Liberty Mutual Hit With $103M Age Bias Jury Verdict

By Hailey Konnath

A California jury has awarded a former Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. employee $103 million in damages after finding that the company discriminated against and harassed her based on her age, an amount the worker's lawyers say is among the largest age discrimination verdicts in history.

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5th Circ. Blocks Arbitration In Hurricane Coverage Case

By Caroline Simson

The Fifth Circuit on Monday overturned a lower court order compelling a southern Louisiana town to arbitrate a dispute over coverage for hurricane damage in light of a state law that expressly prohibits arbitration agreements for insurance contracts.

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Insurer Can't Shake Fintech Co.'s Data Breach Coverage Suit

By Hope Patti

An insurer can't escape a financial technology company's suit seeking coverage for losses stemming from a 2024 data breach caused by its former CEO, a Florida federal court ruled, finding that the company adequately pled a claim for breach of contract.

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'Red Flags' Give 2nd Circ. Pause In NBA Health Fraud Appeal

By Elliot Weld

A Second Circuit panel appeared skeptical Monday of arguments by two former NBA players convicted of defrauding a league healthcare plan that they were tricked into participating by the scheme's leader, saying the trial evidence included "red flags."

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Confluence Health Refunds $1.8M Following Wash. AG's Probe

By Ben Adlin

Central Washington healthcare operator Confluence Health has refunded more than $1.8 million to low-income patients who paid for hospital care despite being eligible for financial assistance under the state's Charity Care Act, Washington Attorney General Nick Brown announced Monday.

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Insurer Denies Coverage To Retailers For Kratom Death Suit

By Jonathan Capriel

An insurance company is arguing it has no obligation to defend two Washington retail smoke shops facing a lawsuit by a father who claims they sold kratom products that killed his son, telling a federal court that their policies do not cover injuries caused by the sale of products expected to cause injury.

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Insurer Needn't Cover Jewish Group's $7.5M Wire Fraud Claim

By Hope Patti

A Jewish nonprofit organization isn't entitled to coverage for a fraudulent $7.5 million wire transfer, a Maryland federal court ruled, finding that its policy's extended reporting period was not active when it submitted the claim due to the start of another insurance program.

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Liberty Seeks Excess Insurer Repayment For $21.3M Verdict

By Gianna Ferrarin

A Berkshire Hathaway unit must cover Liberty Insurance Underwriters Inc.'s portion of a $21.3 million jury award in a personal injury case, Liberty said in a new federal complaint, arguing the unit unreasonably failed to resolve the case before trial despite multiple settlement offers.

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Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court delivered a busy first week of December, featuring commercial disputes, post-closing merger and acquisition battles and renewed scrutiny of fiduciary conduct ranging from oil and gas investments to healthcare acquisitions. 

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New Orleans Archdiocese Gets OK For $230M Ch. 11 Plan

By Rick Archer

A Louisiana bankruptcy judge on Monday approved the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans' Chapter 11 plan, allowing it to go forward with a $230 million settlement with sexual abuse claimants.

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Opinion

Horizontal Stare Decisis Should Not Be Casually Discarded

Eliminating the so-called law of the circuit doctrine — as recently proposed by a Fifth Circuit judge, echoing Justice Neil Gorsuch’s concurrence in Loper Bright — would undermine public confidence in the judiciary’s independence and create costly uncertainty for litigants, says Lawrence Bluestone at Genova Burns.

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Series

The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Getting The Message Across

Communications and brand strategy during a law firm merger represent a crucial thread that runs through every stage of a combination and should include clear messaging, leverage modern marketing tools and embrace the chance to evolve, says Ashley Horne at Womble Bond.

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Bonus Spotlight

MoFo, Kellogg Hansen Exceed Prevailing BigLaw Bonus Scale

By Anna Sanders

Morrison Foerster LLP and boutique law firm Kellogg Hansen Todd Figel & Frederick PLLC both recently unveiled above-market bonuses, according to a MoFo in-house memo and a media report. 

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Analysis

Hagens Berman's Novel DOJ Referral May Have Chilling Effect

By Emma Cueto

A Pennsylvania federal judge's unusual decision to refer prominent plaintiffs firm Hagens Berman LLP to the U.S. Department of Justice for possible criminal investigation over its pursuit of claims related to morning sickness drug thalidomide could have a chilling effect on lawyers' advocacy, law professors and attorneys said.

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Trustee Says Winston & Strawn Is Liable For $1.7B Fintech Bust

By Lynn LaRowe

The trustee of the bankrupt self-styled "anti-woke" financial technology startup GloriFi said Winston & Strawn LLP shouldn't be allowed to escape a malpractice lawsuit over the company's $1.7 billion failure, saying the firm was a knowing participant in the allegedly unlawful activities of its then-CEO.

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Consulting Co. Says Law Firms' Malpractice Cost It $10M

By Rachel Konieczny

A Colorado consulting company told a state court that an Am Law 200 firm and a now-dissolved law firm committed legal malpractice that cost the company $10 million in a lending transaction. 

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Uber May Win Sanctions On Atty Who Disclosed MDL Docs

By Bonnie Eslinger and Mike Curley

A California federal judge said Tuesday it appeared an attorney for plaintiffs claiming Uber failed to protect passengers from sexual assault "acted in a cavalier manner" with a protective order in the multidistrict litigation, but didn't rule on Uber's requests for monetary sanctions nor its bid to kick the attorney off the plaintiff steering committee.

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Brief

Democrats Push For $1.76B To Fix Defender Budget Shortfall

By Courtney Bublé

Almost 50 Democratic lawmakers are urging congressional appropriators to fix the long-standing budget shortfall for federal defenders in the upcoming full-year budget.

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DOJ Says It Could Indict Comey Again

By Jared Foretek

The U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday said it may once again seek charges against ex-FBI Director James Comey, asking a D.C. federal judge to dissolve a temporary restraining order that bars prosecutors from using evidence seized from Comey's former attorney.

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Analysis

FERC's Fate Uncertain As Humphrey's Executor Teeters

By Keith Goldberg

The future of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission may hinge on whether the U.S. Supreme Court will remake its 90-year-old precedent that protects members of independent agencies from being fired at will by the president.

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Senate Confirms 3 Judges For La., Miss.

By Courtney Bublé

The U.S. Senate confirmed three judicial nominees Tuesday for federal courts in Louisiana and Mississippi.

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