Meijer Escapes Suit Over Health Plan Fee For Tobacco Users

By Grace Elletson

A Michigan federal judge tossed a worker's proposed class action alleging supercenter chain Meijer improperly charged workers a $20 per week tobacco surcharge through its health plan, ruling that concerns about improper notifications and allocations of the fee ultimately lacked teeth.

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DOL Backs Aramark Bid To Avoid Aetna ERISA Suit Arbitration

By Patrick Hoff

The U.S. Department of Labor backed Aramark's attempt to keep in court its allegations that Aetna cost the company millions by mismanaging health benefit claims, telling the full Fifth Circuit that a panel correctly held that the case fell under an exception in the arbitration agreement.

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Avangrid Says $124M 401(k) Suit Relies On Mismatched Funds

By Aaron Keller

Avangrid has asked a Connecticut federal judge to dismiss a proposed class action by a former employee who claims an underperforming retirement fund cost participants at least $45 million, arguing the worker inappropriately compared an actively managed collective investment trust to a mutual fund and an unmanaged benchmark index.

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Fla. Panel Nixes $1M Child Support Life Insurance Order

By Danielle Ferguson

A Florida appellate panel on Wednesday reversed a decision requiring a father to have a $1 million life insurance policy to protect child support payments, finding a lower court did not determine if he could afford the policy.

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States Sue To Block Medicaid Ban On Youth Gender Care

By Dan McKay

Twenty state attorneys general on Wednesday challenged the Trump administration's plan to halt Medicaid funding for minors' gender-affirming care, alleging the move would violate federal law and usurp congressional power over government spending.

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Brief

9th Circ. Denies Funko's Bid To Revisit Investor Dispute

By Jessica Corso

The Ninth Circuit said Wednesday it would not reconsider its decision to revive a proposed class action accusing Funko Inc. of failing to warn investors about tens of millions of dollars' worth of excess toys the company eventually wrote off.

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Analysis

Boutique Firms Emerge As Trump Admin's 'Achilles' Heel'

By Phillip Bantz

Less fearful of retribution than some of their BigLaw counterparts, small law firms are taking on an outsize role handling cases seen as adversarial to the Trump administration.

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Jenner & Block Adds Crowell Energy Partner To DC Office

By Jack Rodgers

Jenner & Block LLP said Thursday it has hired the former co-leader of Crowell & Moring LLP's appellate practice, who worked on a range of energy matters there and spent over a decade of her career as a senior attorney with the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division.

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Sheppard Adds To Corporate Bench In Dallas, London

By Lynn LaRowe

Sheppard announced Thursday it has added a corporate partner in Dallas from McDermott Will & Schulte and a corporate partner in London from Simmons & Simmons LLP.

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Fisher Phillips Adds Partner, 9 Attorneys In Mexico

By Andrea Keckley

Fisher Phillips announced Thursday that it has hired a partner and nine associates from the small, full-service Mexican firm Ibarra del Paso y Gallego SC, making it one of the largest labor and employment firms in Mexico by headcount.

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Ex-IRL App CEO Says Prosecutors Ignored Ethics Breaches

By Courtney Bublé

The co-founder of defunct social app IRL is fighting fraud charges by claiming that the U.S. attorney's office prosecuting him is conflicted because an attorney who formerly defended IRL in an SEC investigation and is now with the office pushed for him to be charged — and he is disputing prosecutors' denial of impropriety. 

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Husch Blackwell Gets Early Win In Ex-Partner's 401(k) Suit

By Andrea Keckley

A Missouri federal court granted Husch Blackwell LLP an early win over a former employee's proposed class action alleging the firm illegally withheld retirement contributions and mismanaged its employee 401(k) plan, finding the ex-partner couldn't prove violations of federal benefits law.

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Fox Rothschild Says Adult Day Care Suit Rehashes Claims

By Rose Krebs

Fox Rothschild LLP is urging a New Jersey state court to toss claims against the firm and one of its attorneys in a complaint related to the firm's prosecution of a fraudulent loan lawsuit that led to a $65,000 sanction against the firm.

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Pirro Urges House Ethics Cmte. To Refer Crime Claims To DOJ

By Courtney Bublé

U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro has told the House Ethics Committee that as cases involving criminal misconduct come before it, her office should be involved too.

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Interview

Federal Judge Warns Threats Imperil Judicial Independence

By Carolina Bolado

U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom of the Southern District of Florida told Law360 that judges and members of the bar need to educate the public on the judiciary's important role in American democracy to combat increasing threats, speaking following the release of two reports this week that warn of safety concerns for judges and that defiance of court orders is undermining the federal judiciary's independence.

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Phil Berger Jr. Won't Seek Reelection To NC High Court

By Corey Rothauser

North Carolina Supreme Court Associate Justice Phil Berger Jr. said Thursday that he will not seek another term in 2028, meaning the Republican justice will leave the state's highest court after completing his current term.

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