Analysis

Bayer Sees 'Light At The End Of The Tunnel' In Roundup Suits

By Chris Villani

After more than a decade and tens of thousands of cases, a recent settlement announcement and a high-stakes high court hearing may finally give the makers of the weedkiller Roundup an off-ramp in seemingly never-ending litigation.

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Bayer AG's Monsanto Pays $1M For Misclassified PCB Docs

By Rachel Riley

Bayer AG-owned Monsanto shelled out $1 million in sanctions on Tuesday based on a Washington state court's findings that the agro-chemical giant improperly marked thousands of documents as privileged when battling PCB poisoning claims tied to an Evergreen State school in a series of cases that have since been settled.

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Meta, Google Rest In Bellwether Social Media Harm Trial

By Craig Clough

Meta Platforms and Google rested their defense Wednesday in a landmark California bellwether trial accusing their social media platforms of harming children, with the cases-in-chief ending in a somewhat anticlimactic manner as jurors were shown videotaped depositions after weeks of dramatic live testimony and attorney theatrics.

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OpenAI Wants 'Parallel' ChatGPT Murder-Suicide Suit Tossed

By Y. Peter Kang

OpenAI has asked a California federal judge to dismiss a suit alleging ChatGPT encouraged a man to murder his mother and then commit suicide, saying the case filed by the perpetrator's estate largely mirrors a "parallel" state court action lodged earlier by the mother's estate.

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Uber Argues It Doesn't Have Same Duty To Safety As Taxi Cos.

By Jonathan Capriel

Uber can't be held liable for the alleged sexual assault of a passenger by a North Carolina driver, the company told the California federal court overseeing multidistrict litigation over similar claims, arguing that it is a technology company and therefore doesn't have the same duty to ensure passenger safety as a taxi company.

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Calif. City Must Pay Dow, PPG $6.5M Over Hidden Reports

By Bonnie Eslinger

A San Francisco judge on Wednesday ordered a California city to pay more than $6.5 million in sanctions for destroying and concealing reports in litigation against Dow Chemical and PPG Industries over dry cleaning chemicals that allegedly contaminated city sites, calling the withheld discovery an "explosive development."

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Huffy Moves To End Action Over Recalled Tonka Trucks

By Jonathan Capriel

Two consumers who filed a proposed class action over recalled Ride-On Tonka Dump Trucks have failed to state valid legal claims, said a motion filed Monday by Huffy Corp., which additionally argued that a 50-state class would be unmanageable.

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Conn. Father Sues Kratom Cos. For Son's Overdose Death

By Mike Curley

A Connecticut man is suing a group of kratom companies in state court, alleging their products and failure to warn consumers about their risks led to his son's death from an overdose after using them.

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Neighbors Sue Tenn. Paper Mill Over Rotten-Egg Smell

By Emily Field

A Tennessee paper packaging mill was hit with a proposed class action Tuesday by neighbors who claim that a rotten-egg odor from its wastewater treatment is so pervasive and foul that they are stuck inside their homes, a day after a similar suit by the same attorneys against a landfill.

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3 Attys Escape Ford's 'Retaliatory' Lemon Law RICO Suit

By Linda Chiem

A California federal judge has shut down Ford Motor Co.'s revised racketeering lawsuit accusing three attorneys affiliated with Knight Law Group LLP of orchestrating a massive fraudulent legal billing scheme, saying the attorneys' underlying conduct in pursuing lemon law litigation is shielded by First Amendment protections.

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Calif. Wants Truck Cos., Feds' Clean Truck Pact Claims Nixed

By Bryan Koenig

California officials again asked a federal judge to gut key claims from heavy-duty truck manufacturers and the federal government challenging the 2023 deal in which the manufacturers agreed to stringent state emissions standards and stiff penalties for noncompliance in the coming years.

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Ex-DOJ Atty Who Said 'This Job Sucks' Running For Congress

By Courtney Bublé

The former federal government lawyer detailed to Minnesota to help with immigration cases who last month told a federal judge "this job sucks" says she is running for Congress in the state.

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$600M IP Award, Quinn Emanuel Contempt Faulted On Appeal

By Ryan Davis

The Federal Circuit on Wednesday vacated a verdict against the maker of Norton antivirus software for infringing Columbia University patents and reversed a contempt ruling against Norton's former law firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP that had caused the judgment to grow to just over $600 million.

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Feature

Exxon Cements Texas As Delaware's Emerging Rival

By Spencer Brewer

Last year, Vinson & Elkins partner Katherine Frank fielded about one call a week from companies thinking about redomiciling in Texas. Speaking to Law360 the day after ExxonMobil announced its plan to reincorporate in the Lone Star State due to its business-forward courts and policies, Frank said the callers fell into three categories.

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Firm Probed In $4B LA Sex Abuse Deal Hit With UPL Charges

By Rachel Rippetoe

A co-founder of the Los Angeles personal injury firm facing investigation for its involvement in a record $4 billion sex abuse settlement against Los Angeles County was hit with disciplinary charges by the California State Bar, alleging the firm illegally practiced law outside the state.

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Analysis

Trump Cybercrime Order Creates New Compliance To-Do List

By Phillip Bantz

President Donald Trump's recent executive order calling for a coalition of government agencies to combat cybercrime is far more forceful than efforts under prior administrations, according to white collar lawyers, who tentatively applaud the proposal while warning it could raise new compliance risks.

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Judges, Lawmakers Urge 4th Circ. To Affirm Halligan Ruling

By Ryan Boysen

Members of Congress and former federal judges have urged the Fourth Circuit to affirm that Lindsey Halligan was not properly appointed as the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, saying the episode exemplifies why there are guardrails against installing political loyalists as federal prosecutors.

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VA, DOJ Cut Deal To Make Attys Mental Health Guardians

By Mark Payne

Under a new initiative, attorneys at the U.S. Department of Justice will serve as legal guardians for some homeless veterans, the Trump administration announced on Wednesday, though some veterans advocates expressed concern that the new program could involuntarily coerce veterans experiencing mental health issues into institutional care.

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