California

  • January 29, 2026

    9th Circ. Says Noem Can't 'Smuggle In' TPS Vacaturs

    The Ninth Circuit has ruled that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem lacked the authority to vacate temporary protected status for Venezuela and Haiti, saying her attempt to do so flouts both Congress' design of the TPS statute and the law's language.

  • January 29, 2026

    NHTSA Opens Waymo Probe After Autonomous Car Hits Child

    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened another investigation into Waymo LLC autonomous vehicles and how they operate in school zones after one hit a child near an elementary school in Santa Monica, California, marking the second safety probe into Waymo's maneuverings around children since October.

  • January 29, 2026

    ITC Backs Penalties For Flouting Chocolate Mix Import Ban

    The U.S. International Trade Commission has declined to review a decision by an administrative law judge to penalize four grocers found to be violating a ban on importing chocolate malt drink mix.

  • January 29, 2026

    PubMatic Fails To Score Complete Dismissal Of Privacy Suit

    A California federal judge has largely refused to dismiss a proposed class action that accuses digital advertising firm PubMatic Inc. of secretly tracking internet users across the web and selling their data, with the judge allowing most privacy and wiretapping claims to move forward.

  • January 29, 2026

    Citizens Policy Doesn't Cover Mass Shooting, Suit Says

    A California mushroom farm that was the site of a fatal mass shooting isn't covered under an insurance policy that prevents coverage under an "abuse and molestation exclusion" for negligence caused by the farm's workers, Citizens Insurance told a federal court Wednesday.

  • January 29, 2026

    Calif. Jury Convicts Ex-Google Engineer Of Stealing AI Secrets

    A California federal jury on Thursday found former Google software engineer Linwei Ding guilty of seven counts of trade secret theft and seven counts of economic espionage in a criminal trial over allegations that he stole the tech giant's artificial intelligence trade secrets to help himself and China.

  • January 29, 2026

    Pasadena Settles Tenants' Wildfire Contamination Claims

    The California city of Pasadena has agreed to settle claims filed by local residents who alleged in California state court that the city failed to conduct "adequate inspections" for homes that were contaminated with "toxic smoke, ash and soot" caused by the Eaton wildfires that occurred in January 2025.

  • January 29, 2026

    From TikTok To The Courtroom, The Rise Of Lawfluencers

    A growing group of legal influencers with huge followings say social media use is helping them expand their practices along with their brands and offering marketing lessons that even BigLaw can learn from.

  • January 28, 2026

    Anthropic Hit With 2nd Music IP Suit, This Time For $3B

    Major music publishers already suing Anthropic for copyright infringement filed a second, $3 billion suit against the artificial intelligence company on Wednesday, a move they say is necessary to hold Anthropic accountable for "brazen," newly discovered mass infringement of sheet music and songbooks.

  • January 28, 2026

    Google To Pay Android Users $135M To End Data Use Suit

    Google agreed to pay $135 million and obtain consent from new Android users for use of their cellular data to resolve a proposed class action accusing it of conducting "passive" data transfers without consumers' knowledge or consent over the Android operating system, according to a proposed deal filed in California federal court.

  • January 28, 2026

    Trade Secret Filings Hit Record High In 2025, Report Finds

    Trade secret litigation reached an all-time high in 2025, with more than 1,500 federal cases filed for the first time ever, according to a new report by legal analytics firm Lex Machina, which also highlights trends about damages, the busiest courts and the law firms most frequently involved.

  • January 28, 2026

    Unions Say FEMA Staff Cuts Threaten Disaster Readiness

    A coalition of unions, nonprofit organizations and local governments that are challenging the Trump administration's federal worker layoffs and agency reorganizations asked a California federal judge Tuesday for permission to add the Federal Emergency Management Agency as a defendant, saying ongoing staff cuts threaten its legally mandated responsibility to respond to disasters.

  • January 28, 2026

    Amazon Seeks To Send Delivery Co.'s RICO Suit To Arbitration

    Amazon is urging a Washington federal judge to force a shipping contractor to arbitrate his proposed class action targeting the e-commerce company's logistics partner program, arguing the Ninth Circuit has already held that disputes stemming from its Delivery Service Partner agreement belong in arbitration.

  • January 28, 2026

    Ex-Google Engineer's Trade Secret Theft Case Goes To Jury

    Software engineer Linwei Ding "stole, cheated and lied" when he worked at Google LLC, taking its artificial intelligence trade secrets to help himself and China, a California federal prosecutor told jurors Tuesday, urging them to convict him of economic espionage and trade secret theft.

  • January 28, 2026

    Arbitrator Choice Prompts New Feud In Asbestos Claims Fight

    A California federal judge on Wednesday ordered a group of reinsurers to confer with Truck Insurance Exchange as the company looks to remove a "side-switching" arbitrator from a dispute over coverage for millions of dollars' worth of asbestos bodily injury claims.

  • January 28, 2026

    Jeffer Mangels Picks New Vice Chair For Hospitality Team

    Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP has picked its cybersecurity and privacy group co-chair to serve as the new vice chair for its global hospitality team, which currently employs more than 40 attorneys, the firm announced Monday.

  • January 28, 2026

    Judge Vacates $1.3M Deal After 7 Years Pass With No Payment

    A California federal judge has vacated an order from seven years ago preliminarily approving a $1.3 million settlement of claims brought by Wins Finance Holdings Inc. shareholders, saying Wins' failure to secure approval from the Chinese government to release the funds makes it unlikely the investors will get paid under the deal.

  • January 28, 2026

    Teva Allowed New Mifepristone Claim But Not New Defendant

    A California federal judge gave Teva permission to update its antitrust suit accusing Corcept Therapeutics of using patent system abuse, bribes and exclusive dealing to block generic competition to its cortisol disorder treatment while refusing to let Teva add another specialty pharmacy as a defendant.

  • January 28, 2026

    FCC Sees Dead People On Lifeline, But Dems Balk At New Reg

    Democrats are bristling against a plan by the Federal Communications Commission to reduce purported fraud in the Lifeline program, where the agency says some states enrolled dead people and others who don't qualify.

  • January 28, 2026

    IT Co.'s Arbitration Pact Undercut Class Rights, 9th Circ. Says

    TEKsystems Inc. engaged in misleading and coercive actions when it provided an arbitration pact to technology recruiters seeking unpaid overtime nearly two years after they lodged their suit, the Ninth Circuit ruled Wednesday, affirming a California federal court decision.

  • January 28, 2026

    Chinese Man Gets 46 Months In $37M Pig Butchering Scam

    A Chinese national was sentenced to 46 months in prison Tuesday in California federal court for participating in a global network that tricked 174 victims lured in from dating apps into pouring money into fake digital asset investments, and ultimately laundering $36.9 million in cryptocurrency proceeds to scam centers overseas.

  • January 28, 2026

    Investor Says Cannabis Biz Shielded Tax Debt Before Sale

    A Los Angeles investor claimed in a state lawsuit that he was defrauded out of $100,000 by a cannabis business owner and brokers who sold him shares in a dispensary without warning him that its tax debt was nearly $150,000.

  • January 28, 2026

    7th Circ. Weighs 'Unprecedented' Clearview AI Privacy Deal

    The Seventh Circuit on Wednesday raised misgivings about a novel settlement ending multidistrict litigation over Clearview AI's collection of biometric data online, pressing an attorney for those objecting to the deal to offer alternatives they'd deem fair, given the risk of the company going bankrupt and class members receiving no payout at all.

  • January 28, 2026

    Social Media Addiction Laws Eyed By Conn. Governor, AG

    Connecticut lawmakers will consider forcing social media companies to display mental health warning labels and file state reports detailing the numbers of youth users, parental consent figures and average daily screen time statistics, Gov. Ned Lamont and Attorney General William M. Tong said in a Wednesday statement.

  • January 28, 2026

    Fairlife Founders Freed From Calif. Cow Treatment Suit

    The founders of Fairlife brand milk can't be held liable in a California proposed class action accusing the company of making false claims about humane cow treatment, a federal judge ruled, saying the suit failed to point to any examples of intentional acts they made directed to the state.

Expert Analysis

  • 5 Crisis Lawyering Skills For An Age Of Uncertainty

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    As attorneys increasingly face unprecedented and pervasive situations — from prosecutions of law enforcement officials to executive orders targeting law firms — they must develop several essential competencies of effective crisis lawyering, says Ray Brescia at Albany Law School.

  • Compliance Tips Amid Rising FTC Scrutiny Of Minors' Privacy

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    The Federal Trade Commission has recently rolled out multiple enforcement actions related to children's privacy, highlighting a renewed focus on federal regulation of minors' personal information and the evolving challenges of establishing effective, privacy-protective age assurance solutions, say attorneys at Nelson Mullins.

  • Insights From Recent Cases On Navigating Snap Removal

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    Snap removal, which allows defendants to transfer state court cases to federal court before a forum defendant is properly joined and served, is viewed differently across federal circuits — but keys to making it work can be drawn from recent decisions critiquing the practice, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • Opinion

    It's Time For The Judiciary To Fix Its Cybersecurity Problem

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    After recent reports that hackers have once again infiltrated federal courts’ electronic case management systems, the judiciary should strengthen its cybersecurity practices in line with executive branch standards, outlining clear roles and responsibilities for execution, says Ilona Cohen at HackerOne.

  • Workday Case Shows Auditing AI Hiring Tools Is Crucial

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    Following a California federal court's recent decisions in Mobley v. Workday signaling that both employers and vendors could be held liable for discriminatory outcomes from artificial intelligence hiring tools, companies should consider two rigorous auditing methods to detect and mitigate bias, says Hossein Borhani at Charles River Associates.

  • Tips For Cos. Crafting Enforceable Online Arbitration Clauses

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    Recent rulings from the Ninth Circuit and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California indicate that courts are carefully examining the enforceability of online arbitration clauses, so businesses should review the design of their websites and consider specific language next to the "purchase" button, say attorneys at DTO Law.

  • 7 Lessons From The Tractor Supply CCPA Enforcement Action

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    The California Privacy Protection Agency's recent enforcement action targeting Tractor Supply for alleged violations of the California Consumer Privacy Act provides critical insights into the compliance areas that remain a priority for the California regulator, including businesses with significant consumer interactions, say attorneys at Troutman.

  • Parody Defendants Are Finding Success Post-Jack Daniel's

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    Recent decisions demonstrate that, although the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Jack Daniel's v. VIP Products did benefit trademark plaintiffs by significantly limiting the First Amendment expressive use defense, courts also now appear to be less likely to find a parodic work likely to cause confusion, says Andrew Michaels at University of Houston Law Center.

  • Series

    Writing Novels Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Writing my debut novel taught me to appreciate the value of critique and to never give up, no matter how long or tedious the journey, providing me with valuable skills that I now emphasize in my practice, says Daniel Buzzetta at BakerHostetler.

  • Trader Joe's Ruling Highlights Trademark Infringement Trends

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    The Ninth Circuit's recent decision in Trader Joe's Co. v. Trader Joe's United explores the legal boundaries between a union's right to advocate for workers and the protection of a brand's intellectual property, and illustrates a growing trend of courts disfavoring early dismissal of trademark infringement claims in the context of expressive speech, say attorneys at Mitchell Silberberg.

  • SDNY OpenAI Order Clarifies Preservation Standards For AI

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    The Southern District of New York’s recent order in the OpenAI copyright infringement litigation, denying discovery of The New York Times' artificial intelligence technology use, clarifies that traditional preservation benchmarks apply to AI content, relieving organizations from using a “keep everything” approach, says Philip Favro at Favro Law.

  • What 9th Circ.'s Rosenwald Ruling Means For Class Actions

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    The Ninth Circuit's recent decision in Rosenwald v. Kimberly-Clark has important implications around the Class Action Fairness Act and traditional diversity jurisdiction — both for plaintiff-side and defense-side class action litigators — and deepens the circuit split concerning the use of judicial notice to establish diversity, says Grace Schmidt at DTO Law.

  • Compliance Steps To Take As FCRA Enforcement Widens

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    As the Fair Credit Reporting Act receives renewed focus from both federal and state enforcers, regulatory and litigation risk is most acute in several core areas, which companies can address by implementing purpose processes and quick remediation of consumer complaints, among other steps, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • How Calif. Law Cracks Down On Algorithmic Price-Fixing

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    Gov. Gavin Newsom signed two laws this month significantly expanding state antitrust enforcement and civil and criminal penalties for the use or distribution of shared pricing algorithms, as the U.S. Department of Justice has recently wielded the Sherman Act to challenge algorithmic pricing, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

  • Opinion

    Expert Reports Can't Replace Facts In Securities Fraud Cases

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    The Ninth Circuit's 2023 decision in Nvidia v. Ohman Fonder — and the U.S. Supreme Court's punt on the case in 2024 — could invite the meritless securities litigation the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act was designed to prevent by substituting expert opinions for facts to substantiate complaint assertions, say attorneys at A&O Shearman.

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