Tesla Atty Misled Witness Days Before Bias Trial, Judge Hears

By Dorothy Atkins

The California Civil Rights Department asked a California judge for a protective order Monday on the first day of a bench trial over claims Tesla Inc. fostered racism at its Fremont factory, after a witness testified that an in-house Tesla attorney recently called him and misled him into believing he represented the agency.

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2nd Circ. Seems Hesitant To Kick PwC Bias Suit To Arbitration

By Vin Gurrieri

The Second Circuit appeared skeptical Monday of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP's push to compel arbitration of a former worker's suit alleging discriminatory harassment, with one judge saying the company is advocating for an "extraordinary understanding" of a 2022 law barring mandatory arbitration of sexual harassment claims.

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Meta Trims But Can't End Cybersecurity Pro's Retaliation Suit

By Lauren Berg

The former head of cybersecurity at messaging platform WhatsApp can pursue some, but not all, of his whistleblower retaliation suit against Meta Platforms, a California federal judge has ruled, saying the complaint plausibly alleges protected activity regarding his reports that claim Meta violated U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rules.

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2nd Circ. Gives Ex-LVMH Atty A New Shot At Retaliation Case

By Anne Cullen

The Second Circuit on Monday reinstated retaliation claims brought by a former LVMH attorney who alleged that the French luxury brand fired her for reporting sexual misconduct, concluding that her refusal to engage in settlement discussions could constitute legally protected activity.

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Chartwell Settles Bias Suit From Atty Fired After Gaza Posts

By Adrian Cruz

Chartwell Law Offices LLP has agreed to settle claims brought by an attorney who alleged she was fired over social media posts about Gaza, according to a filing in Florida federal court.

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Brief

Swedish Health's $86M Wage Deal Nets Attys $25.8M In Fees

By Ben Adlin

Swedish Health Services' $86 million settlement to end workers' class action suit over alleged wage and meal break violations will include a $25.8 million payout for the plaintiffs' attorneys, according to a Washington state judge's order giving final approval to the deal.

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Emory University Beats Fired White Worker's Race Bias Suit

By Kelcey Caulder

Emory University was freed from a white former worker's claim that a Black vice provost fired him due to race, age and gender bias, with a federal judge finding that no reasonable jury could conclude from the evidence that the employee was terminated for those reasons.

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Mentor's Remarks Not Enough To Propel Sex Harassment Suit

By Grace Elletson

A Michigan federal judge dismissed a sex harassment suit Monday from a former elevator company worker who alleged that a male mentor made inappropriate comments to her, saying the seven remarks she cited over a nearly two-year period weren't enough to support a hostile work environment suit.

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Mich. Orthodontics Worker's Race Harassment Claims Survive

By Melanie Dorsey

A former employee of a Michigan orthodontics practice can take to trial her allegations that a co-worker created a hostile work environment by repeatedly using language mocking slavery, although a federal judge tossed her race discrimination and retaliation claim.

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Brief

4th Circ. Won't Rethink Cutting $22M Wells Fargo Judgment

By Carla Baranauckas

The Fourth Circuit declined Monday to reconsider its decision cutting nearly $2.9 million from a former Wells Fargo employee's $22 million jury award and overturning portions of the verdict in his disability discrimination suit against the financial giant.

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Drexel Prof's Class Format Change Was Retaliation, Jury Told

By P.J. D'Annunzio

Counsel for a Drexel University philosophy professor on Monday told a Philadelphia jury that the teacher faced retaliation for winning a previous equal pay lawsuit against the college in the form of having an upper level course she teaches switched from in-person to online instruction.

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Pa. Airport Beats K-9 Officer's OT Suit Over Dog Care

By Benjamin Morse

A Pennsylvania airport authority snagged an early win Monday in a former K-9 police officer's lawsuit seeking overtime for caring for his bomb-detection dog, with a federal judge finding the care was not compensable work because the dog no longer provided services to the airport.

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2nd Circ. Skeptical Of Fired United Worker's Grievance Claim

By Tim Ryan

The Second Circuit gave a cool reception Monday to a former United Airlines employee's attempt to force arbitration of a grievance over his firing after a Teamsters local declined to pursue it, with judges suggesting it was the union's right to advance the claim as it saw appropriate.

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NCAA Fights Lower-Division Athletes' 5th-Year Eligibility Bid

By Elaine Briseño

The NCAA urged a Colorado federal court not to become the first to certify a class of lower-division college athletes seeking a fifth season of eligibility, arguing they have significantly different circumstances from those of Division I athletes lodging a similar challenge.

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NJ Court Backs Arbitration Award Against Concrete Co.

By Katherine Smith

A New Jersey federal court on Monday upheld an arbitration award ordering a concrete supplier to rehire an employee who was fired after he tested positive for marijuana, rejecting the company's claim that an arbitrator exceeded her authority when issuing the award.

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Texas Firms Sued Over Alleged VA Benefits Fee Scheme

By Madeline Lyskawa

Two Texas firms accused of charging disabled veterans illegal fees in exchange for helping them obtain higher disability ratings and larger monthly disability payments removed to D.C. federal court a proposed class action filed by a veterans service organization.

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FedEx Seeks High Court Review Of 6th Circ. Pension Ruling

By Katherine Smith

FedEx has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the Sixth Circuit's decision to revive two proposed class actions alleging Kellogg's and FedEx's outdated actuarial assumptions shortchanged joint-and-survivor benefits for retirees, claiming the circuit court's "erroneous" interpretation of federal benefits law warrants high court review.

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Judge OKs Up To $3.2M In BioXcel Employee Ch. 11 Bonuses

By Clara Geoghegan

A Delaware bankruptcy judge approved employee retention and executive incentive payments that could total up to $3.2 million as AI-bolstered pharmaceutical group BioXcel works to sell its assets in Chapter 11.

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ADM Faces Class Action Over Purported Dark Web Data Leak

By Joyce Hanson

A former Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. employee filed a proposed class action in Illinois federal court claiming the agricultural giant failed to protect workers' personal information during a ransomware attack this month that has been attributed to a cybercrime group.

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Brief

By Ivan Moreno

A D.C. federal judge has paused U.S. Copyright Office leader Shira Perlmutter's challenge to the Trump administration's attempt to fire her, saying pending legislation that would give the president authority to appoint the office's leader could have an "obvious effect" on the dispute.

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Morgan Lewis Adds Amazon Senior Counsel In Chicago

By Christine DeRosa

Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP has grown its labor and employment offerings with the addition of a senior corporate counsel at Amazon, the firm said Monday.

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Risk Considerations As EEOC Moves To Ax Data Reports

While the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's recent proposal to rescind requirements for workforce demographic reporting wouldn't bar employers from collecting data, companies would have to be especially careful to gather and use such information in legally defensible ways, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.

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Seyfarth Says Data Breach Exposed Social Security Numbers

By Hailey Konnath

Seyfarth Shaw LLP has disclosed a recent data breach that exposed the names and Social Security numbers of at least 300 individuals, according to notices filed with the Texas and California attorneys general.

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Meta Celebrates 'Abuse' Of Atty-Client Privilege, Judge Told

By Dorothy Atkins

A California federal judge ordered Meta on Tuesday to rereview privilege designations on 300 documents in social media addiction litigation, after plaintiffs' lawyers cited a "culture of privilege abuse" epitomized by Instagram swag hats embroidered with "a/c priv" — the shorthand used to log withheld documents.

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Mich. Fed. Judge On 1-Year Leave Over Drunken Driving Case

By Jack Karp

U.S. District Judge Thomas L. Ludington is taking a one-year paid leave of absence from the bench following his misdemeanor conviction for drunken driving, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan announced Tuesday.

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Womble Bond Can't Quit Dutch Client With TM Trial Looming

By Hayley Fowler

Womble Bond Dickinson can't withdraw from a trademark feud that's dragged on for more than five years between U.S. and Dutch software companies, a North Carolina federal judge ruled, saying the firm's exit at this late stage "would be completely disruptive."

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