Massachusetts

  • September 24, 2025

    States Say Ed Dept. Must Face Suit Over Mental Health Cuts

    A group of 16 states led by Washington has asked a federal judge not to let the U.S. Department of Education escape the states' claims that the agency violated federal law by discontinuing mental health grants given to public schools to help students cope with school shootings.

  • September 24, 2025

    Mass. Turnpike Bid Dispute Squashed As Applegreen Exits

    Blackstone Inc.-backed convenience store chain Applegreen has withdrawn a bid to rebuild and operate service plazas along the Massachusetts Turnpike and other highways, mooting a lawsuit by current plaza operator Global Partners, lawyers told a state court judge on Wednesday.

  • September 24, 2025

    PE-Focused Debt Finance Pro Boosts Cooley's Boston Office

    Cooley LLP has grown its debt finance practice in Boston with the addition of a Choate Hall & Stewart LLP attorney.

  • September 23, 2025

    Sandisk Gets Support In 'Settled Expectations' Challenge

    Industry groups, professors and Unified Patents are backing Sandisk Technologies Inc.'s Federal Circuit challenge to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's policy of denying review of patents based on the owner's "settled expectations," saying it flouts the law and undermines the patent review system.

  • September 23, 2025

    1st Circ. Calls BIA's Handling Of Late Filing 'Troubling'

    The First Circuit on Monday faulted the Board of Immigration Appeals for refusing to consider a Guatemalan asylum applicant's appeal brief that was inadvertently filed in the wrong forum, finding the decision "troubling," and saying the BIA abused its discretion by not offering an explanation.

  • September 23, 2025

    DHS Floats H-1B Rule To Prioritize Higher-Paid Workers

    The Trump administration proposed a rule on Tuesday to change the H-1B lottery process to one that gives priority to higher-skilled workers at companies offering better pay, according to a Federal Register notice.

  • September 23, 2025

    1st Circ. Revives Fired Airport Worker's Retaliation Suit

    A First Circuit panel has reinstated a retaliation claim against a Massachusetts-based regional airline accused of wrongfully firing an injured worker several months after he reported his injury to Puerto Rico's workers' compensation program.

  • September 23, 2025

    How Attys Are Riding The Mass. Biotech 'Roller Coaster'

    The first half of 2025 saw the Massachusetts biotech industry post bleak numbers, including a dip in venture capital funding and merger activity, leaving attorneys looking for creative ways to help companies with fewer public and private dollars.

  • September 23, 2025

    Feds Illegally Denying Immigrant Bond Hearings, Suit Says

    The Trump administration is deliberately misclassifying immigrants marked for removal proceedings in an effort to illegally skirt their right to a bond hearing, according to a proposed class action filed Tuesday in Massachusetts federal court.

  • September 23, 2025

    1st Circ. Won't Let Citizens Bank Escape Escrow Interest Suit

    The First Circuit has revived a proposed class action accusing Citizens Bank of violating Rhode Island law by not making interest payments for mortgage escrow accounts, ruling the action must be reinstated in part because of a U.S. Supreme Court decision handed down after the case was dismissed.

  • September 23, 2025

    Star Chef Didn't Violate 'Vague' Pact With Boston, Judge Says

    A Massachusetts state court has ruled that a "vague" agreement between celebrity chef Barbara Lynch and the city of Boston to escrow proceeds from the sale of her flagship No. 9 Park restaurant while the city seeks to collect her unpaid taxes doesn't prevent Lynch from using the funds to pay other creditors.

  • September 22, 2025

    $100K H-1B Fee Will Likely Hurt Both US And Foreign Workers

    The new $100,000 fee for H-1B visas, which took effect on Sunday with little advance notice, blindsided immigration attorneys who told Law360 that it could ultimately hurt domestic workers by driving U.S. companies to do business elsewhere.

  • September 22, 2025

    Harvard Beats Suit Over Instructor's Vaccine-Refusal Firing

    Harvard University beat a suit by a former medical school instructor who claimed he was wrongly fired for refusing to get a COVID-19 vaccine, as a federal judge ruled his dismissal was automatically triggered when he was terminated by a Harvard-affiliated hospital.

  • September 22, 2025

    Ex-Boston Transit Cop Spared Prison In Beating Coverup

    A federal judge on Monday, "with some reservations," spared a former Boston transit police sergeant from prison time for his alleged role in trying to cover up the 2018 beating of a homeless man by an officer.

  • September 22, 2025

    Amex Can't Push 'Illusory' Arbitration Over 'Anti-Steering' Rule

    A putative class of businesses does not have to arbitrate claims that American Express violated antitrust laws by effectively preventing merchants that accept credit cards from incentivizing customers to use lower-fee cards, after a Massachusetts federal court ruled it will not "close its eyes" to the "illusory" arbitration agreement.

  • September 22, 2025

    NextEra Dodges Antitrust Claims In $1B Power Line Fight

    A Massachusetts federal judge on Monday dismissed claims that NextEra Energy violated antitrust law in efforts to delay construction of a $1 billion transmission line, saying developer Avangrid Inc. failed to show how NextEra's actions limited competition in New England electricity markets.

  • September 22, 2025

    NLRB Judge Says Pot Workers' Axing Wasn't Union Reprisal

    A National Labor Relations Board judge cleared cannabis seller Curaleaf of claims that it answered an organizing drive by canning two workers but found it committed other labor violations, including more strictly enforcing attendance rules after workers demanded union recognition.

  • September 22, 2025

    Boston Activist Admits Defrauding Donors, Gov't

    A Boston anti-violence activist once hailed as a rising civic leader admitted Monday in a federal courtroom to using thousands of dollars in donations and grants to her nonprofit for personal expenses like meals and travel, defrauding a pandemic-era unemployment program, and other charges.

  • September 22, 2025

    Judge Rules Revolution Wind Can Restart Wind Farm Work

    A D.C. federal judge gave Revolution Wind the green light to restart work on its billion-dollar wind farm off the Rhode Island coast Monday, halting a stop work order issued by the Trump administration last month, two years after the project got federal approval from the Biden administration.

  • September 19, 2025

    Trump Tags H-1B Visa Apps With $100,000 Fee

    President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order to impose a $100,000 fee for H-1B visas, framing it as a "restriction on entry" necessary to stem the entry of high-skilled foreign workers, particularly in science and technology fields.

  • September 19, 2025

    IBS Drug Buyers Win Class Cert. In Takeda Antitrust Case

    A Massachusetts federal judge on Friday certified buyer classes in litigation alleging Takeda Pharmaceutical broke antitrust law by cutting a pay-for-delay deal with Par Pharmaceuticals to keep a generic version of Takeda's anti-constipation drug Amitiza off the market for several years.

  • September 19, 2025

    Split Mass. Appeals Court Upholds Cocaine Conviction

    A man who was convicted of drug dealing after tossing cocaine and cash while fleeing police can't have the evidence against him suppressed despite arguing that he had been illegally detained by officers, Massachusetts' intermediate-level appeals court affirmed Friday in a closely split full-court decision.

  • September 19, 2025

    Pot Cos. Not Covered In Death Suit, Berkshire Hathaway Says

    A Berkshire Hathaway unit has no duty to defend a group of cannabis companies in an underlying suit over a worker's death, the insurer told a Florida federal court Friday, arguing that the suit does not allege that the companies were the employers of the worker as required to trigger coverage.

  • September 19, 2025

    Mass. Trash Hauler, Union End 82-Day Strike With 5-Year Deal

    The International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 25 and trash hauler Republic Services announced Friday that they have agreed to a new five-year contract, ending an 82-day strike that sparked multiple lawsuits and left more than a dozen greater Boston communities as well as commercial customers with limited or no trash collection for most of the summer.

  • September 19, 2025

    Boston Jury Awards $83M Asbestos Verdict Against Art Clay Co.

    A Boston jury has returned an $83 million verdict in favor of a woman who died from mesothelioma against a ceramic art clay company, which her lawyers believe to be the largest asbestos award delivered in the state.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • Series

    Competing In Modern Pentathlon Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Opening myself up to new experiences through competing in modern Olympic pentathlon has shrunk the appearance of my daily work annoyances and helps me improve my patience, manage crises better and remember that acquiring new skills requires working through your early mistakes, says attorney Mary Zoldak.

  • Policy Shifts May Follow Burst Of Defense Cyber Settlements

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    Recent False Claims Act settlements with defense contractors MORSECORP and Nightwing suggest that cybersecurity standards for government contractors remain a key enforcement priority, but these may represent a final flurry of activity before the Trump administration transitions to different policy goals, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Teaching Yourself Legal Tech

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    New graduates often enter practice unfamiliar with even basic professional software, but budding lawyers can use on-the-job opportunities to both catch up on technological skills and explore the advanced legal and artificial intelligence tools that will open doors, says Alyssa Sones at Sheppard Mullin.

  • How AI May Reshape The Future Of Adjudication

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    As discussed at a recent panel at Texas A&M, artificial intelligence will not erase the human element of adjudication in the next 10 to 20 years, but it will drive efficiencies that spur private arbiters to experiment, lead public courts to evolve and force attorneys to adapt, says Christopher Seck at Squire Patton.

  • When Legal Advocacy Crosses The Line Into Incivility

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    As judges issue sanctions for courtroom incivility, and state bars advance formal discipline rules, trial lawyers must understand that the difference between zealous advocacy and unprofessionalism is not just a matter of tone; it's a marker of skill, credibility and potentially disciplinary exposure, says Nate Sabri at Perkins Coie.

  • Despite Rule Delay, FTC Scrutiny Looms For Subscriptions

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    Even though the Federal Trade Commission has delayed its click-to-cancel rule that introduces strict protocols for auto-renewing subscriptions, businesses should expect active enforcement of the new requirements after July, and look to the FTC's recent lawsuits against Uber and Cleo AI as warnings, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Indemnity Lessons From Mass. Construction Defect Ruling

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    The Massachusetts high court's decision in Trustees of Boston University v. CHA, holding that a bespoke contractual indemnity provision means that a construction defect claim is not subject to Massachusetts' statute of repose, should spur design and construction professionals to negotiate limited provisions, says Christopher Sweeney at Conn Kavanaugh.

  • AGs Take Up Consumer Protection Mantle Amid CFPB Cuts

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    State attorneys general are stepping up to fill the enforcement gap as the Trump administration restructures the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, creating a new regulatory dynamic that companies must closely monitor as oversight shifts toward states, say attorneys at Cozen O’Connor.

  • Series

    Volunteering At Schools Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Speaking to elementary school students about the importance of college and other opportunities after high school — especially students who may not see those paths reflected in their daily lives — not only taught me the importance of giving back, but also helped to sharpen several skills essential to a successful legal practice, says Guillermo Escobedo at Constangy.

  • Attacks On Judicial Independence Tend To Manifest In 3 Ways

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    Attacks on judicial independence now run the gamut from gross (bald-faced interference) to systemic (structural changes) to insidious (efforts to undermine public trust), so lawyers, judges and the public must recognize the fateful moment in which we live and defend the rule of law every day, says Jim Moliterno at Washington and Lee University.

  • High Court Birthright Case Could Reshape Judicial Power

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    Recent arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court in cases challenging President Donald Trump’s birthright citizenship executive order primarily focused on federal judges’ power to issue nationwide injunctions and suggest that the upcoming decision may fundamentally change how federal courts operate, says Mauni Jalali at Quinn Emanuel.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Appreciating Civil Procedure

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    If you’re like me, law school’s often complex and theoretical approach to teaching civil procedure may have contributed to an early struggle with the topic, but when seen from a practical perspective, new lawyers may find they enjoy mastering these rules, says Chloe Villagomez at Foster Garvey.

  • Calif. Bar Exam Fiasco Shows Why Attys Must Disclose AI Use

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    The recent revelation that a handful of questions from the controversial California bar exam administered in February were drafted using generative artificial intelligence demonstrates the continued importance of disclosure for attorneys who use AI tools, say attorneys at Troutman.

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