Josh Cellars Parent Owes Ex-President Royalties, Jury Told

By Aaron Keller

The companies behind Josh Cellars wines breached an agreement to distribute trademark royalties to a former company president who owned 20% of a holding entity, all because the family that controlled the brand wanted to keep the money for themselves, a Connecticut jury heard Tuesday.

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7th Circ. Mulls FCA Penalties For SuperValu Without Damages

By Celeste Bott

A Seventh Circuit panel grappled Tuesday with whether supermarket chain SuperValu Inc. could face billions of dollars in False Claims Act penalties for knowingly submitting false prescription drug claims when a jury found whistleblowers failed to prove the government suffered damages, with one judge characterizing the potential penalties as "mind-boggling."

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Instinct Can't Get Pet Food Artificial Ingredients Suit Tossed

By Mike Curley

A California federal judge won't throw out a buyer's proposed class action alleging that Instinct Pet Foods misleads consumers by claiming its pet foods lack artificial preservatives, saying her complaint is enough to allege violations of state consumer protection law and fraud.

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Ex-NBA Player, Longtime Atty Settle Legal Malpractice Suit

By Rae Ann Varona

Former NBA player Chris "Birdman" Andersen and an attorney whom he claimed failed to protect his intellectual property in a documentary film deal about his life and ruined his in-laws' crepe business have settled the legal malpractice lawsuit, a joint notice filed Tuesday in Colorado state court shows.

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Texas State Lawmakers Prefile Marijuana Legalization Bills

By Sam Reisman

Texas Democratic state lawmakers have introduced legislation to legalize and regulate the sale of recreational marijuana ahead of the state's legislative session, which is due to begin in January.

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UK Looking To Enhance Forced Labor Import Ban Regime

By Jack McLoone

The U.K. government committed to strengthening its measures protecting against forced labor in the country's supply chain after being pushed by a Parliamentary committee over U.S. tariffs tied to such measures.

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Justice Asks Gov't To Pick Best 'Poison' In H-2A Fine Case

By Britain Eakin

A government attorney told the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday that it would be highly disruptive to require civil fines for H-2A visa program violations to be adjudicated solely in federal court, instead of through the U.S. Department of Labor's in-house court.

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Costco Can't End Dog Food Heart Risk Suit Yet, Buyers Say

By Emily Field

Dog owners on Monday told a Washington federal judge that Costco's bid to dismiss their proposed class action alleging that its grain-free dog food contributes to canine heart disease ignores their factual allegations, saying that the company is cherry-picking from studies about the risk.

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Frozen Potato Benchmarker Can't Appeal Dismissal Loss

By Lauraann Wood

A benchmarking company that serves the frozen potato product market cannot take a midcase appeal of its losing bid to ditch consolidated price-fixing claims because the question it's looking to ask on appeal is not purely legal, an Illinois federal judge ruled.

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NC Sports Bar Urges 4th Circ. To End Ex-Manager's Appeal

By MJ Koo

A North Carolina sports bar and its owner asked the Fourth Circuit to axe a former manager's bid to revive claims over profit sharing, emotional distress and unpaid wages, arguing that she failed to offer evidence that the business actually earned profits she was entitled to share.

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McDonald's Antitrust Suits Spotlight Risks Of AI Pricing Tools

A pair of recent class actions filed against McDonald's in Illinois federal court show how antitrust challenges can arise when companies use artificial intelligence pricing tools and personalize prices for individual consumers, say attorneys at Patterson Belknap.

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How Product Recalls Expose Insurance Coverage Gaps

The recent Cyclospora outbreak in iceberg lettuce highlights the potential insurance risks of a contaminated ingredient or defective product creating a ripple effect throughout an entire supply chain, leaving companies with substantial costs that standard policies may not cover, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

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Planning Personal Phone Collections Before Discovery Begins

For counsel planning a personal phone collection as part of the litigation discovery process, it's important to take early steps to ensure that necessary information will be obtained without exposing unrelated information or running into access issues, says Jeremy Horowitz at MARA Forensics.

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How A Child Of Immigrants Defends Abrego Garcia

By Corey Rothauser

Hecker Fink attorney Jeffrey Then grew up translating English-language letters for customers at his Dominican immigrant family’s Bronx business. Decades later, he drew on that experience while defending Kilmar Abrego Garcia from federal human smuggling charges, becoming a lifeline for Abrego Garcia during his detention.

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Q&A

John Morgan On Why Luck Matters More Than Most Admit

By Y. Peter Kang

John Morgan, founder of personal injury giant Morgan & Morgan PA, built the largest personal injury firm in the U.S., with 1,110 attorneys in 140 locations. In his new memoir, "Life Is Luck," the attorney who Forbes estimates has a net worth of $1.5 billion argues that success is about more than talent, intelligence or determination. It is also about recognizing opportunities, taking risks and capitalizing on fortunate breaks when they appear.

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Wachtell To Probe Nvidia CEO's Affair With Alleged China Spy

By Anna Scott Farrell and Sue Reisinger

Nvidia has hired Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz to lead an investigation into allegations that its founder and CEO had an affair with a business executive who U.S. intelligence believes is a Chinese spy, the artificial intelligence chipmaker said Tuesday.

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Grassley Defends Rush To Confirm Trump Judicial Picks

By Courtney Bublé

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, on Tuesday defended how quickly the committee is moving to confirm President Donald Trump's judicial picks before Democrats control the Senate.

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Trump Swaps Out Blocked 8th Circ. Nominee With Ark. Justice

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump on Tuesday withdrew his pick for the Eighth Circuit and replaced him with a different nominee amid apparent opposition from Arkansas' senators. 

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Girardi Estate's $54M Claim Put Behind Other Creditors

By Craig Clough

The trustees overseeing Tom Girardi's and his former law firm's bankruptcies struck a deal to put their claims against each other behind other approved general unsecured claims, according to a California bankruptcy court filing, with the firm's trustee saying neither estate is expected to collect on those claims.

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