Jack In The Box Wants 38 Washington Stores Kept Open

By Ben Adlin

Jack in the Box Inc. urged a Washington state judge to temporarily bar two franchisees from closing dozens of locations across the state, claiming that they owe nearly $1.4 million in unpaid marketing fees and that unilaterally shuttering the stores would violate their franchise agreements.

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

5th Circ. Finds Ban On Home Distilling Unconstitutional

By Anna Scott Farrell

A federal ban on home distilleries that dates to the early temperance movement violates the U.S. Constitution's limits on congressional taxing power, the Fifth Circuit said in siding with hobbyists, including one who said he wants to experiment with apple-pie vodka recipes in his garage.

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

Analysis

Gov't Appeal Could Throw Wrench In Tariff Refunds

By Dylan Moroses

U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced its court-ordered tariff refund system will be available for its first entries in a week's time, but practitioners remain concerned that a potential government appeal of the ruling could narrow the amount of imports and companies that can qualify for the relief.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Mars Says Peanut M&M Labeling Sinks Allergy Lawsuit

By Mike Curley

Mars Inc. is urging a Connecticut state court to throw out a suit from a woman alleging that she had an allergic reaction after eating M&M's Minis, saying her revised complaint's admission that she bought Peanut Butter M&M's Minis dooms any claims she has for negligence.

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

Costco Says Its Food Prep Eliminates All Chicken Concerns

By Taylor Bowie

Costco has told a Washington federal judge that its popular rotisserie chickens pose no health risk to customers because the product is fully cooked, in a bid to dismiss a proposed class action claiming the product is processed in a plant contaminated with salmonella.

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

Legislative Update: Cannabis And Psychedelics Bill Roundup

By Sam Reisman

Massachusetts legislators sent a bill making numerous changes to the state's cannabis regulatory scheme to the governor, Oregon and Louisiana advanced legislation to expand medical marijuana access to seriously ill patients in healthcare facilities, and Virginia's governor approved legislation paving the way for medical psilocybin if the drug's federal status should change. Here are the major moves in cannabis and psychedelics legislation from the past week.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

GAO Denies Protest Of Mess Hall Services Contract Add-On

By Elaine Briseño

The U.S. Government Accountability Office has rejected a protest from a services provider, finding a revision that added food hall staffing for the U.S. Military Academy at West Point did not fall outside the scope of the original contract.

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

Coors Says Botched Sulfuric Acid Delivery Led To $2M Damage

By Lauren Berg

Molson Coors says its Colorado chemical contractor accepted and delivered a shipment of sulfuric acid that was nearly double what the beverage giant had ordered, causing a tank overflow that forced a full plant evacuation and caused $2 million in damages, according to a new lawsuit filed in Colorado state court.

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

Robbins Geller To Lead Investor Suit Despite Filing Glitch

By Katryna Perera

A New York federal judge has appointed Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP as lead counsel in a proposed class action against BellRing Brands, the owner of Premier Protein and other supplement brands, after finding a lead counsel bid that was filed six minutes past the deadline due to a technical glitch was excusable.

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

Honey Baked Ham Ignores Data-Tracking Opt-Out, Suit Says

By Gina Kim

Honey Baked Ham fraudulently assures website visitors they have control over whether their data is tracked or shared, but secretly records and discloses that information to third parties anyway without the visitors' consent, according to a proposed class action filed Friday in Georgia federal court.

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

Brief

Restaurants, DOL Ink $750K Deal To End Pay, Child Labor Suit

By Benjamin Morse

A group of Washington state restaurants will pay $750,000 to resolve a U.S. Department of Labor lawsuit alleging unpaid wages, child labor violations and retaliation, according to a consent judgment entered in federal court.

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

Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court's docket this past week featured a mix of high-stakes settlements, fast-moving deal litigation, governance disputes and a notable post-trial ruling involving fraud-tainted loans.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Opinion

State Bars Need To Get Specific About AI Confidentiality

Lawyers need to put actual client information into artificial intelligence tools to get their full value, but they cannot confidently do so until state bars offer clear, formal authority on which plan tiers of the three most popular generative AI tools are safe to use when sharing specific client details, says attorney Nick Berk.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DLA Piper Defeats Fired Associate's Claims Of Pregnancy Bias

By Pete Brush

A federal jury in Manhattan declined to award damages Monday to a former associate who says DLA Piper unlawfully fired her after she announced she was pregnant, absolving the BigLaw firm hours after tense closing arguments.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Q&A

Former Pardon Atty Says Trump's Clemency Grants Hurt DOJ

By Phillip Bantz

Former U.S. Department of Justice pardon attorney Liz Oyer spoke recently with Law360 about how the pardon process has changed, the impact the shift might have on the DOJ and how the system could be reformed.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DOJ Urges DC Circ. To Revive Trump EOs Targeting Firms

By Alison Knezevich

The D.C. Circuit should individually review each section of President Donald Trump's executive orders targeting four law firms, allowing certain portions to stand if others are blocked, the U.S. Department of Justice argued in a new filing urging the court to revive the measures.

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

Analysis

The Justices Had Their Say On Immunity. Is A DC Jury Next?

By Chris Villani

The limits of presidential immunity are once again set to be tested after a D.C. federal judge ruled President Donald Trump must face civil claims over the Jan. 6, 2021, riots, clearing the way for trial and potentially another high-stakes appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Meta Pulls Some Attys' Social Media Addiction Ads

By Rachel Rippetoe

After losing a bellwether trial last month in one of a slew of cases from plaintiffs who claim to have been harmed by social media, Meta has begun removing ads from attorneys seeking clients with similar claims.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Brief

EEOC To Produce Law Firm DEI Letter Records By May 15

By Kelcey Caulder

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission told a federal court Monday that it would give two law professors documents related to 20 letters the agency sent to law firms over their purported diversity, equity and inclusion practices by May 15.

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

Morgan & Morgan Sued Over Firing Amid Nevada Expansion

By Emily Sawicki

Personal injury titan Morgan & Morgan is facing allegations from a former firm attorney in California state court alleging the Golden State lawyer was pressured to file suits in neighboring Nevada despite having an inactive law license and no experience practicing there, and was then harassed and wrongfully fired over the filings.

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

Atty Says Ogletree Can't Litigate Against Her In 2 Similar Cases

By Adrian Cruz

A Georgia attorney said Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC should be disqualified from serving as defense counsel in a discrimination suit she's working on while simultaneously litigating against her on behalf of her ex-employer in a similar matter.

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

NJ Man Who Sought To DQ US Atty Leadership To Plead Guilty

By Gina Kim

A criminal defendant who joined a pending bid to disqualify assistant U.S. attorneys overseeing the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey and escalated a constitutional challenge to its leadership structure told a federal judge Saturday he plans to plead guilty in his drug case. 

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