6th Circ. Backs Insurance Co. In Shipwreck Benefits Fight

By Kellie Mejdrich

The Sixth Circuit backed an insurance company's win in a dispute over prejudgment interest connected to life insurance proceeds from an individual who disappeared after his fishing vessel shipwrecked off the Florida coast, holding a lower court properly denied an estate-side request for relief in the case.

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J&J Says Justices' Denial Backs Tossing Fee Suit At 3rd Circ.

By George Woolston

Johnson & Johnson told the Third Circuit Thursday that the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision not to take up a group of executives' federal benefits dispute backed its position in an appeal from J&J workers who alleged their health plans were saddled with excessive prescription drug fees.

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Ex-Brooklyn Nets Exec Says Parental Leave Got Him Fired

By MJ Koo

A former Brooklyn Nets cybersecurity executive has sued the team and his former boss in New York federal court, saying he was fired 16 days after returning from parental leave following the birth of his son.

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Brief

NJ Town, Retired Judge End Fight Over Health Benefits, Leave

By Benjamin Morse

A retired chief judge of a New Jersey municipal court agreed to dismiss her suit alleging the local government refused to cover her retirement health benefits and pay her for unused sick and vacation time after 27 years of employment.

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Vegas Man Gets 38 Months For $5M Tax Refund Fraud Scheme

By Zak Kostro

A Las Vegas man was sentenced to more than three years in prison for his role in what the government described as a $5 million tax refund fraud scheme that also involved his mother, who owned a tax preparation business, federal prosecutors said.

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'Substantially Impaired' Main Topic Of Medicaid Rule Hearing

By Julie Manganis

A Massachusetts federal judge pressed the Trump administration Thursday on its argument that Congress intentionally left it with the task of defining who is considered too medically frail to comply with Medicaid work requirements set to take effect in January.

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Judge Says BCBS' Evidence Ask In Ford Case Too Late

By Susan Smiley

A Michigan federal judge on Thursday denied Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan's motion to compel Ford Motor Company to produce emails from a senior director, ruling that the health insurer waited too long to make the request in the antitrust suit.

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NextEra Investors Try Again On $150M Deal After 1st Denial

By Sydney Price

NextEra investors are again looking for approval of their $150 million settlement to their lawsuit accusing NextEra of political interference after a Florida federal judge rejected their initial attempt over supposed deficiencies, providing the court with more detail on how the deal was calculated and benefits to class members.

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2 Firms To Lead Roblox Age-Verification Investor Action

By Mike Curley

A California federal judge has appointed Johnson Van Kwawegen LLP and Grant & Eisenhofer PA as co-lead counsel of a consolidated proposed class action filed by investors who allege they lost $48 million to a stock drop driven by Roblox Corp.'s age verification system.

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Series

Being In The Peace Corps Made Me A Better Lawyer

When I served in the Peace Corps, the people of the West African village where I was stationed helped me acclimate to my new surroundings and enabled me to develop problem-solving, teamwork and empathy skills that have bolstered my legal practice far beyond the ability to offer technical advice, says Brian Bewley at McGuireWoods.

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New Weil-Willkie Domains Add To Merger Speculation

By Marialuisa Taddia

Two domain names that combine the names of Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP and Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP have been registered, fueling speculation about a potential merger between the two prominent Wall Street law firms.

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Bonus Spotlight

Hueston Hennigan Bumps Clerkship Bonus To $205K

By Lynn LaRowe

Trial boutique Hueston Hennigan is offering a $205,000 bonus to lawyers who have completed one or more federal clerkships, the firm confirmed Thursday.

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'Grave Errors': 5th Circ. Boots Judge After AI 'Botch Job'

By Jeff Overley

A Mississippi federal judge's careless use of artificial intelligence tools led to "sloppy edicts" riddled with "falsehoods and fabrications," the Fifth Circuit held in a Thursday night opinion removing the judge from litigation over an anti-DEI law in the Magnolia State because of his "extraordinarily grave errors."

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Texas Judge Probe Shows Lack Of Mental Impairment Process

By Jack Karp

Fifth Circuit officials have done a reasonable job of handling a rare situation involving a Texas federal judge who appears to be undergoing a mental health crisis, but the episode highlights that a more standardized way of dealing with federal judges experiencing mental impairment needs to be established, experts and scholars say.

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Jackson Walker Hits Back At Fee Clawback Sanction Move

By Vince Sullivan

Law firm Jackson Walker said Wednesday that it should not be sanctioned for failing to bring to a Texas federal judge's attention additional cases involving an undisclosed romantic relationship between a bankruptcy judge and one of its attorneys because the U.S. Trustee already investigated those cases and didn't take action.

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GOP Reps. Seek Probe Of Fla. Judge's Sanctions Order

By Courtney Bublé

Top Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee asked the Judicial Conference Thursday to investigate a Florida federal judge for potential misconduct with an order she issued in the case involving the leak of President Donald Trump's tax returns.

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JPMorgan, Ex-Frank Execs Clash Over $2.1M In Legal Fees

By Jarek Rutz

JPMorgan Chase & Co. faced renewed demands in the Delaware Chancery Court on Thursday to pay about $2.1 million in withheld legal fees for convicted Frank founder Charlie Javice and former executive Olivier Amar, as their lawyers accused the bank of using repeated billing objections to delay funding for their criminal defenses.

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Roundup MDL Atty Fund 'Cries Out' For Review, 9th Circ. Told

By Dorothy Atkins

Plaintiffs' firms urged the Ninth Circuit to reverse a ruling Thursday requiring them to contribute 8% of their recovery fees to a common benefit fund in multidistrict litigation over Monsanto's Roundup weed killer, arguing the judge ignored a special master's recommendation and the issue "cries out for some appellate supervision."

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