Commercial Contracts

  • July 31, 2025

    'Abusive Behavior' Spurs $195M Add To Phillips 66 IP Verdict

    A California state judge added $195 million in exemplary damages to a $605 million trade secrets verdict against oil giant Phillips 66 following its "abusive behavior" toward startup and onetime acquisition target Propel Fuels.

  • July 31, 2025

    6th Circ. OKs Toss Of Trustee Removal Bid In Union Fund Row

    A Sixth Circuit panel on Thursday upheld an Ohio federal court's decision finding that a trade union, three trustees of a union benefit fund, and a fund participant cannot remove two other trustees they accused of self-dealing, saying they failed to show they would face irreparable harm.

  • July 31, 2025

    10th Circ. Says Water Exclusion Bars Co.'s $1.75M Loss

    A Kansas office building's property insurer has no duty to provide coverage for roughly $1.75 million in repairs over a broken water pipe, the Tenth Circuit ruled, rejecting the building owner's argument that an exception in one exclusion conflicted with a separate exclusion for water damage.

  • July 31, 2025

    Anadarko Asks 5th Circ. To Back La. Suit Indemnity Win

    Anadarko Petroleum Corp. has asked the Fifth Circuit to uphold its indemnification win against an environmental remediation company in connection with a decade-old Louisiana kickback suit, writing that "one who makes his own bed must lie in it."

  • July 31, 2025

    Latham & Watkins Signs New Manhattan Office Lease

    Latham & Watkins LLP expanded its presence in midtown Manhattan by signing a 12-year lease for 12,000 square feet on two whole floors in RXR's building at 1285 Avenue of the Americas, RXR announced Thursday.

  • July 31, 2025

    NC Homebuyer Says Mortgage Co. Sent Kickbacks To Broker

    A homebuyer has accused a Raleigh, North Carolina, brokerage of taking kickbacks to refer borrowers exclusively to mortgage origination company CrossCountry Mortgage under a secret arrangement by executives of the two businesses, according to a complaint filed in federal court.

  • July 31, 2025

    4th Circ. Says Brokers Owe Atty Fees Over Case Removal Row

    A unanimous Fourth Circuit panel has affirmed a South Carolina federal judge's order requiring several financial firms to pay more than $63,000 in legal fees for improperly trying to remove a securities class action to federal court for a second time, but said they don't have to pay additional fees to cover the cost of the appeal.

  • July 31, 2025

    PE Firm Risking Contempt, Receiver In Del. Over Legal Bills

    Noting that unpaid legal bills might already support a contempt or limited receivership order against private equity 777 Partners, a Delaware magistrate in Chancery gave the company and its counsel a Monday deadline to report still-accumulating fee advancement debts.

  • July 31, 2025

    Witness' Use Of 'Fraud' Doesn't Cancel TV Sports Exec's Verdict

    The First Circuit rejected arguments by a former executive at the cable channel for the Boston Red Sox and Boston Bruins that a witness' use of the word "fraud" and testimony about his lavish spending tainted the jury that convicted him of a fake invoice scheme.

  • July 31, 2025

    NC Judge Questions Barings' Bid For Ex-Employees' Emails

    A North Carolina business court judge seemed leery Thursday of forcing former Barings' employees to fork over their personal emails and text messages as part of a deposition notice, suggesting Barings was trying to bypass U.K. law to get information from a foreign witness in its suit alleging former executives conducted a "corporate raid" to start a competing credit platform.

  • July 31, 2025

    Metal Singer Misused Band's Money, Fired Co-Founder Says

    The founding bassist for iconic metal band Hatebreed was abruptly fired over false accusations that he harassed a Connecticut venue worker, according to a lawsuit that also accuses the singer of mismanaging the group's money for his own gain.

  • July 31, 2025

    Split 3rd Circ. Expels Rutgers MBA Fraud Suit Over Standing

    The plaintiff leading a proposed class action against Rutgers University for allegedly cooking its MBA rankings by fudging job placement statistics doesn't have standing because he was in a different part-time certificate program, a split Third Circuit has ruled, affirming a New Jersey federal court's decision.

  • July 30, 2025

    No Philly Clause Is Valid In Med Mal Case, Pa. Panel Says

    A Pennsylvania appellate panel said Wednesday that a contract a patient signed before surgery mandating that any legal actions must be heard in Bucks County is valid and enforceable, affirming a trial court's transfer of the medical malpractice suit from plaintiff-friendly Philadelphia County.

  • July 30, 2025

    State Farm Ordered To Pay $54.6M Over Vehicle Valuations

    State Farm must pay more than $54.6 million across two class actions for underpaying the value of totaled vehicles via a "typical negotiation" deduction, a Washington federal court ruled, noting the plaintiffs provided "undisputed" evidence that State Farm violated the state's Consumer Protection Act.

  • July 30, 2025

    Comscore Says Box Office Data TRO In Antitrust Suit Is Bunk

    Media analytics giant Comscore has accused the film distribution and data company that's suing it for box office data monopolization of "gamesmanship," telling a California federal judge it had every right to cancel its contract with Atlas Distribution Co.

  • July 30, 2025

    6th Circ. Unsure It Can Toss Papa John's Leaked Audio Suit

    The Sixth Circuit grappled Wednesday with the fate of a lawsuit that the founder of Papa John's brought against a marketing agency alleging it leaked comments that led to his resignation, with one judge questioning the appellate court's jurisdiction to decide if a valid confidentiality agreement existed.

  • July 30, 2025

    Anesthesia Giant Keeps Poaching Claims In Antitrust Row

    A New York federal judge refused Tuesday to nix counterclaims from North America's largest anesthesia provider, facing a Syracuse hospital's antitrust allegations, accusing the hospital of illegally recruiting away dozens of its clinicians and thus interfering with its employment agreements.

  • July 30, 2025

    Peru Docs Bid In Toll Road Project Feud Improper, Court Told

    Asset manager Brookfield, law firm Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP and Scotiabank are fighting efforts by Peru to force them to turn over documents in a feud stemming from an allegedly corrupt toll road project, arguing that the country is attempting an end-run around a previously unsuccessful petition.

  • July 30, 2025

    Software Co. Says Founder Can't Escape $9M Award

    Software investment company The Resource Group International Ltd. on Monday asked a New York federal judge not to let its former chairman, Invisalign inventor Zia Chishti escape a $9 million arbitration award against him, arguing it's too late to challenge the judgment now that it's been confirmed by the court.

  • July 30, 2025

    Traders Say Sanctioned Firm Can't Swap Plaintiff In $2.5M Suit

    A company facing trade sanctions cannot swap out another entity as a plaintiff in its suit targeting a crude oil sales firm's owners as it looks to collect $2.5 million based on an arbitral award, the owners have argued in Connecticut state and federal court.

  • July 30, 2025

    $1.6M UHC Reimbursement Suit Kicked Back To State Court

    A lawsuit alleging that United Healthcare of North Carolina Inc. underpaid a hospital system by at least $1.6 million in reimbursements does not belong in federal court, a North Carolina federal judge ruled Monday.

  • July 30, 2025

    Amazon Denied 'Mini-Trial' Against Shoppers' Proposed Class

    A Washington state federal judge summarily refused Wednesday to let Amazon interrogate the expert witness backing a bid for class action status covering tens of millions of consumers, finding that the proposal for evidentiary hearing, with cross-examination, is unneeded.

  • July 30, 2025

    Truist Triggered Employee Exodus, Not Ex-Execs, Court Told

    Three former executives who helmed the real estate finance arm of Truist Financial Corp. and their new employer are seeking a pretrial win in the bank's poaching case, telling a North Carolina state court judge they aren't to blame for Truist's alleged bad business decisions.

  • July 30, 2025

    Judge Unsure Of Broad Liability Shield Theory In Fraud Suits

    A Michigan federal judge on Wednesday pressed an attorney representing automation equipment manufacturers in fraudulent transfer suits on if their argument that their system of layered automated credit payments frees them from liability would allow every business to get around an act designed to prevent fraud in the construction industry.

  • July 30, 2025

    Atty Sues Leech Tishman Over Referral Amid Girardi Scandal

    An attorney at Hunt Ortmann Palffy Nieves Darling & Mah Inc. has sued Leech Tishman Nelson Hardiman in California state court for allegedly refusing to pay her a $300,000 referral fee after she convinced her CEO father to hire the firm to represent him.

Expert Analysis

  • A Look At Trump Admin's Shifting Strategies To Curtail CFPB

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    The Trump administration has so far carried out its goal of minimizing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's authority and footprint via an individualized approach comprising rule rollbacks, litigation moves and administrative tools, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Series

    My Opera And Baseball Careers Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    Though participating in opera and the world of professional baseball often pulls me away from the office, my avocations improve my legal career by helping me perform under scrutiny, prioritize team success, and maintain joy and perspective at work, says Adam Unger at Herrick Feinstein.

  • 8 Ways Lawyers Can Protect The Rule Of Law In Their Work

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    Whether they are concerned with judicial independence, regulatory predictability or client confidence, lawyers can take specific meaningful actions on their own when traditional structures are too slow or too compromised to respond, says Angeli Patel at the Berkeley Center of Law and Business.

  • Google Damages Ruling Offers Lessons For Testifying Experts

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision in EcoFactor v. Google represents a shift in how courts evaluate expert testimony in patent cases, offering a practical guide for how litigators and testifying experts can refine their work, says Adam Rhoten at Secretariat.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Communicating With Clients

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    Law school curricula often overlook client communication procedures, and those who actively teach this crucial facet of the practice can create exceptional client satisfaction and success, says Patrick Hanson at Wiggam Law.

  • Rocket Mortgage Appeal May Push Justices To Curb Classes

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    Should the U.S. Supreme Court agree to hear Alig v. Rocket Mortgage, the resulting decision could limit class sizes based on commonality under Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Evidence as opposed to standing under Article III of the U.S. Constitution, say attorneys at Carr Maloney.

  • 3 Judicial Approaches To Applying Loper Bright, 1 Year Later

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    In the year since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Chevron deference in its Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision, a few patterns have emerged in lower courts’ application of the precedent to determine whether agency actions are lawful, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • Employer Best Practices For Navigating Worker Separations

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    As job cuts hit several major industries, employers should take steps to minimize their exposure to discrimination claims, information leaks and enforcement challenges, such as maintaining sound documentation, strategic planning and legal coordination, says Mark Romance at Day Pitney.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From US Rep. To Boutique Firm

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    My transition from serving as a member of Congress to becoming a partner at a boutique firm has been remarkably smooth, in part because I never stopped exercising my legal muscles, maintained relationships with my former colleagues and set the right tone at the outset, says Mondaire Jones at Friedman Kaplan.

  • Opinion

    IRS Should Work With Industry On Microcaptive Regs

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    The IRS should engage with microcaptive insurance owners to develop better regulations on these arrangements or risk the emergence of common law guidance as taxpayers with legitimate programs seek relief in the federal courts, says Dustin Carlson at SRA 831(b) Admin.

  • Opinion

    Senate's 41% Litigation Finance Tax Would Hurt Legal System

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    The Senate’s latest version of the Big Beautiful Bill Act would impose a 41% tax on the litigation finance industry, but the tax is totally disconnected from the concerns it purports to address, and it would set the country back to a time when small plaintiffs had little recourse against big defendants, says Anthony Sebok at Cardozo School of Law.

  • Series

    Performing As A Clown Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    To say that being a clown in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has changed my legal career would truly be an understatement — by creating an opening to converse on a unique topic, it has allowed me to connect with clients, counsel and even judges on a deeper level, says Charles Tatelbaum at Tripp Scott.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Rejecting Biz Dev Myths

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    Law schools don’t spend sufficient time dispelling certain myths that prevent young lawyers from exploring new business opportunities, but by dismissing these misguided beliefs, even an introverted first-year associate with a small network of contacts can find long-term success, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.

  • Move Beyond Surface-Level Edits To Master Legal Writing

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    Recent instances in which attorneys filed briefs containing artificial intelligence hallucinations offer a stark reminder that effective revision isn’t just about superficial details like grammar — it requires attorneys to critically engage with their writing and analyze their rhetorical choices, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.

  • 9th Circ. Has Muddied Waters Of Article III Pleading Standard

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    District courts in the Ninth Circuit continue to apply a defunct and especially forgiving pleading standard to questions of Article III standing, and the circuit court itself has only perpetuated this confusion — making it an attractive forum for disputes that have no rightful place in federal court, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

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