Meta To Face Sanctions Bid Over Addiction MDL Privilege Log

By Dorothy Atkins

School district plaintiffs and attorneys general have told a California federal judge they plan to seek sanctions against Meta Platforms Inc. in the social media addiction multidistrict litigation for the tech giant's "extremely belated production" of over 73,841 documents downgraded off privilege logs, months after fact discovery closed.

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Social Media 'Lions' Hunted Plaintiff Like Gazelle, Jury Told

By Craig Clough

The plaintiff's attorney in a bellwether trial accusing Meta Platforms Inc. and Google LLC of harming children's mental health encouraged a California jury during closing arguments Thursday not to buy the defendants' focus on his client's difficult childhood, saying it only weakened her to their social media "addiction machine" like a vulnerable gazelle being hunted by lions.

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Amazon Faces Revived Suit Over Teens' Sodium Nitrite Deaths

By Ben Adlin

A Ninth Circuit panel on Thursday reopened a lawsuit against Amazon brought by the families of two teens who used sodium nitrite purchased through the retailer to take their own lives, ruling that the families' negligence and product liability claims can move forward under Washington state law.

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DC Circ. Spends Hours Debating 'Same' Generic Label Reqs

By Nadia Dreid

The D.C. Circuit spent more than three hours Thursday going round with Vanda Pharmaceuticals and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration about whether the label for a generic sleep-wake disorder medication is "the same" as the branded one because it doesn't include Braille.

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Embryo Loss Suits Need 'Serious' Edits, Judge Told

By Brian Steele

Two complaints against fertility products maker CooperSurgical Inc. require "serious" amendments to clarify the nature of the claims that a defective culture medium caused embryo losses for in vitro fertilization patients, the company told a Connecticut federal judge Thursday.

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Tom's Toothpaste Trims Class Action Over Lead Levels

By Jonathan Capriel

Tom's of Maine can't beat back proposed class claims it allowed heavy metals to taint its children's toothpaste, a New York federal judge ruled Wednesday, finding that the parent behind the suit adequately claimed the company falsely marketed the products as "safe" and "healthy."

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Amazon 'Sensitive Skin' Body Wash Targeted In Class Action

By Rachel Riley

Amazon has been accused of deceptively promoting its Amazon Basics-branded body wash as "hypoallergenic," "unscented" and suitable for "sensitive skin," despite containing chemical fragrance and other skin irritants, with a proposed class action launched in Seattle federal court on Thursday.

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Tort Report: Uber Won't OK Bigger Jury At 2nd Bellwether

By Y. Peter Kang

Trial strategy by Uber ahead of a second bellwether trial in sexual assault multidistrict litigation and a $4 million injury verdict against Publix in Florida lead Law360's Tort Report, which compiles recent personal injury and medical malpractice news that may have flown under the radar.

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In Hain, Justices Increase Stakes For Jurisdictional Errors

The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Hain Celestial Group v. Palmquist, addressing the consequences of a district court's erroneous dismissal of a nondiverse party before final judgment, has amplified the risk that a mistaken jurisdictional ruling in district court will render moot everything that comes after, says Steven Boranian at Reed Smith.

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Trial Advocacy Lessons From 3 Oscar-Nominated Films

Several films up for best picture at this weekend’s Academy Awards provide useful tips for trial lawyers, from the power of a dramatic opening to the importance of pivoting when the unexpected happens, say attorneys at Robins Kaplan.

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Series

Podcasting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Podcasting has changed how I ask questions and connect with people, sharpening my ability to listen without interrupting or prejudging, and bringing me closer to what law is meant to be: a human profession grounded in understanding, judgment and trust, says Donna DiMaggio Berger at Becker.

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4th Circ. Scolds Atty Suspected Of Using AI In Race Bias Suit

By Patrick Hoff

The Fourth Circuit has reprimanded an attorney suspected of using generative artificial intelligence to draft briefs in a race discrimination lawsuit against Baltimore Gas and Electric Co., warning that courts need to grapple with the technology as it "may soon become the norm."

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Democrats Seek Review Of Bondi's Role In Brother's Cases

By Alison Knezevich

Two Democratic lawmakers have asked the U.S. Department of Justice's inspector general to review whether Attorney General Pam Bondi "adequately recused herself" from cases involving clients represented by her brother Brad Bondi, who is a partner at Paul Hastings LLP.

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Sinema Says Tryst With Ex-Guard Not In NC Court's Reach

By Abigail Harrison

Former U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, now a Hogan Lovells attorney, told a North Carolina federal court Thursday that a lawsuit alleging her cross-country affair with a former member of her security detail ended a 14-year marriage must be dismissed because the trysts occurred outside state borders.

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Ex-Judge Testifies About Alleged Forgeries In Amazon Case

By Kelcey Caulder

The former chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia testified Thursday about the alleged forging of court documents, signatures and court stamps in a criminal case against a woman accused of defrauding Amazon out of $9.4 million through fraudulent invoices. 

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Judge Newman Takes Suspension Battle To Supreme Court

By Ryan Davis

Federal Circuit Judge Pauline Newman brought her fight against a suspension imposed on her by her colleagues to the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday, arguing that a lower court wrongly held that her challenges to the order are not subject to judicial review.

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Calif. Bar Says Internal Docs Bolster Claims Against Exam Co.

By Emily Sawicki

The State Bar of California has bulked up its breach of contract and fraud suit against the administrator of its "disastrous" February 2025 bar exam, filing an amended complaint in light of information it says it learned from internal communications unearthed amid discovery.

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Holyoak's US Attorney Nomination Advances

By Courtney Bublé

The nomination of Melissa Holyoak, former commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission, to be U.S. attorney for the District of Utah was sent to the full Senate on Thursday.

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CFTC Takes 1st Steps Toward Prediction Market Regulations

By Jessica Corso

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission opened the door Thursday to promised prediction market regulation, calling for public feedback on what such rules might look like while laying out the staff's view on the current rules that the platforms should follow in order to offer betting on sports and other events.

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