DC Circ. Backs FAA In Conn. Airport Fight After Seven County

By Linda Chiem

The D.C. Circuit ruled Tuesday that the Federal Aviation Administration sufficiently analyzed the environmental impacts of a regional Connecticut airport expansion project, saying the U.S. Supreme Court's Seven County ruling made clear that courts cannot override agencies' reasonable National Environmental Policy Act judgments or explanations.

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

High Court To Hear Alaskan Pilot Plane Forfeiture Case

By Mike Curley

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review a case in which the Alaska Supreme Court held that a pilot must forfeit his $95,000 plane to the state for transporting a six-pack of beer in a dry village.

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

Judge Wary Of Philly Firm's Uber, FedEx Antitrust Claims

By P.J. D'Annunzio

A Pennsylvania federal judge on Tuesday appeared doubtful that Uber and FedEx engaged in anticompetitive conduct when they accused Philadelphia injury firm Simon & Simon of a medical records falsification scheme meant to boost injury claims, pointing out during a hearing that the companies and the firm operated different types of businesses.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Data Capture Alone Doesn't Violate Calif. License Plate Law

By Rae Ann Varona

A California state appeals court has refused to revive a proposed class action that accused a vehicle location data company of unlawfully collecting drivers' data through automatic license plate readers, saying in a published opinion that the suit's plaintiff couldn't lean on his "subjective belief" that his privacy was invaded.

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

Atlanta 'Plane Train' Workers Score 18% Raise In 1st CBA

By Katherine Smith

A group of employees who operate and maintain the underground people mover system at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport have ratified their first collective bargaining agreement less than a year after voting to join an International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers affiliate, the union has announced.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

United Airlines, Cyber Insurer Spar Over CrowdStrike Losses

By Hope Patti

Cyber insurer Homesite Insurance Co. and United Airlines filed dueling lawsuits in Illinois federal court this week over losses stemming from the CrowdStrike outage in 2024 that brought air travel to a standstill.

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

Brief

Feds Seek 3 Months For Ex-Girardi Atty's Role In Theft

By Lauraann Wood

A former Girardi Keese attorney who helped disgraced plaintiff's attorney Tom Girardi steal millions of settlement dollars from plane crash clients should serve three months in prison to account for the seriousness of his conduct, federal prosecutors in Chicago say.

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

Janitorial Cos. Beat Supplemental Pension Claims, For Now

By Benjamin Morse

A D.C. federal judge trimmed claims that three airport janitorial contractors owe supplemental pension contributions, finding a pension fund failed to plausibly allege that the companies assumed a predecessor's contribution obligations or owed rehabilitation plan contributions under federal law.

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

Mavis Buying Pep Boys From Icahn In $700M Deal

By Al Barbarino

Mavis Tire Express Services Corp. will acquire The Pep Boys-Manny, Moe & Jack Holding Corp. from Icahn Automotive Group for approximately $700 million in cash, the companies announced Tuesday.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Spanish Auto Parts Maker For Ford, GM, Hyundai Seeks Ch. 15

By Yun Park

Spanish auto parts maker Grupo Antolin, which supplies interior components to major automakers including Ford Motor, General Motors and Hyundai Motor, on Monday asked a New York bankruptcy judge for U.S. recognition of its Spanish proceedings to restructure more than $1.4 billion in debt.

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

NJ Gov. Says Software Glitch Let 400 Noncitizens Vote

By Britain Eakin

New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill said Tuesday that a software glitch in the state's motor vehicle system between 2023 and 2024 accidentally registered about 6,600 individuals to vote and that roughly 400 of them voted.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Norfolk Southern Sued Over Worker's Lung Cancer Diagnosis

By Jonathan Capriel

A former track laborer claims Norfolk Southern caused his lung cancer after exposing him to carcinogenic chemicals, including benzene, for decades, according to a Pennsylvania state court lawsuit that could be "the first in a wave" filed by former railroad workers, plaintiffs' counsel said.

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

Calif. Privacy Agency Targets Gig Economy In Inaugural Audit

By Allison Grande

The California Privacy Protection Agency on Tuesday kicked off its long anticipated series of sectoral privacy audits, announcing that its first focus would be on how transportation, delivery and other gig economy platforms are handling consumers' and workers' personal information. 

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

India-Based AI Founder Says Colo. Court Lacks Jurisdiction

By Zach Dupont

The former chief business officer and founder of an AI mapping company accused of copying thousands of its rivals' maps told a Colorado federal judge Monday that the court has no jurisdiction over him and that the claims against him must be dismissed.

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

Ship Owner Slams Damages Claims In Md. Bridge Collapse

By Jared Foretek

The operators of the ship that slammed into Baltimore's Key Bridge in 2024 blasted economic damages claims from the city and county of Baltimore, as well as private claimants, telling a federal judge that none had a proprietary interest in the bridge because it was owned by the state.

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

Sen. Warner Unveils 4-Part AI Guardrail Package

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., proposed legislation Tuesday that would create guardrails on artificial intelligence and impose disclosure requirements on data centers' demands on power and water infrastructure and effects on the environment.

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

High Court Ruling Doesn't Impact Pipeline Fight, 9th Circ. Told

By Keith Goldberg

California and environmental groups have told the Ninth Circuit that a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision clarifying federal arbitration jurisdictional lines has no bearing on their lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's assertion of jurisdiction over an in-state oil pipeline system.

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

Dentons' New Pa. Atty Brings In-House, BigLaw Experience

By James Boyle

An attorney with more than 20 years of experience advising companies and entrepreneurs in emerging technology has recently moved his practice to Dentons Cohen & Grigsby's Pittsburgh office, the firm has announced.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Yellow Corp. WARN Act Appeal Refines Layoff Guidance

A Delaware federal court's recent upholding of a bankruptcy court's disallowance of unions' federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act claims against Yellow underscores that fact-specific notices and thoughtful timing are essential for distressed companies implementing layoffs, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Holland & Knight Hit With $1.2B Malpractice Suit

By Madison Arnold

A real estate firm is accusing Holland & Knight LLP and three attorneys of malpractice in a new complaint filed in Florida state court and is seeking up to $1.2 billion in damages after more than 30 states opened investigations into the company's practices.

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

Co. Turned Away Simpson Thacher's Deal Meeting, Jury Told

By Cara Salvatore

A retired Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP partner who handled the fundraising round alleged to have destroyed Patriot National Inc. testified in a Florida state malpractice trial Wednesday that the insurance services company waved off his attempt to present details to the board.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Brief

Pillsbury Data Breach Suit Voluntarily Dismissed

By Matt Perez

A proposed class action against Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP over a data breach last year has been voluntarily dismissed by the named plaintiffs, following a granted motion to stay in April to discuss mediation.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DLA Piper Says Deception, Not Bias, Cost Palestinian Atty Job

By Grace Elletson

DLA Piper urged an Illinois federal judge to toss a Palestinian attorney's suit claiming the firm revoked a job offer out of discrimination, arguing it rescinded the offer because she concealed allegations that she assaulted someone at a protest.

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

DC Bar Leaders Say DOJ Ethics Suit Encourages Misconduct

By Emily Sawicki

Washington, D.C., attorney regulators continue to garner support in their effort to toss a Justice Department lawsuit over alleged "weaponizing" of executive branch lawyer discipline, with D.C. bar organizations, scores of legal scholars and more than 500 former DOJ attorneys backing the disciplinary authorities.

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

Mich. Gets Judge With Blue Slips In 1st For Trump Admin

By Courtney Bublé

The U.S. Senate voted 62-36 on Wednesday to confirm Michael Martin, a longtime federal prosecutor, to the Eastern District of Michigan and Benjamin Flowers, former solicitor general of Ohio, to the Sixth Circuit.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DOL IG Says Info-Sharing Pacts Lacked Safeguards

By Irene Spezzamonte

U.S. Department of Labor Inspector General Anthony P. D'Esposito testified Wednesday before a U.S. House subcommittee that during the Biden administration, the department shared confidential information with plaintiffs' attorneys without notifying the Wage and Hour Division or the Employee Benefits Security Administration.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Gov't Attys May Face Broader Duty To Report Misconduct

By Alison Knezevich

Attorneys representing the government could face "more demanding" obligations to disclose misconduct by people within their client organizations than attorneys representing private entities, according to an ethics opinion issued Wednesday by the American Bar Association.

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

Retired Judges Rip Bid To Ban Foreign-Born Federal Judges

By Courtney Bublé

A group of 58 retired federal judges, appointed by presidents of both parties, on Wednesday came out strongly against recent proposals from Republican lawmakers that would require federal judges to be natural-born U.S. citizens and relinquish any citizenship that is not of the United States.

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

US Marshals Can't Make Immigration Arrests In DC Court

By Rae Ann Varona

A D.C. federal judge Wednesday refused to toss a lawsuit from a certified class of immigrants challenging immigration arrests by U.S. marshals in D.C. Superior Court, declaring that the marshals lack authority and necessary training for the arrests.

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

Securities Class Action Deals On Target To Hit 6-Year High

By Katryna Perera

The value of class action settlements is on track to reach a six-year high of $4.4 billion, fueled in part by a handful of "mega settlements" and other high-dollar deals, a Cornerstone Research report released Wednesday said. 

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