Carpenters Broker $9.25M Deal In $250M Pension Loss Suit

By Grace Elletson

The trustees of a carpenters pension plan and an investment advisor promised to pay $9.25 million to resolve a suit from workers who claimed they saw a $250 million loss in savings when the plan invested in speculative Allianz index funds, according to a Washington federal court filing.

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Brief

7-Eleven To Pay $2.3M To Resolve Tobacco Fee Fight

By Patrick Hoff

7-Eleven Inc. will pay $2.3 million to settle a proposed class action alleging it violated federal benefits law by failing to let tobacco-using workers who completed a cessation program totally avoid a $720 annual health plan fee, according to a filing in Texas federal court.

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Brief

Cognizant's $2.8M 401(k) Deal Hits Speedbump

By Patrick Hoff

A New Jersey federal judge refused to approve a $2.8 million agreement ending a proposed class action alleging information technology company Cognizant loaded its 401(k) plan with poor investment options and lofty fees, ruling workers hadn't explained why the court should bless the deal.

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Brief

4th Circ. Pauses Comcast DOL Appeal For High Court Case

By Benjamin Morse

The Fourth Circuit put Comcast Corp.'s challenge to the U.S. Department of Labor's authority to hear a whistleblower retaliation case on hold pending a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the agency's power to adjudicate employment disputes.

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Cannabis Co.'s Ex-Legal Chief Says Sale Stripped Assets

By Zach Dupont

A Colorado cannabis company owes nearly $180,000 in severance to its former chief legal officer due to the company's inability to pay its liabilities following a zero-cash sale to a buyer attached to one of the company's co-founders, the former executive told a Colorado state court Wednesday.

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Venture Global Beats Investor Action Over IPO Disclosures

By Katryna Perera

Energy company Venture Global Inc. has permanently defeated a proposed class action accusing it of hiding production issues and cost overruns at its Louisiana natural gas liquefaction and export projects ahead of its $1.75 billion initial public offering, with a New York federal judge finding the suit failed to plead any material misleading statements.

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NC Health Plan Can't Block Atrium's Cost-Sharing Program

By Hayley Fowler

Atrium Health can move forward with a program to offer lower healthcare costs to members of North Carolina's state health plan, a state court judge ruled, handing a loss to the state treasurer in his lawsuit claiming Atrium's program will ultimately saddle the plan with more debt.

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What Lawyers Should Know Before Accepting Crypto Payment

As clients increasingly request to pay legal fees, retainers and escrow funds using cryptocurrency, lawyers should consider how only a handful of state bar authorities have addressed the issue with varying ethics opinions, as well as the related questions that no authority has yet answered, says attorney Felix Shipkevich.

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Watchdog Wants Probe Of Trump Press Secretary's Atty Claim

By Jack Karp

A nonprofit government watchdog on Wednesday asked the State Bar of California to investigate whether the new White House press secretary has claimed to be an attorney without being licensed to practice law.

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Ex-BigLaw Atty Wants Firm Docs For Insider Trading Defense

By Carolyn Muyskens

A former BigLaw associate accused of insider trading is seeking records from ex-employers Sidley Austin LLP, Latham & Watkins LLP and Goodwin Procter LLP to help fight charges that he tipped others about nonpublic deals the firms were working on.

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Quinn Emanuel Seeks Arbitration Of $1.7M Fee Dispute

By Caroline Simson

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP is urging a California federal court to order an entrepreneur to arbitrate malpractice claims stemming from the firm's representation of her in a sexual harassment claim against a technology investor as it seeks to collect more than $1.7 million in unpaid fees.

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Baker Botts Atty Seeks $3.4M In Fees After Defamation Suit

By Madison Arnold

A Baker Botts LLP patent attorney has moved for almost $3.4 million in attorney fees and expenses in a defamation suit an inventor brought against her that was dismissed.

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Fox Rothschild Beats Daycare's Malicious Prosecution Suit

By George Woolston

A New Jersey state court dismissed an adult daycare company's suit against Fox Rothschild LLP and one of its attorneys related to their prosecution of a fraudulent loan lawsuit that led to a $65,000 sanction against the firm, according to a court order.

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DLA Piper Accused Of Malpractice In Investor's Soccer Deals

By Bonnie Eslinger

American businessman John Textor has filed a legal malpractice suit in Florida against DLA Piper over the firm's representation in connection with an investment vehicle he created to acquire soccer clubs in the United Kingdom and other countries, claiming his damages could exceed hundreds of millions of dollars.

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