Commercial Contracts

  • July 07, 2026

    6th Circ. Says MillerKnoll Owns Rights To Iconic Lamp Design

    The Sixth Circuit Tuesday refused to disturb a lower court's decision awarding intellectual property rights for late designer George Nelson's iconic bubble lamp to furniture company MillerKnoll, ruling that a 2006 royalty agreement authorized the company to use and own those rights.

  • July 07, 2026

    Mitsubishi Gets Ex-Franchisee Blocked From Using Its Marks

    Mitsubishi Motors North America Inc. on Tuesday secured an order blocking a New Jersey car dealership from continuing to operate as an authorized Mitsubishi dealer after a federal judge determined the automaker likely lawfully terminated the franchise over alleged staffing, training and inventory issues.

  • July 07, 2026

    Webuild Wants Justices' Input In Row Over In-State Property

    Webuild has pressed the Third Circuit to delay sending a case over a $140 million arbitral award against the Italian construction giant back to lower court as it seeks U.S. Supreme Court review of a circuit decision reviving a Chilean company's bid to enforce the award.

  • July 07, 2026

    5th Circ. Presses Ericsson Insurers On Terrorism Suit Defense

    A Fifth Circuit panel pushed insurers to explain why they should be allowed to avoid covering the defense of Ericsson Inc. against claims the company funded foreign terrorist organizations, asking Tuesday if Ericsson knew the money it gave out "was going to kill Americans."

  • July 07, 2026

    Baltimore County Defends Bid For Bridge Economic Losses

    Baltimore County has told a Maryland federal judge that it's entitled to recover "concrete and calculable" economic damages and search-and-rescue expenses over the Francis Scott Key Bridge disaster, rejecting efforts to slash damages owed by the owner and manager of the cargo ship that rammed into the bridge.

  • July 07, 2026

    McCarter Atty's Work 'Fell Short' In $20M Deals, Judge Told

    McCarter & English LLP and one of its Connecticut attorneys failed to uphold the applicable standard of care when advising insurers on $20 million worth of loan transactions that ultimately fell apart because the borrower stopped paying, an expert witness told a Connecticut state court on Tuesday.

  • July 07, 2026

    Del. Chancery Dismisses World Energy's Air Products Suit

    The Delaware Chancery Court dismissed a lawsuit by World Energy LLC seeking to force Air Products and Chemicals Inc. to resume work on a stalled $2 billion sustainable aviation fuel project, ruling that World Energy repeatedly failed to meet its own payment obligations and therefore could not compel Air Products to continue performing under the parties' agreements.

  • July 07, 2026

    Ill. Judge Approves $37M More In PVC Price-Fix Deals

    An Illinois federal judge gave her early approval Tuesday to more than $37 million in settlements two classes struck with a company defending against accusations that it participated in an illegal price-fixing scheme with other major polyvinyl chloride pipe producers.

  • July 07, 2026

    PTPA Power Struggle Spurs Suit Accusing Ex-GC Of 'Coup'

    An internal leadership battle within a professional tennis player advocacy group escalated Monday, when the Professional Tennis Players Association claimed in Illinois federal court that its ex-general counsel staged a "coup" by recruiting a rogue executive committee to seize control of the organization and its antitrust suit against tennis's governing bodies.

  • July 07, 2026

    Food Deal Rivals Battle In Chancery Over Competition Claims

    Lawyers for Global Market Foods LLC urged the Delaware Chancery Court on Tuesday to block the former owner of a food distribution business from competing after selling the company for $58 million, while the sellers argued the buyer is improperly trying to rewrite the parties' contracts and expand negotiated noncompete restrictions.

  • July 07, 2026

    Kraken Seeks To Enforce $22M Award Over Scrapped Audit

    Cryptocurrency trading platform Kraken has asked the Delaware Chancery Court to enforce a $22 million arbitration award it won against Mazars US LLP after the auditor suddenly quit the 2022 audit it was conducting for Kraken as the digital assets company came under a federal regulatory investigation.

  • July 07, 2026

    Trucking Co. 'Predictive Model' Doesn't Moot OT, 9th Circ. Told

    Truck drivers denied overtime under a Fair Labor Standards Act carveout for interstate commerce urged the Ninth Circuit on Tuesday to find they're entitled to the pay, saying that they drove only within California and that their employers' "predictive model" order fulfillment system doesn't qualify their deliveries as interstate commerce.

  • July 07, 2026

    Uber App Terms Bind Driver's Estate To Arbitration, Court Told

    An estate trying to hold Uber accountable for the death of a driver should be forced to resolve its grievances in arbitration because Emmanuel Kwame Gbedee Sr. accepted a company agreement with an arbitration clause, Uber told a North Carolina federal court.

  • July 07, 2026

    Exxon Seeks $324M Judgment In Dispute On Qatar Deal Tax

    Exxon asked a Texas federal court to rule that it's owed a $273 million tax refund and $51 million in penalties in a dispute with the U.S. government over the tax treatment of a natural gas deal with Qatar.

  • July 07, 2026

    'Terrifier' Filmmaker Can't Slash Actor's Royalties Claims

    The makers of the 2016 independent horror film "Terrifier" were able to shake an actress' claim that nude images of her were illegally circulated but couldn't persuade a judge to throw out her claims for breach of contract and acting in bad faith.

  • July 07, 2026

    DC Circ. Nixes Part Of IAM Fund's $13M Liability Win

    The D.C. Circuit on Tuesday partially unraveled an early win for a multiemployer pension fund in a dispute over $13 million in withdrawal liability against several Illinois truck dealership companies, holding the lower court needed to recalculate some of the interest and damages assessed.

  • July 07, 2026

    Groups Tell 4th Circ. Not To Let Sandoz 'Relitigate' Enbrel

    Pharmaceutical groups and the Washington Legal Foundation backed Amgen in amicus briefs Monday urging the Fourth Circuit not to revive Sandoz's antitrust claims, arguing that if Sandoz wanted to litigate blocked biosimilar competition to Enbrel, it needed to do so when Amgen sued it for patent infringement.

  • July 07, 2026

    5th Circ. Backs Saltgrass In Texas Restaurant Land Row

    The Fifth Circuit backed steakhouse chain Saltgrass Inc.'s quick win in a property contract dispute that involved the planned demolition of a former Joe's Crab Shack restaurant in Humble, Texas, ruling that the demolition contractually requires Saltgrass' permission.

  • July 07, 2026

    Consultant Says FARA Verdict Should Be Erased

    A political consultant convicted of knowingly failing to register as a foreign agent as she helped draft a $50 million contract involving a former congressman and Venezuela's state-owned oil enterprise continues to argue she should be acquitted or given a new trial, saying the verdict was "against the great weight of the evidence."

  • July 07, 2026

    Jermaine Dupri Alleges Sony Withheld Over $18M In Royalties

    American record producer and rapper Jermaine Dupri and his Georgia-based record label sued Sony Music Entertainment in New York federal court on Monday, alleging it breached its contract by underreporting and withholding $18 million in producer royalties.

  • July 07, 2026

    Judge Recommends Netting Sugar Arb. Awards To $3.9M

    A Florida federal magistrate judge recommended rolling an arbitration award and a related counterclaim award over broken sugar contracts into a single judgment, which would set the net amount awarded to an Illinois sugar company at $3.86 million.

  • July 07, 2026

    Ex-Sadot Group Exec Says Company Withholding Severance

    The former chief marketing officer for agricultural commodities trader Sadot Group Inc. has alleged in New Jersey federal court that the company is refusing to pay her almost $150,000 allegedly owed in severance and other compensation.

  • July 07, 2026

    Town Says Patriots Owner Must Cover Stadium Safety Costs

    Foxborough, Massachusetts, disputed claims from the owner of the New England Patriots that it's unlawfully sought $1 million as part of an annual entertainment license renewal, telling a state court the sum is necessary to reimburse public safety expenses.

  • July 07, 2026

    Cannabis Co. Says Worker's Suit Belongs Before NLRB

    A former employee of a New Jersey cannabis company should have brought his wrongful firing claims to the National Labor Relations Board and the fact that he didn't dooms his lawsuit in New Jersey federal court, the company said in a motion to dismiss the litigation.

  • July 07, 2026

    NBA Star Questions Ex-Agent's Money Woes In Fees Fight

    Two-time NBA All-Star Zion Williamson is opposing his former agent's efforts to avoid paying nearly $686,000 in legal fees stemming from a lengthy contract dispute in North Carolina federal court, questioning the agent's claims of "extreme financial hardship."

Expert Analysis

  • Senior Housing Demands A Distinct Dealmaking Playbook

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    An aging population and evolving state regulations underscore a critical reality that senior housing assets can undergo operational or compliance shifts during dealmaking, highlighting the need for unique contractual safeguards like expanded disclosures, anchored notice obligations, and targeted closing conditions and remedies, say attorneys at Goodwin.

  • What A Court Doc Audit Reveals About Erroneous Filings

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    My audit of 1,522 court documents from last month found that over 95% contained at least one verifiable error, with fewer than 1% showing clear indicators of artificial intelligence use — highlighting above all else that lawyers may want to focus most on strengthening their review processes, says Elliott Ash at ETH Zurich.

  • Apple Verdict May Inform Jury Instruction In Patent Suits

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    A Texas federal jury's recent verdict in Optis v. Apple provides an important example of how juries must be instructed when Step 2 of the Alice framework is submitted to them, with important implications for both litigators and courts in patent cases, says Joshua Reisberg at Blank Rome.

  • Series

    Calif. Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q1

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    As usual, California remained a hub for financial services activity in the first quarter of 2026, with key developments including the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation's eye on consumer issues, a bill targeting "pig butchering" schemes, and jam-packed courts, say attorneys at Joseph Cohen.

  • Justices May Hesitate To Limit Courts' Arbitration Review

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    Based on Monday's argument in Jules v. Andre Balazs, the U.S. Supreme Court seems poised to preserve federal jurisdiction over arbitral award enforcement stemming from actions originated in federal court, a holding that would markedly limit the court's 2022 Walters v. Badgerow decision, says Ashwini Jayaratnam at DarrowEverett.

  • Series

    Ultramarathons Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    Completing a 100-mile ultramarathon was tougher, more humbling and more rewarding than I ever imagined, and the experience highlighted how long-distance running has sharpened my ability to adapt to the evolving nature of antitrust law and strengthened my resolve to handle demanding, unforeseen challenges, says Dan Oakes at Axinn.

  • Proactive Risk Allocation Reduces Infrastructure Disputes

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    Recent wrangling between federal and state officials over the Gateway Program illustrates how quickly funding and project governance disputes can disrupt significant public infrastructure initiatives — and highlights that the way risks are contractually allocated can determine whether disagreements are resolved efficiently or lead to costly delays, says Thibaut Giret at Alstef Group.

  • Series

    Pa. Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q1

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    The first quarter of 2026 brought several consequential developments for Pennsylvania financial institutions, including the state banking department's first assessment overhaul in 10 years, a bill prohibiting interchange fees on card transaction sales taxes and a federal appeals court's upholding of a $52 million enforcement action, say attorneys at Gross McGinley.

  • In First For DOJ, Action Signals New CFIUS Enforcement Era

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    The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking judicial enforcement of a divestment order, an unprecedented action for the agency that ushers in a new phase for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, one in which judicial proceedings complement administrative oversight and presidential divestment orders may be enforced through litigation, says attorney Sohan Dasgupta.

  • Getting The Most Out Of Learning And Development Programs

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Junior associates can better develop the legal, business and interpersonal skills they need for long-term success by approaching their firms’ learning and development programs armed with five tips for getting the most out of these resources, says Lauren Hakala at Reed Smith.

  • Del. Blackbaud Ruling Signals A New Era For Cyberinsurance

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    The recent Delaware Supreme Court ruling in Travelers v. Blackbaud shows that cyberinsurance is moving into a second maturity phase, in which insurers will increasingly attempt to recover their payments from vendors and insureds will face new pressure to justify cyber incident reimbursements, say Steven Teppler at Mandelbaum Barrett and Jade Davis at Shumaker.

  • Opinion

    AI Presents A Make-Or-Break Moment For Outside Counsel

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    The rapid adoption of artificial intelligence by corporate legal departments is forcing a long-overdue reset of the relationship between inside and outside counsel, and introducing a significant opportunity to shed frustrating inefficiencies and strengthen collaboration for firms willing to embrace the shift, says Intel Chief Legal Officer April Miller Boise.

  • State Carbon Cost Disparities Are Pivotal In Data Center Siting

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    When choosing U.S. data center locations, developers must carefully consider the patchwork of state and regional carbon emission pricing regimes that are layered on top of the federal permitting framework, creating compliance cost differentials that could add up to billions of dollars, say attorneys at Davis Graham.

  • Series

    Watching Hallmark Movies Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    I realize you may be judging me for watching, and actually enjoying, Hallmark Channel movies, but the escapism and storylines actually demonstrate qualities and actions that lead to an efficient, productive and positive legal practice, says Karen Ross at Tucker Ellis.

  • Keys To Federal Carbon Compliance In Data Center Siting

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    Recent statements from the White House and state governors about making data centers pay for their own power infrastructure have underlined the importance of choosing locations, generation technologies and deal structures to optimize carbon, permitting and compliance costs, say attorneys at Davis Graham.

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