NY Judge 'Doubtful' Of Oil Co.'s Suit Against Ex-Florida Rep.

By David Minsky

A New York federal judge said Tuesday he was "doubtful" that a breach of contract lawsuit filed by the U.S. subsidiary of Venezuela's state-owned oil company can go forward, given the agreement's potential invalidation following a trial that resulted in the conviction of a former Florida congressman last month.

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9th Circ. Rejects FCA Bid To Pause Headrest Class Trial

By Joyce Hanson

The Ninth Circuit has rejected outright Fiat Chrysler's bid to pause class action proceedings over supposedly defective Jeep and Dodge headrests during the automaker's preparation of a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court as it pushes for arbitration in the case.

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Chamberlain Hrdlicka Gets New Look At $700K Award In Texas

By Lynn LaRowe

The Texas Supreme Court has granted a request from Chamberlain Hrdlicka White Williams & Aughtry to review lower court rulings that left the firm on the hook for $700,000 in a breach of contract dispute with a cost-cutting consultant, which the firm claims should have received no more than $40,000.

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Cigna Loses Privilege Bid Due To 'Inaccurate, Redundant' Log

By Brian Steele

Cigna "improperly asserted privilege" over hundreds of documents that three laboratories sought as part of the discovery process in federal payment litigation in Connecticut, according to a special master appointed by the judge in the consolidated cases.

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Montanans Say Data Center Electricity Rates Need Their Input

By Elaine Briseño

Environmental advocacy groups seek to intervene in NorthWestern Energy's application to establish new rates for future data centers, telling the Montana Public Service Commission that their input is needed to protect residential customers from unpredictably higher costs.

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Mich. Township Says Man Admitted Church Wasn't His

By Susan Smiley

A west Michigan township accused of illegally demolishing a historic church is asking a federal judge not to allow a town resident to amend his complaint alleging the property belonged to him, arguing the plaintiff previously admitted that the church did not belong to him.

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U Of Colo. Regents Sued Over End To 'Email For Life'

By Rachel Konieczny

An alumnus of the University of Colorado Boulder urged a Colorado state judge to stop the university's board of regents from cutting off graduates' access to their university email addresses, saying the planned cutoff violates a contract between the university and its alumni.

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4th Circ. Turns Down Bacardi Challenge To Rum TM Renewal

By Adam Lidgett

The Fourth Circuit on Tuesday rejected Bacardi's challenge to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's renewal of a Cuban company's expired trademark registration for Havana Club rum, finding a retroactive approval to pay the registration fee to be valid.

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Ex-Wine Exec Says Privilege Covers Atty Emails With Spouse

By Aaron Keller

The former president of a company connected to the Josh Cellars wine brand says his attorney's messages to his wife are privileged because she participated in the communications as his "agent," a characterization the company appeared poised to dispute as the parties approach a $4 million trademark royalties trial.

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Texas Tech QB Leaves Team Amid Betting Scandal Lawsuits

By Alex Lawson

The legal fracas over Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby, who won an injunction to play football this fall despite extensive sports gambling admissions, abruptly halted Tuesday as Sorsby left the team and declared for the NFL's supplemental draft.

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Landlord Says $158K Fine Over Alleged Pot Growing Illegal

By Jonathan Capriel

The city of Fresno, California, imposed an "excessive fine" for what it claimed was marijuana cultivation and allowed the plants to be destroyed before a landlord could challenge its finding, he contended in a federal lawsuit, saying he had no idea his tenant was allegedly growing cannabis.

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Decoding Arbitral Disputes: Curial Review Limits In Singapore

The Singapore International Commercial Court's recent decision to dismiss an application for supervisory relief from a Singapore International Arbitration Centre final costs award illustrates the limits of converting adverse financial consequences into public policy objections, even where the commercial result is severe, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

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The Paradoxical Duty To Adopt AI When You Can't Bill For It

Both billing for hours saved using artificial intelligence and preserving billable time by not adopting AI may violate rules of professional conduct, but until bar associations' ethics rules catch up to this emerging economic dilemma, firms must decide how to adjust fee structures themselves, says Ines Lassalle at Peyrot & Associates.

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K&L Gates Adds Ex-DOJ Atty, WH Cyber Director Office's GC

By Jack Rodgers

The former acting general counsel for the White House's Office of the National Cyber Director, who most recently worked as U.S. digital currency counsel at the U.S. Department of Justice, has joined K&L Gates LLP as a partner.

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Trump Halts Clayton Director Hearing Over Blue-Slip Dispute

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump directed Jay Clayton, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, not to appear for his confirmation hearing Wednesday on his nomination to be director of national intelligence, in part over a blue-slip issue.

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Full Fed. Circ. To Hear Immigration Judges' Firing Challenge

By Ganesh Setty

The Federal Circuit on Wednesday agreed to conduct en banc review over the firing of two immigration judges, after the Merit Systems Protection Board ruled that they constituted inferior officers who are subject to at-will removal by the president.

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Winston Taylor Fills Leadership Roles In DC, Miami, Europe

By Madison Arnold

Winston Taylor announced Wednesday that it made senior appointments across four major commercial centers around the globe.

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No Discipline For DOJ Atty's 'Lapse Of Judgment' In ICE Case

By Emily Sawicki

A Rhode Island federal prosecutor who knowingly withheld information about a detainee's criminal history at the behest of immigration enforcement, leading to an "unfounded attack" against a federal judge by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement following the detainee's release, violated his duty of candor but will not face discipline, the district's chief judge determined.

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Colo. Firm Accused Of Keeping Atty's Wages, Commissions

By Rachel Konieczny

A Denver employment law firm has not paid a former lawyer with the firm all wages and commissions she is owed, the attorney alleged in Colorado state court.

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