Massachusetts

  • March 07, 2024

    Senate Tees Up 5 More Judge Picks Despite GOP Resistance

    The Senate Judiciary Committee voted out five judicial nominees on Thursday, which includes various historic firsts for diversity.

  • March 07, 2024

    Activist Caligan Sets Sights On Anika Therapeutics Again

    New York-based activist investor Caligan Partners LP disclosed a nearly 10% stake in Anika Therapeutics and nominated two director candidates, a move that comes a year after the hedge fund urged the biotech company to consider "urgent changes" to its operations and structure.

  • March 06, 2024

    Ex-Northeastern Coach Gets 5 Years In Nude Photo Ploy

    A former Northeastern University track and field coach was sentenced by a federal judge to five years in prison Wednesday for a series of schemes to trick young women into providing him with nude or semi-nude photos that he used for his own gratification and shared for clout in online forums that traded in surreptitiously-obtained images.

  • March 06, 2024

    Meta Must Tackle Increased Account Hijackings, 41 AGs Say

    A bipartisan group of 41 attorneys general have urged Meta Platforms Inc. to tackle the "dramatic" increase in hackers taking over Facebook and Instagram accounts, saying the attacks have caused financial harm to victims and their families and friends.

  • March 06, 2024

    'Larger' Airlines Didn't Help Flyers, DOJ Tells 1st Circ.

    The U.S. Department of Justice has assailed American Airlines for pressing its appeal over its since-nixed Northeast Alliance with JetBlue, telling the First Circuit that just because the deal made the airlines "larger" doesn't mean it helped consumers as the airline claims or that a district court gave potential benefits short shrift.

  • March 06, 2024

    New Balance Bid To Cut Nike Patents Is Too Early, Judge Hints

    New Balance's bid to snip three patents from the latest infringement fight centering on Nike's patented Flyknit technology got an uneasy reception Wednesday from a Boston federal judge unwilling to dig too deep into the merits of the claims at the early stage of this case.

  • March 06, 2024

    Gambling Ring Honcho Cops Plea After 13 Years On The Lam

    A man who helped run a multimillion-dollar online gambling ring has pled guilty after 13 years as a fugitive in Antigua, Boston federal prosecutors said.

  • March 05, 2024

    UMass, L'Oreal Fight Over Anti-Aging Cream May Be Near End

    Cosmetics brand L'Oreal and the University of Massachusetts told a Delaware federal judge they "have agreed to resolve" a purportedly ​​$200 million dispute over a method for adding an ingredient into moisturizing cream, nearly two years after a federal appeals court breathed new life into the patent case.

  • March 05, 2024

    Pharmacist Takes Deal In Mich. Over Fatal Meningitis Outbreak

    The founder of a Massachusetts drug compounding center that was the source of a deadly meningitis outbreak has pled no contest to 11 counts of manslaughter brought by Michigan state prosecutors, the latter state's Department of Attorney General announced Tuesday.

  • March 05, 2024

    ADI Can't Recoup Full Quinn Emanuel Bill In IP Theft Case

    A Massachusetts federal judge on Tuesday compared Analog Devices Inc.'s pricey hiring of a Quinn Emanuel attorney to monitor its former engineer's trade secrets trial in person to paying "a brain surgeon to pop a pimple" in an order denying restitution for those costs.

  • March 05, 2024

    Ill. Atty Tells 1st Circ. Feds Botched Venue For Scam Case

    An Illinois lawyer convicted of receiving proceeds from business email compromise schemes orchestrated by others told the First Circuit on Tuesday that Massachusetts was the wrong place for him to have been tried, urging the appeals court to dismiss the charges underlying the guilty verdict. 

  • March 05, 2024

    Wind Farm Challengers Meet Resistance At 1st Circ.

    A First Circuit panel on Tuesday appeared unlikely to undo the government's approval of a 62-turbine wind farm off the coasts of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, questioning the effort of opponents to get the court to consider data on right whales that it did not present to agencies during the review process.

  • March 04, 2024

    Justices Try To Shroud Differences With Trump DQ Ruling

    The U.S. Supreme Court issued a purportedly unanimous decision Monday finding states cannot bar federal candidates from appearing on ballots, but a closer look at the justices' writings — and the opinion's metadata — reveals a sharp divide that court watchers say was papered over in an effort to preserve the court's institutional legitimacy.

  • March 04, 2024

    Vax Refusal Doesn't Negate Benefits, Mass. Top Court Says

    Massachusetts' highest court ruled Monday that an employee's refusal of the COVID-19 vaccine for religious reasons can be grounds for dismissal, but not for stripping them of unemployment benefits.

  • March 04, 2024

    Divisive Housing Law A 'Great Test' For New Mass. AG

    A high-stakes legal showdown over Massachusetts' requirement that communities served by public transit build affordable housing presents a significant test for state Attorney General Andrea Campbell that could come back to hurt her politically, experts told Law360.

  • March 04, 2024

    'Varsity Blues' Feds Rip 'Alice-In-Wonderland' Bid To Nix Plea

    Federal prosecutors in the "Varsity Blues" college admissions case said Monday that a former television executive's bid to vacate her guilty plea is "built on an Alice-in-Wonderland version of events" in which pretrial litigation and rulings in her case never occurred.

  • March 04, 2024

    Appeal Of $20.5M Terminated Deal Too Late, Says Fed. Circ.

    The Federal Circuit on Monday declined to revive a construction company's untimely challenge over the termination of a $20.5 million National Guard contract, saying the company had enough information to be aware of the deadline to appeal.

  • March 04, 2024

    Deported Man Seeks Mass. Justices' OK For Remote Retrial

    A man deported to the Dominican Republic due to convictions that were later vacated asked Massachusetts' high court on Monday for permission to join the government's retrial of the same charges via videoconference because there's no legal way for him to attend the trial physically.

  • March 04, 2024

    Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

    A Swedish music producer's takeover, a proposed award payable in Tesla shares, Truth Social stock squabbles, and an unusually blunt slap-down from the bench added up to an especially colorful week in Delaware's famous court of equity. On top of that came new cases about alleged power struggles, board entrenchment, consumer schemes and merger disputes.

  • March 04, 2024

    1st Circ. Grapples With Crypto Exchange Tax Docs Seizure

    First Circuit judges grappled Monday with an investor's claim that the IRS violated his privacy and property rights when it seized his account records from cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, trying to establish during oral arguments to what extent the exchange was different from a traditional bank.

  • March 04, 2024

    Pentagon Leaker Faces Lengthy Prison Term After Plea

    Jack Teixeira, the 22-year-old Massachusetts Air National Guardsman charged with one of the most significant military intelligence leaks in U.S. history, is facing more than a decade in prison after pleading guilty Monday to multiple violations of the Espionage Act.

  • March 04, 2024

    Justices Say States Can't Keep Trump Off Ballot

    The U.S. Supreme Court found that states can't bar Donald Trump from running for reelection this year based on a 14th Amendment provision, with justices on Monday reversing a Colorado high court decision that barred Trump from the state's primary election ballot.

  • March 04, 2024

    JetBlue And Spirit Nix $3.8B Deal After Court Block

    JetBlue Airways said Monday that it has reached an agreement with Spirit Airlines to end their planned $3.8 billion merger, after the U.S. Department of Justice convinced a Massachusetts federal court to block the deal earlier this year.

  • March 01, 2024

    Ga. Tech Prof Gets Most China-Tied Fraud Charges Tossed

    A Georgia federal judge on Friday overruled a federal magistrate in dismissing nine of 10 criminal charges against a former Georgia Institute of Technology professor who was accused of using his post to help bring foreign nationals into the U.S. to covertly work for Chinese telecommunications firm ZTE.

  • March 01, 2024

    Harvard Grad Conned Alums In $3M Scheme, NY AG Says

    A Harvard Business School graduate suspected of swindling nearly $3 million from his fellow alum — one of whom reportedly took his own life after losing $100,000 — has been ordered by a New York state court judge to stop soliciting investors in what investigators called a classic Ponzi scheme.

Expert Analysis

  • A Former Bankruptcy Judge Talks 2023 High Court Rulings

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    In 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court issued four bankruptcy law opinions — an extraordinary number — and a close look at these cases signals that changes to the U.S. Bankruptcy Code will have to come from Congress, not the courts, says Phillip Shefferly at the University of Michigan Law School.

  • Series

    Children's Book Writing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Becoming a children's book author has opened doors to incredible new experiences of which I barely dared to dream, but the process has also changed my life by serving as a reminder that strong writing, networking and public speaking skills are hugely beneficial to a legal career, says Shaunna Bailey at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Benefits Limitations Period Ruling Carries ERISA Implications

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    The First Circuit's recent decision in Smith v. Prudential — over enforcing a benefits claim limitations period that expires before the claim accrued — has ramifications for Employee Income Security Act cases, where limitations issues can arise in the termination of ongoing benefit payments rather than an initial application for benefits, says Mark DeBofsky at DeBofsky Law.

  • How Clients May Use AI To Monitor Attorneys

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Artificial intelligence tools will increasingly enable clients to monitor and evaluate their counsel’s activities, so attorneys must clearly define the terms of engagement and likewise take advantage of the efficiencies offered by AI, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.

  • Lessons From This Year's Landmark Green Energy IP Clash

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    In this year's Siemens v. General Electric wind turbine patent dispute, a Massachusetts federal court offers a cautionary tale against willful infringement, and highlights the balance between innovation, law and ethics, as legal battles like this become more frequent in the renewable energy sector, say John Powell and Andrew Siuta at Sunstein.

  • Series

    The Pop Culture Docket: Judge D'Emic On Moby Grape

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    The 1968 Moby Grape song "Murder in My Heart for the Judge" tells the tale of a fictional defendant treated with scorn by the judge, illustrating how much the legal system has evolved in the past 50 years, largely due to problem-solving courts and the principles of procedural justice, says Kings County Supreme Court Administrative Judge Matthew D'Emic.

  • Series

    Performing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The discipline of performing live music has directly and positively influenced my effectiveness as a litigator — serving as a reminder that practice, intuition and team building are all important elements of a successful law practice, says Jeff Wakolbinger at Bryan Cave.

  • Expect CFPB Flex Over Large Nonbank Payment Cos.

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    A recent enforcement action and a new rule proposal from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau indicate a growing focus on the nonbank payment ecosystem, especially larger participants, in 2024, say Felix Shipkevich and Jessica Livingston at Shipkevich.

  • Breaking Down High Court's New Code Of Conduct

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    The U.S. Supreme Court recently adopted its first-ever code of conduct, and counsel will need to work closely with clients in navigating its provisions, from gift-giving to recusal bids, say Phillip Gordon and Mateo Forero at Holtzman Vogel.

  • Rockport Ch. 11 Highlights Global Settlement Considerations

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    A Delaware bankruptcy court’s recent rejection of Rockport’s proposed settlement serves as a reminder that there is a risk that a global settlement executed outside of a plan may be rejected as a sub rosa plan, but shouldn’t dissuade parties from seeking relief when applicable case law supports approval, says Kyle Arendsen at Squire Patton.

  • Opinion

    Legal Profession Gender Parity Requires Equal Parental Leave

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    To truly foster equity in the legal profession and to promote attorney retention, workplaces need to better support all parents, regardless of gender — starting by offering equal and robust parental leave to both birthing and non-birthing parents, says Ali Spindler at Irwin Fritchie.

  • 'Manufacturing' Amid Mass. Adoption Of Single-Sales Factor

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    Massachusetts’ recent adoption of single-sales-factor apportionment will benefit companies that have a greater in-state physical presence, reinforce the importance of understanding market-sourcing rules, and reduce the manufacturing classification's importance to tax apportionment, though the classification continues to be significant to other aspects of taxation, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • 1st Circ. Ruling Helps Clarify Test For FLSA Admin Exemption

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    The First Circuit’s recent decision in Marcus v. American Contract Bridge League will help employers navigate the Fair Labor Standards Act's "general business operations" exemption and make the crucial and often confusing decision of whether white collar employees are overtime-exempt administrators or nonexempt frontline producers of products and services, says Mark Tabakman at Fox Rothschild.

  • How Cannabis Cos. Are Adapting In Shifting Bankruptcy Arena

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    Recent bankruptcy cases show that federal courts have begun to demonstrate more openness to downstream businesses in the cannabis industry, and that even though receivership can be a viable option for those denied access to the bankruptcy system, it is not without its own risks and complexities, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • Series

    Writing Thriller Novels Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Authoring several thriller novels has enriched my work by providing a fresh perspective on my privacy practice, expanding my knowledge, and keeping me alert to the next wave of issues in an increasingly complex space — a reminder to all lawyers that extracurricular activities can help sharpen professional instincts, says Reece Hirsch at Morgan Lewis.

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