Pa. Biz Groups, Providers, Uber Want Fault Loophole Closed

By Y. Peter Kang

Uber and a coalition of organizations often targeted by injury lawsuits urged a Pennsylvania appeals court to close a legal loophole that they claim largely undermines the purpose of the Fair Share Act, which limits a defendant's liability to their portion of fault.

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Nursing Home Wins Appeal In Criminal Case Over COVID Deaths

By Y. Peter Kang

Criminal charges against a Southern California nursing home in connection with the COVID-19 deaths of 14 people were properly dismissed, a California appeals court has ruled, finding that the prosecution improperly relied on evidence that was inadmissible under the Fifth Amendment.

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NHTSA Looking Into Tesla Crash Report Tardiness

By Jonathan Capriel

Tesla Inc. must explain why many crashes involving its advanced driver-assistance systems or self-driving vehicles are not being timely reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, according to a notice filed by federal regulators who are now investigating the company's compliance.

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Ex-Northwestern Coach Settles Firing Suit Over Hazing Probe

By Gina Kim

Northwestern University's former football coach Pat Fitzgerald has settled his contract breach and defamation suit alleging he was fired without cause amid an investigation into hazing claims, with the school announcing Thursday that evidence revealed during discovery showed Fitzgerald never condoned or directed any hazing, and no player reported hazing to Fitzgerald. 

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Kanner & Pintaluga Seeks Sanctions Over Accident Data Suit

By Hope Patti

Kanner & Pintaluga PA asked a Texas federal court to sanction a Houston couple and their counsel in a proposed class action accusing the firm and since-dismissed Progressive Casualty Insurance Co. of conspiring to share auto crash victims' private information, saying the claims are based on unverified and inadmissible hearsay.

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Seton Hall Gets COVID-19 Death Suit Tossed For Good

By Jack McLoone

A New Jersey federal judge wasn't swayed by new arguments brought by parents of a Seton Hall University sophomore who died during a COVID-19 isolation period, saying their contract-related claims failed to establish one existed at all.

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US Soccer Dodges Abuse Suit Over Lack Of Jurisdiction

By Elaine Briseño

The U.S. Soccer Federation and other organizations in the sport have escaped the negligence lawsuit of a former player who alleges that her former coach sexually assaulted her as a teen, ruling that the Maryland court lacks jurisdiction over the defendants.

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Ex-Player Says Chicago Bears Mishandled His Knee Injury

By Celeste Bott

A former player for the Chicago Bears has sued the NFL team and its medical staff, claiming they discouraged surgery after he injured his knee in a preseason game despite MRI results showing significant cartilage damage, delaying adequate treatment and derailing his professional football career.

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Odell Beckham Wants Attys Sanctioned In Diddy Assault Suit

By Adrian Cruz

NFL star Odell Beckham Jr. is looking to sanction attorneys representing a woman accusing him in California federal court of participating in a Bay Area gang rape alongside rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs, claiming the allegations are frivolous and the attorneys willfully ignored available evidence in making them.

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Family Urges 5th Circ. To Hold Penske Liable For Fatal Crash

By Linda Chiem

The family of a man killed in a 2018 collision has told the Fifth Circuit that freight broker Penske cannot claim ignorance to escape liability for negligently hiring the unsafe motor carrier and driver who caused the Texas accident.

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Miami Beach Hotel Sued After Child Drowned In Pool

By David Minsky

The parents of a 5-year-old girl who drowned in a Miami Beach hotel pool have brought a Florida state court wrongful death lawsuit against the hotel's parent companies, alleging they failed to implement proper safety measures that would have prevented their daughter's death.

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Opinion

Aviation Watch: Liability Lessons From 737 Max Blowout

The National Transportation Safety Board's recently released report on the 2024 door plug blowout on board a Boeing 737 Max airliner helps illuminate how a company's strategic mistakes can lead to flawed decision-making and supply chain oversight failures, ultimately increasing regulatory and legal exposure, says Alan Hoffman, a retired attorney and aviation expert.

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Series

Quilting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Turning intricate patterns of fabric and thread into quilts has taught me that craftsmanship, creative problem-solving and dedication to incremental progress are essential to creating something lasting that will help another person — just like in law, says Veronica McMillan at Kramon & Graham.

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Judge Finds Habba Unlawfully Serving As NJ's US Atty

By Matthew Santoni

Alina Habba, President Donald Trump's former personal attorney and his pick to remain the U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey, was unlawfully given an extension of her temporary post after her "interim" appointment expired, a Pennsylvania federal judge ruled Thursday.

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SEC Taps Military Judge To Head Enforcement Efforts

By Jessica Corso

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday announced the appointment of a senior judge in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces to lead its enforcement division.

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OnlyFans Flags Bogus Citations In RICO Fraud Suit

By Emily Sawicki

Attorneys for a proposed class of OnlyFans subscribers alleging racketeering by the company notified a California federal judge Thursday that they would be seeking permission to fix earlier filings found to have errors created by artificial intelligence, days after the web platform's parent company notified the court of the citation errors.

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NY Appeals Court Throws Out Trump's $500M Fraud Penalty

By Phillip Bantz

A divided New York state appeals court panel on Thursday tossed a nearly $500 million civil fraud penalty against President Donald Trump and his sons, companies and their executives, ruling that the fine was "excessive," but kept in place a judge's finding of liability.

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9th Circ. Dissenters Rip Judge's 'Weaponization Of Sanctions'

By Jeff Overley

A half-dozen Ninth Circuit judges Thursday denounced six-figure sanctions against attorneys for prominent politicians challenging Arizona election procedures, accusing a lower court of "twisting and contorting" allegations in order to punish lawyers "based on the nature of the complaint and the clients that they represented."

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Trump To Get Texas Vacancy With Judge Taking Senior Status

By Courtney Bublé

U.S. District Judge David Godbey of the Northern District of Texas, who was at the center of a debate on judge shopping last year, will take senior status on Sept. 17, according to an update posted on the federal judiciary's website on Thursday.

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Analysis

Employer Plans In Limbo As Courts Grapple With Trans Care

By Kellie Mejdrich

Despite appellate courts' apparent willingness to allow states to ban gender-affirming care for minors, employers are still waiting for clarity on whether federal anti-discrimination laws require health plans to cover transgender healthcare access, experts say.

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California Bar Board Of Trustees Gets 1st Nonattorney Chair

By Rose Krebs

The California Supreme Court announced Thursday that for the first time ever, a nonattorney will lead the State Bar of California's Board of Trustees starting Sept. 21.

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Ex-Prosecutor Sworn In As Ga. US Atty In Southern District

By Emily Johnson

A longtime Georgia attorney, who served as chair of Georgia's State Board of Pardons and Paroles and previously served as a district attorney, was sworn in this week as interim U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.

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Ethics Case Reasserted Against Fla. Judge Over Deepfake

By Matt Perez

A Florida judicial ethics panel has reasserted allegations that a state judge in Broward County violated the state's Code of Judicial Conduct during her 2024 election campaign, ahead of a final hearing set for Dec. 16 by the hearing panel chair of the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission.

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