Analysis

Musk Trial To Test Limits Of OpenAI's Nonprofit Promises

By Dorothy Atkins

Billionaire Elon Musk is set to face off against OpenAI Inc. and Microsoft Corp. in a high-stakes legal battle going to a California federal jury trial Monday over Musk's challenge to OpenAI's conversion to a for-profit entity, which experts say may shake up the artificial intelligence industry.

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

Exclusive

Judge Albright Reflects On 8 Years Shaping Patent Law

By Dani Kass

U.S. District Judge Alan Albright will be walking away from the Western District of Texas at the end of the summer, ready to head back into patent litigation work. He talked with Law360 on Friday about the rockier elements of his judgeship and lessons he'll take into private practice.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Up Last At High Court: TPS, Geofence, Skinny Labels

By Katie Buehler

The U.S. Supreme Court will close out its oral argument portion of the 2025 October term by hearing a panoply of disputes over the constitutionality of geofence warrants, the existence of aiding and abetting torture claims, and the rescission of temporary protected status for hundreds of thousands of immigrants.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Justices To Focus On Alien Tort Statute In Cisco Spying Case

By Y. Peter Kang

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case on Tuesday with implications for U.S. companies doing business with foreign governments, and decide whether the Ninth Circuit was right to reinstate an Alien Tort Statute suit alleging that Cisco Systems Inc. helped the Chinese government's allegedly unlawful crackdown on the Falun Gong religious movement.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Roundup

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

By Laura Stewart Liberty

The past week in London has seen a Hong Kong company sue the government and a COVID-19 PPE company linked to Tory peer Michelle Mone, an oligarch bring a fresh claim against a rival in a long-running feud, a rugby league club sue over a canceled mass dance event, and Visa and Mastercard hit with legal action from H&M, Eurostar, and Bang & Olufsen. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DOJ's Agri Stats Trial Delayed For Deal Talks

By Matthew Perlman

A Minnesota federal judge Friday pushed back a looming trial in the U.S. Department of Justice's antitrust case against Agri Stats, after the sides told the court they're close to working out a deal.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

'Big Guys,' 'Little Guys' Get Equal Access In Comcast Ad Fight

By Lauraann Wood

If Viamedia Inc. lets people with competitive insight view highly confidential materials as its advertising monopoly trial against Comcast looms, then the cable giant should have the same access because "we can't have different discovery standards between big guys and little guys," an Illinois federal judge said Friday.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

AI Co. Founder Copied Real Estate Appraisal Tool, Suit Says

By Zak Kostro

A 21-year-old founder of an artificial intelligence startup posed as a licensed real estate appraiser to gain access to a residential appraisal software company's data collection tool and share it with his own employees, who duplicated aspects of the product, the software company has alleged in a California federal court.

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

Trump Makes Fresh US Tariff Threat Over UK Digital Tax

By Josh White

President Donald Trump warned that his administration will impose new tariffs on the U.K. unless the British government dismantles its digital services tax targeting tech giants.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

US, EU Announce Key Mineral Supply Chain Action Plan

By Dylan Moroses

The U.S. and European Union announced new agreements to further coordinate on strengthening critical mineral supply chains, in press releases published Friday.

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

AT&T Seeks To Shut Down Old Services Due To Roadwork

By Christopher Cole

AT&T already wants to retire older copper networks in places where wire has been stolen, and now the telecom giant also is asking for the Federal Communications Commission's go-ahead to close parts of networks where roadwork or other events would cause disruption.

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

Bankers Endorse FCC Fines For 'Know Your Customer' Regs

By Nadia Dreid

Bankers are pleased that the Federal Communications Commission is floating the idea of imposing "know your customer" rules on originating telecom providers and finding those that don't comply, since bank numbers are often among those most "spoofed" by bad actors.

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

Brief

FCC Ready To Revoke Mont. FM License For Back Fees

By Christopher Cole

The Federal Communications Commission will consider revoking the license of a Montana FM radio station that the agency claims has not paid regulatory fees going back years and totaling thousands of dollars.

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

Judge Lets Getty's TM Claims Against Stability AI Proceed

By Elliot Weld

A California federal judge has dismissed one count out of seven from a lawsuit alleging artificial intelligence image generator Stability AI produces garbled images with Getty Images' trademark, leaving the bulk of the claims in the litigation to move forward.

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

Fed. Circ. Won't Increase TQ Delta's $11M Trial Win

By Adam Lidgett

The Federal Circuit on Friday shot down TQ Delta's challenge to the method of calculation behind its $11.1 million award in its patent infringement case against CommScope Holding Co., denying the patent owner's request for a new damages trial.

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

Nats Can't Slide Hidden Ticket Fee Suit To Arbitration

By Alex Lawson

A D.C. federal judge has denied the Washington Nationals' request to arbitrate a proposed class action challenging its ticket fees, ruling that the arbitration clause in the team's purchase agreement does not apply to in-person transactions.

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

Salesforce Fired Worker After He Cared For Ill Dad, Suit Says

By MJ Koo

Salesforce selected a senior solutions consultant for layoff while he was on approved family medical leave because of his father's recurring cancer, and later fired him, the former consultant said in a lawsuit filed in Connecticut federal court.

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

Brief

Judge Won't Halt Anthropic Calif. Suit Amid DC Circ. Case

By Madeline Lyskawa

Anthropic PBC's lawsuit challenging the Pentagon's designation of the artificial intelligence company as supply chain risk to national security can proceed in California federal court while the government appeals an injunction and a parallel challenge plays out at the D.C. Circuit. 

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

Danaher Execs Face Investor Suit Over Post-COVID Outlook

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

Danaher Corp. executives are facing a proposed securities class action in Delaware federal court alleging they profited while misleading stockholders about the slowing sales of its diagnostics and bioprocessing products.

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

Cigna Plan Members Say HIPAA Notice Backs Privacy Claims

By P.J. D'Annunzio

A group of Cigna health plan participants who claimed the company failed to protect their private health information when it tracked their website activities told a Pennsylvania federal judge that the insurance giant should not be allowed to dodge new allegations that their HIPAA rights were violated.

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

Hikvision Lacks Standing In FCC Fight, DC Circ. Told

By Nadia Dreid

Hikvision doesn't have the standing to take the Federal Communications Commission to court over its decision to place modular transmitters on the so-called covered list, a list of equipment deemed to pose a national security risk, the agency told the D.C. Circuit.

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

Chinese Bank Must Face Aon Unit's Reinsurance Fraud Suit

By Hope Patti

China's largest bank can't avoid an Aon PLC subsidiary's suit seeking to hold the bank liable for its alleged role in a multibillion-dollar reinsurance fraud scheme, a New York state court ruled, allowing all but one negligence claim to move forward.

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

ITC Loses DC Circ. Appeal In Expert Investigation Case

By Adam Lidgett

The D.C. Circuit refused Friday to allow the U.S. International Trade Commission to revive an investigation into a former expert witness retained by Qualcomm for allegedly breaching a protective order, rejecting the agency's arguments that his suit to end the inquiry was brought both too late and too early.

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

Toshiba Subsidiary Must Face Black Worker's Bias Suit

By Patrick Hoff

A Toshiba retail technology subsidiary can't escape a Black business analyst's lawsuit claiming he was demoted and excluded from meetings and training opportunities because of his race, with a North Carolina federal judge ruling that his allegations against the company were detailed enough to proceed to discovery.

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

Korean Search Giant, Others Escape App Data Privacy Suit

By Allison Grande

A California federal judge has trimmed a putative class action accusing South Korean internet conglomerate and search giant Naver Corp. and several affiliates of illegally collecting biometric data from users of a pair of messaging and photo-editing apps, finding the court lacked jurisdiction over Naver and other foreign defendants while allowing some privacy claims to proceed against the remaining companies.

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

Pa. Beats Challenge To Rule Keeping Voter Records Offline

By Matthew Santoni

Pennsylvania's procedures for requesting copies of its voter rolls comply with the National Voter Registration Act, but so does a state rule preventing a national group from publishing that information on the internet in its hunt for voter fraud, a federal judge ruled Thursday.

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

Scores Of Orgs. Oppose FCC's Effort To Redo E-Rate Program

By Nadia Dreid

The Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition already raised the alarm earlier this month about the FCC's plan to consolidate E-rate program bids into a single portal, but now it's back with dozens of education and library organizations that also think the portal is a bad idea.

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

Ex-Intel Workers Urge Justices To Revive 401(k) Fund Suit

By Kellie Mejdrich

Former Intel employees urged the U.S. Supreme Court to revive their suit alleging their employee 401(k) savings were dragged down by underperforming investments, arguing the Ninth Circuit's requirement that allegations of subpar funds also include a meaningful benchmark for comparison didn't align with federal benefits law.

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

Brief

Mich. Town Settles Verizon's Suit Over Tower Permit Denial

By Melanie Dorsey

A Michigan town has settled a lawsuit alleging it unjustly blocked a proposed cell tower meant to improve Verizon service in the area, according to a dismissal order filed in federal court.

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

Don't Miss It: Ropes, Simpson Thacher Steer Week's Hot Deals

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

A lot can happen in the world of mergers and acquisitions and equity fundraising over the course of a couple of weeks, and it's difficult to keep up with all the deals.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Roundup

Taxation With Representation: Gibson Dunn, Paul Weiss

By Zak Kostro

In this week's Taxation With Representation, Elon Musk's SpaceX strikes a deal with Cursor that could lead to an acquisition of the artificial intelligence startup, building products distributor QXO Inc. buys TopBuild Corp., and Eli Lilly & Co. acquires clinical-stage biotechnology company Kelonia Therapeutics.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Nuclear Reactor Developer X-Energy Prices Upsized $1B IPO

By Nate Beck

Shares of X-Energy, a developer of nuclear reactors and fuel technology, began trading Friday after the company raised $1 billion in an upsized initial public offering advised by Latham & Watkins LLP and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

What Cos. Must Know As Energy Star Shifts To DOE Oversight

Congress saved the Energy Star program last year despite the Trump administration's attempt to defund it — but as its management shifts from one federal agency to another, industry participants need to track what's changing to stay abreast of compliance obligations, say attorneys at HWG.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

What We Did And Didn't Learn From DOJ's 1st Illegal DEI Deal

IBM's recent $17 million deal with the U.S. Department of Justice marks the first resolved False Claims Act enforcement action under the Civil Rights Fraud Initiative, and while it validates the core of the government's FCA antidiscrimination enforcement road map, it leaves its most aggressive theories untested, say attorneys at Nutter.

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

DLA Piper Clears Vote To End Verein, Unify Leadership

By Tracey Read

DLA Piper announced Friday that firm partners on both sides of the Atlantic have "overwhelmingly approved" a plan to dissolve its Swiss verein structure effective May 1.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Wigdor Sanctioned For Lying In Leon Black Rape Case

By Ryan Boysen

Prominent victims rights law firm Wigdor LLP has been sanctioned for lying to a New York federal judge while pursuing a lawsuit that claims ex-Apollo Global Management CEO Leon Black raped a teenager provided to him by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

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

Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Kevin Penton

Consovoy McCarthy PLLC, Butler Prather LLP, Bowen Painter LLC and Cannella Snyder LLC lead this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Fluor Corp. can be held liable for a veteran's state-based injury claims stemming from a 2016 suicide bombing in Afghanistan.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Oregon Lawyer Ordered To Pay Attorney Fees For Use Of AI

By Matt Perez

An Oregon attorney was sanctioned by a state appellate court for filing a brief containing a fabricated list of authorities because she used generative artificial intelligence, marking the first case in the jurisdiction to present the option of awarding attorney fees as a sanction as opposed to fines payable to the court.

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

Akin Can't 'Recast' Appeal As Good-Faith Effort, 9th Circ. Told

By Lauren Berg

A European winemaker slammed attempts by a U.S. importer and its Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP attorneys to "recast a frivolous appeal as a good-faith effort," saying they should have to pay monetary sanctions for pursuing what the Ninth Circuit called a "self-indulgent" appeal of a valid arbitration award.

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

Analysis

One Certainty As Tariff Refunds Start: 'There Will Be Litigation'

By Chris Villani

The launch of the refund process for tariffs struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court marks the start of lengthy and multifaceted court battles as companies fight with consumers — and amongst themselves — about who gets a slice of the $166 billion pie, experts told Law360.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

By Sue Reisinger

In what may be a first, a federal judge has ordered BJ's Wholesale Club to put an investor's climate-related proxy proposal up for a vote of the shareholders at the company's annual meeting. And a new study shows that more in-house counsel are staying in place despite pay increases slowing amid less competition for talent.

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 »