Florida Equipment Dealer Settles 401(k) Fee Suit For $1.25M

By Kellie Mejdrich

A Caterpillar construction equipment dealer will pay $1.25 million to settle an ex-worker's proposed class action alleging his employee 401(k) plan paid excessive fees, under the terms of a proposed deal filed in Florida federal court on Wednesday.

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Alternative Asset 401(k) Investing Rule Sent To OMB

By Kellie Mejdrich

The White House Office of Management and Budget is reviewing a proposed rule from the U.S. Department of Labor's employee benefits arm related to fiduciary duties involved with alternative asset investing in 401(k)s, marking the last hurdle before the regulations' release for public comment. 

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$9.6M Deal Over Capital One 401(k) Forfeitures Gets 1st OK

By Gina Kim

A New York federal judge preliminarily approved Capital One Financial Corp.'s $9.6 million settlement to end a proposed class action alleging it improperly used $42.65 million in forfeited employee funds that were paid into the company's retirement plan to reduce its own contributions instead of curtailing administrative costs. 

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JPMorgan's Tobacco-Use Health Fee Is Illegal, Employee Says

By Sydney Price

A JPMorgan Chase & Co. employee has hit the financial giant with a proposed class action in a New York federal court accusing it of issuing health insurance plans including fee requirements for tobacco users that violate the antidiscrimination provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

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Trader Joe's Inks $750K Deal In Philly 'Fair Workweek' Suit

By P.J. D'Annunzio

Trader Joe's will pay $750,000 to resolve class claims from workers that it violated a Philadelphia ordinance requiring employers to give workers a fair and predictable work schedule, according to a recent filing.

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Series

The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Forming Measurable Ties

Relationship-building should begin as early as possible in a law firm merger, as intentional pathways to bringing people together drive collaboration, positive client response, engagements and growth, says Amie Colby at Troutman.

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As Goldstein Trial Begins, Gov't Points To 'Lavish' Lifestyle

By Jared Foretek

An accountant for billionaire investor Alec Gores said that Thomas Goldstein had suggested he open a foreign account for Gores' poker-related transactions or even classify him as a professional player for tax purposes, although Gores was just getting started in the high-stakes poker world.

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Simpson Thacher Offers Stipend To Lure Summer Associates

By Tracey Read

In an effort for Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP to attract top students who want to pursue public interest work, the firm said it will pay a stipend of $42,500 for the 2026-2027 cycle for those who opt to spend their 1L summer in a qualifying public service, government, academic, in-house legal or nonprofit role.

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Calif. Justices Order Prosecutors To Explain Alleged AI Errors

By Dorothy Atkins

The California Supreme Court has ordered Nevada County prosecutors to explain to a lower court why they shouldn't be sanctioned for "apparent serial submission" of artificial intelligence-generated briefs with nonexistent legal citations in multiple criminal proceedings.

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Judiciary AI Rule Draws Fire As Judges Get Deepfakes Survey

By Jeff Overley

Federal judiciary policymakers heard extensive concerns Thursday regarding high-profile plans to formally screen evidence generated with artificial intelligence, and they set the stage for more feedback by preparing an AI survey for every federal trial judge.

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ICE Detention Facilities Nearly Doubled Last Year, Report Says

By Tom Lotshaw

An American Immigration Council report said the Trump administration detained record numbers of noncitizens last year, most without criminal records, and held them in a rapidly expanding network of facilities that could soon rival the federal criminal prison system.

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Fla. High Court Opens Door To Non-ABA Accrediting Entities

By Carolina Bolado

The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday changed the bar exam admission requirements to allow graduates of law schools accredited by entities other than the American Bar Association to sit for the Florida bar exam.

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5th Circ. Revives Allstate's Fraud Suit Over Car Crash Billing

By Gina Kim

The Fifth Circuit on Wednesday revived Allstate's racketeering suit alleging doctors and personal injury lawyers unleashed a barrage of unnecessary treatments for car accident patients and caused Allstate to pay $4.7 million in claims, finding the insurer sufficiently pled details about the conspiracy and specifics surrounding each allegedly fake medical billing.

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Sens. Advance Indiana Judge Nominee Grilled Over Sermons

By Courtney Bublé

A federal judicial nominee for Indiana who came under scrutiny by a Republican senator for his past sermons as an ordained elder was voted out of committee Thursday alongside five other judicial nominees.

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Trump US Atty Pick In NM Bumped To First Assistant

By Emily Sawicki

A New Mexico federal judge has ruled the Trump-appointed interim U.S. Attorney for New Mexico is not validly serving in the role but declined to disqualify the prosecutor from a slate of cases pending in the district, instead determining the lawyer may continue to work in the federal prosecutor's office as first assistant.

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Wash. Judges To Pick US Atty As Floyd's Term Set To Expire

By Gina Kim

The chief judge for the Western District of Washington on Wednesday announced the court's intent to select a U.S. attorney to serve on a temporary basis if President Donald Trump's pick, Charles Neil Floyd, who has been serving on an interim basis, isn't confirmed by the Senate by next month. 

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