North Carolina

  • August 28, 2025

    'Animosity' In NASCAR Suit Raises Red Flag For NC Judge

    A North Carolina federal judge on Thursday cautioned out-of-state counsel in the NASCAR antitrust litigation to familiarize themselves with how a Charlotte jury thinks after they traded backhanded barbs in front of a packed courtroom, saying trial tactics that might pass in other states won't work in the Queen City.

  • August 28, 2025

    Barings Denied Ex-Employee Emails In Corporate Raid Case

    Investment giant Barings LLC can't force five former employees to hand over their personal emails and text messages in a corporate-raiding suit because their current employer doesn't have them, nor does it have a right to them, a North Carolina Business Court judge ruled.

  • August 28, 2025

    Truist, Ex-Execs Clash In Bids To End Poaching Dispute

    Charlotte, North Carolina-based Truist Financial Corp. and its mortgage banking arm resisted a bid for a pretrial win by its former executives' new employer, arguing that troves of evidence sustain its claims that over 50 employees were illegally poached, costing the bank tens of millions of dollars in losses.

  • August 28, 2025

    Accounting Firm Sued Over Breach Of Easterseals Data

    A North Carolina-based accounting firm was hit with a class action on Thursday alleging it failed to protect personal information and health data of children, veterans and disabled people entrusted to it by Easterseals Inc.

  • August 28, 2025

    Hotel Group Says Insurer Owes $12.5M For Helene Losses

    A hotel group said it is entitled to recover $12.5 million from a Liberty Mutual unit for business interruption losses stemming from Hurricane Helene, the company said, telling a North Carolina federal court that the insurer has unjustifiably and in bad faith refused to provide coverage.

  • August 27, 2025

    4th Circ. Upholds Va. County's 'Sensitive Places' Gun Bans

    The Fourth Circuit on Wednesday upheld a Virginia county's ban on guns in public parks and left in place its ban near county-permitted events, leaning on U.S. Supreme Court dicta on school gun bans and ruling that plaintiffs hadn't shown enough to sustain their facial challenge to the restrictions.

  • August 27, 2025

    FCC Pressed To Expand NC Carrier's High-Cost Aid

    North Carolina telecom Carolina West says it needs more money from the federal government to continue operating at its current level in high-cost remote areas, and a coalition of its peers has told the Federal Communications Commission that it agrees.

  • August 27, 2025

    Negligence Suit Over Arrest On Stale Warrant Gets New Life

    A Fourth Circuit panel Wednesday vacated a South Carolina county clerk's summary judgment win against allegations that her negligence resulted in a man being arrested twice over the same unpaid child support dispute, kicking the case back to trial court for new proceedings.

  • August 27, 2025

    Investors Push 4th Circ. To Revive Auto Parts Fraud Suit

    Investors who accused Advanced Auto Parts and its top brass of misleading them about the failure of a new pricing strategy and purposefully inflating the impact of price reductions have urged the Fourth Circuit to revive their suit, arguing that they can't downplay the allegedly false accounting as insignificant, among other things.

  • August 27, 2025

    DOD Education Unit Accused Of Bias By Assistant Principal

    A Black, longtime employee of the Department of Defense Education Activity has sued the agency and its leaders in North Carolina federal court, alleging a lower school principal harassed her, that she was denied promotions based on her race and sex and is being unfairly terminated.

  • August 27, 2025

    Splenda Maker Knows It Contains Toxic Chemical, Scientist Says

    A scientist accused of falsely stating that Splenda contains cancer-causing chemicals asked a North Carolina federal court to amend her counterclaims, alleging that Splenda-maker TC Heartland LLC has performed tests showing the sweetener contains the very chemical she warned of.

  • August 27, 2025

    Widow Wasn't Forced Into Sewage Settlement, 4th Circ. Told

    The city of Charlotte, North Carolina, told the Fourth Circuit it did not pressure a widow to settle her property damage claims stemming from a sewage backup in her home, saying she was represented by a lawyer and was in good mental and physical health when she accepted the deal.

  • August 27, 2025

    Feds, Blue States Clash Over Future Of EV Funding Fight

    The Trump administration says its recent decision to release funding for new electric-vehicle charging infrastructure moots Democratic-led states' litigation challenging the prior revocation of the funding, but the states said they're still being harmed and their lawsuit should proceed.

  • August 27, 2025

    Judge Scolds Atty In Katt Williams Case For 'AI Hallucinations'

    A Georgia federal judge warned the attorney representing four women who are suing the comedian Katt Williams that she could face "serious discipline" for filing a brief he described as riddled with "AI hallucinations."

  • August 27, 2025

    Co-Founder Says Weapons Tech Co. Undercut Stock Buy

    A co-founder of Armaments Research Co. sued the artificial intelligence-enabled weapons sensor company in North Carolina's business court, alleging that it failed to abide by their agreement to buy back his founding shares after he left the company.

  • August 27, 2025

    Grubhub Agrees To Pay $7M To End Restaurants' TM Suit

    Several restaurants told an Illinois federal judge they have reached an agreement with Grubhub under which the food delivery service will pay $7.1 million to resolve claims it used their trademarks without permission.

  • August 27, 2025

    NC City Scraps Race-Based Board Criteria To End Bias Suit

    The city of Asheville, North Carolina, has agreed to remove race qualifications from the appointment process for a volunteer advisory board, resolving racial discrimination claims brought by five residents who said their applications were rejected because they are white.

  • August 26, 2025

    Capital One Beats Robocall Class Cert. Appeal At 4th Circ.

    The Fourth Circuit has affirmed that consumers who accused Capital One of violating consumer protection laws by leaving prerecorded messages on their cell phones cannot be certified as a class, agreeing that it would be too difficult to ascertain members of the proposed class who weren't customers of the bank.

  • August 26, 2025

    New York Fed Wants Out Of Ex-Fed Worker's Vax Bias Suit

    The Federal Reserve Bank of New York and two of its executives seek an exit from a former Fed employee's vaccine status discrimination suit in North Carolina federal court, arguing Monday that the ex-worker's suit inaccurately described the New York Fed as the plaintiff's "co-employer."

  • August 26, 2025

    'Belief' Insufficient For Trade Secrets Claims, NC Biz Judge Says

    A trio of healthcare and real estate companies couldn't secure a preliminary injunction meant to prevent their former CEOs from disclosing or using alleged trade secrets, as North Carolina's business court ruled the amended complaint relied too heavily "on information and belief."

  • August 26, 2025

    BofA, Merrill Want Deferred Compensation Fight Moved To NC

    Two former Merrill Lynch financial advisers who claim they were deprived of their deferred compensation must litigate their case in North Carolina, the wealth management company told a New Jersey federal judge, citing a forum selection clause in their compensation agreements.

  • August 26, 2025

    Shipbuilders Push To Escape Revived No-Poach Claims

    A Fourth Circuit decision that revived a proposed class action accusing some of the country's biggest warship makers and naval engineering consultants of participating in an illegal no-poach conspiracy to suppress wages leaves a Virginia federal judge free to dismiss the case, according to the companies.

  • August 26, 2025

    TikTok Takes State's Addictive App Case To NC Top Court

    TikTok and its Chinese parent company are taking the state of North Carolina's lawsuit accusing it of intentionally designing the app to addict young users to the state's highest court after a Business Court judge rejected their early exit bid.

  • August 25, 2025

    Trump Admin Agrees To Release Frozen Education Funds

    The Trump administration has agreed to release to a coalition of states the full balance of some $6.8 billion in congressionally appropriated educational program funding, the parties told a Rhode Island federal judge Monday, a little more than a month after the states challenged the funding freeze.

  • August 25, 2025

    NC Justices Serve State 2 Blows In Bars' COVID Closure Suits

    The North Carolina Supreme Court served bars dual victories in lawsuits against the state Friday, finding that the businesses had colorable claims under the state's constitution that COVID-19 closures violated their fundamental rights, thus permitting the cases to unfold in state trial court.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Performing As A Clown Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    To say that being a clown in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has changed my legal career would truly be an understatement — by creating an opening to converse on a unique topic, it has allowed me to connect with clients, counsel and even judges on a deeper level, says Charles Tatelbaum at Tripp Scott.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Rejecting Biz Dev Myths

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    Law schools don’t spend sufficient time dispelling certain myths that prevent young lawyers from exploring new business opportunities, but by dismissing these misguided beliefs, even an introverted first-year associate with a small network of contacts can find long-term success, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.

  • Move Beyond Surface-Level Edits To Master Legal Writing

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    Recent instances in which attorneys filed briefs containing artificial intelligence hallucinations offer a stark reminder that effective revision isn’t just about superficial details like grammar — it requires attorneys to critically engage with their writing and analyze their rhetorical choices, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.

  • 9th Circ. Has Muddied Waters Of Article III Pleading Standard

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    District courts in the Ninth Circuit continue to apply a defunct and especially forgiving pleading standard to questions of Article III standing, and the circuit court itself has only perpetuated this confusion — making it an attractive forum for disputes that have no rightful place in federal court, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • Series

    Competing In Modern Pentathlon Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Opening myself up to new experiences through competing in modern Olympic pentathlon has shrunk the appearance of my daily work annoyances and helps me improve my patience, manage crises better and remember that acquiring new skills requires working through your early mistakes, says attorney Mary Zoldak.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Teaching Yourself Legal Tech

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    New graduates often enter practice unfamiliar with even basic professional software, but budding lawyers can use on-the-job opportunities to both catch up on technological skills and explore the advanced legal and artificial intelligence tools that will open doors, says Alyssa Sones at Sheppard Mullin.

  • How AI May Reshape The Future Of Adjudication

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    As discussed at a recent panel at Texas A&M, artificial intelligence will not erase the human element of adjudication in the next 10 to 20 years, but it will drive efficiencies that spur private arbiters to experiment, lead public courts to evolve and force attorneys to adapt, says Christopher Seck at Squire Patton.

  • When Legal Advocacy Crosses The Line Into Incivility

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    As judges issue sanctions for courtroom incivility, and state bars advance formal discipline rules, trial lawyers must understand that the difference between zealous advocacy and unprofessionalism is not just a matter of tone; it's a marker of skill, credibility and potentially disciplinary exposure, says Nate Sabri at Perkins Coie.

  • Series

    Volunteering At Schools Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Speaking to elementary school students about the importance of college and other opportunities after high school — especially students who may not see those paths reflected in their daily lives — not only taught me the importance of giving back, but also helped to sharpen several skills essential to a successful legal practice, says Guillermo Escobedo at Constangy.

  • Attacks On Judicial Independence Tend To Manifest In 3 Ways

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    Attacks on judicial independence now run the gamut from gross (bald-faced interference) to systemic (structural changes) to insidious (efforts to undermine public trust), so lawyers, judges and the public must recognize the fateful moment in which we live and defend the rule of law every day, says Jim Moliterno at Washington and Lee University.

  • High Court Birthright Case Could Reshape Judicial Power

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    Recent arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court in cases challenging President Donald Trump’s birthright citizenship executive order primarily focused on federal judges’ power to issue nationwide injunctions and suggest that the upcoming decision may fundamentally change how federal courts operate, says Mauni Jalali at Quinn Emanuel.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Appreciating Civil Procedure

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    If you’re like me, law school’s often complex and theoretical approach to teaching civil procedure may have contributed to an early struggle with the topic, but when seen from a practical perspective, new lawyers may find they enjoy mastering these rules, says Chloe Villagomez at Foster Garvey.

  • Calif. Bar Exam Fiasco Shows Why Attys Must Disclose AI Use

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    The recent revelation that a handful of questions from the controversial California bar exam administered in February were drafted using generative artificial intelligence demonstrates the continued importance of disclosure for attorneys who use AI tools, say attorneys at Troutman.

  • In 2nd Place, Va. 'Rocket Docket' Remains Old Reliable

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    The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia was again one of the fastest civil trial courts in the nation last year, and an interview with the court’s newest judge provides insights into why it continues to soar, says Robert Tata at Hunton.

  • How Attorneys Can Become Change Agents For Racial Equity

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    As the administration targets diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and law firms consider pulling back from their programs, lawyers who care about racial equity and justice can employ four strategies to create microspaces of justice, which can then be parlayed into drivers of transformational change, says Susan Sturm at Columbia Law School.

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