Supreme Court Shuts Down 'Skinny Label' Drug Patent Suit

By Ryan Davis

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday ended a patent suit over Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc.'s generic version of a heart drug that uses a so-called skinny label, saying Amarin Pharma Inc. had not plausibly alleged that Hikma encouraged healthcare providers to infringe its patents.

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Analysis

Generics Cos. Get More Freedom In High Court Patent Ruling

By Ryan Davis

The U.S. Supreme Court's decision Thursday shutting down a patent case involving a generic heart drug that uses a so-called skinny label establishes a road map for generics companies to avoid such suits and creates hurdles for branded companies pursuing infringement litigation, attorneys say.

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Eli Lilly's 'Overbroad' Weight Drug TM Deal Rejected

By Elliot Weld

A Washington federal judge has refused to sign off on a deal to settle trademark claims brought by Eli Lilly against two Seattle-area medical clinics, saying the associated consent decree was "overbroad" and contained an even more sweeping injunction.

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No 'Conspiracy To Hide Asbestos' In Talc, J&J Atty Tells Jury

By Craig Clough

An attorney for Johnson & Johnson said Thursday during closing arguments of a six-week bellwether trial that the only way three women's deadly ovarian cancers were caused by the company's talc would be a vast worldwide conspiracy to hide that asbestos is present in the products, but it just "doesn't make sense."

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Fed. Circ. Invalidates Spinal Implant Patent Claims

By Elliot Weld

The Federal Circuit on Thursday invalidated patent claims covering parts used to make expandable implant devices in spinal fusion surgeries that were the basis of a $9.5 million jury verdict against Life Spine Inc. and that had been upheld by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board.

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Legislative Update: Cannabis And Psychedelics Bill Roundup

By Sam Reisman

New York lawmakers gave final approval to legislation designed to curb the flow of illicit product into the state's cannabis market; Iowa's governor signed into law a bill to double the number of licensed medical cannabis dispensaries; and Louisiana legislation allowing terminally ill patients to access medical marijuana became law. Here are the major moves in cannabis and psychedelics legislation from the past week.

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Amgen Won't Face 'Nonsensical' Rodent Antibody IP At Trial

By Dani Kass

A Delaware federal judge has trimmed Harbour Medical's infringement suit against an Amgen unit just days before trial, saying two of the company's mouse antibody patents are indefinite based on a term that "everyone agrees" is "nonsensical."

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Catalent Investors Say No Objections To $78M Deal, Fee Bid

By George Woolston

Investors seeking final approval of a $78 million securities fraud settlement with Catalent told a New Jersey federal court that the proposed deal and fee bid are free of objections, arguing the positive response further supports the court's approval of the settlement.

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Judge Questions Fees In Abbott Investors' $40M Formula Deal

By Celeste Bott

An Illinois federal judge on Thursday granted final approval to most of Abbott Laboratories' $40 million deal to resolve shareholder claims over its management of a 2022 infant formula crisis, but questioned whether the settlement's corporate reforms justify a $15 million fee award for the investors' attorneys.

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Doctor Lied About Risky 'Basket Weave' Surgery, Patients Say

By Ben Adlin

Six patients accused a Seattle doctor of overstating his "basket weave" surgery technique meant to treat a painful condition known as "slipping rib syndrome," claiming in a Washington state lawsuit that Dr. Madhankumar Kuppusamy failed to disclose the experimental nature of the procedure that left some patients with serious injuries.

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US Middle Market PE Surge Expected After Strong 2025

By Al Barbarino

U.S. middle market private equity dealmakers are signaling renewed optimism, with the vast majority expecting a meaningful jump in buyout activity over the next two years after a robust 2025, according to survey results published on Thursday. 

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Inotiv Gets Cash Access To Pursue Ch. 11 Prepack Track

By Vince Sullivan

Bankrupt drug research and development company Inotiv Inc. received interim approval on Thursday to access a $25 million bankruptcy loan as it pursues a prepackaged balance sheet restructuring in Texas court.

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Series

Competing At Poker Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Playing poker in male-dominated rooms taught me to treat skepticism as background noise when my opponents seem to underestimate me, to apply pressure when it matters and to adapt without losing strategic discipline — skills that are all indispensable in restructuring and insolvency matters, says Alexis Gambale at Pashman Stein.

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Quinn Emanuel, Texas Boutique Match Milbank Associate Pay

By Kevin Penton

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP and a Texas-based litigation boutique are the latest firms to match Milbank LLP's pay hikes for associates, with annual increases of $10,000 to $20,000 that top off at $455,000.

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Blanche's AG Bid Could Face Rocky Path In Senate

By Courtney Bublé

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche will be tapped for the permanent role, but he might not have a smooth path to confirmation.

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Goldstein Seeks Sentencing Delay, Citing New Tax Claims

By Jared Foretek

SCOTUSblog founder Thomas Goldstein renewed his push Wednesday in Maryland federal court for a delayed sentencing, saying prosecutors blindsided his defense by including additional uncharged years of alleged tax avoidance in the government's sentencing memorandum.

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Georgia Fed. Judge Facing Impeachment Threat, New DQ Bid

By Emily Johnson

A Georgia federal judge reportedly disciplined for having sexual intercourse in her chambers and attending a political event is facing renewed pressure, as a former UPS employee seeks her disqualification from his dismissed racial discrimination lawsuit and a Georgia congressman drafts articles of impeachment to remove her from the bench.

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Deepfake Mocks Judge Spearheading Judiciary Deepfake Rule

By Jeff Overley

The New York federal judge developing policies for phony audiovisual materials revealed Thursday firsthand experience with the subject: an artificial intelligence video on social media that depicts him as a maniacal Nazi who recently sentenced a private equity executive to prison "for being a Republican."

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Analysis

'Parallel' DOJ, SEC Investigations Not So Parallel Anymore

By Phillip Bantz

The level of coordination between the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has decreased under the Trump administration, resulting in disjointed investigatory efforts and misaligned timing in parallel investigations, experts say.

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'Kentucky Hammer' Tries To Control Attys, PI Market, Suit Says

By James Boyle

The principal attorney of personal injury firm Isaacs & Isaacs PCS, who advertises as the "Kentucky Hammer," has been accused by a former attorney at the firm of bullying his employees into signing unfavorable contracts and attempting to monopolize the local personal injury market.

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Baker Donelson Seeks 'No Recovery' Ruling In Ponzi Fallout

By Emily Sawicki

Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz PC on Thursday asked a Mississippi federal court to issue a single check-box form ruling that states the firm does not owe a monetary judgment stemming from a jury's verdict finding it committed negligent supervision amid a timber company's nine-figure Ponzi scheme, which was perpetrated in part by two of the firm's then-partners.

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Calif. Bar Accuses More Attys In Unlicensed Practice Scheme

By Lauren Berg

Three more attorneys at the Los Angeles personal injury firm facing investigation for its involvement in a record $4 billion sex abuse settlement against Los Angeles County are facing disciplinary charges by the State Bar of California, alleging the firm illegally practiced law outside the state.

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NY AG Must Preserve Cohen Docs In Trump's Civil Fraud Case

By Frank G. Runyeon

The New York state trial court judge overseeing President Donald Trump's civil fraud case granted his request to preserve notes from private meetings between state litigators and Trump's former attorney Michael Cohen after the key witness said he felt "pressured" to testify.

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SEC Disgorgement Powers Stay Intact After High Court Fight

By Jessica Corso

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday said that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission could collect ill-gotten gains from alleged fraudsters without having to identify victims who were financially harmed by the fraud, declining to place further limits on the agency's disgorgement powers six years after it last did so.

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Titan Of The Plaintiffs Bar: Robbins Geller's David Knotts

By Sydney Price

Right after graduating from Cornell University Law School, David Knotts, a native of Kansas City, Missouri, landed at one of the world's largest corporate defense firms.

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