11th Circ. Raises Practicality Questions About Fla. Drag Law

By Kelcey Caulder

The full Eleventh Circuit grappled Tuesday with how a Florida law that criminalizes admitting minors to "adult live performances" like drag shows would square with the free speech rights, pressing the state on how to discern what's appropriate for patrons of different ages.

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Florida Judge Says He'll Wait For FTC In Horse-Doping Case

By David Minsky

A horse trainer urged a Florida federal court on Tuesday to rule that the Federal Trade Commission violated his right to a jury trial after he was fined and suspended for an alleged banned substances violation, although the presiding judge indicated that he'll wait for the agency's final action before handing down an order.

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Publix Says Snack Co.'s Insurers Owe Slip-Fall Coverage

By Carolina Bolado

Publix has urged a Florida federal judge to find that insurers for salty snack food maker Snyder's-Lance Inc. should have covered the supermarket chain's defense in a $3 million slip-and-fall case under an agreement to indemnify the retailer for injuries involving the snack maker's agents.

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11th Circ. Reverses 2 Live Crew's Copyright Clawback Win

By Rae Ann Varona

The Eleventh Circuit ruled Tuesday that hip hop group 2 Live Crew could not reclaim copyrights to five albums despite most of them agreeing to terminate copyright grants to third parties, saying in a published opinion that one member's termination interests were "swept" in, and remained in, his bankruptcy estate.

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Feds Must Show PrivatBank Nationalization Docs, Judge Says

By Carolina Bolado

The U.S. Department of State should start releasing records about the federal government's role in the 2016 nationalization of Ukraine's largest bank, a Florida federal magistrate judge has said, recommending that the court rule in favor of two associates of the bank's former owners.

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11th Circ. Affirms Ga. Concrete Bid-Rigging Conviction

By Matthew Perlman

The Eleventh Circuit on Tuesday affirmed a manager's conviction for conspiring to rig bids and fix prices for tens of millions of dollars in ready-mix concrete contracts in Georgia, after finding enough evidence of his participation in the scheme.

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11th Circ. May Lower Bar For Getting ERISA Claims To Court

By Kellie Mejdrich

Several Eleventh Circuit judges voiced support during en banc arguments Tuesday for overturning precedent backing the appellate court's exhaustion requirement for federal benefits claims, signaling the potential reinstatement of a proposed class action alleging mismanagement of a seafood company's employee stock ownership plan.

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US Pushes To Keep Trump Tariffs In Effect During Appeal

By Kevin Pinner

The Federal Circuit should maintain a pause on a lower court's order blocking President Donald Trump's temporary global tariffs with respect to Washington state and two businesses, the U.S. argued, saying the merits "lopsidedly" favor a stay during the government's appeal.

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Lenders Charged With $15M Fraud To Tell Jury Biz Was Legit

By Pete Brush

Two Florida men accused of using "hard-money" commercial real estate finance companies to steal $15 million in customer fees told a Manhattan federal judge Tuesday they will challenge the charges at trial, including by arguing they made legitimate loans.

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FTC Orders Ascension Divestiture To Complete $3.9B Deal

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

Nonprofit health system Ascension Health Alliance must divest several of its surgery center facilities in order to complete its proposed $3.9 billion acquisition of AmSurg LLC, the Federal Trade Commission said Tuesday.

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ITC To Review Drink Sellers' Imports After Monster Claims

By Elliot Weld

The U.S. International Trade Commission said Tuesday it would review imports from 13 companies for potential violations after energy drink giant Monster Energy Co. claimed they were importing versions of its products that were intended to be sold abroad only.

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Raymond James, Ex-VP Wrap Up Sex Bias Case

By Grace Elletson

Financial services company Raymond James and a former vice president who said she was fired for complaining about sexism and denied promotions formally ended their Florida federal court battle Tuesday, almost two years after the company got her case kicked to arbitration.

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Dentons Brings On K&L Gates Litigation Duo In Miami

By Madison Arnold

Dentons US LLP has expanded its commercial litigation capabilities in Miami with a duo from K&L Gates LLP.

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Lowndes Launches Homebuilding, Development Team

By Isaac Monterose

Florida-based law firm Lowndes has established a new group that focuses on "the transactional and regulatory matters that shape residential development," the firm announced Tuesday.

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2 'Rocket Dockets' And The Rules That Propel Them

The fastest civil trial courts in the country are currently in the Eastern District of Virginia and the Southern District of Florida, and their chief judges provide insights into the court rules that keep them ahead, says Robert Tata at Hunton.

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Milbank Raises Associate Pay Scale, Topping Out At $455K

By Kevin Penton

Milbank LLP is increasing associate pay by $10,000 to $20,000 annually, with new salary floors of $235,000 and pay reaching as high as $455,000 for more experienced attorneys, according to the firm.

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BigLaw Could Tap PE Money For Advantage In Talent Wars

By Ryan Boysen

BigLaw firms may soon partner with private equity to gain an edge in the talent wars, potentially reshaping the U.S. legal industry despite fears that the shift could corrode firms' cultures.

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Fox Rothschild Atty Censured Over $2.7M In Unapproved Fees

By Adrian Cruz

A New Jersey-based bankruptcy partner at Fox Rothschild LLP has been censured by the Supreme Court of New Jersey after she was found to have wrongfully disbursed over $2.7 million in fees to her former firms without approval.

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Chicago US Atty Report Denies Grand Jury Misconduct Claim

By Lauraann Wood

The Northern District of Illinois' top prosecutor sought to offer clarity Tuesday surrounding accusations of his possible interference with grand jury proceedings that preceded a criminal conspiracy indictment against six protesters, releasing a special report one defendant's attorney says raises more questions than it answers.

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7th Circ. Fines Deported Migrant's Atty For ChatGPT Misuse

By Emily Sawicki

The Seventh Circuit has rejected a Mexican citizen's petition challenging an immigration court's removal order on the merits, while sanctioning his attorney $5,000 for filing two legal briefs "riddled with" fabricated quotes and case citations hallucinated by ChatGPT.

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Exclusive

Cooley Launches Global Hearings Practice As Scrutiny Rises

By Daniel Moritz-Rabson

Cooley LLP has established a global hearings and inquiries practice to help companies prepare comprehensive strategies as they face increased regulatory scrutiny across multiple jurisdictions, the firm exclusively told Law360 on Tuesday.

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Ex-McDermott, Venable Attys Sued Over Estate's $40M Tax Bill

By Dorothy Atkins

The estate of a successful dentist who died in 2017 sued McDermott Will & Schulte LLP, Venable LLP and two attorneys in California state court Monday, alleging they gave negligent legal advice in planning the dentist's estate causing it to owe the IRS $40 million in taxes and penalties.

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Dem AGs Slam Climate Science Removal From Judicial Guide

By Jack Karp

The federal judiciary's decision to strike a chapter on climate change from its guide to scientific evidence is misguided, partisan and "will impede the judiciary's ability to pursue truth," according to a Tuesday letter from nearly two dozen Democratic state attorneys general.

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Bipartisan Bill Would Modernize Court Records Systems

By Matt Perez

U.S. Sens. John Kennedy, R-La., and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., on Tuesday jointly introduced the Open Courts Act, which they said would modernize the court records systems PACER and CM/ECF.

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Feature

AI Software Contracts Need Careful Review, Attys Are Warned

By Aaron Keller

Attorneys considering adopting artificial intelligence tools must ensure software contracts comply with data privacy laws, and firms should not be afraid to quiz software sales representatives, including by asking how long the software retains data, representatives from two law firms told Connecticut lawyers Tuesday.

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Analysis

Attys Worried Where ICE Will Draw Line In Asylum Crackdown

By Britain Eakin

Immigration attorneys are bracing for heightened scrutiny after the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said it would crack down on attorneys filing fraudulent asylum claims, expressing fears that the agency could blur the line between fraud and legitimate advocacy.

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DOJ Won't Move Forward With $1.8B Fund, Blanche Confirms

By Courtney Bublé

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told lawmakers Tuesday, "we're not moving forward" with the controversial $1.8 billion settlement fund.

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Senate Confirms Montana, Kansas Judges

By Courtney Bublé

The Senate confirmed judges Tuesday for Montana and Kansas, one of whom was the first judicial nominee of the second Trump administration to receive a "not qualified" rating from the American Bar Association.

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Titan Of The Plaintiffs Bar: Arias Sanguinetti's Mike Arias

By Joyce Hanson

When she was team captain with a track and field scholarship at the University of Southern California in the 1990s, Nicole Haynes was in good health and rarely had to see a doctor. So when she got a bad stomachache and her friends encouraged her to visit the USC health center, Haynes said she didn't have the right words to explain why her experience with Dr. George Tyndall had felt so invasive and wrong.

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