Apple, Visa And Mastercard Beat Payment Fee Collusion Suit

By Rae Ann Varona

An Illinois federal judge on Wednesday dismissed several retailers' proposed antitrust class action that accused Apple, Visa and Mastercard of scheming to restrain competition in point-of-sale transaction payment networks, saying the express terms of agreements retailers had claimed were anti-competitive showed otherwise.

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X Can't Escape Don Lemon Suit, But Musk Can, Judge Says

By Adam Lidgett

X Corp. has lost its bid to ditch all of former CNN anchor Don Lemon's lawsuit claiming the social media platform reeled him into a talk show partnership and then unceremoniously canceled the deal, although its leader Elon Musk was allowed to duck out of the case.

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'Admonition' But No More Amazon Penalty For Hidden Docs

By Bryan Koenig

A federal judge in Washington state took Amazon.com to task Thursday for "bad faith" material review that labeled tens of thousands of documents as covered by attorney-client privilege despite involving no legal advice, but the judge, who is presiding over the Federal Trade Commission's Prime subscriptions case against the company, opted against further punishment.

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Judge Trims IP Claims In Voice Actors' Suit Against AI Co.

By Ivan Moreno

A New York federal judge ruled Thursday that two voice actors accusing an artificial intelligence startup of cloning their voices for narration software without permission can proceed with their state-level claims, but their trademark and most of their copyright claims must be dismissed for now.

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Conn. Couple Must Provide Harbor Access, Judge Says

By Isaac Monterose

A Connecticut state court judge has sided with a married Bridgeport couple who sued another married couple over a now-completed home construction project that allegedly blocked the plaintiffs from accessing a local harbor.

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Chubb Units Say Conn. City Owes $1.8M For Water Main Break

By Ganesh Setty

Two Chubb units told a Connecticut federal court that the city of New Britain must reimburse them for over $1.8 million in coverage payments for a water main break that they said caused severe flood damage, arguing local authorities took too long to step in.

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Original BBQ Joint Lays Claim To TM In Fight With Franchise

By Hayley Fowler

The original location in a North Carolina chain of barbecue restaurants has shot back at a trademark infringement suit brought by the company that runs its sister restaurants, arguing it never lost ownership of the marks after the two entities split ways two decades ago.

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Bettors Fight To Keep Suit Over DraftKings Promos Afloat

By Alex Lawson

DraftKings customers alleging the online betting giant's advertisements fuel gambling addiction are pushing to keep their proposed class action against the company alive, throwing water on its effort to escape the lawsuit by leaning on its extensive disclaimers and fine print.

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Punitive Damages Ruling Deferred In Jack Nicklaus' Fla. Suit

By David Minsky

A Florida state court judge deferred a decision on whether he'll overrule a previous order denying punitive damages in a defamation lawsuit brought by former professional golfer Jack Nicklaus against a company he founded and two of its officers, saying there must be enough evidence to find that reprehensible misconduct occurred.

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Construction Equipment Co. Says Dealer Withheld $3M

By Spencer Brewer

A Japanese construction machinery company told a Texas federal court that an Amarillo-based equipment dealer has failed to pay several invoices and continues to hold onto about $3 million worth of equipment, asking the court to order the dealership to turn over the equipment.

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11th Circ. Tosses Satellite Co.'s $829K Finder's Fee Suit

By Catherine Marfin

The Eleventh Circuit said Wednesday that a $829,000 award in favor of a satellite technology company should be tossed, writing that a Florida federal court didn't have jurisdiction over the case.

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Series

Playing The Violin Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Playing violin in a string quartet reminds me that flexibility, ambition, strong listening skills, thoughtful leadership and intentional collaboration are all keys to a successful legal practice, says Julie Park at MoFo.

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VC Giant Andreessen Rips Del. Courts, Plans Move To Nev.

By Rae Ann Varona

Venture capital giant Andreessen Horowitz on Wednesday announced plans to reincorporate in Nevada, saying that it was no longer a "no-brainer" to launch a company and incorporate in the historically corporate-friendly state of Delaware.

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Dems Say 3rd Circ. Nominee Urged DOJ To Ignore Courts

By Courtney Bublé

Senate Democrats on the Judiciary Committee on Thursday unveiled 150 pages of documents, which they say substantiate whistleblower allegations against Third Circuit nominee Emil Bove and raise concerns about his conduct during his tenure at the U.S. Department of Justice.

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Another Atty Sanctioned For Allegedly Hallucinated Case Law

By Andrea Keckley

A Florida judge on Wednesday issued a blistering order against an attorney who became the latest of many to face sanctions over filings with case law suspected of being hallucinated by generative artificial intelligence, ordering him to take AI ethics courses and repay opposing counsel's fees.

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Trump Taps Holland & Hart Partner For Montana Bench

By Lauren Berg

President Donald Trump announced on social media Thursday he has chosen a Holland & Hart LLP partner and veteran government attorney to serve on the federal bench in Montana.

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Senate Tees Up 6th Circ. Nom Vote As 1st Of 2nd Trump Term

By Courtney Bublé

The first judicial confirmation of the second Trump administration was readied on Thursday, with the U.S. Senate voting 51-43 to end debate on the nomination of Whitney Hermandorfer to the Sixth Circuit.

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Judge Blocks Trump's Birthright Citizenship Order Nationwide

By Britain Eakin

A New Hampshire federal judge on Thursday issued a nationwide block of President Donald Trump's executive order limiting birthright citizenship, and granted certification to a nationwide class that will cover all affected children born in the U.S.

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Analysis

5 Employee Benefits Takeaways On The GOP Tax Bill

By Kellie Mejdrich

Congressional Republicans' sweeping tax and policy bill, which President Donald Trump sought and then signed, contains multiple provisions that caught the attention of employee benefits and executive compensation attorneys, including new changes to high-deductible health plans and an employer-side deduction limit affecting highly compensated employees. Here are five takeaways from employee benefits and executive compensation attorneys on what's in — and out of — the GOP megabill.

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