CVS 401(k) Recordkeeping Fee Suit Dropped In New York

By Kellie Mejdrich

A former CVS worker dropped his proposed class action alleging the pharmacy giant cost workers millions in retirement savings and violated federal benefits law by failing to rein in excessive administrative fees in its $27 billion 401(k) plan, according to a filing in New York federal court.

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5th Circ. Backs DOL In Suit Over Withheld Plan Contributions

By Patrick Hoff

The Fifth Circuit refused to upend the U.S. Department of Labor's win in a suit accusing a Louisiana contracting company executive of unlawfully keeping the insurance contributions deducted from employees' paychecks, rejecting his argument that he wasn't responsible for administering the company's benefit plans.

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BCBS Unit Owes Awards Under No Surprises Act, Court Told

By Gianna Ferrarin

A Blue Cross Blue Shield unit failed to pay thousands of dollars in awards that an air ambulance company won through the No Surprises Act's arbitration process for out-of-network services rendered to the insurer's beneficiaries, the company alleges in a suit in West Virginia federal court.

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SEC Says Climate-Tied Investor Actions May Pose Legal Risk

By Jessica Corso

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday released a report into its investigation of a successful push for eco-friendly board members at ExxonMobil, warning institutional investors and asset managers that joining forces to exert influence over corporations could open them up to additional scrutiny. 

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Nonprofit's Ex-President Admits To Falsifying Tax Returns

By Asha Glover

A former president of a nonprofit organization serving the Telugu community who falsified tax returns by reclassifying expenditures meant to reimburse donors as legitimate expenses pled guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government in California federal court.

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Objectors To Keep Fighting $148M Insurance Suit Settlement

By Brian Steele

A group of objectors told a Connecticut federal judge they will continue to fight a $147.5 million class settlement over life insurance costs that the Second Circuit imperiled in August, writing that a retooled complaint against Lincoln National and a Cigna unit only amplifies their concerns.

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Josh Cellars Co. Says Ex-Prez Has 'Deep' Litigation Funding

By Aaron Keller

Companies behind the Josh Cellars wine brand say they should be allowed to introduce an ex-president's alleged litigation funding deals during an upcoming Connecticut jury trial, arguing they're necessary to defend against his assertions regarding a corporate operating agreement and to refute a possibly misleading portrayal of the parties' resources.

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Why And How To Build A Neurodiversity-Informed Practice

By better understanding neurodiversity and implementing simple accommodations for clients with autism, ADHD or learning differences, attorneys can build stronger relationships with those who may otherwise struggle to obtain and benefit from legal services, while developing good habits that will benefit everyone they represent, says Ting Cheung at Sanford Heisler.

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Sheppard Mullin Hit With Class Action Over Data Breach

By Jake Maher

A former Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP paralegal launched a proposed class action against the firm in California federal court on Wednesday over a cyberattack it had in August, in which she says at least 1,000 people's names and Social Security numbers were stolen.

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IP Rights Group Urges Against Litigation Funding Disclosure

By Elliot Weld

An inventor rights advocacy group has told a federal courts rules committee that requiring the disclosure of who is funding civil litigation would put independent inventors at a disadvantage when trying to enforce patents against a larger company.

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Analysis

New Fraud Division Flexes Might In Latest Enforcement Policy

By Phillip Bantz

The National Fraud Enforcement Division's new corporate enforcement policy emphasizes the quick pursuit of certain types of fraud through data analysis and staff resources, expands the target list beyond traditional healthcare providers and highlights the division's growing dominance within the U.S. Department of Justice, experts say.

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Cornell Defendant Seeks To Nix James As Special Prosecutor

By Andrea Keckley

One of the seven men accused of drugging and raping a fellow Cornell University student at a fraternity home has asked a New York state court to void Gov. Kathy Hochul's appointment of New York Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor in the case.

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Gov't Attys Could Face Sanctions Over AI Use Omissions

By Madeline Lyskawa

A U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge has ordered four government attorneys to explain why they shouldn't be sanctioned for making factual misrepresentations about the U.S. Army's use of artificial intelligence to evaluate contract proposals.

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Split Congress Could Spur Competing Probes, Cleary Finds

By Courtney Bublé

If the new year brings an era of divided Congress, then "dueling investigations" into the same topics should be expected, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP said in a report it released Thursday.

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Fla. Judge Says Oct. 7 Attack Was 'Inflection Point' For U.S.

By David Minsky

U.S. District Judge Roy K. Altman addressed a small group of attorneys in a Florida law office to speak on his book about the October 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, saying public debate over facts surrounding the event and underlying feud has reached an "inflection point" in America.

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Buzbee Faces $970K Fee Bid In Dismissed Conspiracy Cases

By Lynn LaRowe

A Mississippi lawyer is asking a Texas state court to award her more than $970,000 in fees after defeating claims that she and her law firm conspired with rapper Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter and Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP to retaliate against prominent Houston plaintiffs attorney Tony Buzbee and two of his former clients.

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Dems Says GOP Broke Senate Rules In Jack Smith Hearing

By Courtney Bublé

The Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee have accused Republicans of violating committee rules during a hearing last week with former special counsel Jack Smith.

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