'Profits Won': States Say Meta Targeted Kids As Trial Opens

By Dorothy Atkins

An attorney for more than two dozen states told a California federal jury during opening statements Tuesday that Meta hid what it knew about social media's mental health harms and prioritized profits over safety in a yearslong effort to hook kids on its platforms, while Meta defended its safety practices as best-in-class.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Infant Formula MDL Judge Laments Ongoing 'Trial-By-Video'

By Celeste Bott

The Illinois federal judge handling multidistrict litigation claiming Mead Johnson or Abbott Laboratories infant formula led to a severe gut illness in premature babies deemed it "disappointing" that testimony in an ongoing bellwether trial largely consists of video depositions, warning she won't conduct another unless most witnesses will take the stand in Chicago.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Zuckerberg Waved Off Filter Criticism, Tenn. Jury Hears

By Cara Salvatore

A former Meta executive overseeing responsible innovation testified Tuesday that Mark Zuckerberg iced out her thoughts regarding the harm to teens of cosmetic surgery image filters, but said generally the company's employees are well intentioned when it comes to user safety.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DC Circ. Backs EPA Forever Chemicals Rules

By Emily Field

The D.C. Circuit Tuesday backed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's designation of the two most common forms of forever chemicals as hazardous substances under federal Superfund law, rejecting arguments from industry that the agency didn't have a legal basis to do so.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Bot Errors Doom Expert's Credibility In Tainted-Supplement Suit

By Rachel Riley

A Washington federal judge Tuesday disposed of a U.S. Army nurse's lawsuit claiming supplement maker Thesis Nootropics sold products tainted with amphetamines, concluding that a key expert destroyed his credibility by submitting a report containing bot-generated false citations — much like errors for which the plaintiffs' counsel was recently sanctioned.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

ATF's Ghost Gun Rule Found Unconstitutional By Texas Judge

By Y. Peter Kang

A Texas federal judge has ruled that a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives rule restricting so-called ghost gun kits violates the Second Amendment because it runs counter to America's colonial tradition of home gunsmithing.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Marriott Gets Trim Of Worker's Tobacco Health Fee Suit

By Kellie Mejdrich

A Maryland federal judge on Tuesday refused to completely toss a Marriott worker's proposed class action alleging the hotel giant's $15 weekly health fee on employees who use tobacco violated federal benefits law, but trimmed the dispute of some claims as insufficiently backed up. 

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Quill & Arrow Says Ford Can't Rehash Lemon Law Fee Fights

By Linda Chiem

Quill & Arrow LLP has asked a California federal judge to dump a "retaliatory" lawsuit alleging the personal injury firm saddled Ford Motor Co. with high-priced legal bills for work purportedly handled by virtual assistants overseas or nonlawyers, saying the automaker is trying to chill product liability litigation.

Motion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

​​​​​​​Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court last week tackled disputes involving multibillion-dollar mergers, corporate oversight, founder control, SPAC litigation, commercial contracts and attorney fees.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Alaska Judge Voids 500-Acre Land Swap For Refuge Road

By Crystal Owens

A district court judge vacated an Interior Department decision to exchange 500 acres to allow road construction on Izembek National Wildlife Refuge lands for failing to comply with the provision of a federal Alaskan land law, saying in a Tuesday order that the transaction has no "force or effect."

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DEA Blasts Marijuana Foes' Objections To Rescheduling

By Sam Reisman

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration on Monday told an administrative law judge that federal restrictions should be loosened on marijuana and that opponents of cannabis reform brought a meritless challenge to health regulators' assessment of the drug's medical use.

5 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

What Calif.'s New Focus On Microplastics Means For Cos.

The recent move by California's Department of Toxic Substances Control to designate microplastics as candidate chemicals under its Safer Consumer Product regulations does not create a new product restriction — but it expands the agency's future reach by putting microplastics on the department’s regulatory runway, says Gregory Berlin at Alston & Bird.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

AI Chatbot's Medical Claims Highlight Enforcement Risks

The Pennsylvania State Board of Medicine's recent lawsuit against Character Technologies, arguing that an artificial intelligence chatbot engaged in the unlicensed practice of medicine, may provide other state licensing boards with a road map for going after AI platforms, and counsel should advise clients to calibrate compliance accordingly, say attorneys at Cooley.

Petition attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

How Does In-House Pay Compare? Take The Law360 Survey

How do in-house salaries vary across industries, roles, and organizational revenue? What compensation tools are companies using to lure top talent? Help Law360 Pulse answer these questions and more in this year's In-House Compensation Survey.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

White House Aims To Shield Advisers Behind Law Firm EOs

By Emily Sawicki

The Trump administration and Justice Department "strongly object" to an Aug. 3 discovery order requiring them to name individuals involved in drafting and approving executive orders targeting law firms, amid their repeated refusal to hand over certain communications in a suit brought by the American Bar Association.

Notice attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ex-DOJ Atty Says Trump's University Probes Were Political

By Hailey Konnath

Trump administration officials forged ahead with investigations into Harvard, Columbia and other universities despite its own lawyers raising legal concerns and, in some cases, finding "little to no factual predicate justifying opening them," according to a whistleblower disclosure from a former U.S. Department of Justice lawyer made public Tuesday.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Troutman Sidelined Associate After Heart Attack, Suit Says

By Patrick Hoff

Troutman Pepper Locke LLP derailed an associate's career because he took medical leave to recover from a heart attack and spoke up about senior attorneys' fraudulent billing practices, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in New Jersey federal court.

Complaint attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Trump Names 9 Judicial Picks Across 6 States

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump announced nine nominees Tuesday for judicial spots in Florida, Texas, Louisiana, Kentucky, Oklahoma and Alaska. 

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Big Tech, PTAB Attys Urge Justices To Fix USPTO Power Grab

By Dani Kass

The Federal Circuit's refusal to curb the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office director's power over instituting Patent Trial and Appeal Board challenges has allowed leaders to "wreak havoc" without accountability, top tech companies have warned the U.S. Supreme Court.

7 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »