Wash. Panel Nixes Insurer's Gordon Rees Malpractice Claims

By Rachel Riley

A Washington Court of Appeals panel said a Great American insurance unit can't inherit an equipment manufacturer's legal malpractice claims against Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani LLP and Sinars Slowikowski LLC because of "potential conflict" between the insurer and manufacturer in the underlying dispute over a climber's fall.

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Calif. Dialysis Bill Violates 1st Amendment, 9th Circ. Says

By Rae Ann Varona

The Ninth Circuit on Tuesday struck down provisions of a California law that aims to restrict dialysis providers' ability to profit from patients receiving health insurance premium assistance from nonprofit charities, ruling in a published opinion that the provisions violated nonprofit American Kidney Fund's and dialysis providers' First Amendment rights.

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Federal Court To Decide If Faulty Pumps Caused Detroit Flood

By Susan Smiley

A Michigan federal judge on Tuesday heard arguments on whether to dismiss American Select Insurance Co.'s suit alleging faulty Great Lakes Water Authority pumps were responsible for extreme flooding in Detroit and surrounding cities during heavy rainfall in June 2021.

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8th Circ. Backs Insurer Win In ND Pollution Exclusion Row

By Gianna Ferrarin

An Eighth Circuit panel on Tuesday backed an insurer's win in a coverage dispute over a man's alleged injuries from carbon monoxide exposure, finding it did not need a North Dakota high court's input to determine that a policy's pollution exclusion barred coverage.

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Timeshare Exit Co.'s Insurer Can't Appeal To 9th Circ. Yet

By Jennifer Mandato

A Washington federal judge rejected an insurer's request to reconsider a summary judgment ruling that the carrier breached its duty to defend a now-defunct timeshare exit company, stating that the carrier failed to prove an indisputable error in the ruling.

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Insurer Premera Accuses Clinic Of Misusing No Surprises Act

By Ben Adlin

Premera Blue Cross sued a weight loss clinic on Monday in Washington federal court saying it abused a federal law aimed at safeguarding patients from unexpected medical bills in order to shake down the insurer for exorbitant amounts of money — as much as 10 times what Premera pays in-network providers.

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Tobacco Co. Says Insurers Can't Void $75M Tornado Coverage

By Gianna Ferrarin

Insurers have no basis to rescind a $75 million policy issued to a tobacco company alleging it was wrongly denied coverage for $89 million worth of aging tobacco inventory that was destroyed in a tornado, the company told a Tennessee federal court.

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Auto Insurance Co. Escapes Retirement Fund Suit

By Patrick Hoff

An auto insurance company defeated a proposed class action claiming its employee retirement plan was unlawfully overinvested in a conservative default investment option, with a Michigan federal judge saying Tuesday that the suit lacked information about participants who voluntarily put money in the fund.

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Pa. Hospitals Accuse Aetna Of Underpaying Medicare Claims

By Hailey Konnath

Two Pennsylvania hospital operators have sued Aetna Health Inc. in federal court, alleging the insurer has been improperly denying Medicare Advantage claims for inpatient services, or underpaying, under a new policy.

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Hormel Foods Faces Class Cert. Bid In Retirement Fund Suit

By Sydney Price

An ex-worker for Hormel Foods Corp. asked a Minnesota federal judge to certify a class in his federal benefits lawsuit alleging the company failed to remove high-cost investment options with poor return rates from its $1.2 billion in employee retirement plans.

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What New Fla. Citizens Bill Means For Surplus Lines Insurers

A Florida bill recently passed by the Legislature as part of a continued effort to depopulate Citizens Property Insurance, the state's insurer of last resort, creates an additional pathway for commercial policies to be written by surplus lines insurers, but also presents concerns of unnecessary regulation, say attorneys at Troutman.

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DLA Piper Offered Pregnant Atty 'Dignified' Exit, Jury Told

By Pete Brush

A former DLA Piper associate who claims she was unlawfully fired after announcing her pregnancy was offered a chance to transition out of the firm "without anyone knowing that her work was subpar," a partner told a Manhattan federal jury Wednesday.

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Spencer Fane Adds 75 Attys Through Tie-Up With Okla. Firm

By Tracey Read

Missouri-headquartered Spencer Fane LLP announced Wednesday that it plans to combine with Southwest firm Conner & Winters LLP on July 1 in its largest tie-up to date and its third already in 2026.

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AEG, BigLaw Atty In Hot Seat As Live Nation Trial Nears End

By Stewart Bishop

Live Nation on Wednesday concluded its defense case with glowing testimony about it from the manager for rap star Drake, while the Manhattan federal judge overseeing the case said rival company AEG Worldwide and a Hogan Lovells lawyer may face sanctions for revealing confidential information about a witness.

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DOJ's Lead Google Attys Both Leave Agency Same Day

By Bryan Koenig

The lead attorneys on both of the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division's monopolization cases against Google left the agency Wednesday or said they would be doing so.

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Mich. Federal Judge Pleads No Contest In Drunk-Driving Case

By Gina Kim

A Michigan federal judge pled no contest Wednesday to a misdemeanor drunken-driving charge in Emmet County court in connection with an incident where he crashed his Cadillac and registered a 0.27% blood alcohol level, apologizing and saying he "looks forward" to continuing his judicial service.

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ABA, State Bars Blast DOJ Proposal To Block Bar Probes

By Emily Sawicki

The American Bar Association and a chorus of state and local bar groups have come out against a proposed rule that would allow the U.S. Department of Justice to pause and review state-level ethics complaints against its attorneys, calling the proposal "unlawful and unconstitutional."

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ABA Rates Montana Judicial Pick 'Not Qualified'

By Courtney Bublé

Katie Lane, senior legal counsel at the Republican National Committee who has been tapped for a federal judgeship in Montana, is the first nominee to receive a majority "not qualified" rating by the American Bar Association in the second Trump administration.

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NY Panel Backs DLA Piper's $482K Fee Win In Malpractice Suit

By Dorothy Atkins

A New York appellate court affirmed Tuesday the dismissal of a Chinese software company's legal malpractice suit against DLA Piper, along with a $482,000 sanctions order against the company and its counsel, noting that the company's frivolous claims also drew a $635,000 sanctions ruling in "mirror" federal court litigation.

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Bondi To Skip Epstein Deposition After DOJ Cites AG Exit

By Courtney Bublé

Former Attorney General Pam Bondi will not sit for her scheduled deposition next week on the Epstein files now that she has left the role, and the Justice Department has asked the House Oversight Committee to withdraw its subpoena.

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Trump Asks NY's Top Court To Toss AG's 'Flawed' Fraud Case

By Lauren Berg

President Donald Trump on Wednesday asked New York's highest court to throw out New York Attorney General Letitia James' "deeply flawed" civil fraud judgment entirely after a lower appellate court tossed what it called an "excessive" $489 million penalty against the president, his sons and his real estate companies.

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