The North Carolina auditor's office recommended Friday that the city of Charlotte reconsider its funding sources for settlements and be more transparent about those arrangements following an investigation into the city's secretive $305,000 deal with its outgoing police chief.
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MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2025 Law360 iOS App Law360 Android App Follow Law360 on Facebook Follow Law360 on LinkedIn Follow Law360 on Twitter

TOP NEWS

NC Auditor Urges Transparency After Cop Gets $305K Payout

By Hayley Fowler

The North Carolina auditor's office recommended Friday that the city of Charlotte reconsider its funding sources for settlements and be more transparent about those arrangements following an investigation into the city's secretive $305,000 deal with its outgoing police chief.

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4th Circ. Rules NC Felons' Voting Ban Is Unconstitutional

By Abigail Harrison

The Fourth Circuit affirmed Friday that a 19th-century North Carolina law making it a crime for convicted felons to vote — even if they believed they were eligible — unconstitutionally targets Black voters and was not mooted by a 2024 amendment to the law.

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Insurer Doubles Down On Bid To Undo $1.1M Roof Verdict

By Ganesh Setty

A North Carolina federal court adopted the wrong causation standard in its instructions to a jury that awarded a church $1.1 million over its roof damage claim under what is known as an all-risk property policy, the church's insurer told the Fourth Circuit, urging the appeals court to set aside the verdict.

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Feds Say NC, NJ Shops Sold Illegal Vapes After FDA Warnings

By Jonathan Capriel

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is looking to permanently block two separate vape distributors from importing and selling illicit flavored e-cigarettes from China in lawsuits filed New Jersey and North Carolina federal courts.

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FOURTH CIRCUIT

Va. City Attorney Tells 4th Circ. He's Immune From FMLA Suit

By Emily Brill

A Virginia federal judge erred by allowing a Family and Medical Leave Act suit against a municipal attorney to head to trial, the attorney said Friday, asking the Fourth Circuit to hold that he is immune from suit.

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POLICY & REGULATION

FCC Refuses To Revisit Denial Of 105 Low-Power FM Stations

By Christopher Cole

After denying more than 100 applications for new low-power FM radio stations across the South, the Federal Communications Commission says it's not going back on the decision.

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ENFORCEMENT

Off The Bench: NCAA Athlete Ban, WNBA Sun Controversy

By Elaine Briseño

In this week's Off The Bench, the NCAA administered permanent bans to three basketball players, and two high-profile politicians warned the WNBA that it could be at risk of violating antitrust laws if it interferes in the sale of the Connecticut Sun.

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REAL ESTATE & DEVELOPMENT

Roundup

Higher Ed Real Estate: A Back To School Special

By Real Estate Authority Staff

As colleges and universities face mounting financial pressures and enrollment challenges, their real estate strategies are evolving. From legal battles over property disputes to creative approaches for monetizing underutilized assets, Law360 Real Estate Authority offers a window into real estate concerns in the higher education sector.

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Roundup

Real Estate Recap: CMBS Distress, Nuclear AI, Campus Golf

By Real Estate Authority Staff

Catch up on this past week's key developments by state from Law360 Real Estate Authority — including attorney perspectives on commercial mortgage-backed securities distress, the dawn of nuclear-powered data centers, and the albatross of golf courses on colleges and universities.

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PEOPLE

Troutman Adds Robinson Bradshaw Benefits Pro

By Christine DeRosa

Troutman Pepper Locke LLP has grown its tax and benefits practice group in North Carolina with the addition of a Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA attorney.

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EXPERT ANALYSIS

Agentic AI Puts A New Twist On Attorney Ethics Obligations

As lawyers increasingly use autonomous artificial intelligence agents, disciplinary authorities must decide whether attorney responsibility for an AI-caused legal ethics violation is personal or supervisory, and firms must enact strong policies regarding agentic AI use and supervision, says Grace Wynn at HWG.

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LEGAL INDUSTRY

Ex-Epstein Prosecutor Maurene Comey Sues DOJ Over Firing

By Emily Sawicki

Maurene Comey, a former Manhattan federal prosecutor who brought high-profile criminal cases against the likes of Jeffrey Epstein and Sean "Diddy" Combs, sued the Justice Department on Monday alleging her abrupt July firing came "solely or substantially" because she is the daughter of former FBI Director James Comey, a Trump critic.

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Feds Urge 3rd Circ. To Restore NJ US Atty's Authority

By Emily Sawicki

The federal government has urged the Third Circuit to reverse a district court ruling disqualifying acting U.S. Attorney Alina Habba from prosecuting two criminal cases in New Jersey after the clock allegedly ran out on her interim term, arguing that her appointment is valid and that the court erred in its interpretation of the statute.

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Calif. Court Issues AI Hallucinations 'Warning,' Sanctions Atty

By Y. Peter Kang

A California appeals court has issued a published opinion "as a warning" to Golden State attorneys to personally review case law quotations made by generative artificial intelligence, and imposed a $10,000 monetary sanction on plaintiff's counsel in an otherwise straightforward appeal in an employment case.

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Fired DOJ Deputy Says Lobbyists 'Playing Dangerous Game'

By Bryan Koenig

A former top Justice Department Antitrust Division deputy, allegedly fired for opposing the "pay-to-play" settlement clearing Hewlett Packard Enterprise's $14 billion purchase of Juniper Networks, had a warning Monday for the lobbyists he said made the deal possible: there are only so many times they can go over division leadership.

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Stradley Ronon Wants Keesal Young's Poaching Suit Tossed

By Emma Cueto

Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young LLP has moved to nix a suit by California firm Keesal Young & Logan, saying its recruitment of 10 former Keesal Young attorneys was entirely above board and that the noncompete clauses in Keesal Young's partnership agreement were not allowed under California law.

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FTC Commissioner Says Antitrust Moment Has Been Building

By Matthew Perlman

Federal Trade Commissioner Mark R. Meador said Monday the current interest in antitrust enforcement has been building for the last several decades as corporate boardrooms increasingly take control over the economic lives of Americans.

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3 Law Firms Want Ford's 'Thermonuclear' RICO Suit Snuffed

By Linda Chiem

Knight Law Group LLP, the Altman Law Group and Wirtz Law APC have urged a California federal judge to dismantle Ford Motor Co.'s racketeering lawsuit accusing the firms of overzealous billing and conspiring to dupe unsuspecting clients in product liability and personal injury cases against automakers.

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Software Co. Defends Contempt Order Against Womble Atty

By Abigail Harrison

A North Carolina federal court fairly held Womble Bond Dickinson partner Pressly Millen in contempt after he and his client made misrepresentations in a "parallel" trademark dispute abroad, U.S.-based software company Dmarcian Inc. told the Fourth Circuit on Friday.

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DC Circ. Says Fed's Cook Can Keep Job For Now

By Jon Hill

A D.C. Circuit panel said Monday that Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook can remain on the central bank's board while challenging President Donald Trump's effort to fire her, potentially clearing the way for her to participate in a key interest-rate policy vote this week.

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Senate Confirms Top Trump Economist To Federal Reserve

By Jon Hill

The U.S. Senate narrowly confirmed top White House economist Stephen Miran to the Federal Reserve Board on Monday, giving President Donald Trump a close ally at the central bank as he pushes for greater control over the traditionally independent body.

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DC Circ. Won't Stay District Court's Order On Quick Removals

By Jared Foretek

The D.C. Circuit declined to stay a district judge's suspension of specific U.S. Department of Homeland Security actions implementing expedited removal of noncitizen parolees Friday, saying that the government faces no irreparable harm from the order because it has separate, pre-existing regulatory authority to quickly deport parolees.

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Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Katryna Perera and Jeff Montgomery

Delaware's governor weighed in on a challenge to recently approved state legislation that bars damages or "equitable" relief for some controlling stockholder or going-private deals. Meanwhile, Moelis told the Delaware Supreme Court that the struck-down stockholder agreement that triggered that legislation was valid. Additionally, one of two newly funded magistrates' posts in the Chancery Court has been filled.

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LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

Atkinson Andelson

Bailey & Dixon

Barnes & Thornburg

Blank Rome

Brooks Pierce

Clarick Gueron

Cranfill Sumner

DLA Piper

Ellis & Winters

Emmet Marvin

Faegre Drinker

Federman Steifman

Fox Rothschild

Frith Anderson

Gibson Dunn

Goldberg Weprin

Greenberg Traurig

HWG LLP

Haynes Boone

Hecker Fink

Hodel Wilks

Holland & Knight

Katten Muchin

Keesal Young

Kirkland & Ellis

Klinedinst PC

Knight Law Group

Koskoff Koskoff

Krovatin Nau

Latham & Watkins

Lowell & Associates

Martin LLP

Maynard Nexsen

Milbank LLP

Moore & Van Allen

Parker Poe

Pillsbury Winthrop

Robinson Bradshaw

Royer Law Firm

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP

Stradley Ronon

Taft Stettinius

Troutman

Venable LLP

Vinson & Elkins

Wachtell Lipton

Whitman Breed

Williams & Connolly

Wirtz Law APC

Womble Bond

COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Airbnb Inc.

Albertsons Cos. Inc.

American Bankers Association

American Bar Association

American Economic Liberties Project

Bexar Appraisal District

Certares Management LLC

Church Mutual Insurance Co.

Court of Arbitration for Sport

Cushman & Wakefield Inc.

Douglas Emmett, Inc.

Duke University

Federation Internationale de Football Association

Ford Motor Co.

George Washington University

Google LLC

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co.

Ingersoll-Rand Co.

Jana Partners LLC

Juniper Networks Inc.

LinkedIn Corp.

Live Nation Entertainment Inc.

Los Angeles Clippers

Major League Baseball Inc.

Manulife Financial Corp.

Moelis & Co.

Mohegan Sun

Morgan Stanley

National Basketball Association Inc.

National Collegiate Athletic Association

Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co.

New York University

Sila Realty Trust Inc.

Southern Coalition for Social Justice

Spectrum Management Holding Co.

Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc.

Surfside

Temple University

Terreno Realty Corp.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc.

The Kroger Co.

TruAmerica Multifamily

U.S. Bancorp

Vistria Group LP

WNBA Enterprises LLC

Walker & Dunlop Inc.

Washington Nationals

Zendesk Inc.

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Connecticut Attorney General's Office

Delaware Court of Chancery

Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Federal Communications Commission

Federal Reserve System

Federal Trade Commission

Federal Transit Administration

Food and Drug Administration

Internal Revenue Service

Mohegan Tribe

National Institute of Standards and Technology

New Jersey Supreme Court

New York City Council

North Carolina Department of Justice

North Carolina General Assembly

U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York

U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. District Court for the Central District of California

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia

U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

U.S. Office of Personnel Management

U.S. Senate

U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence

U.S. Supreme Court