Illinois

  • July 15, 2025

    Ex-Navistar Worker Sues Over Tobacco Health Fee

    A former employee sued International Motors LLC, formerly Navistar, in Illinois federal court Monday, saying it imposes "discriminatory and punitive health insurance surcharges" on workers who smoke without offering an alternative that would allow them to recoup the additional $600 they pay annually.

  • July 15, 2025

    La Caisse Plugs $200M Into PE-Backed Renewa

    Infrastructure investor QIC Infrastructure on Tuesday announced that its portfolio company Renewa received a $200 million primary equity commitment from investment group La Caisse.

  • July 15, 2025

    Court Reporters Defend Suit Saying Group Coerces Dues

    A pair of court reporters defended their New Jersey federal court proposed class action accusing the National Court Reporters Association of anticompetitively conditioning needed certification on expensive membership with the group, arguing the NCRA can't try to argue that membership and certification are one and the same.

  • July 15, 2025

    PVC Pipe Buyers Seek Initial OK Of $6M Deal In Antitrust Row

    Counsel for two classes of purchasers of polyvinyl chloride pipe urged an Illinois federal judge Tuesday to grant preliminary approval to two $3 million settlements resolving their antitrust claims against an analytics service allegedly used in a conspiracy by PVC pipe makers to inflate the price of their products.

  • July 14, 2025

    7th Circ. Upholds Exxon's Win In Ex-Lab Tech's Sex Bias Suit

    The Seventh Circuit on Monday refused to revive a former ExxonMobil Corp. employee's sex discrimination suit against the major oil and gas company, saying the woman failed to prove she was treated less favorably than male colleagues in the lead-up to her termination.

  • July 14, 2025

    States Blast Trump Admin Over $6.8B Education Fund Freeze

    A coalition of states sued the Trump administration Monday over its decision to freeze $6.8 billion in congressionally appropriated educational program funding, leaving schools scrambling ahead of the new school year, the same day the U.S. Supreme Court allowed mass U.S. Department of Education layoffs to move forward.

  • July 14, 2025

    Judge Halts DHS' Diversion Of Migrant Shelter Funds

    An Illinois federal judge temporarily barred the Trump administration from clawing back funds to shelter and assist new migrants after Chicago, Denver and an Arizona county said the government had plans to transfer their funds to Florida for the so-called Alligator Alcatraz detention facility.

  • July 14, 2025

    Ill. Court Orders Resentencing Due To Trial Judge's Remarks

    A split Illinois state appeals court has ruled that a Chicago man convicted of murder should be resentenced, saying comments made by a trial judge from the bench indicated the lower court inappropriately doubled up on aggravating factors when handing down its sentence.

  • July 14, 2025

    Girardi Keese CFO Gets 5 Concurrent Years For Aiding Theft

    Girardi Keese's former accounting head should serve more than five years alongside the 10 he's already logging for his role in helping Tom Girardi steal millions from plane crash clients who'd settled their cases in Chicago, an Illinois federal judge said Monday.

  • July 14, 2025

    States Back Domestic Violence Groups In DOJ Grant Fight

    Nearly two dozen states are backing a group of domestic violence coalitions in their bid to block the Trump administration from imposing restrictions on grants by the Department of Justice's Office on Violence Against Women, saying the funding is critical to their ability to fulfill their public safety obligations.

  • July 14, 2025

    Ex-ComEd Exec Gets 1½ Years For Hiding Madigan Bribes

    An Illinois federal judge on Monday sentenced a former Commonwealth Edison executive and lobbyist to one and a half years in prison for his role in a scheme to steer payments to allies of ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan to win his support for energy legislation favorable to the utility, and for falsifying company records to hide no-show jobs for Madigan's associates.

  • July 14, 2025

    Supreme Court Clears Way For Education Dept. Layoffs

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday lifted a Massachusetts federal judge's order halting massive job cuts at the U.S. Department of Education, allowing the Trump administration to move forward with firing nearly 1,400 employees.

  • July 14, 2025

    Nonprofit Sues DHS For Info On ICE Actions

    Democracy Forward Foundation has launched a lawsuit against the Trump administration in Washington federal court, seeking to compel the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to release documents pertaining to White House official Stephen Miller's role in leading immigration enforcement actions.

  • July 11, 2025

    Ill. Judge Wants Limited Ethics Claim Info In Aid-Fixing Suit

    An Illinois federal judge weighing ethical fee concerns in an aid-fixing suit against several elite universities said Friday that the class attorney who raised the issue should outline his dispute in a sealed filing before the court decides whether discovery should be taken over it.

  • July 11, 2025

    Ethiopian Airlines Case Settles '2 Minutes' Before Last Hearing

    A Chicago damages trial set for a man who lost his immediate family in an Ethiopian Airlines plane crash can be taken off the books because his case settled "literally two minutes" before his final pretrial hearing, attorneys told an Illinois federal judge Friday.

  • July 11, 2025

    AbbVie Defeats Investor Class Suit Alleging Humira Kickbacks

    AbbVie on Thursday defeated a certified securities class action that accused it of giving healthcare providers unlawful kickbacks in exchange for prescribing its flagship arthritis drug Humira when an Illinois federal judge ruled that AbbVie provided legitimate services that were "integrally tied" to the drug itself.

  • July 11, 2025

    Ill. Judge Gives OK To $12.1M Speedway Privacy Settlement

    An Illinois federal judge gave preliminary approval for a $12.1 million class action settlement in a biometric privacy law dispute between Speedway LLC and nearly 7,700 current and former gas station employees after ordering a lower redistribution trigger for initial payments that aren't cashed.

  • July 11, 2025

    Real Estate Recap: NYC Zombies, Nashville Tax, Hospo Deals

    Catch up on this past week's key developments by state from Law360 Real Estate Authority — including attorney insights into New York City's zombie building scene, a BigLaw specialist's view of Nashville's rise in property taxes, and the firms that guided the top hospitality deals in the first half of 2025.

  • July 11, 2025

    Homeowners Must Take Water Damage Coverage Suit To Trial

    A suit brought by Illinois homeowners seeking more than $5 million in coverage for damage caused by a burst pipe during an extreme temperature drop is headed to trial after an Illinois federal court found that too many issues of material fact remain unresolved.

  • July 11, 2025

    PepsiCo Challenges $2.1M Tax Penalty In Ill. Supreme Court

    Illinois' justices should overturn lower court decisions allowing $2.1 million in penalties on PepsiCo for categorizing Frito-Lay expatriates' compensation as foreign payroll, a categorization that excluded Frito-Lay's profits from PepsiCo's state income tax calculations, the food and beverage giant said in a petition.

  • July 11, 2025

    7th Circ. Affirms End To Vandalism Dispute Over Key Records

    The Seventh Circuit upheld discovery sanctions against an Indianapolis hotel owner after an Indiana federal court found it repeatedly failed to hand over records relating to whether the property was deemed "vacant" per the terms of its property insurance policy with a Liberty Mutual unit.

  • July 11, 2025

    Dem States Drop Bid To Block Machine Gun Trigger Returns

    Sixteen Democrat-led states and the District of Columbia told a Maryland federal judge Friday that they are dropping their motion to block the federal government from returning forced-reset triggers for guns to their owners, following declarations from the government and others that they would not distribute the products into states where possession is illegal.

  • July 11, 2025

    7th Circ. Tosses Korean Samsung Arm From Vape Battery Suit

    The Seventh Circuit won't revive a minor's claims against South Korea-based Samsung SDI Co. Ltd. over his injuries from an exploding vape battery, saying there's too much of a "disconnect" between the company's marketing of batteries for use in battery packs and finished products and the sale of an individual battery like the one in this case.

  • July 10, 2025

    Carma Says Ex-CLO, President Stole Hulk Hogan Beer Ideas

    Carma HoldCo Inc. has filed a $10 million lawsuit in Illinois federal court against its former president and chief legal officer, accusing them of misappropriating its trade secrets and business plans related to "Real American" beer in a partnership with wrestler Hulk Hogan after they were terminated.

  • July 10, 2025

    Boehringer Wins Another Zantac Cancer Trial In Illinois

    Boehringer Ingelheim notched another Zantac cancer trial win in Illinois state court this week, after a jury rejected a prostate cancer patient's claim that his seven-year use of the brand-name heartburn drug played a role in his diagnosis.

Expert Analysis

  • A New Tool For Assessing Kickback Risks In Health Marketing

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    The Seventh Circuit's recent decision in U.S. v. Sorensen, reversing a conviction after trial of a durable medical equipment distributor, highlights two principle considerations for determining whether payments to marketers in healthcare are unlawful under the Anti-Kickback Statute, says Elisha Kobre at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From DOJ Enviro To Mid-Law

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    Practitioners leaving a longtime government role for private practice — as when I departed the U.S. Department of Justice’s environmental enforcement division — should prioritize finding a firm that shares their principles, values their experience and will invest in their transition, says John Cruden at Beveridge & Diamond.

  • Legal Ethics Considerations For Law Firm Pro Bono Deals

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    If a law firm enters into a pro bono deal with the Trump administration in exchange for avoiding or removing an executive order, it has an ethical obligation to create a written settlement agreement with specific terms, which would mitigate some potential conflict of interest problems, says Andrew Altschul at Buchanan Angeli.

  • Series

    Playing Football Made Me A Better Lawyer

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    While my football career ended over 15 years ago, the lessons the sport taught me about grit, accountability and resilience have stayed with me and will continue to help me succeed as an attorney, says Bert McBride at Trenam.

  • 10 Arbitrations And A 5th Circ. Ruling Flag Arb. Clause Risks

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    The ongoing arbitral saga of Sullivan v. Feldman, which has engendered proceedings before 10 different arbitrators in Texas and Louisiana along with last month's Fifth Circuit opinion, showcases both the risks and limitations of arbitration clauses in retainer agreements for resolving attorney-client disputes, says Christopher Blazejewski at Sherin and Lodgen.

  • Notable Q1 Updates In Insurance Class Actions

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    The first quarter of 2025 was filled with the refinement of old theories in the property and casualty space, including in vehicle valuation, time to seek appraisal and materials depreciation, says Mathew Drocton at BakerHostetler.

  • Series

    Power To The Paralegals: The Value Of Unified State Licensing

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    Texas' proposal to become the latest state to license paraprofessional providers of limited legal services could help firms expand their reach and improve access to justice, but consumers, attorneys and allied legal professionals would benefit even more if similar programs across the country become more uniform, says Michael Houlberg at the University of Denver.

  • 10 Soft Skills Every GC Should Master

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    As businesses face shifting regulatory and technological uncertainty, general counsel will need to strengthen certain soft skills to succeed, from admitting when they make a mistake to maintaining a healthy dose of dispassion, says Douglas Brown at Manatt.

  • 6 Criteria Can Help Assess Executive Branch Actions

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    With new executive policy changes announced seemingly every day, several questions can help courts, policymakers and businesses determine whether such actions are proper, effective and in keeping with our democratic norms, say Marc Levin and Khalil Cumberbatch at the Council on Criminal Justice.

  • An Unrestrained, Bright-Eyed View Of Legal AI's Future

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    Todd Itami at Covington offers a bright-eyed, laughing-all-the-way, skydive look at what the legal industry could look like after an artificial intelligence revolution, which he believes may happen much sooner and more dramatically than we expect.

  • Tracking The Evolution In Litigation Finance

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    Despite continued innovation, litigation finance remains an immature market with borrowers recieving significantly different terms as lenders learn to value cases, which firms need a strong handle on to ensure lending terms do not overwhelm collateral value, says Robert Wilkins at Lightfoot Franklin.

  • Series

    Volunteer Firefighting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While practicing corporate law and firefighting may appear incongruous, the latter benefits my legal career by reminding me of the importance of humility, perspective and education, says Nicholas Passaro at Ford.

  • Influencer Campaign Lawsuits Signal New Endorsement Risks

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    Recent class actions allege that companies' influencer campaigns violate the Federal Trade Commission's Endorsement Guides and various state laws, but it's not clear whether the failure to comply can sustain these lawsuits, or whether the plaintiffs' creative theory of damages will hold up to scrutiny, says Gonzalo Mon at Kelley Drye.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: The Perils Of Digital Data Protocols

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    Though stipulated protocols governing the treatment of electronically stored information in litigation are meant to streamline discovery, recent disputes demonstrate that certain missteps in the process can lead to significant inefficiencies, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Preparing For Corporate Work

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    Law school often doesn't cover the business strategy, financial fluency and negotiation skills needed for a successful corporate or transactional law practice, but there are practical ways to gain relevant experience and achieve the mindset shifts critical to a thriving career in this space, says Dakota Forsyth at Olshan Frome.

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