Meta Can't Keep Certain Docs Secret In DC Social Media Row

By Rae Ann Varona

Washington, D.C.'s highest court refused to make a trial court vacate discovery orders requiring Meta to disclose certain communications concerning internal research related to the well-being of young social media users, saying Thursday that Meta failed to show it had a "clear and indisputable" right to such relief.

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Northrop's $75M LA Contamination Deal Gets Preliminary OK

By Rae Ann Varona

A California federal judge Thursday preliminarily approved a $75 million class deal struck mid-trial by Northrop Grumman and residents of a Los Angeles suburb who accused the aerospace company of contaminating their properties, a day after hundreds of the neighborhood's residents filed a similar lawsuit in state court.

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Parents Lose Most Claims In Child Car Seat Safety Suit

By Mike Curley

A Massachusetts federal judge on Thursday threw out the bulk of a proposed class action alleging that Dorel Juvenile Group Inc. sold unsafe child car seats, saying most of the claims fail because the parents leading the suit didn't show Dorel was aware of the defect prior to their purchase.

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Feature

In Uber Assault Trial, A Courtroom Tests Truth Face-To-Face

By Hayley Fowler

This is the first in a two-part series about the Virginia Revival Model courtroom in the Charles R. Jonas federal courthouse in Charlotte, North Carolina. Here, judges and attorneys recall how a sexual assault trial against Uber unfolded in a space designed to place focus on the witnesses.

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Amazon At Fault After Driver On Fentanyl Hit Bus, Suit Says

By Mike Curley

The family of a 16-year-old Indiana student is suing Amazon and its courier subcontractor in state court, alleging that Amazon is responsible for one of its drivers working while under the influence of fentanyl and crashing into a school bus.

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Lowe's Hit With Post-Recall Suit Over Fire-Prone Yard Tools

By Gina Kim

Lowe's sold gardening power tools without disclosing a defect in their lithium-ion batteries that have been short-circuiting or catching fire, ultimately leading to a "dangerously deficient" recall that unnecessarily has burdened customers with a tedious process to get battery replacements, according to a proposed class action in California federal court.  

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Brief

Geico Gets Final OK On $2.6M Injury Coverage Deal In Wash.

By Gianna Ferrarin

A Washington federal judge signed off on a $2.6 million settlement between Geico and a class of hundreds of drivers resolving a dispute over whether the insurer improperly withheld drivers' personal injury protection coverage by asserting they reached "maximum medical improvement."

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Air Force Lt. Col. Says Housing Sickened Him, Family

By Mike Curley

U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Travis Allen and his wife are suing companies that provide privatized housing to military service members in Texas federal court, saying that despite being assured the housing was safe and properly maintained, their home had a host of problems that harmed Allen and his daughter's health.

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Mich. Renews Enbridge Line 5 Permit, Tribes Vow Fight

By Melanie Dorsey

Michigan environmental regulators reissued key state permits for Enbridge Energy's proposed Great Lakes Tunnel project, allowing the company to continue pursuing approvals needed to replace the aging Line 5 pipelines beneath the Straits of Mackinac, while tribal leaders and environmental groups vowed to challenge the decision.

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5th Circ. Upholds Gun Ban Against Domestic Abuser

By Parker Quinlan

The Fifth Circuit ruled that a man convicted of domestic violence cannot have his right to own a firearm restored despite the U.S. Supreme Court's expansion of gun rights in recent years, and that Congress did not exceed its constitutional authority by limiting his Second Amendment rights.

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Series

Being A Magician Makes Me A Better Lawyer

The skills I've developed as a lifelong magician have translated directly into tangible benefits in the courtroom because performing magic and trying cases both live at the intersection of psychology, storytelling, timing and disciplined rehearsal, says Mark Dombroff at Fox Rothschild.

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How Competitive Is Your Compensation? Take Our Survey

Is your compensation keeping pace with the rate of inflation? Do you know what your colleagues made last year? Help Law360 Pulse answer these questions and more in this year's Law Firm Compensation Survey.

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Feature

As Law Firms Race To Adopt AI, Cost Concerns Grow

By Phillip Bantz

Pressure is mounting on law firm leaders to dive into the AI waters or watch competitors swim away, but figuring out responsible, cost-effective methods to use high-priced legal tech remains tricky, experts say.

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Richards Layton Apologizes For AI Errors In Chancery Case

By Rose Krebs

Richards Layton & Finger PA and one of its attorneys have apologized to the Delaware Chancery Court for submitting a filing with errors generated by artificial intelligence, asking that sanctions not be imposed.

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McDermott Atty Denies Pressuring Friend To Alter Testimony

By Rose Krebs

A McDermott Will & Schulte LLP attorney has told a Delaware vice chancellor that he is in "complete shock" and "hurt" by a longtime friend's contention that he pressured him to change his testimony in a Chancery Court case, saying the accusation "is false and without any merit."

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Simpson Thacher 'Never' Explained Ill-Fated Deal, Exec Says

By Cara Salvatore

A founder seeking over $100 million from Simpson Thacher & Bartlett over a transaction he says destroyed his insurance services company testified Thursday the law firm provided him no education on various words he wasn't familiar with in the deal.

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Blue-Slip-Backed Trump Judge Selections Advance

By Courtney Bublé

The first two judicial nominations of the second Trump administration to receive supportive blue slips from Democratic senators advanced to the Senate floor Thursday.

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Goulston Docked Ex-Partners' Pay For Joining Rival, Suit Says

By Julie Manganis

Two Goulston & Storrs PC directors who jumped to Troutman Pepper Locke LLP were stiffed out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in compensation in retaliation for leaving, according to a suit filed Thursday in New York federal court.

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Tillis Might Back Blanche, As AG Pick Met Epstein Survivors

By Courtney Bublé

Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche on Thursday afternoon met with a group of survivors of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein after retiring Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said his condition for supporting Blanche's appointment to the permanent position was for the nominee to speak to them face-to-face.

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