Lively Can Get Fees In Baldoni Case, But No Damages

By Cara Salvatore

A New York federal judge ruled Friday that actor Blake Lively can recoup legal fees from her "It Ends With Us" costar Justin Baldoni after the dismissal of his defamation claims, but found in an issue of first impression that federal procedure bars her from recovering treble and punitive damages under a new state law.

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Upper Deck Beats Game Co.'s Bid For $4M Fees After IP Loss

By Rachel Riley

A Washington federal judge denied a bid from toymaker Ravensburger and a game designer for $3.8 million in legal fees after the court mostly sided with them in Upper Deck's copyright case targeting a Disney-branded trading card game, noting that the suit was "neither unreasonable nor frivolous."  

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Texas AG Warns Big 12 Against Texas Tech Boycott

By Alex Lawson

As the Big 12 considers sanctioning Texas Tech University following a court order permitting quarterback Brendan Sorsby to play football despite admitting to sports betting, it faces threats of legal action from both the quarterback's attorneys and the state attorney general.

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Kennedy Center Owes $17M, Washington National Opera Says

By Madeline Lyskawa

The Kennedy Center has refused to return $17 million in funding to the Washington National Opera that the performing arts center managed under the parties' since-terminated affiliation agreement, the opera company said in a complaint at the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. 

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Texas Justices Take Up Exxon's $25M AIG Coverage Fight

By Spencer Brewer

The Texas Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear an appeal from Exxon Mobil Corp. seeking to force an AIG unit to pay $25 million of a $35 million settlement arising from a deadly 2013 explosion at Exxon's refinery in Beaumont.

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Detroit Tried To Seize Project, Developer Says In Suit

By Susan Smiley

A development company that sought to revive a 38-acre Detroit hospital campus and transform it into a $148 million commerce and innovation hub has filed a complaint in Michigan bankruptcy court claiming the city of Detroit and the Detroit Land Bank Authority are unlawfully obstructing the project and trying to reclaim the parcel for political reasons.

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Mont. Developer Says Colo. Architect Firm's Errors Cost $4.8M

By Zach Dupont

A Colorado architecture firm is accused of causing a nearly $4.8 million increase in the cost of constructing a residential housing development in Bozeman, Montana, in a complaint filed in Colorado state court.

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SVB, Insurers Spar Over Policy Language In $73M Fraud Row

By Hope Patti

Insurers for the failed Silicon Valley Bank are not entitled to a quick win in a $73 million fraud coverage dispute, the bank and its receiver told a North Carolina federal court, saying the carriers' interpretation of the financial institution bonds' extended forgery provision is not supported by policy language.

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Geico Beats Receiver's Suit Over $2.8M Crash Judgment

By Abigail Harrison

Geico broke free of a bad faith and breach of contract suit that accused it of failing to settle a catastrophic-injury claim against an insured that resulted in a $2.8 million judgment, after a North Carolina federal judge backed a magistrate judge's finding that the suit failed to state a claim.

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InterDigital Patent Suit Against Disney Paused For Dolby Feud

By Elliot Weld

A California federal judge has paused a patent infringement suit brought by wireless technology outfit InterDigital Inc. against The Walt Disney Co. while letting play out a dispute involving a request from Dolby to declare one InterDigital patent invalid, as well as Disney's challenges over two other patents at the patent office.

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Brief

Salesforce Dodges Full Fed. Circ. Review Of IP Win

By Dani Kass

Consulting firm Applications in Internet Time LLC has failed to persuade the full Federal Circuit to revive its patent infringement suit against Salesforce Inc.

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Academics Ask 2nd Circ. To Revive Publisher Conspiracy Suit

By Bryan Koenig

Academic researchers are asking the Second Circuit to revive their proposed class action accusing six of academia's largest journal publishers of colluding to stifle their leverage and eliminate pay for peer review work, arguing the district court credited the publishers' "written rules" but "discarded" how those rules were implemented.

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Ex-Gov't Contractor Cops To $510K IT Kickback Scheme

By Gina Kim

A former intelligence agency contractor pled guilty in Maryland federal court to accepting $510,000 in kickbacks in exchange for using his access to sensitive government systems to influence the procurement process for IT products in favor of his co-conspirators, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

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Roundup

UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

By Laura Stewart Liberty

The past week in London has seen the FCA bring a claim against a fund manager it accused of providing investment services despite having been banned, an Ardmore unit sue a contractor two days before the construction group's collapse, and shipping and cruise giant MSC hit back at an entertainment company following separate intellectual property litigation in the U.S. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

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Supplier Says Sikorsky Owes $14M For Helicopter Job

By Brian Steele

Lockheed Martin unit Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. paid a subcontractor only $8 million for $22 million worth of work on a multibillion-dollar military helicopter program after causing the project to "balloon in time and cost," according to a federal contract suit.

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4 Firms Guide PE Investment In Univ. Of Utah Athletic Dept.

By David Steele

The University of Utah made its partnership with Otro Capital official Friday — marking the first time an individual institution of higher education has reached an investment agreement with a private equity firm for athletic department operations — in a deal counseled by Covington & Burling LLP and Ray Quinney & Nebeker PC for the university and Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP for Otro Capital.

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Dutchie, ScanSource Settle $24.7M Monitor Contract Fight

By Jonathan Capriel

E-commerce cannabis company Dutchie and a distributor of cash register monitors have reached a deal in their nearly $25 million contract dispute, according to a South Carolina federal judge's dismissal order, ending the case a couple of months before jury selection was set to start.

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Webuild Seeks Redo, Says Award Ruling Deepens Circuit Split

By Caroline Simson

Italian construction giant Webuild pressed the Third Circuit to reconsider its decision reviving a Chilean construction company's bid to enforce a $140 million arbitral award against it, saying the decision exacerbates confusion over whether minimum contacts are required to enforce a foreign arbitral award.

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More BigLaw Raises Predicted Despite Silence After Milbank

By Alison Knezevich

While boutiques make up many of the law firms that have quickly matched Milbank LLP's recently announced associate raises, recruiters told Law360 Pulse this week that they predict more BigLaw firms will eventually reveal their own salary hikes.

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Analysis

Insider Trading Defense May Draw On 'Varsity Blues' Playbook

By Chris Villani

After enlisting a crew of experienced attorneys, defendants charged in an insider trading case allegedly involving deal information stolen from huge law firms are preparing to use a strategy that could take some cues from the "Varsity Blues" case in the same Boston courthouse.

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Q&A

JAMS Chief Executive Says Mass Arbitrations On The Rise

By Kellie Mejdrich

Mediation giant JAMS says it has seen a major upswing in mass arbitrations in employment and other contexts, as plaintiff-side firms develop new ways of responding to language requiring out-of-court dispute resolution by companies. CEO Kimberly Taylor and veteran JAMS mediator Robert Meyer spoke to Law360 about mediation trends, with a specific focus on employee benefits disputes.

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Atty Faces Sanctions Over Fake Quotes In Taco TM Fight

By Brian Steele

A Connecticut attorney could be sanctioned for including fake case quotes and misrepresentations of the law in court filings that seek dismissal of a trademark case against a taco restaurant, a federal judge said Friday in questioning whether the documents were sullied by artificial intelligence.

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Analysis

3 Things To Know As Judge Stares Down Impeachment Push

By Kelcey Caulder

The scandal that could cost U.S. District Judge Eleanor Ross her job also threatens to cause courthouse chaos in the form of recusal motions, bids to reopen suits and uncertainty for clerks. Here, Law360 looks at three things to know about the calls to impeach the judge and their potential fallout.

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Texas Court Urged To Keep Judge Romance Suit Alive

By Adrian Cruz

In multiple filings, EJS Investment Holdings LLC has asked a Texas federal judge to reject attempts by former U.S. Bankruptcy Judge David Jones and other parties to dismiss its proposed class action over his secret romance with a former Jackson Walker LLP partner.

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'Poor Lawyering': Walmart Flub Haunts Class Attys At 9th Circ.

By Jeff Overley

Amid warnings of a chilling effect on plaintiffs counsel, a Ninth Circuit panel Friday scrutinized six-figure sanctions against attorneys whose false advertising suit targeting Walmart Inc. collapsed because of crucial fine print in an avocado oil receipt.

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No Amici In Comey Seashell Threat Case, Judge Says

By Craig Clough

A North Carolina federal judge on Friday said she will not allow any amici to weigh in on former FBI Director James Comey's criminal charges alleging he threatened President Donald Trump with a social media post, finding the parties are "ably represented" by counsel and public input is not needed.

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Ill. Judge Decries Grand Jury 'Turmoil,' Tosses Fraud Charges

By Lauraann Wood

An Illinois federal judge agreed Friday to dismiss fraud charges against two men ahead of an evidentiary hearing probing recent grand jury misconduct claims, but cautioned that "getting rid" of the case may not have prosecutors' desired effect, as such allegations continue causing "turmoil" throughout the district court.

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Deluge Of Video Evidence Overwhelms Criminal Cases

By Brandon Lowrey

Surveillance cameras and police body cameras are creating a flood of video evidence that can help prosecutors and defense attorneys build strong cases. But many have been struggling with the technical and logistical challenges that come with the sheer volume of footage.

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Roundup

GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

By Sue Reisinger

Elon Musk and SpaceX's legal team blasted off with the largest IPO in history, with shares priced at $150 each at opening before briefly topping $176. And a new study shows investors have approved 11 of 17 companies' requests to move their incorporation from Delaware to Texas so far this proxy season.

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Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Kevin Penton

Kirkland & Ellis LLP leads this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after a Los Angeles jury in a bellwether trial cleared Johnson & Johnson of any liability in the deaths of three women from ovarian cancer.

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In Case You Missed It: Hottest Firms And Stories On Law360

For those who missed out, here's a look back at the law firms, stories and expert analyses that generated the most buzz on Law360 last week.

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