HHS Can't Block Trans Care Under Kennedy Edict, Court Says

By Ben Adlin

A coalition of 21 states and the District of Columbia prevailed on Thursday in their challenge to a Trump administration move to cut access to gender-affirming care for minors when an Oregon federal judge agreed to void a policy statement from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

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Pharma Group Can't Halt Colo. Law Over Drug Discount Rules

By Gianna Ferrarin

A Colorado federal judge denied a bid by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America seeking to halt enforcement of a state law guarding providers' ability to contract with pharmacies to distribute discounted drugs under the federal 340B program.

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4th Circ. Leery Of W.Va. Opioid Towns' Abatement Arguments

By Abigail Harrison

During a heated hourlong oral argument Thursday, two Fourth Circuit judges interrogated an attorney for West Virginia municipalities stricken by the opioid crisis about whether the public nuisance of overly available drugs had already been abated, leaving only redress of resulting harms.

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Fla. Court Won't Pause Restoration Of Medicaid Benefits

By David Steele

A Florida federal court has declined to pause an injunction ordering the state to restore family Medicaid to more than a million low-income enrollees, but extended deadlines to reinstate benefits and to send adequate termination notices. 

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11th Circ. Partially Reopens Aetna Twin Birth Coverage Fight

By Kellie Mejdrich

The Eleventh Circuit on Thursday undid Aetna's escape from a worker's coverage dispute over an extended hospital stay for her newborn twins, agreeing with the lower court that allegations failed to state a claim for violating federal benefits law but holding that an amended complaint should have been allowed.

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Maya Kowalski Says Atty Made Her 'Uncomfortable'

By Carolina Bolado

The attorney who persuaded a jury to award $261 million to Netflix documentary subject Maya Kowalski also provided unsolicited dating and sex advice to his 18-year-old client and arranged an advance funding loan for the Kowalski family in violation of Florida Bar rules, according to a statement Kowalski filed.

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Legislative Update: Cannabis And Psychedelics Bill Roundup

By Sam Reisman

Virginia lawmakers last week gave final approval to legislation that would tax and regulate the sale of adult-use cannabis, Georgia legislators passed a dramatic expansion of the state's medical cannabis program, and Iowa lawmakers approved a bill to designate kratom as a Schedule I substance. Here are the major moves in cannabis and psychedelics legislation from the past week.

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Calif. Families Sue Rady Health Over Move To End Trans Care

By Dan McKay

Four families have asked a state judge to prevent California's largest pediatric health system from cutting off gender-affirming care for minors, alleging the move would violate state antidiscrimination laws and leave them scrambling to find new providers, some more than 100 miles away.

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CVS, Caremark Pocket Money Meant For Rebates, Suit Claims

By Emily Brill

CVS charges drug manufacturers "exorbitant" fees in exchange for pushing their products, then pockets the money instead of funneling it toward customer rebates as it promises, a federal lawsuit alleges, accusing the company of collecting billions of dollars at customers' expense and violating the anti-racketeering statute.

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Detroit Clinic Zones Impede Free Speech, Protesters Say

By Melanie Dorsey

Anti-abortion advocates sued the city of Detroit, claiming an ordinance creating speech-restriction zones around healthcare facilities unlawfully blocks peaceful counseling outside an abortion clinic on the city's west side.

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TriZetto Wants To Expand IP Claims Against Infosys

By Elliot Weld

Cognizant TriZetto Software Group has asked a Texas federal judge to allow it to amend its trade secret suit against Infosys Ltd., saying a recent discovery has revealed that Infosys' alleged misconduct "goes much deeper."

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$30K Wage Settlement Too Vague To Approve, Judge Says

By Emily Brill

An Ohio federal judge rejected a proposed $30,000 settlement to a wage and hour suit against a group of home care staffing agencies Thursday, saying the settlement paperwork isn't clear enough to determine whether the deal is fair.

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Ohio Home Health Co. Settles OT Suit For $975K

By Benjamin Morse

A Columbus-area home health services company will pay $975,000 to end a lawsuit accusing it of misclassifying its program managers as exempt from overtime, according to an Ohio federal court filing.

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Drug Co. Can't Claim Most Docs Contain Trade Secrets At Trial

By Elliot Weld

A Manhattan federal judge ruled Thursday that a pharmaceutical consulting company won't be allowed to argue to a jury that thousands of documents it did not enter into evidence contain trade secrets amid an ongoing misappropriation trial.

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Goodwin, S&C Steer Up To $785M Sale Of ADHD Drug

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Goodwin Procter LLP-advised Collegium Pharmaceutical Inc. unveiled plans Thursday to acquire attention deficit hyperactivity disorder drug Azstarys from Sullivan & Cromwell LLP-led Corium Therapeutics Holdings LLC for up to $785 million.

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Zynex Gets OK For Ch. 11 Plan Reducing Debt By $50M

By Ben Zigterman

Zynex Inc., a pain management medical device maker, received confirmation Thursday of its Chapter 11 plan, which reduces its debt by about $50 million and turns over the company to its creditors.

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Scrutiny Of Nursing Home Practices Marks Inflection Point

Recent congressional inquiries into UnitedHealth Group's Medicare Advantage-linked nursing home practices raise questions about whether financial metrics are allowed to influence decisions governed by the standard of care, and could implicate duties imposed by federal regulations, state negligence laws and elder abuse statutes, says Lindsey Gale at Rafferty Domnick.

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Series

Coaching Soccer Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Coaching youth soccer for my 7-year-old son's team has sharpened how I communicate with clients, prepare witnesses, work within teams and think about leadership, making me a more thoughtful and effective lawyer in many ways, says Joshua Holt at Smith Currie.

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Sitting Judges Take Stand Over Threats Growing 'Ordinary'

By Jake Maher

On the heels of an ethics opinion giving them wider latitude to speak publicly, sitting federal judges brought attention Thursday to the increasing threats against them and their family members, warning about the dangers of such threats becoming "ordinary."

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Anatomy Of A Citation Hallucination: AI Edit, Associate Review

By Rachel Riley

Counsel for consumers in a supplement labeling lawsuit against Amazon responded Wednesday to a Seattle federal judge's order to explain an AI-hallucinated citation, saying the error was introduced by a generative artificial intelligence tool used to "harmonize" drafts of a brief, then missed by a fifth-year Boies Schiller associate tasked with checking the citations.

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Jackson Walker, US Trustee Reach Deal On Fee Settlements

By Vince Sullivan

The Office of the U.S. Trustee and law firm Jackson Walker LLP on Wednesday resolved the bankruptcy watchdog's opposition to a series of settlements tied to a romantic relationship between a former Jackson Walker attorney and a now-retired bankruptcy judge.

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Judge Quashes Subpoena Of 5 Firms That Repped Twitter

By Rae Ann Varona

A Delaware federal court ruled Thursday that six former Twitter employees cannot subpoena five law firms that represented the social media company in connection with its acquisition by Elon Musk, rejecting the employees' "conclusory allegations" that the company and Musk used the firms to make false promises of severance benefits.

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Nomination For New DOJ Fraud Chief Heads To Senate Floor

By Courtney Bublé

The nomination of Colin McDonald for the new position of assistant attorney general for fraud was sent to the full Senate on Thursday, after the Judiciary Committee voted 12-10 along party lines to advance his nomination.

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Judge Digs Into Counsel Over 'Astronomically High' Fee Bid

By Nadia Dreid

Attorneys who represented classes of people who say they received harassing phone calls from real estate agents in violation of federal telemarketing laws are asking for way too much of the $20 million settlement, according to the California federal judge who tore into them Wednesday.

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DOJ Antitrust Head Tells Staff: Don't Worry About Criticism

By Bryan Koenig

The acting head of the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division said Thursday that he pays no heed to criticism of the agency and tells staff to do the same, while asserting in Washington, D.C., remarks that there's no better time to come work for the DOJ.

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Fired 'Arctic Frost' Agents Accuse FBI Of Political Retribution

By Dorothy Atkins

Two former FBI agents who worked on the "Arctic Frost" investigation into President Donald Trump's attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss have accused the government of abruptly firing them in an unconstitutional act of "political retribution."

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