High Court Strikes Down Hawaii Gun Restrictions

By Elizabeth Daley and Marco Poggio

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a Hawaii law banning people from bringing firearms onto private property open to the public without express permission from the owner violates the Second and 14th amendments.

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

NY Prosecutors Drop Weinstein Rape Charge After Mistrial

By Frank G. Runyeon

Prosecutors told a New York judge Thursday that they will drop a third-degree rape charge against Harvey Weinstein after two consecutive juries deadlocked on the allegation by actor Jessica Mann.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Palisades Fire Jury Says It Can't Agree On Arson Verdict

By Rae Ann Varona

Federal jurors in Los Angeles were at a standstill Thursday on whether Florida resident Jonathan Rinderknecht is guilty of setting what would later become the deadly Palisades Fire in January 2025, clarifying they "cannot reach a unanimous verdict" when asked if the court could give them any assistance.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

NJ Justices Clarify Face Recognition Discovery Rules

By Parker Quinlan

New Jersey's highest court has clarified when prosecutors are required to turn over information to defendants about facial recognition tools used as part of a criminal investigation, saying judges must examine such discovery requests on a case-by-case basis.

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

Epstein Files Don't Warrant Maxwell Retrial, Feds Say

By Cara Salvatore

Ghislaine Maxwell's claim that the Epstein Files Transparency Act has unearthed new evidence requiring that she receive a new trial has no merit, New York federal prosecutors have told a judge.

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

Calif. Justices Say Custody Credits Don't Pool Across Cases

By Brandon Lowrey

California's top court ruled Thursday that courts are not required to credit defendants for aggregate time served before sentencing in separate cases, reversing a state appellate court decision.

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

Feds Say Would-Be Kavanaugh Assassin Was Let Off Easy

By Nadia Dreid

Both federal prosecutors and a Stephen Miller-founded public interest group believe that a Maryland federal judge let a woman accused of trying to kill U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh off too easy because of her gender identity and want the Fourth Circuit to order resentencing.

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

11th Circ. Challenges Exclusion In Arson Death Dispute

By Abraham Gross

An Eleventh Circuit panel appeared skeptical of a property insurer's argument that an exclusion for a failure to maintain an apartment complex freed it from defending the owner in a wrongful death suit stemming from arson.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

9th Circ. Backs Removals For Child Endangerment

By Tom Lotshaw

A federal statute allowing noncitizens to be deported over convictions for a crime of child abuse, child neglect or child abandonment can encompass endangerment situations where a child was put in danger but not hurt, a Ninth Circuit panel ruled Thursday.

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

Clinic Manager Asks 4th Circ. To Upend 6-Year Fraud Sentence

By Asha Glover

A clinic manager who paid patients in gift cards is challenging her six-year prison sentence, telling the Fourth Circuit on Thursday that a federal judge failed to consider other mitigating factors when sentencing her for healthcare fraud and failing to file a tax return.

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

Mich. Justices Revive BAC Proof In Fatal Crash Prosecution

By Susan Smiley

The Michigan Supreme Court ruled that a jury should be allowed to hear evidence that a motorcyclist killed in a traffic collision may have been intoxicated at the time of the crash, reversing lower court decisions that excluded the evidence from a criminal prosecution against the driver of the other vehicle.

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

Lack Of Evidence Sinks Insurance Fraud Case, Atty Says

By Emily Sawicki

A Louisiana law firm and lawyer found guilty of criminal conspiracy and wire fraud for staging vehicle crashes as part of a scheme to defraud insurance carriers and trucking companies are seeking acquittal or a new trial, arguing that federal prosecutors failed to support their claims with evidence.

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

Colo. Judge Tosses Fired Public Defender's Speech Claim

By Benjamin Morse

A Colorado state judge has dismissed a free speech claim by a former public defender, who alleged he was fired after making court filings and seeking a hearing to warn that crushing caseloads and a cyberattack threatened his ability to provide constitutionally adequate representation to criminal defendants.

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

Insurance Mogul Wants Atty Access To Fight $1.6B Restitution

By Abigail Harrison

A recently sentenced insurance magnate is asking a North Carolina federal court to order the federal Bureau of Prisons to grant him daily access to computers and his attorneys as he continues to fight a $1.6 billion restitution order.

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

Brief

Wash. Resident Gets 18 Months For Russia Export Conspiracy

By Ganesh Setty

The U.S. Department of Justice said a Washington state resident has received a prison sentence of 18 months on Wednesday over a scheme to flout U.S. export restrictions on Russia, after pleading guilty in New York federal court in October.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

High Court Ruling Casts Doubt On Status-Based Gun Bans

The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in U.S. v. Hemani demonstrates that the justices are increasingly skeptical of broad theories of categorical disarmament and clarifies that dangerousness cannot simply be presumed from one's status or membership in a statutory category, such as illegal drug use, says Lee Francis at Widener Law.

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

Data Reveals Pivot In Feds' Financial Fraud Priorities

Recent Justice Department data shows fraud prosecutions fell to their lowest rate in a decade in 2025, illustrating a move away from traditional financial cases and toward a targeted mix of healthcare, government program, consumer and sanctions matters, say Paul Hinton and Adrienna Huffman at The Brattle Group.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Series

Moshing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Entering a mosh pit is much like entering the practice of law — it is difficult, you have to know both the written and unwritten rules, and conduct yourself according to the expectations of each community, says Christopher Deubert at Constangy Brooks.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Groombridge Wu Tops Milbank Pay Scale For Associates

By Kevin Penton

Groombridge Wu Baughman & Stone LLP is the latest firm to top the pay scale for associates announced earlier this month by Milbank LLP, with attorneys set to earn as much as $470,000.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Senate Confirming Judges Faster Than In Trump's 1st Term

By Courtney Bublé

The Senate has confirmed 45 judges in the second Trump term, outpacing the rate of his first administration, Senate Republicans announced on Thursday.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Attys Urged To Challenge Clients Who Demand AI Research

By Aaron Keller

A Connecticut federal judge urged attorneys during a Thursday sanctions hearing to push back against clients who demand lawyers use generative artificial intelligence tools to conduct legal research, saying the technology is no substitute for professional judgment and discretion because it "aims to please" and can misstate the law.

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

SCOTUSblog Founder Goldstein Blasts 'Inflated' DOJ Tax Math

By Jared Foretek

Convicted SCOTUSblog founder Tom Goldstein and federal prosecutors are clashing again over their dramatically divergent sentencing recommendations, with the defense accusing the government of presenting a "one-dimensional caricature" of the famed lawyer in seeking an eight-year sentence, and prosecutors accusing him of potentially deleting "secret chats" with his gambling backers.

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

Quinn Emanuel Says 3M Fee Proposal Undervalues Its Work

By Carolina Bolado

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP has objected to a special master's recommendation on the allocation of common benefit fees in the $6 billion settlement that ended multidistrict litigation against 3M over allegedly faulty combat earplugs, saying the amount doesn't value the "length, extent and impact" of the firm's work.

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