Commercial Contracts

  • March 27, 2026

    Atty Sanctioned For AI Hallucinations In Workers' Comp Row

    A New Jersey appellate court on Friday ordered an attorney to pay $1,000 in sanctions for failing to rectify AI-hallucinated case citations pointed out to him in an appeal concerning reimbursement sought by a workers' compensation carrier.

  • March 27, 2026

    NJ Federal Judge DQs Beasley Allen In J&J Talc MDL

    A New Jersey federal judge has disqualified the Beasley Allen Law Firm from representing hundreds of plaintiffs in sprawling multidistrict litigation over Johnson & Johnson's talc-based baby powder, holding that the firm violated ethics rules by collaborating with former outside counsel for J&J, a ruling the law firm has vowed to appeal.

  • March 27, 2026

    Pharma Co. Says Exec Was Fired Over Conduct, Not Piglets

    The U.S. arm of a Danish pharmaceutical company has told a North Carolina federal judge to throw out a former director's "extraordinary and conspiratorial" lawsuit claiming he was fired for expressing concerns about his employer's use of piglets at an anniversary party.

  • March 27, 2026

    Jack In The Box Says Buyer Breached Del Taco Deal

    Jack in the Box Inc. has sued the buyer of its Del Taco business in the Delaware Chancery Court, accusing the purchaser and its affiliates of breaching key post-sale obligations tied to insurance coverage and transition services.

  • March 27, 2026

    REIT Investor Drops Suit Over $2.3B Deal Disclosures

    An Alexander & Baldwin investor has dropped claims that the commercial real estate investment trust obscured its connections to Blackstone Real Estate in securities filings before a proposed $2.3 billion take-private deal, saying U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings last month moot the case.

  • March 26, 2026

    Live Nation Kicks Off Defense Case In Antitrust Trial

    A coalition of state attorneys general on Thursday mostly concluded their antitrust case against Live Nation and its Ticketmaster subsidiary, following weeks of a trial that was nearly derailed after the U.S. Department of Justice dropped out, and Live Nation kicked off its defense case with a company executive who pushed back against claims of anticompetitive conduct.

  • March 26, 2026

    Venezuelan Leader Says Ex-Fla. Rep Couldn't Get US Meetings

    A Venezuelan political opposition leader told jurors Thursday that he connected with former Florida congressman David Rivera to try to secure meetings with high-level U.S. officials in the first Trump administration, but Rivera — who is on trial for allegedly failing to register as a foreign agent — failed to deliver.

  • March 26, 2026

    'I Don't Know': 9th Circ. Presses Verrilli On Boeing Venue Issue

    A Ninth Circuit judge rehearing an appeal involving a $72 million trade secret verdict against Boeing on Thursday pressed the company's counsel Donald B. Verrilli Jr. of Munger Tolles & Olson LLP to explain why the aerospace giant never previously argued the case belongs in the Federal Circuit, and Verrilli conceded he didn't know the reason.

  • March 26, 2026

    PNC Beats Customer's $200K Forged Check Dispute

    PNC no longer faces allegations it failed to prevent a customer's losses after his employees drained nearly $205,000 from his accounts, a Philadelphia federal judge found, noting the plaintiff's estate administrator didn't properly dispute relevant facts asserted by the bank.

  • March 26, 2026

    Hyundai Loses 9th Circ. Bid To Arbitrate Palisade Liability Suit

    Hyundai Motor America Inc. can't push into arbitration a proposed class action over allegedly faulty tow wiring that can catch fire, the Ninth Circuit ruled in a split decision, rejecting as "absurd" the automaker's argument that the terms of the vehicles' subscription-based wireless service waived a driver's right to sue over defects in the rest of the SUV.

  • March 26, 2026

    Fans Push For $14M Deal For Soccer Match Fiasco

    Soccer fans impacted when people without tickets stormed a Copa America championship match at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens two years ago asked a Florida federal judge to sign off on a settlement agreement worth up to $14 million.

  • March 26, 2026

    L'Oreal Wants Color Wow Co.'s Purchase Price Kept Secret

    An executive for L'Oréal USA Inc. has asked a Connecticut state court judge not to force the public disclosure of the price the company paid to acquire Federici Brands LLC, the company behind Color Wow hair care products, as part of a former Federici president's lawsuit alleging she is owed $40 million from the transaction.

  • March 26, 2026

    Joe Gibbs Racing Wants Rival Blocked From Using Stolen Info

    Joe Gibbs Racing LLC on Thursday pushed to enjoin rival NASCAR team Spire Motorsports from using confidential race data allegedly stolen by its former competition director, even as Spire denied having the information and decried the accusations as unfounded.

  • March 26, 2026

    Akin Must Explain Client's 'Self-Indulgent' 9th Circ. Appeal

    Upholding a foreign arbitration award against a wine importer, the Ninth Circuit on Thursday ordered its attorneys at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP to explain why they and their client shouldn't pay their opponent's attorney fees for bringing a "frivolous" and "self-indulgent" appeal.

  • March 26, 2026

    McDonald Hopkins Must Produce Fraud Warning Docs

    Midwestern law firm McDonald Hopkins LLC must produce email communications in connection with litigation accusing Blue Cross units of a smear campaign against a clinical lab owner, an Ohio federal judge ruled, finding the documents were not protected by work product or attorney-client privilege.

  • March 26, 2026

    Ex-InterOil Exec Faces $210M Ruling, Seeks Appeal Bond Cut

    A former executive of long-acquired oil company InterOil must pay a Swiss investor $210 million in damages and interest under a final judgment entered Thursday in Texas federal court, affirming a jury's findings last year that the executive breached agreements between the two.

  • March 26, 2026

    Sony, USC Settle Fight Over Music Used In Social Media Ads

    Sony Music has settled its copyright infringement suit accusing the University of Southern California of infringing more than 170 of its songs to advertise the school's sports program on social media, according to an order signed off by a New York federal judge Thursday.

  • March 26, 2026

    Ketamine, WilmerHale Probe Off Limits In Musk-OpenAI Trial

    A California federal judge has placed evidentiary guardrails on an April jury trial over Elon Musk's claims OpenAI duped him, excluding evidence on Musk's ketamine use and WilmerHale's investigation into Sam Altman's dismissal, but allowing evidence on Musk's rival startup, his romance with an ex-OpenAI boardmember and his Burning Man trip.

  • March 26, 2026

    NC Court Denies Collective Bid In Wage Row, For Now

    Employees alleging a property management company stiffed them on overtime wages cannot proceed as a collective for now, a North Carolina federal judge has ruled, finding that the current record is insufficient to determine whether they are similarly situated.

  • March 26, 2026

    Shutts & Bowen Must Face DQ Bid In Fla. Real Estate Dispute

    A Florida state appeals court on Wednesday revived a bid to disqualify Shutts & Bowen LLP from representing a member of a real estate business in a dispute with his fellow owners, saying a trial court improperly barred certain testimony before rejecting the disqualification motion.

  • March 26, 2026

    9th Circ. Upholds Medtronic Win In Spinal Cord Device Suit

    A Washington man cannot sue medical device maker Medtronic USA Inc. on allegations it sold him a spinal cord implant that malfunctioned causing greater pain, the Ninth Circuit ruled, saying he lacked expert witnesses to support his negligence claims.

  • March 26, 2026

    Investor Sues Music Catalog Firm Over Default Risks

    A member of a music catalog investment group has sued in the Delaware Chancery Court to force the company to turn over financial records, alleging signs of mismanagement, missed payments and potential default risks tied to high-value music deals.

  • March 25, 2026

    Oak View Exec Tells Jury Of Deal To Hype Ticketmaster

    The CEO of Oak View Group told a Manhattan federal jury Wednesday that his company didn't inform other venue owners that it was being paid to "advocate" for them to use Ticketmaster as a vendor for ticketing services, but said he still would recommend the Live Nation subsidiary anyway since it's the best in the business.

  • March 25, 2026

    UBS Must Face Class Action Over Low-Yield Sweep Accounts

    A New York federal judge on Wednesday trimmed a proposed class action alleging USB Financial Services Inc. put customers' money in low-yielding "cash sweep" accounts in breach of their contract, tossing a single duplicative unjust enrichment claim but allowing the contract claims to proceed.

  • March 25, 2026

    Official Says DOJ Watching Essential Patent Antitrust Cases

    A U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division official said Wednesday the agency is closely monitoring antitrust disputes over standard essential patents, aiming to ensure that proper analyses of market power are undertaken and that most patent suits are exempted from causing antitrust liability.

Expert Analysis

  • TikTok Divestiture Deal Revolves Around IP Considerations

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    The divestiture deal between the U.S. and China to resolve a security dispute over TikTok's U.S. operations is seen as a diplomatic breakthrough, but its success hinges on the treatment of intellectual property and may set a precedent in the global contest over digital sovereignty and IP control, say attorneys at Brownstein Hyatt.

  • 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.

  • Series

    Practicing Stoicism Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Practicing Stoicism, by applying reason to ignore my emotions and govern my decisions, has enabled me to approach challenging situations in a structured way, ultimately providing advice singularly devoted to a client's interest, says John Baranello at Moses & Singer.

  • Series

    The Biz Court Digest: Texas, One Year In

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    A year after the Texas Business Court's first decision, it's clear that Texas didn't just copy Delaware and instead built something uniquely its own, combining specialization with constitutional accountability and creating a model that looks forward without losing touch with the state's democratic and statutory roots, says Chris Bankler at Jackson Walker.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Educating Your Community

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    Nearly two decades prosecuting scammers and elder fraud taught me that proactively educating the public about the risks they face and the rights they possess is essential to building trust within our communities, empowering otherwise vulnerable citizens and preventing wrongdoers from gaining a foothold, says Roger Handberg at GrayRobinson.

  • 7 Areas To Watch As FTC Ends Push For A Noncompete Ban

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    ​​​​​​As the government ends its push for a nationwide noncompete ban, ​employers who do not want to be caught without protections for legitimate business interests should explore supplementing their noncompetes by deploying elements of seven practical, enforceable tools, including nondisclosure agreements and garden leave strategies, say attorneys at Seyfarth.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • In NY, Long COVID (Tolling) Still Applies

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    A series of pandemic-era executive orders in New York tolling state statutes of limitations for 228 days mean that many causes of action that appear time-barred on their face may continue to apply, including in federal practice, for the foreseeable future, say attorneys at Sher Tremonte.

  • Opinion

    High Court, Not A Single Justice, Should Decide On Recusal

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    As public trust in the U.S. Supreme Court continues to decline, the court should adopt a collegial framework in which all justices decide questions of recusal together — a reform that respects both judicial independence and due process for litigants, say Michael Broyde at Emory University and Hayden Hall at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

  • FTC's Consumer Finance Pivot Brings Industry Pros And Cons

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    An active Federal Trade Commission against the backdrop of a leashed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will be welcomed by most in the consumer finance industry, but the incremental expansion of the FTC's authority via enforcement actions remains a risk, say attorneys at Hudson Cook.

  • Amazon Ruling Marks New Era Of Personal Liability For Execs

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    A Washington federal court's recent decision in FTC v. Amazon extended personal liability to senior executives for design-driven violations of broad consumer protection statutes, signaling a fundamental shift in how consumer protection laws may be enforced against large public companies, say attorneys at Orrick.

  • Series

    Traveling Solo Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Traveling by myself has taught me to assess risk, understand tone and stay calm in high-pressure situations, which are not only useful life skills, but the foundation of how I support my clients, says Lacey Gutierrez at Group Five Legal.

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