Philly Judge Under Fire For Promoting Wife's Cheesesteak Biz

By James Boyle

Pennsylvania's judicial ethics board has accused a Philadelphia judge of using his position on the bench to promote a cheesesteak restaurant opened by his wife and named in honor of his late parents.

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DraftKings Wants MLB Players' IP Case Sent To 3rd Circ.

By P.J. D'Annunzio

Sports betting company DraftKings Inc. told a Pennsylvania federal judge Wednesday that she was wrong to allow an MLB players organization's suit over unlicensed use of athletes' likenesses to proceed, arguing that the Third Circuit should weigh in on potentially novel legal issues that could quickly end the case.

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Schools Say Norfolk Southern Ducked Postderailment Pledge

By Matthew Santoni

The school district for East Palestine, Ohio, filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday against Norfolk Southern, claiming the railroad hasn't made good on its promises to help the district recover after a fiery derailment shook the town in 2023.

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Disbarred Atty Can't Recoup Client Advance In Insurance Fight

By Elizabeth Daley

A disbarred Pennsylvania attorney, who once choked a judge, was denied the right to seek compensation from an insurer for amounts he allegedly paid a client, the Pennsylvania Superior Court affirmed, finding there was no enforceable contract between the former litigator and the insurer.

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Roundup

3rd Circ. Preview: NJ To Defend ICE Contractor Law In May

By Ryan Harroff

The Third Circuit's argument lineup for May will see the state of New Jersey defend a law barring its immigration detention centers from contracting with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, while Rutgers University seeks to keep its victory over claims it falsely inflated its business school's ranking.

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Judge Rejects $5M Fee Bid In Prospect Medical's Ch. 11

By Clara Geoghegan

Bankruptcy Code provisions that allow creditors who make substantial contributions to be reimbursed for costs don't cover Prospect Medical's pre-Chapter 11 investment banker, a Texas bankruptcy judge said Wednesday, rejecting a finance firm's bid for a $5 million sale fee.

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McDonald's Operator Loses Assault Suit Coverage Appeal

By Matthew Santoni

Two insurers were correct to deny coverage for a former Pittsburgh-area McDonald's franchisee in a lawsuit accusing it of failing to stop a supervisor from sexually harassing and assaulting underage employees, since the litigation that sent it into bankruptcy fell under exceptions to the insurance policies, a Third Circuit panel ruled Wednesday.

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3rd Circ. Sides With Pa. Transit Agency In Race Bias Suit

By Patrick Hoff

The Third Circuit on Wednesday upheld a Pennsylvania public transportation authority's defeat of a Black employee's lawsuit alleging she was given lower raises than white colleagues and transferred to a different department when she complained, saying she hadn't provided enough evidence to sustain her claims.

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3rd Circ. Backs Charter School In Black Worker's Bias Suit

By Grace Elletson

The Third Circuit upheld the dismissal of a Black cafeteria manager's suit claiming she was fired for complaining that her bosses at a charter school system mistreated her due to her race, ruling the suit falls flat because she was employed by an outside food service company.

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ICE Agent Tells 3rd Circ. Jury Can Handle Sig Sauer Defect Suit

By Jonathan Capriel

The Third Circuit wondered Wednesday why a jury couldn't be allowed to examine the same type of gun, or at least a replica of one, that a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer claims spontaneously fired into his leg at a design defect trial that he wants revived.

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Analysis

Wheeling & Appealing: The Latest Must-Know Appellate Action

By Jeff Overley

Spring has sprung for appellate arguments over the White House's pruning and shearing of agencies, part of a bountiful circuit calendar in May, when appeals courts will also tend to defamation drama involving a pro golfer, antitrust suits against drugmakers and hotels, and a nine-figure patent verdict against Apple Inc.

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Series

Adapting To Private Practice: From DOJ Enviro To Mid-Law

Practitioners leaving a longtime government role for private practice — as when I departed the U.S. Department of Justice’s environmental enforcement division — should prioritize finding a firm that shares their principles, values their experience and will invest in their transition, says John Cruden at Beveridge & Diamond.

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Susman Godfrey Urges Court To Reject Trump's Dismissal Bid

By Hailey Konnath

Susman Godfrey LLP has pressed a D.C. federal court not to kill the firm's suit challenging President Donald Trump's executive order targeting the firm, arguing that the government's "meritless" dismissal motion "goes to great lengths to distract from the indisputable truth" that the order is "blatantly unconstitutional."

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Marshals Service Pick Vows To Protect Judges Amid Tensions

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump's nominee for director of the U.S. Marshals Service, Gadyaces Serralta, stressed to Democrats on Wednesday that the agency's mission to protect judges and enforce court orders would not change under his leadership despite increasing criticism of the bench from the president and other policymakers.

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Dem Reps. Urge Court To Block IRS-ICE Info-Sharing Pact

By Anna Scott Farrell

House Democrats and two organizations that help immigrants prepare tax returns urged a D.C. federal court to block the Internal Revenue Service from sharing with immigration enforcement agencies the names and addresses of people suspected of being in the country illegally.

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Exec Says MyPillow Attys Can't Use AI Mistakes To Delay Trial

By Thy Vo

A former Dominion Voting executive said MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell shouldn't be allowed to delay a June defamation trial because his attorneys face potential sanctions for a brief that used artificial intelligence, arguing recent executive orders against law firms suggest the defamation claim would face "extreme prejudice" from a delay.

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Wis. Justices Suspend Judge Charged With Blocking ICE

By Jack Karp

The Wisconsin state judge who was arrested and charged for allegedly helping an unauthorized migrant evade arrest by federal immigration officers has been temporarily suspended by the state's highest court.

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FTC Transfer Stripped From House Judiciary Reconciliation

By Courtney Bublé

A provision to transfer the Federal Trade Commission's antitrust functions to the U.S. Department of Justice was stripped out of the House Judiciary Committee's budget reconciliation bill on Wednesday.

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Monthly Merger Review Snapshot

By Matthew Perlman

Enforcers opened high stakes court proceedings against Meta Platforms and Google for monopolization claims that could force the tech giants to sell pieces of the companies, while also moving ahead with several challenges and reviews of pending deals in other industries. Here, Law360 looks at the major merger review developments from April.

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Brief

Akin Atty Returns To FCC To Lead Wireline Bureau

By Nadia Dreid

After three years in private practice, the Federal Communications Commission has welcomed an Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP attorney back to the agency as the newest head of the commission's Wireline Competition Bureau.

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Calif. Bar Seeks Credits, Lower Pass Score After Exam Fiasco

By Craig Clough

The California Bar has asked the state's supreme court to help it account for rampant technical difficulties on the February 2025 bar exam by approving a lower passing score and allowing the bar to give test-takers credit for some questions they left blank.

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