The Ninth Circuit appeared reluctant Wednesday to revive a suit from a former Washington State University head football coach who alleged he was fired after being denied a religious exemption to a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy, with one judge saying the coach is engaged in an "uphill" battle.
Law360
Employment
THURSDAY, JUNE 11, 2026 Law360 iOS App Law360 Android App Follow Law360 on Facebook Follow Law360 on LinkedIn Follow Law360 on Twitter

TOP NEWS

GettyImages-181799411.jpg

9th Circ. Seems Skeptical Of Religious Coach's Vax Suit

By Vin Gurrieri

The Ninth Circuit appeared reluctant Wednesday to revive a suit from a former Washington State University head football coach who alleged he was fired after being denied a religious exemption to a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy, with one judge saying the coach is engaged in an "uphill" battle.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

States Say Trump's DEI Rule For Contractors Is Unclear, Illegal

By Ben Adlin

Attorneys general from 19 states and Washington, D.C., on Wednesday sued numerous federal officials and agencies in an attempt to block the Trump administration's March 26 executive order prohibiting government contractors — including states — from engaging in "racially discriminatory" activity around diversity, equity and inclusion.

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

Appeals Panel Flags AI Concerns As It Reverses Lower Court

By Grace Elletson

A Georgia school district is immune from some claims in a trio of race discrimination suits brought by Black former principals, a state appeals court ruled Wednesday, overturning a lower court order it said contained mistakes and at least one "hallucinated" case law reference.

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

Pa. Panel Revives AT&T's Arbitration Bid In Worker's Suit

By P.J. D'Annunzio

In a precedential opinion Tuesday, the Pennsylvania Superior Court held that AT&T and its retailer Prime Communications' request to compel arbitration in an employment dispute should not have been overruled outright, saying that questions remained about whether the employee clicking an electronic box constituted signing an arbitration agreement.

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

Restaurant's Attys Sanctioned After Sushi Chef's Deposition

By Emily Brill

A Connecticut restaurant's attorneys must pay $7,000 to a sushi chef's attorneys after bringing the chef's ex-manager onscreen during a remote deposition in a wage lawsuit, a Connecticut federal judge ruled Wednesday, saying sanctions are warranted for conduct that can reasonably be interpreted as an intimidation tactic.

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

DOT Scrubs Disparate Impact From Discrimination Regs

By Linda Chiem

The U.S. Department of Transportation on Wednesday eliminated disparate impact from its regulations governing discrimination, as part of the Trump administration's sweeping rejection of the theory of liability premised on seemingly neutral policies having discriminatory effects.

Final Rule attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DISCRIMINATION

NJ Hospital Says Ex-CEO's Inaction At Event Supported Firing

By George Woolston

A New Jersey hospital urged a Garden State federal court to reject a bid from its former CEO for a finding that the hospital breached his employment agreement when it fired him over a topless art exhibit at a fundraising event, arguing that the ex-CEO has misinterpreted its sexual harassment policy.

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

Cop Urges Justices To Strike Down Burden-Shifting Precedent

By Grace Elletson

A Black police officer asked the U.S. Supreme Court to take up his case alleging he was fired out of race bias, claiming the Sixth Circuit was too quick to accept the argument that rap videos he posted online were the reason for his termination.

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

Fired Black Teacher Appeals NC School's Race Bias Suit Win

By Hayley Fowler

A Black teacher who claims he was fired from a public charter school in North Carolina for teaching a novel about racial justice is taking his discrimination case to the Fourth Circuit after a federal judge sided last month with the school, court records show.

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

Calif., Others Sue Ed Dept. Over Special Education Grant Cuts

By Gina Kim

California and other states sued the U.S. Department of Education in federal court Tuesday alleging it canceled special education service grants supporting students with disabilities for "political reasons," and rejected their applications for using "equity-related language" that complies with the General Education Provisions Act requiring proposals to ensure equitable access.

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

WAGE & HOUR

NYC Sanitation Officers Accuse City Of Skimping On OT

By MJ Koo

Over 100 New York City sanitation officers have sued the city in a federal court, claiming it has systematically failed to pay them for time worked before and after their scheduled shifts, miscalculated their overtime rate, and delayed overtime payments.

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

Colorado Ski Resorts Hit With Rest Break Wage Suits

By Zach Dupont

Former employees of a hotel and mountain resort in Colorado claim that they were routinely denied 10-minute breaks during their shifts in violation of Colorado law, according to a pair of proposed class actions filed in Colorado state court Tuesday.

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

Brief

Disney Imagineering, Staffing Firm Settle IT Worker's OT Suit

By MJ Koo

A former IT project manager, Walt Disney's theme park design arm and a staffing firm have agreed to resolve the worker's lawsuit alleging the companies failed to pay him overtime wages, according to a mediation report filed in Florida federal court.

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

LABOR

Unions Rally As 5 Shops Approach Contract Deadline

By Andrea Keckley

Legal service providers across New York City gathered in City Hall Park on Wednesday afternoon as five unions represented by the Association of Legal Advocates and Attorneys approach their deadlines for a new contract at the end of the month.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

BENEFITS

Union May Tap Surety For Unpaid Benefits, Mass. Court Says

By Julie Manganis

A labor union's benefits fund is entitled to pursue a claim against a general contractor's surety bond after two subcontractors failed to make contractually obligated contributions, the Massachusetts intermediate appellate court ruled Wednesday in reversing a lower court.

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

Transit Co. Can't Dodge $1.8M Pension Fund Bill

By Grace Elletson

A now-defunct transit company can't toss claims that it owes a Teamsters-affiliated pension fund $1.8 million in reallocation payments after the fund saw a mass withdrawal, a New York federal judge ruled, stating it's too early in the case to determine whether its insolvency blocks the bill.

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

TRADE SECRETS

Broker Says Ex-Employee Moved 800 Clients To Rival

By Benjamin Morse

An insurance brokerage urged a Colorado federal judge Wednesday to block three former employees and a rival from using allegedly stolen trade secrets, saying a senior broker took confidential customer spreadsheets before helping move more than 800 clients to a competitor.

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

EXPERT ANALYSIS

Vax Ruling Offers Employer Tips For Handling Political Speech

A California appeals court's recent decision in Rademacher v. ABC, rejecting a "General Hospital" actor's suit alleging he was terminated for opposing a vaccine policy, demonstrates the importance of the employer's process, including neutral policies, documentation, and evidence of who knew what and when, say attorneys at Krevolin Horst.

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

LEGAL INDUSTRY

The 2026 Law360 400

By Daniela Porat

Law360 is pleased to announce its list of the 400 largest U.S. firms by headcount.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Widow Sues Podhurst Orseck Over $4M 737 Max Settlement

By Mike Curley

An Indonesian widow is suing Podhurst Orseck PA and one of its attorneys in Illinois federal court, alleging they failed to keep her informed or get her all the money she was entitled to in a $4 million settlement with Boeing over the fatal crash of Lion Air Flight 610.

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

Kellogg Hansen Bests Susman Godfrey's Associate Pay Hikes

By Andrea Keckley

More litigation boutiques are joining the growing number of firms raising their base salaries for associates, with Kellogg Hansen Todd Figel & Frederick PLLC exceeding the scale Susman Godfrey LLP set earlier this week.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Mass. Attys Ding Watchdog's 'Myopic' Public Defense Report

By Julie Manganis

The leader of a group of Massachusetts attorneys who stopped taking court-appointed cases last year over what they say are inadequate hourly rates on Thursday slammed a state inspector general's highly critical report on the state's indigent defense system as "myopic."

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

Ex-Trump Atty Chesebro Gets Fla. Law License Back

By Madison Arnold

The Florida Supreme Court has reinstated the law license of former Trump campaign attorney Kenneth Chesebro after his conviction in Georgia's election interference racketeering case was eventually cleared by a court order invalidating the charge.

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

SDNY US Atty Jay Clayton Picked For DNI After Pulte Pushback

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump announced on Thursday he's nominating Jay Clayton, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, to be director of national intelligence.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Immigration Firm Says Attys Fraudulently Poached Clients

By Britain Eakin

A law firm recently accused of running a volume-driven immigration filing mill claimed in a new lawsuit in Ohio federal court that three attorneys and a TikTok personality orchestrated a social media campaign falsely accusing it of visa fraud as a way to poach its clients.

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

Mich. Judge Bullied Staff, Disciplinary Adjudicator Finds

By Melanie Dorsey

A suburban Detroit district judge violated court rules by withholding a court-ordered psychological evaluation report and repeatedly mistreating court staff, a retired judge serving as a neutral in disciplinary proceedings found, while rejecting several other claims of misconduct.

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

Mich. Judge Denies Law Firm's Bid To Toss Data Breach Suit

By Susan Smiley

A Michigan law firm's bid to toss a proposed class action alleging that it allowed a cybersecurity breach that exposed its clients' personal and medical information was denied Thursday by a federal judge who also granted the lead plaintiff's request to amend his complaint.

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

gray blue promo that reads Law360 400 Promo that reads Law360 Pulse 2026 AI Survey

LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

Ackermann & Tilajef

Ahmad Zavitsanos

Barnes & Thornburg

Burr & Forman

Collins Bargione

Collins Einhorn

Dowd Bennett

Elsberg Baker

FBT Gibbons

Federman & Sherwood

Fisher & Phillips

Foley & Lardner

Fox Rothschild

Gordon Rees

HKM Employment Attorneys

Hartzog Law Group

Holwell Shuster

Kellogg Hansen

Kirkland & Ellis

Krakow Souris

Kranjac Tripodi

Krevolin & Horst

Lane McNamara

Law Offices of Lawrence Mays

Lisinski Law Firm

Lubin Austermuehle

McGillivary Steele

Milbank LLP

Pacifica Law Group

Pierce & Kwok

Podhurst Orseck

Proskauer Rose

Reiner & Reiner

Roetzel & Andress

Shutts & Bowen

Smith Welch

Solomon Sherman

Spivak Lipton

Sullivan & Cromwell

Susman Godfrey

Taft Stettinius

Tarter Krinsky

Troy Law PLLC

Tucker Law Group LLC

Welch & Webb

COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

AT&T Inc.

Alterra Mountain Co.

Arapahoe Basin

Arch Capital Group Ltd.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

AssuredPartners Inc.

Brooklyn Defender Services

Center for Family Representation Inc.

Getty Images Holdings Inc.

Hub International Ltd.

Instagram Inc.

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC

Intrawest ULC

McAfee Inc.

Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem

Peregrine

RWJ Barnabas Health Inc.

Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital

The Bronx Defenders

The Florida Bar

The Walt Disney Co.

TikTok Inc.

Tower Health

Walt Disney Parks & Resorts Worldwide Inc.

Winter Park Resort

YouTube Inc.

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

California Attorney General's Office

City of New York

Committee for Public Counsel Services

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Executive Office of the President

Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council

Federal Housing Finance Agency

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

Florida Supreme Court

Georgia Court of Appeals

Maryland Attorney General's Office

Michigan Supreme Court

National Labor Relations Board

Rhode Island Attorney General's Office

State of Michigan

U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit

U.S. Department of Education

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Transportation

U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut

U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland

U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan

U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

U.S. Senate

U.S. Supreme Court

United States District Court for the District of Colorado

Wisconsin Department of Justice