2nd Circ. Affirms Arizona Iced Tea's Audit Expense Coverage

By Jennifer Mandato

Hanover Insurance Co. must cover the maker of Arizona Iced Tea for additional audit expenses from a power surge that erased years of financial data, the Second Circuit determined Tuesday, finding that delays and additional costs were directly traced to the surge and therefore covered.

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Progressive Owes No Coverage For Truck Transport Mishap

By Ganesh Setty

A Progressive Insurance unit has no duty to defend or indemnify a transportation company facing an injury lawsuit alleging that a disabled truck rolled into oncoming interstate traffic while a worker was loading it onto a trailer, an Alabama federal court ruled Tuesday.

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Texas Mall Settles $7.3M Hailstorm Coverage Dispute

By Ganesh Setty

A Texas shopping center owner told a federal court Tuesday that it has "amicably" settled its dispute with insurers for roughly $7.3 million in hail damage it incurred, roughly three months after it took them to court.

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Care Facility Not Covered In Patient Death Suits, Insurer Says

By Hope Patti

An insurer said it has no duty to defend or indemnify a long-term nursing care facility in four wrongful death suits, telling an Illinois federal court that general liability and professional liability coverage is barred by a number of policy exclusions.

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Pot Cos. Say Berkshire Hathaway Unit Must Cover Death Suit

By Hope Patti

A group of cannabis companies said a Berkshire Hathaway unit must cover their defense in an underlying suit over a worker's death, telling a Florida federal court that the allegations trigger either the policy's workers' compensation coverage or employers' liability coverage.

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La. Casino Owner Stops Insurer's English Court Case For Now

By Joyce Hanson

A Louisiana federal judge issued a temporary restraining order to stop Chubb Bermuda Insurance Ltd. from pursuing proceedings in the High Court of Justice of England and Wales against a casino owner as the insurer fights a bid for arbitration in a COVID-19 pandemic coverage dispute.

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Lessons From Liberty Mutual FCPA Declination

Liberty Mutual’s recent Foreign Corrupt Practices Act resolution with the U.S. Department of Justice signals that the Trump administration is once again considering such declinations after an enforcement pause, offering some assurances for companies regarding the benefits of voluntary self-disclosure, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

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Series

Adapting To Private Practice: From Texas AUSA To BigLaw

As I learned when I transitioned from an assistant U.S. attorney to a BigLaw partner, the move from government to private practice is not without its hurdles, but it offers immense potential for growth and the opportunity to use highly transferable skills developed in public service, says Jeffery Vaden at Bracewell.

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Military Lawyers To Work As Temporary Immigration Judges

By Madeline Lyskawa

The U.S. Department of Defense is working to identify military lawyers to serve as temporary immigration judges at the U.S. Department of Justice, according to an agency spokesperson.

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3rd Circ. Probes Jurisdiction In Dispute Over NJ US Atty

By Madison Arnold

The Third Circuit on Tuesday ordered defendants and the federal government to make a case for the appeals court's jurisdiction over a district court's ruling disqualifying acting U.S. Attorney Alina Habba from overseeing two cases, saying the court "ordinarily lacks jurisdiction" over pretrial orders in criminal cases.

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'Never My Intention' To Defy Justices, Judge In NIH Case Says

By Julie Manganis

A veteran Massachusetts jurist on Tuesday responded to suggestions by two U.S. Supreme Court justices that he had defied the high court by going ahead with a bench trial on two challenges to the Trump administration's cuts to National Institutes of Health research grants, saying he would never intentionally disregard precedent.

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Girardi Co-Attys Can't Revive Elder Abuse, Fiduciary Claims

By Craig Clough

A California state appeals court has found that claims of financial elder abuse and aiding and abetting a breach of fiduciary duty brought by two of Tom Girardi's co-counsel against his son-in-law were correctly dismissed, as was an aiding and abetting claim against a company run by Girardi's estranged wife.

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Witnesses Rebut Jail Confession In Fla. Law Prof Murder Trial

By David Minsky

Two private investigators testified in Florida state court on Tuesday about meeting with the cellmate of a woman accused of hiring hitmen to kill a law professor, but denied that the inmate ever revealed they were told confessions to any portion of the crime that occurred in 2014.

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Analysis

Wheeling & Appealing: The Latest Must-Know Appellate Action

By Jeff Overley

For appellate attorneys feeling sad summer's over, September's circuit calendars are here to help with argument topics — including the former Meghan Markle, an ex-Jones Day lawyer's religious liberty suit and $17 million in fees after "a vigorous litigation battle" between BigLaw firms — offering enough intrigue to vanquish any autumn ennui.

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DC Circ. Refuses To Block Fired FTC Dem's Reinstatement

By Hailey Konnath

A split D.C. Circuit panel Tuesday refused to stay a lower court's order reinstating a Democratic member of the Federal Trade Commission, finding that the government has "no likelihood of success" fighting her reinstatement because President Donald Trump broke the law when he fired her without cause.

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Fed Gov. Cook Doubles Down On Removal TRO Bid

By Rae Ann Varona

Federal Reserve Board Gov. Lisa Cook on Tuesday doubled down in her bid to have a D.C. federal court block President Donald Trump's attempt to strip her of her position, saying the federal government was trying to expand the limits of a "for cause" removal.

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Lowenstein Sandler Fights To Keep Fee Battle With Firm Alive

By Jonathan Capriel

Lowenstein Sandler LLP urged a New Jersey state court to reject a bid seeking to trim its lawsuit against Trif & Modugno LLC in a legal battle over allegedly unpaid legal services rendered to a cannabis dispensary, saying its claims against the firm are over dishonest business practices and not legal malpractice.

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Analysis

Defamation Litigation Roundup: Patel's GF, Dershowitz, Nunes

By Theresa Schliep

In this month's review of defamation fights, Law360 reports on a new suit by the girlfriend of the current FBI director over a podcaster's claims that she was an Israeli intelligence agent, as well as the latest settlement between a voting machine company and a conservative news organization over 2020 election claims. 

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DC Circ. Says EPA Can Freeze Climate Grant Funds

By Madeline Lyskawa

A D.C. Circuit panel vacated an injunction on Tuesday ordering Citibank to relinquish grant funding frozen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, finding green groups are not likely to succeed on the merits of their "essentially contractual" claims.

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Calif. Judge Rules Trump's Troop Deployment Was Unlawful

By Britain Eakin

A California federal judge ruled Tuesday that President Donald Trump's use of the National Guard to quell protests in Los Angeles over immigration raids was a violation of the Posse Comitatus Act, saying Congress "clearly" limited the military's role in domestic law enforcement.

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Ga. Superior Court Clerk Suspended After Indictment

By Kelcey Caulder

A Georgia superior court clerk has been suspended after her indictment on charges of destroying public records and violating her oath of office, according to an executive order signed by Gov. Brian Kemp.

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The Top In-House Hires Of August

By Sue Reisinger

Legal department hires in the last month included high-profile appointments at the Association of Corporate Counsel, GE Vernova, and a California legal legend joining an AI startup named Anthropic. Here, Law360 Pulse looks at some of the top in-house announcements from the past few weeks.

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