Appellate

  • April 24, 2024

    Hawaii High Court Affirms Timeshare Property Tax Is Legal

    Timeshares in Maui County, Hawaii, were properly taxed using a timeshare property classification because the classification is both constitutional and in line with the county's code, the state Supreme Court affirmed.

  • April 24, 2024

    Pegasystems Cuts $35M Deal To End Investor Suit

    Pegasystems Inc. has agreed to pay $35 million to settle a shareholder suit in Massachusetts federal court alleging the software company failed to properly disclose a rival's trade secret litigation that led to a $2 billion verdict.

  • April 24, 2024

    Justices Spar On Interplay Of EMTALA, Idaho Abortion Ban

    The U.S. Supreme Court held a feisty debate Wednesday over whether an Idaho abortion ban is superseded by a federal law requiring doctors at Medicare-funded hospitals to give emergency care, including abortions, to women suffering a medical crisis.

  • April 24, 2024

    3rd Circ. Won't Let Keystone Coal Escape Black Lung Payout

    The Third Circuit on Wednesday denied Keystone Coal Mining Corp.'s request to revoke benefits awarded to a miner with pneumoconiosis under the Black Lung Benefits Act, rejecting its argument that the administrative law judge hearing the case did not properly consider all the evidence.

  • April 24, 2024

    9th Circ. Backs Limits On Montana Wolf Trapping

    A split Ninth Circuit panel on Tuesday largely affirmed a lower court's order limiting wolf trapping and snaring in Montana over concerns it could impact grizzly bears, but directed the court to reconsider its "overbroad" geographic scope and limitations on state officials' research.

  • April 24, 2024

    4th Circ. Revives Worker's Age Bias Suit Against IT Co.

    The Fourth Circuit on Wednesday reinstated a former information technology company worker's lawsuit alleging she was unlawfully fired and replaced by someone nearly 30 years her junior, saying a trial court held her to too high a standard when it threw out her case.

  • April 24, 2024

    11th Circ. Probes High Court Rulings' Effect On DeSantis Case

    The Eleventh Circuit wants Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state attorney he suspended to explain how two seemingly conflicting U.S. Supreme Court decisions could influence the appellate court's ability to hear that attorney's challenge to his removal.

  • April 24, 2024

    Solar Panel Co. Loses Calif. Appeal Over PAGA Arbitration

    A California appellate panel sided with a lower court as it ruled in a published opinion that a carveout in a home solar panel company's employment agreement did not require a former worker to arbitrate his individual Private Attorneys General Act claims, keeping his suit in court.

  • April 24, 2024

    7th Circ. Revives Suit Over Paper Co.'s ESOP Valuation

    The Seventh Circuit reopened a suit claiming executives at a defunct paper company and financial advisers overvalued the business to persuade workers to put retirement savings into an employee stock ownership plan, saying a lower court viewed the allegations too narrowly when it tossed the case.

  • April 24, 2024

    Conn. Justices Say Notice Wasn't 'Filed' Until It Was Received

    The Connecticut Supreme Court has ruled that a contractor filed notice with the state Workers' Compensation Commission to contest liability for a worker's alleged injury too late — the key word being "filed," as the justices concluded the notice was not actually filed until the commission received it, rather than when it was sent.

  • April 24, 2024

    Landlords Bring NY Rent Law Challenge To High Court Again

    Thirteen New York property owners urged the U.S. Supreme Court to review their challenge to two 2019 changes to New York rental laws, arguing that the suit is the better-tailored vehicle Justice Clarence Thomas signaled interest in when denying a similar challenge in January.

  • April 24, 2024

    Biden's Latest Judge Picks Include Blocked US Atty Nom

    President Joe Biden announced seven judicial nominee picks on Wednesday, including one for the Northern District of Illinois, which covers Chicago, whom he previously nominated to be U.S. attorney for the district, but has been held up by a Republican senator.

  • April 24, 2024

    California Atty Must Face Defamation Claims Over Texts

    An Orange County attorney cannot hide behind claims of litigation privilege and must face defamation claims over disparaging text messages he sent about a contractor working on his home, a California state appeals court said Tuesday.

  • April 23, 2024

    10th Circ. Orders Redo Of $96M Award After Top Court Ruling

    The Tenth Circuit on Tuesday ordered an Oklahoma federal court to recalculate a $96 million trademark infringement award won by a radio control maker against its European former partners after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that the Lanham Act applies only to domestic conduct in commerce.

  • April 23, 2024

    Turkish Co. Hit With $168M Suit Over Failed Uniform Deal

    Strategic advisory firm Sinclair & Wilde Ltd. sued a Turkish military textile company in New York state court, seeking approximately $168 million in damages over allegations it violated verbal military uniform supply agreements involving Ukraine and used political connections to get Sinclair's CEO detained in Turkey.

  • April 23, 2024

    BNSF Says Zurich Should Pay For Defense In Asbestos Cases

    BNSF asked a Texas appeals court Tuesday to consider hundreds of asbestos exposures in Libby, Montana, as separate occurrences to trigger an insurance policy provision, saying during oral arguments that Zurich American Insurance Co. needed to cough up defense costs in cases relating to the exposures.

  • April 23, 2024

    SEC Critics Preview Future Challenges To Agency Action

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission may face new challenges to its enforcement authority from the way it imposes industry bars to the burden of proof needed to bring its civil cases, two frequent legal opponents of the agency said Tuesday.

  • April 23, 2024

    10th Circ. Backs Mexican Woman's Appeal Of Asylum Denial

    The Tenth Circuit on Tuesday revived the asylum bid of a woman who based her fear of returning to Mexico on her cousin's murder, saying the woman had challenged an immigration judge's ruling properly before the Board of Immigration Appeals.

  • April 23, 2024

    Justices' Doubts May Undo 9th Circ. On Spousal Visa Rights

    The right wing of the U.S. Supreme Court appeared skeptical on Tuesday that a U.S. citizen can challenge her Salvadoran husband's visa denial, but seemed disinclined to rule that she has no constitutional rights in the process either.

  • April 23, 2024

    US Gun Cos. Tell Justices Mexico Is Circumventing Law With Suit

    A group of American firearm makers is asking the Supreme Court to throw out a suit from the government of Mexico alleging they have aided and abetted cartels, saying the First Circuit broke with the high court's precedent by allowing the case to proceed.

  • April 23, 2024

    Seller Fights Lender Over First Dibs On $3 Million Property

    A lender that took possession of a $3 million property in Haslet, Texas, seems to have negotiated the sale of the tract to an unaffiliated party, Texas appeals court justices said during oral arguments in Fort Worth on Tuesday, in a fight over whether the original seller gets right of first refusal after the land went into foreclosure.

  • April 23, 2024

    Feds Urge Court To Admit Ex-VP Info In Mogul's Bribery Case

    Federal prosecutors have struck back against embattled insurance mogul Greg Linderg's attempt to keep evidence about a former employee's alleged involvement in a bribery scheme from a jury, telling the court that the employee's acquittal on related charges doesn't make evidence dealing with him inadmissible.

  • April 23, 2024

    Lisa Blatt Becomes 1st Woman To Argue 50 High Court Cases

    Williams & Connolly LLP partner Lisa Blatt began her historic 50th oral argument in front of the U.S. Supreme Court with a chuckle Tuesday.

  • April 23, 2024

    Medtronic Patent Fight With Axonics Set For September Trial

    A California federal judge has lifted a stay in Medtronic's patent infringement suit against Axonics over an electrical stimulation system, while also scheduling a trial for September.

  • April 23, 2024

    CoStar Rival Is Asking To Free Ride, 9th Circ. Told

    CoStar urged the Ninth Circuit not to revive antitrust counterclaims from Commercial Real Estate Exchange Inc., despite backing from the Federal Trade Commission, arguing the rival is trying to use antitrust law to get free access to its platforms.

Expert Analysis

  • ESG Challenges In Focus After Sierra Club Opposes SEC Rule

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    The Sierra Club's recent objection to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's climate-related disclosures for investors presents an unusual — pro-disclosure — legal challenge and an opportunity to take a close look at the varying critiques of ESG regulations, say Colin Pohlman, and Jane Luxton and Paul Kisslinger at Lewis Brisbois.

  • Opinion

    High Court Should Settle Circuit Split On Risk Disclosures

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    The U.S. Supreme Court should grant the petition for writ of certiorari in the Facebook case to resolve a growing circuit split concerning when risk disclosures can be misleading under federal securities laws, and its decision should align with the intent of Congress and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, says Richard Zelichov at DLA Piper.

  • Opinion

    Why Supreme Court Should Allow Repatriation Tax To Stand

    If the U.S. Supreme Court doesn't reject the taxpayers' misguided claims in Moore v. U.S. that the mandatory repatriation tax is unconstitutional, it could wreak havoc on our system of taxation and result in a catastrophic loss of revenue for the government, say Christina Mason and Theresa Balducci at Herrick Feinstein.

  • For Lawyers, Pessimism Should Be A Job Skill, Not A Life Skill

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    A pessimistic mindset allows attorneys to be effective advocates for their clients, but it can come with serious costs for their personal well-being, so it’s crucial to exercise strategies that produce flexible optimism and connect lawyers with their core values, says Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • High Court's Jan. 6 Rioter Case May Have Wide Ripple Effects

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    The U.S. Supreme Court will soon hear oral arguments in Fischer v. United States, a case that will determine whether a law enacted after the Enron scandal can be used to prosecute Jan. 6 rioters, and could affect the government’s ability to charge those who impede a range of official proceedings, say Brook Dooley and Sara Fitzpatrick at Keker Van Nest.

  • 5th Circ. Clarifies What Is And Isn't A 'New Use' Of PFAS

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    The Fifth Circuit's March 21 decision in Inhance Technologies v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, preventing the EPA from regulating existing uses of PFAS under "significant new use" provisions of the Toxic Substances Control Act, provides industry with much-needed clarity, say Joseph Schaeffer and Sloane Wildman at Babst Calland.

  • CORRECTED: Endoscope Patent Case Offers Guidance On Right To Repair

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    An Alabama federal court's decision in Karl Storz v. IMS reaffirmed that product owners have broad rights to repair or modify their property as they see fit, highlighting the parameters of the right to repair in the context of patent infringement, say Dustin Weeks and Dabney Carr at Troutman Pepper. Correction: Due to an editing error, a previous version of this article and headline attributed the Karl Storz ruling to the wrong court. The error has been corrected.

  • Trump's NY Civil Fraud Trial Spotlights Long-Criticized Law

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    A New York court’s recent decision holding former President Donald Trump liable for fraud brought old criticisms of the state law used against him back into the limelight — including its strikingly broad scope and its major departures from the traditional elements of common law fraud, say Mark Kelley and Lois Ahn at MoloLamken.

  • How A Motion Before Justices May Help Trump Beyond Court

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    Even if Donald Trump loses his presidential immunity claim before the U.S. Supreme Court, the delay created by the motion may mean a trial can't be completed before the November election, says Paul Tuchmann at Wiggin and Dana.

  • Opinion

    $175M Bond Refiled By Trump Is Still Substantively Flawed

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    The corrected $175 million bond posted by former President Donald Trump on Thursday to stave off enforcement of the New York attorney general's fraud judgment against him remains substantively and procedurally flawed, as well as inadequately secured, says Adam Pollock of Pollock Cohen.

  • Opinion

    Requiring Leave To File Amicus Briefs Is A Bad Idea

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    A proposal to amend the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure that would require parties to get court permission before filing federal amicus briefs would eliminate the long-standing practice of consent filing and thereby make the process less open and democratic, says Lawrence Ebner at the Atlantic Legal Foundation and DRI Center.

  • NJ Ruling Offers Road Map To Fight Dishonored Check Claims

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    As ATM and mobile check deposits become more common, a New Jersey state appellate court’s recent ruling in Triffin v. Neptune shows that issuers can rely on copies of checks to defend against claims that checks were wrongfully dishonored after being electronically deposited, say attorneys at Sherman Atlas.

  • 4 Ways To Motivate Junior Attorneys To Bring Their Best

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    As Gen Z and younger millennial attorneys increasingly express dissatisfaction with their work and head for the exits, the lawyers who manage them must understand and attend to their needs and priorities to boost engagement and increase retention, says Stacey Schwartz at Katten.

  • A Look At Recent Challenges To SEC's Settlement 'Gag Rule'

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    Though they have been unsuccessful so far, opponents of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's so-called gag rule, which prevents defendants from denying allegations when settling with the SEC, are becoming increasingly vocal and filing more challenges in recent years, say Mike Blankenship and Regina Maze at Winston & Strawn.

  • How 3 Unfolding Cases Could Affect The Energy Industry

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    Three judicial decisions now in the pipeline — Texas' challenge to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's methane regulations, Delaware's climate suit against big energy companies, and a case before the Supreme Court of Texas on royalty lease interpretation — could have important implications for the energy industry, say Michelle Scheffler and Rachael Cox at Skadden.

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