legislators introducing a bill to increase property damage minimums.

  • Opinion

    Courts Must Continue Protecting Plaintiffs In Mass Arbitration

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    In recent years, many companies have imposed onerous protocols that function to frustrate plaintiffs' ability to seek justice through mass arbitration, but a series of welcome court decisions in recent months indicate that the pendulum might be swinging back toward plaintiffs, say Raphael Janove and Sasha Jones at Janove Law.

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