Meta Owes $3.7B For 'Public Nuisance,' NM AG Tells Judge

By Cara Salvatore

New Mexico's attorney general urged a state court Monday to order Meta to pay $3.7 billion to address the "public nuisance" caused by its apps, after a jury previously found the social media giant misrepresented harms to underage users.

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Attys Defend $85M Fee Bid Blasted By Judge In Google Deal

By Bonnie Eslinger

Consumers who pursued an antitrust class action against Google urged the California federal judge who criticized their 98,000 hours billed as "grotesquely bloated" to approve their $85 million fee request, emphasizing Friday that they filed suit a year before state attorneys general joined the case and maintained a leading role in the litigation.

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'They Knew It': J&J Accused Of Hiding Talc Risk At LA Trial

By Craig Clough

Johnson & Johnson knew for decades that its baby powder contained asbestos, even as it advertised the product as safe and "pure," attorneys for the families of three women who died of ovarian cancer told a California jury Monday during opening statements in a bellwether trial.

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2nd Circ. Bars Out-Of-State Drivers In Bimbo Bakeries OT Suit

By Benjamin Morse

Out-of-state delivery drivers can't pursue their wage claims against Bimbo Bakeries in a Vermont federal court, the Second Circuit ruled Monday, finding their claims aren't tied closely enough to the company's activities in the state.

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Vrdolyak Firm Loses Bid To End Ex-Staff's Wiretapping Claims

By Matt Perez

A Chicago federal judge on Friday said former Vrdolyak Law Group LLC employees can keep pursuing most of their claims that the firm secretly recorded workers' phone calls.

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NJ Justices Won't Consolidate Judicial Privacy Law Cases

By George Woolston

The Supreme Court of New Jersey rejected a bid from a data privacy firm to consolidate more than 100 cases alleging violations of the state's judicial privacy statute into multicounty litigation, according to a notice to the bar.

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Aviation Staffing Co. Used Per Diem To Dodge OT, Suit Says

By MJ Koo

An aviation staffing company paid its avionics technicians the same hourly rate for all hours worked, including overtime, and disguised the scheme using fake per diem payments, a proposed collective and class action filed in Georgia federal court alleges.

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1st Circ. Hints Justices May Settle Immigrant Bond Fight

By Chris Villani

The First Circuit on Monday weighed a challenge to the Trump administration's policy of detaining unauthorized immigrants without bond during removal proceedings, even as one judge noted that the issue has already divided appellate panels and will likely need to be sorted out by the U.S. Supreme Court.

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Cloud Co. Denied Sales Workers OT Pay For Years, Suit Says

By MJ Koo

Three former sales workers have sued a cloud software company in North Carolina federal court, alleging the company wrongly classified them as overtime-exempt and denied them time and a half pay for years.

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DTE Energy Hit With Overtime Collective Action

By Melanie Dorsey

A DTE Energy employee filed a proposed collective action in Michigan federal court, alleging the utility systematically underpaid overtime wages by failing to properly calculate workers' regular rate under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

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Software Co. MongoDB To Face Narrowed Investor Claims

By Emilie Ruscoe

Software company MongoDB Inc. must face some but not all claims from a proposed investor class action alleging it failed to disclose the financial fallout from a change in its customer acquisition strategy, a Manhattan federal judge has ruled.

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SPAC Says Investor Bought In Knowing $29M Deal Had Failed

By Katryna Perera

The sponsor of a blank check company linked to energy giant Nabors Industries Ltd. pushed back against an investor suit alleging its top brass unfairly claimed a $29 million settlement despite missing a deadline to merge with another company, arguing the investor bought shares knowing the acquisition already failed.

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Biotech Overhyping Obesity Drug Hurt Investors, Suit Says

By Emilie Ruscoe

Current and former executives of drugmaker Skye Bioscience Inc. breached their fiduciary duties by overstating an obesity drug's clinical prospects and precipitating a trading price decline when the company revealed disappointing study results, an investor has alleged.

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Exxon Execs Never Pressured Profitability Analysts, Jury Hears

By Spencer Brewer

Former Exxon Chief Executive Rex Tillerson testified Monday that the company's top brass never pressured employees to make the company's holdings seem more profitable than they were, telling a jury in Texas federal court that he stood by the reports the company issued to investors.

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OkCaller Tells 11th Circ. Its Google Suit Wasn't 'Incoherent'

By Nadia Dreid

OkCaller.com is asking the Eleventh Circuit to revive its lawsuit accusing Google of monopolizing the market for search engine services, arguing that the lower court was wrong to adopt Google's "straw man" and treat the reverse phone number lookup website's argument as "incoherent."

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Subaru Hit With Class Suit Over Alleged Battery Failures

By Jonathan Capriel

Subaru has sold hundreds of thousands of vehicles with a defect that drains their batteries, which forces owners to buy replacements and, in some cases, leaves drivers stranded, alleges a lawsuit filed in New Jersey federal court that seeks to force a recall or vehicle buyback.

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THC Potency Suit Against Cresco Ends

By Jonathan Capriel

Cannabis giant Cresco Labs Inc. has brought a permanent end to a proposed class action accusing it of mislabeling products to get around state-mandated THC potency limits in Illinois, securing a stipulated dismissal following a wave of unfavorable court rulings against consumers.

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Brief

Red Hill Fuel Leak Settlement Gets Judge's Backing

By Tom Lotshaw

A Hawaii federal magistrate judge said a settlement reached for 176 minor plaintiffs with claims in litigation over water contamination stemming from jet fuel spills at the U.S. Navy Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility in the Aloha State should be approved.

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Roush NASCAR Team Seeks Final OK For Data Breach Deal

By Abigail Harrison

Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing LLC, a professional stock car racing team, asked a North Carolina federal court Friday for final approval of a settlement in a data breach class action that will offer protection for fraud and identity theft.

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Cento 'Certified San Marzano' Tomatoes Aren't Legit, Suit Says

By Gina Kim

Cento was hit with a proposed class action in California federal court Monday alleging it misleads consumers into thinking that its "certified" San Marzano tomatoes are authentic, despite lacking certification and approval from an Italian consortium that sets strict production and quality standards for these tomatoes.

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WWE Fans Want ESPN Kept Out Of Streaming Service Suit

By Aaron Keller

Streaming video service subscribers accusing World Wrestling Entertainment LLC of luring them into switching providers have asked a Connecticut federal judge to reject attempts by ESPN LLC and its subsidiary BAMTech LLC to enter the fight, arguing the court should respect their choice of who not to sue.

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Gas Stations Bound To Visa Swipe Fee Deal, 2nd Circ. Says

By Bryan Koenig

A Second Circuit panel refused Monday to let a group of gas stations separately sue Visa and Mastercard over their swipe fees, holding the would-be plaintiffs cannot get out of a $5.6 billion antitrust settlement the credit card giants inked with merchants.

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Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court this past week handled a wide-ranging docket of deal disputes, advancement fights, stockholder suits and contract claims, with several matters turning on timing, forum limits and the remedies available when transactions or governance agreements break down.

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Noncitizens Sue Texas Over Arrest Law After 5th Circ. Ruling

By José Luis Martínez

Two noncitizens filed a proposed class action Monday in federal court seeking to block parts of Texas' migrant arrest law from taking effect, less than two weeks after the full Fifth Circuit ruled that immigrant-rights groups and a Texas county lacked standing to challenge the law.

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DOJ Seeks To Freeze Jan. 6 Civil Suits Against Trump

By Jared Foretek

The U.S. Department of Justice is calling for a halt to discovery in consolidated lawsuits against President Donald Trump over his involvement in the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol while the D.C. Circuit decides whether he should be immune from the litigation.

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Davis Polk Lands Skadden's LA Leader To Launch New Office

By Rose Krebs

Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is opening an office in Los Angeles and is bringing on the former leader of Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP's office in the city.

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Assessing The 9th Circ.'s Recent Stock Drop Dismissal Trend

The recent decision in Nova Scotia Health Employees' Pension Plan v. Comerica is an important circuit-level addition to the growing trend of Ninth Circuit securities class action dismissals on loss causation grounds, which have used a contextual analysis premised on stock drops that are modest, typical and short-lived, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

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2 AI Snafus Show Why Attys Can't Outsource Judgment

The recent incident involving Sullivan & Cromwell where citations in a filed motion were fabricated by artificial intelligence, as well as a punitive ruling from the Sixth Circuit in U.S. v. Farris, demonstrate that the obligation to supervise AI has belonged and always will belong to lawyers, says John Powell at the Kentucky School Boards Association.

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Bondi Spurs Ethics Doubts By Using DOJ Official As Counsel

By Courtney Bublé

Harmeet Dhillon, an official with the U.S. Department of Justice, is representing former Attorney General Pam Bondi in proceedings before the House oversight committee, which Democrats on the panel say raises ethical quandaries.

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Military Atty Can Prosecute Minn. Civilian Despite Regulations

By Jack Karp

A Minnesota federal judge won't stop a military attorney from being appointed to prosecute a civilian accused of assaulting federal immigration officers, despite finding that the appointment violates binding U.S. Department of Defense regulations.

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DOJ Apology For Hidden Warrant Not Satisfying For Judge

By Tom Lotshaw

A Rhode Island federal judge, whom the U.S. Department of Homeland Security criticized for releasing a noncitizen with an alleged overseas warrant for homicide, was dissatisfied with an assistant U.S. attorney's apology for not disclosing the warrant to the court beforehand.

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Wash. Bar Task Force Spotlights Atty Mental Health Issues

By Rachel Riley

A Washington State Bar Association wellness survey of roughly 900 members found that nearly 10% said they experienced suicidal thoughts or self-harm in the past year, and about 20% expressed concerns about their alcohol consumption, a task force reported to bar leadership on Saturday.

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Lewis Brisbois Gets Ex-Paralegal's Claims Sent To Arbitration

By Adrian Cruz

A Florida state judge determined that a former Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP paralegal has to arbitrate her claims accusing the firm of defamation and costing her a job at another firm.

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Sinema Pans 'Gross Distortion' By Ex-Guard's Wife In Tryst Suit

By Abigail Harrison

Former Arizona U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema on Friday doubled down on her contention that a North Carolina federal court lacks jurisdiction over a lawsuit alleging she destroyed a marriage by sending lascivious texts to her ex-security guard.

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Analysis

DOJ's In-House Detention Legal Aid Plan Is MIA

By Courtney Bublé

A year ago, U.S. Department of Justice officials said the government would be taking over a program historically run by nonprofits to provide legal orientations and referrals for pro bono representation for adults in immigration detention facilities. But those involved in the program say the Trump administration hasn't taken any steps to run the program.

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2nd Circ. Raises Concern Over Challenge To NY US Atty's DQ

By Stewart Bishop

A Second Circuit panel on Monday voiced concern over the U.S. Department of Justice's argument that a now-former acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of New York was serving lawfully when he subpoenaed the New York Attorney General's office over a pair of cases disfavored by President Donald Trump.

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Maduro Gets June Court Date After US Relents On Atty Fees

By Pete Brush

A Manhattan federal judge on Monday directed former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to return to court in June, after he and his wife, Cilia Flores, reached an apparent agreement with the Trump administration to access Venezuela government funds for their legal fees.

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Mass. Justices Uneasy Over Judge's Handling Of ICE Incident

By Julie Manganis

Massachusetts' top court on Monday appeared concerned that a state district court judge in 2018 offered to detain a defendant sought by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, as the justices considered a public reprimand.

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Atty Seeks Docs To Back Ogletree DQ Bid In Bias Suit

By Adrian Cruz

A Georgia attorney on Monday asked a federal judge to allow discovery related to her bid to have Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC disqualified from defending ADT LLC against discrimination claims while concurrently defending Microsoft Corp. in the attorney's own pregnancy bias suit.

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Longtime South Fla. Federal Judge James King Dies At 98

By Carolina Bolado

U.S. District Judge James Lawrence King, a Nixon appointee who spent more than half a century on the federal bench and helped shape the Southern District of Florida, died Saturday at the age of 98.

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Calif. District OKs Civil Court Audio Feeds Including Musk Trial

By Dorothy Atkins

The Northern District of California modified local court rules late Friday to allow judges to stream audio for civil jury trials in the district, accompanying its announcement with a separate notice that the high-profile Elon Musk v. Sam Altman trial over OpenAI's for-profit conversion is available to access via audio stream.

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