4th Circ. Dubious Of Undoing Execs' Payroll Tax Convictions

By Hayley Fowler

Two former software executives in North Carolina challenging their conviction for failing to pay employment taxes seemed unlikely to get a reversal in the Fourth Circuit on Friday, with at least one judge hearkening back to his days as a prosecutor as he opined that the pair had essentially been "stealing."

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White House Pushes Congress To Override State AI Laws

By Courtney Bublé

The White House directed Congress to preempt "burdensome" state laws on artificial intelligence in a legislative framework released Friday.

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Up Next At High Court: Late Ballots And 'Last-Mile' Drivers

By Katie Buehler

The U.S. Supreme Court will kick off its March oral arguments session by reviewing disputes over the validity of state laws allowing late-arriving mail-in ballots to be counted in federal elections and whether "last-mile" delivery drivers qualify for the transportation worker exemption to the Federal Arbitration Act. 

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Ga. Jury Says Auto Dealer Owes Worker $584K For Retaliation

By Kelcey Caulder

A federal jury in Atlanta found that a former car sales associate who said the dealership she worked for suspended and then fired her after she complained about being inappropriately touched should get $584,000 in back pay and damages. 

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JetBlue Pilots Union Demands To Arbitrate United Deal Fight

By Dorothy Atkins

A pilots labor union hit JetBlue Airways with a lawsuit in New York federal court, seeking to force the airline to arbitrate pilots' contract dispute over its Blue Sky partnership with United Airlines, which the union claims allows JetBlue to unfairly farm out flights to other carriers.

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Roundup

Employment Authority: Union Contracts Elusive At Big Names

By Patrick Hoff

Law360 Employment Authority covers the biggest employment cases and trends. Catch up this week with coverage on how unions at big-name employers are still fighting for their first contracts several years after workers launched campaigns, the possibility that a U.S. Department of Labor independent contractor rule will have little impact on app-based companies, and the questions the Fourth Circuit is considering as it takes up Liberty University's challenge to a ruling that allowed a transgender former employee to pursue a sex discrimination suit against the Christian school.

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Denver Airport's General Counsel Claims Race Discrimination

By Rachel Konieczny

The city of Denver and three of its officials retaliated and discriminated against the Denver International Airport's general counsel for refusing to follow certain city directives that the attorney says could constitute criminal conduct, he alleged in Colorado federal district court.

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Battery Maker Accused Of Pro-Korean Pay Bias At Ga. Plant

By Kelcey Caulder

A battery company has been slapped with a proposed class action by three supervisors at a Georgia manufacturing facility who claim they were retaliated against for opposing discriminatory pay practices that benefit Korean managers over American ones.

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Ex-HR Assoc. Worker Seeks $500K In Fees After Bias Trial Win

By Rachel Konieczny

A former employee of a global human resources association who won an $11.5 million jury award in a discrimination lawsuit asked a Colorado federal judge to award her more than $500,000 in attorney fees.

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2nd-Try Senate Bill Seeks Min. Wage For Workers Behind Bars

By Irene Spezzamonte

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., reintroduced a bill that would allow incarcerated workers to receive the minimum wage under the Fair Labor Standards Act, a push that the senator said would end "exploitative practices in correctional facilities."

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Facilities Manager Must Face Immigrants' Forced Labor Case

By Kelcey Caulder

CGL Irwin Properties LLC must face a lawsuit brought by former detainees of a Georgia immigration detention center who alleged they were forced to work for the private prison company for as little as $1 a day, a federal judge said Friday.

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Law Firm Trying To 'Overthrow' Ill. City's Counsel, Suit Says

By Celeste Bott

A Chicago suburb has sued the law firm Odelson Murphey Frazier & McGrath in Illinois state court, asking a Cook County judge to block its involvement in a federal lawsuit brought by a former city employee accusing the mayor of extortion and retaliation and in a dispute involving the Teamsters at the Illinois Labor Relations Board.

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Ill. Court Revives Defamation Claim In Union Campaign Suit

By Katherine Smith

An Illinois appeals court has partially revived a lawsuit alleging that a candidate for a secretary treasurer position at a Chicago Fire Fighters Union local made defamatory Facebook comments about his campaign opponent, ruling that several of the comments support the suit's defamation claim.

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Judge Won't Reopen DIRTT Suit After Sending It To Canada

By Elliot Weld

A Utah federal judge has declined to reinstate a trade secrets dispute between two Canadian construction companies, saying the suing company has not explained how a no-longer-pending summary judgment motion in Canadian court has any bearing on a U.S. court case.

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Jury Finds Tech Co. Data Analyst Guilty Of Extortion Scheme

By Joyce Hanson

A data analyst contracted to work for a Washington, D.C.-based technology company was hit with a federal jury verdict finding him guilty of conducting a cyber extortion scheme that threatened to disclose employees and executives' personal information if they didn't pay him $2.5 million.

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New NLRB GC Likely To Prioritize Efficiency Over Policy Shifts

After the National Labor Relations Board operated without a quorum for nearly a year, general counsel Crystal Carey's early memoranda reflect a shift away from sweeping policy changes and toward clearing the case backlog, creating an environment that rewards employers' preparation and efficiency over prolonged litigation, says Michael Passarella at Olshan Frome.

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5 Tips For Navigating Your Firm's All-Attorney Summit

Law firm retreats should be approached strategically, as they present valuable opportunities to advance both the firm's objectives and attorneys' professional development through meaningful participation, building and strengthening internal relationships, and proactive follow-up, says James Argionis at Cozen O’Connor.

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Labor & Employment Head Named Next Morgan Lewis Chair

By Tracey Read

Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP announced Monday that the global leader of its labor and employment practice was unanimously elected as the firm's next chair to take over for Jami McKeon, who will retire at the end of the year.

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Social Media Atty Sanctioned For 'Most Shameful Moment'

By Craig Clough

A California judge on Monday sanctioned an attorney for the plaintiff in a bellwether trial alleging Meta Platforms and Google's social media platforms harm children's mental health, fining him $1,100 and keeping him off the plaintiffs' steering committee for violating court rules by twice filming inside the courthouse.

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NJ Judges Name US Atty In Apparent End To Leadership Fight

By Jake Maher

The New Jersey federal court on Monday appointed a career federal prosecutor to serve as U.S. attorney for the Garden State in what appears to end a lengthy standoff between district judges and the U.S. Department of Justice over leadership of the office.

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Immigration Judges To Challenge Their Firing At Fed. Circ.

By Britain Eakin

Attorneys for a pair of fired immigration judges said Monday they will ask the Federal Circuit to review a federal panel ruling that stripped them of civil service protections, warning of a dramatic expansion of presidential authority over the civil workforce.

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Day Pitney Fights DQ Over Ex-Justice's Time On Case He Heard

By Aaron Keller

Day Pitney LLP has apologized after former Connecticut Supreme Court Chief Justice Richard A. Robinson, now a firm partner, billed 15.7 hours for reviewing a since-remanded case he heard years ago as a justice, but the firm said the "error" should not disqualify its other lawyers from advancing the litigation. 

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Reed Smith Pushes To Continue Atty Depo In NJ Bias Suit

By Jake Maher

Reed Smith LLP is urging a New Jersey state trial court to allow it to resume its deposition of a former attorney suing it for gender discrimination years after the last deposition date in the wake of an appeals court decision widely expanding the scope of discovery.

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Ramey IP Attys, Client Must Pay $107K Fees In Bad-Faith Suit

By Emily Sawicki

A San Francisco federal judge has ordered three sanctioned attorneys, including Texas intellectual property lawyer William Ramey III, together with their client, to cover $107,389 in attorney fees stemming from three identical patent suits the lawyers launched and withdrew in 2024, also ordering Ramey to show cause why he should not face further sanctions.

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Roundup

Injury Law Roundup: Meta Atty Uses Jane Doe Plaintiff's Name

By Y. Peter Kang

A Meta attorney's gaffe and Mark Zuckerberg's testimony in the closely watched social media addiction bellwether trial, and an announced $7.25 billion settlement by Bayer over Roundup weedkiller claims, lead Law360's Injury Law Roundup.

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Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court's docket this past week featured high-stakes disputes involving major consumer brands, a reinstated video game executive, revived noncompete and compensation claims and fresh allegations of corporate misconduct in the healthcare sector.

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