OpenAI Fights To Toss Apple's 'Rotten' Trade Secret Theft Suit

By Dorothy Atkins

OpenAI urged a California federal judge on Wednesday to toss Apple Inc.'s high-stakes trade secret theft lawsuit, arguing that the claims are premised on false characterizations and speculation, and "Apple's complaint is — to borrow its own phrase — 'rotten to its core.'"

Motion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Paramount Gets Private Warner Deal Challenge Tossed

By Matthew Perlman

A California federal court has dismissed a case from consumers looking to undo Paramount's completed merger with Skydance and block its planned purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery, finding they failed to show any concrete harm from the deals.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Google, Meta, Tiktok Still Subject To Calif. Feed Algorithm Law

By Mike Curley

A California federal judge has declined to block enforcement of a new California law that restricts personalized social media algorithm feeds, finding that Google, TikTok and Meta have failed to show the law infringes on their First Amendment rights.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Nexstar Execs Can't Be On Tegna Board, Judge Clarifies

By Rae Ann Varona

A California federal judge clarified Thursday that Nexstar executives and other affiliated personnel cannot serve as Tegna directors under a temporary injunction blocking the broadcast giants' $6.2 billion merger, while admonishing the companies for not disclosing the appointment of three Nexstar officials to Tegna's board.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

9th Circ. Says EPA Air Quality Exception Pulled From 'Thin Air'

By Craig Clough

The Ninth Circuit held Wednesday that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency exceeded its authority when it approved a California air quality plan that allowed weaker backup pollution controls for the state's San Joaquin Valley, with a dissent calling it a "Kafkaesque" and "alarming" ruling.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Meta Owes Another $567M To Address Harm To NM Kids

By Lauren Berg and Cara Salvatore

Meta Platforms is on the hook for an additional $567 million after a New Mexico judge on Thursday determined that the Facebook and Instagram parent must take measures to protect its youngest users, following a jury's $375 million verdict that Meta hid the full scope of mental health harms its apps caused.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Feds Ordered To Pay Millions In Funds For Migrant Kids' Attys

By Craig Clough

A California federal judge ruled on Thursday that the Trump administration is in violation of her preliminary injunction ordering it to continue paying dozens of nonprofits that represent tens of thousands of migrant children in immigration proceedings, saying new data requirements imposed by the government violate "the plain language" of her order.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ex-Girardi Atty Gets Probation For Keeping Silent On Theft

By Lauraann Wood

A former Girardi Keese attorney was sentenced to one day time-served and two years of probation Thursday for staying quiet and failing to report disgraced plaintiff's attorney Tom Girardi's theft of millions of settlement dollars owed to Lion Air Flight 620 plane crash victims.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Disbarred Atty And Son Must Face $17M SEC Fraud Suit

By Katryna Perera

A disbarred attorney and his son must face a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission suit alleging they defrauded investors out of more than $17 million by running a Ponzi-like scheme disguised as an investment company for a start-up content streaming app, with a California federal judge finding the SEC brought specific examples of the duo's "alleged misuse."

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

GOP Senators Float Repeal Of Calif. Vehicle Emissions Rules

By Linda Chiem

Four Republican senators on Thursday proposed revoking U.S. Environmental Protection Agency waivers granted to California for vehicle emissions regulations that have been in place for over a decade, following through on the Trump administration's efforts to dismantle the Golden State's authority to set stricter tailpipe emissions standards.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

9th Circ. Revives Corona Clay Pollution Suit Over Creek Status

By Elaine Briseño

A Ninth Circuit panel reversed a lower court's order denying a clay recycling manufacturer's request for a new trial after being found to have violated the Clean Water Act, saying significant changes to the law require another look at the case.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ore. Judge Says DOD Wind Project Blockage Was Unlawful

By Madeline Lyskawa

An Oregon federal judge on Thursday halted the U.S. Department of Defense's freeze of wind projects, finding renewable energy groups and environmental nonprofits are likely to succeed in showing the agency violated deadlines for reviewing the projects' impact on military readiness.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Safeway Must Face Suit Over Advertised Wine Discounts

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

A California federal judge has refused to toss out a proposed class action accusing Safeway of falsely advertising wine discounts after finding that customers could reasonably understand the price cuts were temporary, even though the grocer allegedly never reverted to the advertised non-sale price.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Stalking Victim Needs To File New Apple AirTag Suit In Fla.

By David Minsky

A Florida federal judge on Thursday struck a woman's lawsuit alleging a former romantic partner tracked her with Apple Inc.'s "stalker proof" AirTags, saying she must file a more specific complaint or else her claims will be dismissed.

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Mercedes Drivers Say Metallic Seat Logos Can Cause Burns

By Hailey Konnath

A pair of Mercedes drivers says the seats in some vehicles have raised metallic AMG logo badges that heat up in the sun and then burn unwitting drivers and passengers, sometimes leaving them with painful second-degree burns that visibly bear the logo, according to a proposed class action filed Wednesday.

Complaint attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Meta Nears Ax Of Suits Over Pump-And-Dump Facebook Ads

By Bonnie Eslinger

A California federal judge signaled Thursday that two financial professionals are fighting an uphill battle to pursue their proposed class action alleging Meta illegally allowed scammers to impersonate them in ads to run so-called pump-and-dump investment schemes, calling Meta's arguments for tossing the suit "very compelling."

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Judge Certifies Disney 'Toy Story 3' TM Fight For Appeal

By Ivan Moreno

A California federal judge has certified for interlocutory appeal a ruling refusing to dismiss trademark claims over the "Toy Story 3" character Lotso, saying the long-running case raises an unresolved question about whether corporate affiliates' merchandising can deprive movie distributors of First Amendment protection for a character name used onscreen.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

2025 Patent Litigation: A Year In Review

The number of patent infringement lawsuits soared in 2025 as patent owners saw their fortunes change at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, where petitioners filed significantly fewer America Invents Act challenges. Meanwhile, most patent infringement suits were brought in the Eastern District of Texas, which had considerably more filings than the Western District.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Mark Zuckerberg's Foundation Can Arbitrate Gender Bias Suit

By Bonnie Eslinger

A California federal judge on Thursday sent to arbitration claims that the foundation run by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan discriminated against women, saying the suit's sexual harassment claims weren't sufficiently severe or pervasive to invalidate the plaintiff's arbitration agreement.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Mich. Contractor Faces Class Claims For Unpaid Work Time

By Melanie Dorsey

A former commercial service technician has accused a Michigan-based industrial maintenance contractor in federal court of systematically removing hours from field employees' time records and failing to pay them for on-call duty, travel, missed meal breaks and other work.

Complaint attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

KPMG Must Face Beefed Up Investor Suit Over SVB Failure

By Rae Ann Varona

A California federal judge allowed Norway's central bank and a Swedish public pension fund to lodge an additional claim against KPMG in their proposed securities fraud class action over Silicon Valley Bank's 2023 failure, saying they sufficiently alleged KPMG ignored red flags as SVB's auditor.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Fintech Seeks OCC Trust Charter For Crypto Loan Servicing

By Katryna Perera

Zaria, a fintech startup that includes a former Manatt Phelps & Phillips LLP partner as an organizer, has applied for an Office of the Comptroller of the Currency charter to establish what it says is the first national trust bank to offer "digitally native" loan servicing.

1 document attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Judge Sets Feb. Trial In States' Generics Price-Fixing Suit

By George Woolston

A Connecticut federal judge has set a February trial date on claims from dozens of state attorneys general that generic-drug makers conspired to artificially inflate the prices of generic topical drugs.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Tarsus Bets Up To $800M On Alkeus In Retina Therapy Push

By Al Barbarino

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals Inc. said Thursday it has agreed to acquire privately held Alkeus Pharmaceuticals Inc. for up to approximately $800 million, expanding the Irvine, California-based eye care company's pipeline into retinal disease with an experimental treatment for Stargardt disease.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Goodwin, Covington Lead Braveheart Bio's $383M IPO

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Venture-backed biotechnology firm Braveheart Bio hit the public markets on Thursday after raising $383 million in its upsized initial public offering.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Trump Again Targets Birthright Citizenship In 2 New Orders

By Rae Ann Varona

President Donald Trump on Thursday signed two executive orders that seek to limit automatic citizenship for babies born in the U.S., after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a previous birthright citizenship executive order as unconstitutional.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Veteran M&A Atty Named A&O Shearman's LA Office Head

By Adrian Cruz

Allen Overy Shearman Sterling announced that an experienced mergers and acquisitions and private equity attorney from Sidley Austin LLP has joined the firm in Los Angeles, where she has also been named office managing partner.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

9th Circ. Rule Block Unlikely To Deter FinCEN Cartel Focus

The Ninth Circuit recently blocked the Financial Crimes Enforcement Unit's border cash reporting rule, interpreting it as an impermissible use of an emergency anti-money laundering tool, but regulators are more likely to see the opinion as a road map for building a more defensible rule, say attorneys at Bradley Arant.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Fed. Circ.'s Shaping Of Tech Patent Doctrine Resembles EPO's

The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Ceiva v. Amazon crystallizes an informal U.S. heuristic, "a technological solution to a technological problem," rewarding emphasis of a traceable chain from a problem to a solution — a lesson similar to the European Patent Office's "technical character" terminology, says Brandon Theiss at AddyHart.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Series

Being A Sommelier Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Being a sommelier has quietly shaped how I practice law by changing the way I think, communicate and connect with people, and offers a constant reminder that expertise is about making your knowledge useful and accessible to others, says Kara Du at Sheppard.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

How Does In-House Pay Compare? Take The Law360 Survey

How do in-house salaries vary across industries, roles, and organizational revenue? What compensation tools are companies using to lure top talent? Help Law360 Pulse answer these questions and more in this year's In-House Compensation Survey.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

No Simpson Thacher Malpractice In PIPE Case, Jury Finds

By Madison Arnold

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP escaped a malpractice lawsuit late Thursday over its representation of Patriot National Inc. in a private investment in public equity transaction in the years before the company's downfall.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Dems Slam Skadden's 'Nothing To See Here' Trump Deal Reply

By Hailey Konnath

Three Democratic lawmakers on Thursday criticized Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP's response to their request that the firm disclose details of its pro bono arrangement with the Trump administration, saying the firm's "three sentence letter essentially saying 'nothing to see here'" is "not going to cut it."

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

New ABA Chief Seeks To 'Streamline' Org., Defend Democracy

By Emily Sawicki

The American Bar Association's new president, Barbara J. Howard, will focus on twin goals of defending democracy against expected unprecedented attacks associated with this year's midterm elections, while also reorganizing the association to run more efficiently, as she kicks off her one-year term this month.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Richards Layton Under Fire Amid Bid To Avoid AI Sanctions

By Rose Krebs

A firm has asked a Delaware vice chancellor to allow it to submit more "factual information" regarding what it says are inconsistencies in Richards Layton & Finger PA's attempt to avoid sanctions for submitting a filing with errors generated by artificial intelligence.

Letter attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

The Dramatic Moments Set To Shape Tom Goldstein's Appeal

By Jeff Overley and Jared Foretek

Prurient revelations, brash recriminations and purportedly glaring judicial errors in Tom Goldstein's criminal case have captivated the appellate bar for nearly 19 months, and many of those moments will be center stage in the star attorney's imminent appeal.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

2nd Circ. Says Pillsbury Must Surrender $3.6M Retainer

By Jessica Corso

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP was ordered on Thursday to hand over a $3.6 million retainer it was paid to defend a client against criminal and civil fraud charges, with the Second Circuit upholding a ruling that the funds were part of an asset freeze order issued in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission case.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ex-GC Hijacked Accounts And Posted Klan Imagery, Suit Says

By Ben Adlin

A Washington state court granted a temporary restraining order Wednesday in a school fundraising company's lawsuit accusing its former general counsel of taking control of its social media accounts and allegedly replacing its LinkedIn photo with a manipulated image of its president in a Ku Klux Klan robe.

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Wash. Justices Offer Bar Waiver After July Exam Tech Failure

By Rachel Riley

The Washington State Supreme Court said Thursday it's offering to waive the bar exam requirement for first-time applicants who were unable to take the test last week due to an abrupt cancellation driven by technical issues at the Yakima Convention Center where it was scheduled to be administered.   

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Justices' FTC Ruling Weakens Qui Tam's Constitutional Base

The U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in Trump v. Slaughter, expanding presidential control over those exercising executive power, suggests that courts may be receptive to arguments challenging the constitutional foundations of the False Claims Act’s qui tam mechanism, says Daniel Passeser at Wiggin.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »