North Carolina

  • January 17, 2025

    Duke U. Strikes Deal In Female Scientist's Pay Bias Suit

    Duke University and a female scientist have brokered an agreement to end her suit claiming she was paid less than her male counterparts and was threatened with demotions after complaining about it, according to a Friday filing in North Carolina federal court.

  • January 17, 2025

    Insurer Tried To 'Embarrass' Cadwalader, NC Court Told

    Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft LLP has accused a Lloyd's of London syndicate of attempting to "embarrass" the firm by publicly revealing the firm's data breach recoveries amid the insurer's bid to toss a coverage suit stemming from a 2022 hack.

  • January 17, 2025

    What To Expect From Trump's Judicial Nominations

    President-elect Donald Trump is taking office with 45 judicial vacancies, which is far less than the 100 plus seats he came in with in 2017, but more seats could open up if a fair number of sitting conservatives take the opportunity to ensure a Republican president names their successor.

  • January 17, 2025

    Vanguard To Pay SEC, States $106M Over Surprise Tax Bills

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was joined by dozens of state regulators Friday in announcing a $106.4 million settlement with The Vanguard Group Inc. over claims that the company misled investors about the heightened capital gains taxes they would have to pay on certain retirement savings accounts.

  • January 16, 2025

    US Attorney In North Carolina's Middle District To Retire

    U.S. Attorney Sandra Hairston of the Middle District of North Carolina will retire effective Saturday after a lengthy tenure helping put away violent felons and recovering millions of dollars in False Claims Act litigation while supporting and expanding programs and initiatives to help reduce recidivism and violent crimes.

  • January 16, 2025

    Atty Suspended Over Wrongful Imprisonment Case Fees

    A Florida attorney accused of overcharging two intellectually disabled stepbrothers avoided disbarment when the New Jersey Supreme Court imposed a five-year suspension instead of opting for the permanent license revocation recommended by the court's disciplinary review board.

  • January 16, 2025

    Gov't Wants Time During Epic, Google's 9th Circ. Face-Off

    When Epic Games and Google face off next month at the Ninth Circuit, the federal government is hoping it will get a few minutes to state its case for why the appellate court shouldn't overturn an order forcing Google to allow alternative app stores on its platform, the government said in a recent motion.

  • January 16, 2025

    NC Gov. Boosts Abortion Safeguards Amid 'Alarming Attacks'

    North Carolina's newly minted Gov. Josh Stein on Thursday in one of his first official acts rolled out an executive order that shores up abortion protections in the Tar Heel state, joining the ranks of other Democratic politicians seeking to cement progressive priorities ahead of a second Trump administration.

  • January 16, 2025

    NC Biz Court Bulletin: Judge Bids Adieu, TikTok Wants Out

    The North Carolina Business Court's former chief judge hung up his robes for the last time as the court entered the new year with a ruling that shapes the fate of beset real estate company MV Realty's consumer fraud trial and arguments by TikTok Inc. that its platform being "too engaging" isn't enough for the state to begin an enforcement action.

  • January 16, 2025

    Paxton-Tied Developer Pleads Guilty In Bank Fraud Case

    A real estate developer whose ties to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton were central to his 2023 impeachment case pled guilty Wednesday to unrelated charges of making false statements to a mortgage lender.

  • January 16, 2025

    NC Panel Says Civil Parties Can't Reject Jurors Midtrial

    A North Carolina state appeals court ruled as a matter of first impression that a lower court was wrong to let a couple exercise their right to reject a juror in the middle of a trial after the jury had already been impaneled.

  • January 16, 2025

    Biden's Imprint On The Judiciary In 6 Charts

    President Joe Biden leaves office with 235 lifetime judges confirmed, just one more than President Donald Trump seated during his first term, and many firsts for diversity.

  • January 15, 2025

    Solar Power Biz Beats Shoals' Patent Case At ITC

    The U.S. International Trade Commission has cleared a North Carolina solar manufacturer from a patent case, flipping an administrative law judge's determination that a solar "trunk bus" transmission system infringes a rival's patent.

  • January 15, 2025

    Toyota Asks NC Court To Undo 'Impossible' Discovery Orders

    Toyota and Subaru urged the North Carolina Supreme Court to review an appeals court's decision that left in place a slew of "impossible" discovery obligations, saying they are "unjustly" being held responsible for violations they did not commit and face "a likelihood of crushing" sanctions.

  • January 15, 2025

    4th Circ. Says 'Moke' TM Generic Issue Needs Another Look

    A split Fourth Circuit panel has thrown out a lower court's finding that the term "moke" can't get trademark protection, saying a lower court needs to look further as part of a dispute between two companies fighting for the rights to use the word as a mark.

  • January 15, 2025

    4th Circ. Affirms $1M Appeal Bond Reimbursement Ruling

    Atain Specialty Insurance Co. must reimburse Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. for the $1 million appeal bond Liberty issued to an Atain insured that ultimately lost its appeal in an underlying suit, the Fourth Circuit ruled Wednesday, even though Liberty incorrectly indicated it previously closed the bond.

  • January 15, 2025

    Grocer, Insurers Must Produce Docs In NC Opioid Row

    A North Carolina state court issued a discovery decision in a dispute between grocery chain Harris Teeter Supermarkets Inc. and a slew of its insurers over coverage for about 100 lawsuits seeking damages related to the opioid epidemic, telling the parties to hand over certain documents from between 1993 and 2014.

  • January 15, 2025

    Duke Settles Retiree's Mortality Data Suit At 4th Circ.

    Duke University told the Fourth Circuit it has agreed to settle a retiree's proposed class action claiming the school used outdated mortality data to calculate retirement benefits and underpaid former employees by millions of dollars, ending the university's attempt to send the case to arbitration.

  • January 15, 2025

    Biz Court Calls Out Biogas Co. For 'Stack' Of Broken Promises

    A North Carolina Business Court judge pondered during a sanctions hearing Wednesday whether a biogas company should be held in contempt for allegedly violating a court order, saying the company has repeatedly fallen short of its promises in a fight with lenders over funding for renewable energy projects.

  • January 15, 2025

    Poultry Co. Cuts Deal To End Black Ex-Worker's Bias Suit

    A major poultry processor agreed to settle a Black former employee's suit claiming he was targeted for punishment after complaining that a nonwhite worker received a harsher penalty than a white worker for the same safety violation, according to a docket entry in North Carolina federal court.

  • January 15, 2025

    Atrium Health Accused Of Giving Patient Data To Google

    Atrium Health installed trackers in its mobile app and website to collect patients' data without their consent and then shared that personal information with Google and Facebook for targeted advertising, according to a proposed class action in North Carolina Business Court.

  • January 14, 2025

    BofA Says Military Interest Law, Not Bank, To Blame In Suit

    Bank of America has hit back at a class action suit accusing the financial giant of violating an interest cap law for military service members, arguing that the suit fails to allege any actual violations of the law and that Congress considered and decided against the interest rate requirement that the plaintiffs seek to impose.

  • January 14, 2025

    Crypto Co.'s Lax Compliance Enabled Hackers, Suit Says

    A proposed class action in California federal court accused digital asset exchange OKX of flouting U.S. laws and allowing criminals to launder stolen funds through its platform, including $725,000 worth of crypto looted from the crypto investor leading the suit.

  • January 14, 2025

    4th Circ. Tosses Constitutional Case Against FINRA

    The Fourth Circuit on Tuesday threw out a lawsuit claiming that the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's in-house disciplinary process is unconstitutional, ruling that it couldn't hear the case until the regulator had finalized its own ruling against the suing broker.

  • January 14, 2025

    TikTok Says NC Can't Fault Platform For Being 'Too Engaging'

    TikTok Inc. has asked for an early exit from the North Carolina attorney general's lawsuit accusing the video platform of harming young users, saying it has no significant ties to the Tar Heel state and the AG's office can't otherwise build a case around its platform being "too engaging."

Expert Analysis

  • How Judiciary Can Minimize AI Risks In Secondary Sources

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    Because courts’ standing orders on generative artificial intelligence and other safeguards do not address the risk of hallucinations in secondary source materials, the judiciary should consider enlisting legal publishers and database hosts to protect against AI-generated inaccuracies, say attorneys at Lankler Siffert & Wohl.

  • NC Ruling Takes Practical Approach To Duty-To-Defend Costs

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    In Murphy-Brown v. Ace American Insurance, a case of first impression, the North Carolina Business Court adopted the commonsense rationale of many state courts in holding that policyholders' defense costs should be deemed presumtively reasonable when a insurer breaches its duty to defend, say attorneys at McGuireWoods.

  • How Attorneys Can Break Free From Career Enmeshment

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    Ambitious attorneys can sometimes experience career enmeshment — when your sense of self-worth becomes unhealthily tangled up in your legal vocation — but taking the time to discover and realign with your core personal values can help you recover your identity, says Janna Koretz at Azimuth Psychological.

  • Lawyers With Disabilities Are Seeking Equity, Not Pity

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    Attorneys living with disabilities face extra challenges — including the need for special accommodations, the fear of stigmatization and the risk of being tokenized — but if given equitable opportunities, they can still rise to the top of their field, says Kate Reder Sheikh, a former attorney and legal recruiter at Major Lindsey & Africa.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Committee Best Venue For Litigation Funding Rules

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    The Advisory Committee on Civil Rules' recent decision to consider developing a rule for litigation funding disclosure is a welcome development, ensuring that the result will be the product of a thorough, inclusive and deliberative process that appropriately balances all interests, says Stewart Ackerly at Statera Capital.

  • The Strategic Advantages Of Appointing A Law Firm CEO

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    The impact on law firms of the recent CrowdStrike outage underscores that the business of law is no longer merely about providing supplemental support for legal practice — and helps explain why some law firms are appointing dedicated, full-time CEOs to navigate the challenges of the modern legal landscape, says Jennifer Johnson at Calibrate Strategies.

  • Series

    Beekeeping Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The practice of patent law and beekeeping are not typically associated, but taking care of honeybees has enriched my legal practice by highlighting the importance of hands-on experience, continuous learning, mentorship and more, says David Longo at Oblon McClelland.

  • Useful Product Doctrine May Not Shield Against PFAS Liability

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    Courts have recognized that companies transferring hazardous recycled materials can defeat liability under environmental laws by showing they were selling a useful product — but new laws in California and elsewhere restricting the sale of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances may change the legal landscape, says Kyle Girouard at Dickinson Wright.

  • Opinion

    Legal Institutions Must Warn Against Phony Election Suits

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    With two weeks until the election, bar associations and courts have an urgent responsibility to warn lawyers about the consequences of filing unsubstantiated lawsuits claiming election fraud, says Elise Bean at the Carl Levin Center for Oversight and Democracy.

  • How Cos. Can Build A Strong In-House Pro Bono Program

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    During this year’s pro bono celebration week, companies should consider some key pointers to grow and maintain a vibrant in-house program for attorneys to provide free legal services for the public good, says Mary Benton at Alston & Bird.

  • Series

    Home Canning Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Making my own pickles and jams requires seeing a process through from start to finish, as does representing clients from the start of a dispute at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board through any appeals to the Federal Circuit, says attorney Kevin McNish.

  • Navigating FEMA Grant Program For Slope Fixes After Storms

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    In the aftermath of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, it is critical for governments, businesses and individuals to understand the legal requirements of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's grant programs to obtain funding for crucial repairs — including restoration of damaged infrastructure caused by landslides and slope failures, says Charles Schexnaildre at Baker Donelson.

  • Use The Right Kind Of Feedback To Help Gen Z Attorneys

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    Generation Z associates bring unique perspectives and expectations to the workplace, so it’s imperative that supervising attorneys adapt their feedback approach in order to help young lawyers learn and grow — which is good for law firms, too, says Rachael Bosch at Fringe Professional Development.

  • Opinion

    Congress Can And Must Enact A Supreme Court Ethics Code

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    As public confidence in the U.S. Supreme Court dips to historic lows following reports raising conflict of interest concerns, Congress must exercise its constitutional power to enact a mandatory and enforceable code of ethics for the high court, says Muhammad Faridi, president of the New York City Bar Association.

  • Series

    The Pop Culture Docket: Justice Lebovits On Gilbert And Sullivan

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    Characters in the 19th century comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan break the rules of good lawyering by shamelessly throwing responsible critical thought to the wind, providing hilarious lessons for lawyers and judges on how to avoid a surfeit of traps and tribulations, say acting New York Supreme Court Justice Gerald Lebovits and law student Tara Scown.

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