Judge Trims IP Claims In Voice Actors' Suit Against AI Co.

By Ivan Moreno

A New York federal judge ruled Thursday that two voice actors accusing an artificial intelligence startup of cloning their voices for narration software without permission can proceed with their state-level claims, but their trademark and most of their copyright claims must be dismissed for now.

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Analysis

5 Employee Benefits Takeaways On The GOP Tax Bill

By Kellie Mejdrich

Congressional Republicans' sweeping tax and policy bill, which President Donald Trump sought and then signed, contains multiple provisions that caught the attention of employee benefits and executive compensation attorneys, including new changes to high-deductible health plans and an employer-side deduction limit affecting highly compensated employees. Here are five takeaways from employee benefits and executive compensation attorneys on what's in — and out of — the GOP megabill.

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DuPont Reaches $27M Settlement In NY PFAS Case

By Jonathan Capriel

The members of a proposed class of hundreds of residents whose drinking water was tainted by "forever chemicals" have told a New York federal judge that they've reached a $27 million deal with DuPont, ending claims that it is responsible for the contamination, putting the total settlements achieved at $92 million.

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Bitcoin Scammer Hit With 12 Years Over Restitution Failure

By Pete Brush

A federal judge in Manhattan slammed a bitcoin fraudster with a 12-year prison term Thursday for allegedly refusing to repay $20 million to an entrepreneur whose cryptocurrency he admitted to stealing, imposing punishment anew at a resentencing over strenuous defense objections.

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50 Cent's Ch. 11 Reopened After Woman's $20M Injury Suit

By Aaron Keller

A Connecticut bankruptcy judge on Thursday reopened recording artist 50 Cent's 2015 Chapter 11 case but allowed a New York jurist to first decide whether to dismiss a woman's $20 million injury case, setting up a potential showdown over whether a 2017 discharge order might upend the woman's February lawsuit.

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Punitive Damages Ruling Deferred In Jack Nicklaus' Fla. Suit

By David Minsky

A Florida state court judge deferred a decision on whether he'll overrule a previous order denying punitive damages in a defamation lawsuit brought by former professional golfer Jack Nicklaus against a company he founded and two of its officers, saying there must be enough evidence to find that reprehensible misconduct occurred.

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Students Say Fee Concerns Unfounded In Aid-Fixing Case

By Matthew Perlman

Attorneys for students accusing elite universities of conspiring to limit financial aid told an Illinois federal court there's no need for the schools to look into ethical concerns raised about attorney fees by a "disgruntled" associate for one of the firms representing the proposed class.

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Oakley Says MSG Ignoring 2nd Circ. Mandate In Assault Case

By Elaine Briseño

Former New York Knicks player Charles Oakley told a federal judge Tuesday that it should reject Madison Square Garden's latest attempt to have his assault and battery claims tossed, arguing the Second Circuit already determined that only a jury can resolve the dispute.

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Brief

Ex-Executive Of Cannabis Co. Ascend Alleges Wrongful Firing

By Jonathan Capriel

A former executive at New York cannabis company Ascend Wellness Holdings Inc. claims the company cheated him out of $400,000 in unpaid wages, stock payouts, and medical and dental coverage owed to him after it unceremoniously fired him, according to a lawsuit.

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2nd Circ. Won't Touch Morgan Stanley Deferred Comp Ruling

By Patrick Hoff

The Second Circuit refused to upend part of a lower court's ruling that former Morgan Stanley financial advisers' deferred compensation fell within the reach of federal benefits law, saying the financial firm couldn't clear the high bar necessary to undo the decision.

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Univ. of Rochester Sued For 'Excessive' Retirement Plan Fees

By Lauren Berg

The University of Rochester was hit with a proposed class action Wednesday in New York federal court over allegations it caused its $7.2 billion employee retirement program to pay millions in excessive administrative fees.

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Russian Banker Inks Sanctions DPA After FBI Botches Warrant

By Stewart Bishop

The founder of Bank Otkritie on Thursday secured a deferred prosecution agreement with Manhattan federal prosecutors to resolve allegations of assisting the head of Russian state-backed lender VTB Bank in evading U.S. sanctions, just a month after a swath of email evidence was thrown out over a botched FBI search warrant.

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Crypto Exec Fights NY Suit, Cites Due Process Violation

By Sydney Price

The CEO of a venture capital firm accused of misleading investors into buying up a crypto token with the help of an endorsement from Argentine President Javier Milei just before it tanked said an attempt by New York to exercise jurisdiction over him would be unconstitutional.

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States Fine Payment Co. Wise $4.2M Over Compliance Lapses

By Sarah Jarvis

Wise has agreed to pay $4.2 million and take various remediating actions to end six states' claims that the global money transfer fintech had inadequate anti-money laundering programs.

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Brief

Dentsply Investors Win Class Cert. Over Pandemic Issues

By Katryna Perera

A New York federal judge on Thursday certified a class of Dentsply Sirona Inc. investors who claim the dental health products supplier misled them about the extent of its pandemic-era woes.

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Brookfield Accuses Lima Of Smear Tactics In Contract Feud

By Caroline Simson

An ugly, yearslong fight over $200 million in arbitral awards relating to a Peruvian toll road project turned darker this week after asset manager Brookfield argued that Lima was trying to "smear" its reputation in connection with the gruesome death of a key witness in a related bribery trial.

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DHS Official Walks Back Testimony On Deportation Leads

By Julie Manganis

A U.S. Department of Homeland Security official testified in Massachusetts federal court on Thursday that he was only "speculating" when he said during a deposition last month that the offices of border czar Tom Homan and U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem were behind a decision to use pro-Israel websites to source leads on potential deportation targets.

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Opinion

State Bars Must Probe Misconduct Claims, Even If It's The AG

The Florida Bar’s recent refusal to look into misconduct allegations against Attorney General Pam Bondi is dangerous for the rule of law, and other lawyer disciplinary bodies must be prepared to investigate credible claims of ethical lapses against any lawyer, no matter their position, say attorneys at the New York County Lawyers Association.

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Examining TCPA Jurisprudence A Year After Loper Bright

One year after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Chevron deference in Loper Bright v. Raimondo, lower court decisions demonstrate that the Telephone Consumer Protection Act will continue to evolve as long-standing interpretations of the act are analyzed with a fresh lens, says Aaron Gallardo at Kilpatrick.

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Series

Playing The Violin Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Playing violin in a string quartet reminds me that flexibility, ambition, strong listening skills, thoughtful leadership and intentional collaboration are all keys to a successful legal practice, says Julie Park at MoFo.

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VC Giant Andreessen Rips Del. Courts, Plans Move To Nev.

By Rae Ann Varona

Venture capital giant Andreessen Horowitz on Wednesday announced plans to reincorporate in Nevada, saying that it was no longer a "no-brainer" to launch a company and incorporate in the historically corporate-friendly state of Delaware.

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Dems Say 3rd Circ. Nominee Urged DOJ To Ignore Courts

By Courtney Bublé

Senate Democrats on the Judiciary Committee on Thursday unveiled 150 pages of documents, which they say substantiate whistleblower allegations against Third Circuit nominee Emil Bove and raise concerns about his conduct during his tenure at the U.S. Department of Justice.

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Another Atty Sanctioned For Allegedly Hallucinated Case Law

By Andrea Keckley

A Florida judge on Wednesday issued a blistering order against an attorney who became the latest of many to face sanctions over filings with case law suspected of being hallucinated by generative artificial intelligence, ordering him to take AI ethics courses and repay opposing counsel's fees.

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'Admonition' But No More Amazon Penalty For Hidden Docs

By Bryan Koenig

A federal judge in Washington state took Amazon.com to task Thursday for "bad faith" material review that labeled tens of thousands of documents as covered by attorney-client privilege despite involving no legal advice, but the judge, who is presiding over the Federal Trade Commission's Prime subscriptions case against the company, opted against further punishment.

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Trump Taps Holland & Hart Partner For Montana Bench

By Lauren Berg

President Donald Trump announced on social media Thursday he has chosen a Holland & Hart LLP partner and veteran government attorney to serve on the federal bench in Montana.

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Senate Tees Up 6th Circ. Nom Vote As 1st Of 2nd Trump Term

By Courtney Bublé

The first judicial confirmation of the second Trump administration was readied on Thursday, with the U.S. Senate voting 51-43 to end debate on the nomination of Whitney Hermandorfer to the Sixth Circuit.

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Judge Blocks Trump's Birthright Citizenship Order Nationwide

By Britain Eakin

A New Hampshire federal judge on Thursday issued a nationwide block of President Donald Trump's executive order limiting birthright citizenship, and granted certification to a nationwide class that will cover all affected children born in the U.S.

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