Analysis

$1.3B Airtable Deal Highlights Software M&A Revival

By Al Barbarino

Italian software company Bending Spoons' plan to buy Airtable is highlighting a surge in software industry consolidation following a sharp reset in private market valuations, as artificial intelligence adds another layer of pressure on companies to sell.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Data Center Backlash Fogs Finance Picture For New Projects

By Keith Goldberg

How is the backlash against data centers — from public protests in red towns and blue cities to moratoriums on large projects to primary wins for anti-data center candidates — affecting lenders' approach? Here, Law360 takes a close look.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

4 Questions On Excess Manufacturing Capacity Tariffs

By Dylan Moroses

Stakeholders anticipate new tariffs on key trading partners stemming from allegations that excess manufacturing capacity is causing harm to U.S. businesses, but several open questions remain about the extent to which duty burdens will increase and whether countries will retaliate in response. Here, Law360 considers four such questions.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Amazon Revives Arbitration Clause, Bars Class Actions

By Ben Adlin

Amazon customers must now take most legal claims against the retail giant to binding arbitration, the company announced Friday, unveiling new conditions of use that also include a prohibition on users bringing proposed class actions.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Apple Says No To Rethink Of Fed Phone Buying Subpoena

By Nadia Dreid

Apple does not think a special master should reconsider a mandate giving the tech titan a peek into how the Pentagon, CIA, State Department, and other federal agencies buy smartphones as part of a suit the federal government has filed accusing Apple of monopolization.

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

OpenAI Fights Sanctions Bid In News Copyright MDL

By Ivan Moreno

OpenAI on Friday urged a New York federal judge to reject sanctions that could bar it from relying on a 20 million-chat evidence sample in copyright litigation brought by The New York Times and other news organizations, arguing it did not violate a preservation order or misrepresent its ability to search for copyrighted material.

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

Charter-Cox Tie-Up Gets Last Needed OK With Calif. Approval

By Christopher Cole

California regulators have approved the $34.5 billion merger of major cable providers Charter and Cox, providing the last needed regulatory green light but also imposing conditions meant to help consumers.

1 document attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Trump Hits Imported Drones With Up To 100% Tariffs

By Jack McLoone

Large drones and those with certain capabilities "that are particularly sensitive for national security purposes" and their components will face a 100% ad valorem tariff starting in September, President Donald Trump ordered, with smaller drones and other components facing a 25% tariff.

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

IRS Expands Carbon Capture Tax Credit's Safe Harbor

By Kat Lucero

A safe harbor for the carbon sequestration tax credit's reporting requirements will apply to a method that uses carbon oxide used as a tertiary injectant in qualified oil and gas extraction projects, the IRS announced Friday, expanding earlier guidance for the incentive.

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

Data Privacy Practices Put Wash. Residents At Risk, AG Says

By Ben Adlin

Washington state should require data brokers to register with regulators and follow standard practices to safeguard personal information, the state's attorney general said Friday in what he described as a first-of-its-kind report examining how data privacy practices affect Washingtonians.

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

Conn. Opposes Kalshi's Bid To Keep Running Pending Appeal

By Katryna Perera

Connecticut officials on Friday asked a federal judge to deny KalshiEX's bid to keep offering sports contracts as it mounts a "long-shot appeal" of an injunction, arguing there is no basis to restrain state regulators from enforcing state wagering law given the contracts' "clear illegality." 

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

Dem Says FCC Ignores Affordability In New Broadband Report

By Christopher Cole

In the latest turn in a yearslong debate at the Federal Communications Commission, the agency's lone Democrat on Friday criticized a report spearheaded by the GOP majority touting robust broadband deployment, saying the Republicans gave short shrift to affordability issues.

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

NC Data Analyst Gets 2 Years In Prison For Extortion Scheme

By P.J. D'Annunzio

A data analyst convicted by a North Carolina jury earlier this year of running a cyber extortion scheme against employees and executives of a company he contracted with has been sentenced to two years in prison.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Meta Beats Suit Over Scam Investment Ads Again

By Sydney Price

A California judge dismissed a suit against Meta over ads on its platforms from scammers impersonating financial professionals to run pump-and-dump investment schemes, saying the theory of the case was "not entirely clear" before giving plaintiffs one more chance to amend their complaint.

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

Nielsen Loses At Fed. Circ., Fights Verdict In Patent Row

By Adam Lidgett

The Nielsen Co. Friday lost its attempt at the Federal Circuit to revive claims of a patent it accused TVision Insights Inc. of infringing, as it fights a jury verdict clearing TVision of infringing a separate patent.

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

Gallagher Must Face Suit Over Tech Loan Coverage Losses

By Danielle Ferguson

A New York federal judge refused to dismiss an insurer's claims alleging Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. entities gave misleadingly positive information about the finances of tech companies participating in a lending program, finding the insurer showed its financial loss could be connected to Gallagher's alleged failures.

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

App Co. Asks Court Not To Let Apple 'Drag' It Across Country

By Nadia Dreid

Communal video streaming app Rave does not want its lawsuit accusing Apple of unfairly booting it from the App Store shipped from New Jersey to California, and has asked the court not to let the tech behemoth "convert this instrument of monopoly power into a litigation shield."

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

Uber Says Plaintiff Attys Are Hyping Article That Fueled Threats

By Bonnie Eslinger

A California federal judge said Friday that he wouldn't get involved in Uber's accusations that plaintiffs' counsel in passenger sexual assault litigation were involved in and "cheering on" a media report that's led to death threats against Uber's lawyers, saying it would not likely change things and could make them worse.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

NY AG Says 2nd Circ. Ruling Doesn't Back Pricing Law Case

By Matthew Perlman

The New York Attorney General's Office has pushed back after RealPage Inc. told a New York federal court that a recent Second Circuit ruling supports the company's challenge to a state law prohibiting landlords from using software to share information and set residential rental rates.

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

Ex-Marathon Worker Says AI Caught Her Bosses' Gender Bias

By Gina Kim

A Marathon Engineering environmental scientist has sued her former employer in New Jersey state court, alleging she was fired due to her gender, after an AI assistant that recorded her termination meeting sent her a transcript showing that one of her supervisors said he hoped to replace her with a "relatively strapping young man."

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

Insurer Denies $10M Duty To Recycler In Lead Exposure Case

By Jonathan Capriel

An insurance company is arguing it has no obligation to cover any part of a $279 million insurance pool that battery recycler Gopher Resource LLC promised to folks who filed a class action claiming they suffered lead poisoning from the company's smelter.

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

R4 Technologies Stockholders Sue For Company Records

By Jarek Rutz

A group of r4 Technologies Inc. shareholders has sued the artificial intelligence company in the Delaware Chancery Court, seeking access to corporate records to investigate potential wrongdoing and determine the value of their holdings.

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

Pa. Gambler Sues FanDuel Over Alleged Addictive Design

By Matthew Santoni

A Pennsylvania man who says he has a gambling addiction filed a lawsuit in Pennsylvania state court against FanDuel, claiming the sports betting app intentionally included features designed to amplify and feed compulsive gambling.

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

Solar Rival Is Filching Shoals' Customers, Exec Tells Jury

By Hayley Fowler

A solar components company has lost customers to a rival supplier selling what one executive described as a suspiciously similar electrical connection system being marketed at a fraction of the price, a federal jury in North Carolina heard Friday on the first day of testimony in a patent infringement trial.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Goodwin, DLA Piper Guide Dynatrace's $915M Arize Deal

By Al Barbarino

Goodwin Procter LLP and DLA Piper are advising Dynatrace and Arize, respectively, on Dynatrace's $915 million planned acquisition of the artificial intelligence observability company.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Promethean, Emerging Launch $300M Hospitality Tech Fund

By Nathan Hale

Hospitality investment and operating platform Emerging Fund Management LLC and private equity firm Promethean Investments LLP announced Friday that they are teaming up as equal co-sponsors of a fund focused on technology underlying hospitality and experiential entertainment.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Mapping A Compliance Framework For AI Chatbot Operators

The Federal Trade Commission's recent artificial intelligence guidance, together with emerging state AI chatbot laws, wiretapping statutes and telecommunications requirements, carry significant implications for consumer-facing chatbot and customer service tool operators that require a layered disclosure framework addressing multiple regulatory touchpoints, say attorneys at Winston Taylor.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

3 Ways Policyholders Can Challenge AI Claims Handling

As artificial intelligence tools become increasingly embedded in insurance claims handling, policyholders in coverage litigation should seek discovery of AI training data as payout-optimizing software may bolster bad faith claims and insurers' AI-use parameters may run afoul of good faith precedent, say attorneys at Cohen Ziffer.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Fed. Circ.'s Thermostat Ruling Holds Patent Jury Trial Lessons

The Federal Circuit's recent decision in Ollnova v. Ecobee, throwing out a $11.5 million patent infringement award, clarifies key rules for jury verdict forms and sends an important message on patent subject matter eligibility, says Bijal Vakil at Skadden.

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

Midyear Trends, Takeaways As Securities Class Actions Surge

High numbers of securities class actions through June suggest filings will stay elevated, with factors like changing enforcement attitudes, media scrutiny and the proliferation of potential defendants serving as both cause and effect in increased litigation involving AI-related disclosures, health and tech companies, and foreign issuers, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Other Transaction Authority May Change Military Construction

Early use of the Pentagon’s expanded authority to use other transaction agreements for defense construction projects suggests it may become a consequential change that draws new entrants into the marketplace, so participants should be cognizant of how it differs from the familiar Federal Acquisition Regulation model, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Are your summer associates prepared for a legal career?

How does your firm shape the summer associate experience and mentor new talent? Invite your summer associates to share their perspectives in this year’s Law360 Pulse Summer Associates Survey.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Can Texas, Nevada Replicate Delaware's Corporate Edge?

By Jarek Rutz

Texas and Nevada have spent the past few years rewriting corporate laws and building specialized business courts in an effort to challenge Delaware's long-standing dominance as the preferred home for U.S. companies. While a handful of high-profile corporations have already made the move, corporate law experts say creating another Delaware will require far more than new statutes and judges.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Immigration Judge Says Anti-DEI Bias Led To Her Ousting

By Elaine Briseño

A Black immigration judge has sued the U.S. Department of Justice for discrimination, alleging her firing was related to anti-DEI sentiments at the agency that overwhelmingly targeted older, nonwhite women.

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

White House, BigLaw Atty Picked For Tenn. Federal Bench

By Jack Karp

President Donald Trump announced Friday that he is nominating a White House attorney and former BigLaw associate to serve as a Tennessee federal judge.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Holland & Knight Loses Bid To Escape GWG Fraud Suit

By Emily Sawicki

Holland & Knight LLP must face adversary claims in Houston bankruptcy court after a Texas federal judge found the trustee for bankrupt life insurance bond seller GWG Holdings Inc. had made a plausible case that the firm and one of its attorneys engaged in a racketeering conspiracy with its ex-chairman.

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

Law Student's Race Bias Claim Survives In Kirk Discipline Suit

By Matt Perez

A Texas federal judge on Friday allowed a former Texas Tech law student to proceed with her claim that the university board was discriminatory in disciplining her over comments she made allegedly celebrating the death of Charlie Kirk because non-Black students who spoke about the assassination weren't investigated.

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

Roundup

UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

By Megan Norcott

The past week in London has seen newly signed Real Madrid footballer Yan Diomandé sued over access to his image rights, Nigel Farage and Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice accuse the NCA of leaking confidential financial information, and a right-wing American journalist hit The Guardian with a libel claim. 

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

By Sue Reisinger

Boeing has won dismissal of a Delaware suit brought by pension funds accusing its board of putting profits before safety. And in-house counsel helped pick Latham & Watkins as the leader on an annual list of client service all-stars.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Kevin Penton

Baker Botts LLP and King & Spalding LLP lead this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after the Ninth Circuit enforced an over $2 billion arbitral award issued to a satellite communications company, ruling that the legal concept of an optimal venue for a case doesn't apply in matters concerning the enforcement of international arbitral awards.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

In Case You Missed It: Hottest Firms And Stories On Law360

For those who missed out, here's a look back at the law firms, stories and expert analyses that generated the most buzz on Law360 last week.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »