Uber May Win Sanctions On Atty Who Disclosed MDL Docs

By Bonnie Eslinger and Mike Curley

A California federal judge said Tuesday it appeared an attorney for plaintiffs claiming Uber failed to protect passengers from sexual assault "acted in a cavalier manner" with a protective order in the multidistrict litigation, but didn't rule on Uber's requests for monetary sanctions nor its bid to kick the attorney off the plaintiff steering committee.

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States Ask Justices To Curtail Federal Trucking Law Shield

By Y. Peter Kang

Ohio and 28 other states have urged the U.S. Supreme Court to hold that a federal trucking industry law can't shield freight brokers from certain state-based injury claims, arguing Congress did not intend to undermine states' authority over regulating road safety.

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'Stop Asking Questions': NASCAR Leaks Team's Finances

By Hayley Fowler

NASCAR blindsided a former race car driver Tuesday in its antitrust trial by exposing his team's financial data to the jury despite an alleged nondisclosure agreement, provoking a cascade of objections from the opposition and a reproach from the bench.

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Analysis

FERC's Fate Uncertain As Humphrey's Executor Teeters

By Keith Goldberg

The future of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission may hinge on whether the U.S. Supreme Court will remake its 90-year-old precedent that protects members of independent agencies from being fired at will by the president.

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United Says Labor Contract Pushes Wage Row To Arbitration

By Benjamin Morse

Federal labor law requires United Airlines Inc. flight attendants to arbitrate their proposed wage class action, the airline told a New Jersey federal court, saying resolution of the claims hinges on the parties' collective bargaining agreement.

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Wash. Justices To Review Immunity In $2.3M Ambulance Case

By Ben Adlin

Washington's highest court on Tuesday said it will review a $2.3 million verdict over a cancer patient's death in an ambulance crash, agreeing to consider what the ambulance operator called a "double standard" in an appeals court ruling that it said would grant immunity to crews transporting patients experiencing mental health crises, but not those in need of physical care.

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Cummins Investors Ink $1.6M Deal Over Emissions Fraud Suit

By Sydney Price

Engine manufacturer Cummins Inc. and its investors asked an Indiana federal court to approve a $1.6 million deal that will end claims that the company hurt investors by hiding emissions control devices in certain engines, causing it to owe $2 billion in payments to regulators to settle Clean Air Act claims.

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GM Says Air Condition Claims Too Individual For Class Cert.

By Emily Field

General Motors LLC on Monday urged a Michigan federal judge to reject a new request to certify a proposed class of consumers who allege the automaker sold vehicles with air conditioning defects, pointing to recent Sixth Circuit rulings to argue that the claims are too individual to be grouped in a class.

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Nylon Maker Ascend Secures OK For Ch. 11 Plan

By Clara Geoghegan

A Texas bankruptcy judge agreed Tuesday to approve the Chapter 11 plan of nylon manufacturer Ascend Performance Materials, commending the debtor on reaching a largely consensual restructuring proposal eight months after its free-fall bankruptcy filing.

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Cleveland, Browns Drop Stadium Move Suits After $100M Deal

By Isaac Monterose

The National Football League's Cleveland Browns and the city of Cleveland told Ohio courts on Tuesday that they're permanently dropping their lawsuits against each other in the wake of a $100 million settlement for their dispute over the NFL team's planned stadium move.

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NJ Builder Says Court Can Decide Tunnel Labor Row

By Braden Campbell

The Third Circuit's finding that federal labor law blocks courts from stopping National Labor Relations Board cases doesn't apply to a builder's bid to block an imminent bidding deadline on the lucrative Hudson Tunnel Project, the builder and a unionized employee told a New York federal judge.

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Marsh Rival Wants Out Of Employee Poaching Scheme Suit

By Elliot Weld

An insurance company accused by Marsh & McLennan Agency of poaching an employee has asked a Manhattan federal judge to dismiss Marsh's suit, saying the court had no jurisdiction because the claims had not been sufficiently tied to New York.

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USAA Says Class Action 'Impossible' In Medical Billing Suit

By Ben Adlin

Two USAA units are fighting class certification in a lawsuit accusing the insurer of underpaying auto crash-related medical bills through the use of third-party claims software, arguing the patients' healthcare claims are too dissimilar to be litigated as a group.

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AI Evidence Rule Tweaks Encourage Judicial Guardrails

Recent additions to a committee note on proposed Rule of Evidence 707 — governing evidence generated by artificial intelligence — seek to mitigate potential dangers that may arise once machine outputs are introduced at trial, encouraging judges to perform critical gatekeeping functions, say attorneys at Lankler Siffert & Wohl.

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Bonus Spotlight

MoFo, Kellogg Hansen Exceed Prevailing BigLaw Bonus Scale

By Anna Sanders

Morrison Foerster LLP and boutique law firm Kellogg Hansen Todd Figel & Frederick PLLC both recently unveiled above-market bonuses, according to a MoFo in-house memo and a media report. 

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Analysis

Hagens Berman's Novel DOJ Referral May Have Chilling Effect

By Emma Cueto

A Pennsylvania federal judge's unusual decision to refer prominent plaintiffs firm Hagens Berman LLP to the U.S. Department of Justice for possible criminal investigation over its pursuit of claims related to morning sickness drug thalidomide could have a chilling effect on lawyers' advocacy, law professors and attorneys said.

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Trustee Says Winston & Strawn Is Liable For $1.7B Fintech Bust

By Lynn LaRowe

The trustee of the bankrupt self-styled "anti-woke" financial technology startup GloriFi said Winston & Strawn LLP shouldn't be allowed to escape a malpractice lawsuit over the company's $1.7 billion failure, saying the firm was a knowing participant in the allegedly unlawful activities of its then-CEO.

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Consulting Co. Says Law Firms' Malpractice Cost It $10M

By Rachel Konieczny

A Colorado consulting company told a state court that an Am Law 200 firm and a now-dissolved law firm committed legal malpractice that cost the company $10 million in a lending transaction. 

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Brief

Democrats Push For $1.76B To Fix Defender Budget Shortfall

By Courtney Bublé

Almost 50 Democratic lawmakers are urging congressional appropriators to fix the long-standing budget shortfall for federal defenders in the upcoming full-year budget.

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DOJ Says It Could Indict Comey Again

By Jared Foretek

The U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday said it may once again seek charges against ex-FBI Director James Comey, asking a D.C. federal judge to dissolve a temporary restraining order that bars prosecutors from using evidence seized from Comey's former attorney.

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Senate Confirms 3 Judges For La., Miss.

By Courtney Bublé

The U.S. Senate confirmed three judicial nominees Tuesday for federal courts in Louisiana and Mississippi.

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