North Carolina

  • December 17, 2025

    The Top Trademark Decisions Of 2025

    The U.S. Supreme Court vacated a trademark infringement award that reached nearly $47 million and found nonparties couldn't be on the hook for the amount, while the Federal Circuit reproached a trademark tribunal for its handling of a man's attempt to register the F-word. Here are Law360's picks for the biggest trademark decisions of 2025.

  • December 16, 2025

    PVC Pipe Buyers Defend Price-Fix Conspiracy Claims

    Polyvinyl chloride pipe purchasers say they've alleged more than enough to show a Chicago federal judge that certain manufacturers participated in a plausible and illegal price-fixing conspiracy, urging the court to let their consolidated action proceed to discovery.

  • December 16, 2025

    NC Cardboard Box Salesman Freed From Trade Secrets Suit

    A corrugated packing manufacturer can't hold on to its lawsuit alleging a former star salesman defected to a close competitor with its trade secrets after a North Carolina Business Court judge ruled the complaint is too vague.

  • December 16, 2025

    Ex-US Atty, Retired Judge To Guide Magistrate Judge Search

    A former top prosecutor and a retired judge have been tapped to help find a new magistrate judge for the Western District of North Carolina to replace U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan C. Rodriguez, who was confirmed this month for a U.S. district court seat.

  • December 16, 2025

    Merck Sued Over Time Rounding, OT Averaging At NC Plant

    A Merck manufacturing facility in North Carolina rounded workers' time to short them on pay, averaged out overtime across two weeks and fired an operator technician because of his sleep apnea, the worker told a federal court in a proposed class and collective action against the pharmaceutical giant.

  • December 16, 2025

    NC Law Firm Says Insurer Must Cover Helene Biz Losses

    A North Carolina law firm has accused its insurance company of wrongfully denying coverage for business income losses stemming from Hurricane Helene, saying the suspension of operations during and after the storm is covered under its business owners policy.

  • December 15, 2025

    Chemical Processing Co. Admits To Polluting Cape Fear

    Chemical processing company American Distillation Inc. pled guilty to knowingly discharging tert-butyl alcohol and other pollutants into the Cape Fear River in North Carolina, according to a Monday press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina.

  • December 15, 2025

    States Fight Sandoz Bid To Argue Duplication In Generics Row

    Multiple attorneys general have told a Connecticut federal court that Sandoz Inc. and Fougera Pharmaceuticals Inc. can't claim the states' grievances over allegations of price fixing are duplicative of claims that were already settled, since there are some claims and forms of relief that only state plaintiffs can seek.

  • December 15, 2025

    NC Panel Says State's Hospital Law Is Constitutional

    North Carolina's "certificate of need" law hasn't created a monopoly nor has it restricted an eye surgeon's right to earn a living, a state court panel ruled Friday, ending for now the surgeon's yearslong suit arguing the law is facially unconstitutional.

  • December 15, 2025

    FTC Joined By 21 States In Accusing Uber Of Deception

    Twenty-one states joined the Federal Trade Commission on Monday in a California federal lawsuit accusing Uber of enrolling consumers into its paid subscription service without consent and keeping them in a "loop" of obstacles that deter or prevent cancellations.

  • December 15, 2025

    Wells Fargo Bucks CFO's Deposition In Disability Bias Suit

    Wells Fargo wants to block the deposition of its chief financial officer in a senior finance manager's disability bias lawsuit, saying he has no personal knowledge of the claims underpinning her allegations and suggesting that her attorney's "behavior" needs "curtailing."

  • December 15, 2025

    EEOC, PepsiCo Reach $270K Deal To End Vision Bias Suit

    PepsiCo will pay $270,000 to end suit by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleging it fired a blind call center employee after refusing to find a screen-reading tool compatible with its software system that would allow the worker to do his job, according to a North Carolina federal court filing.

  • December 15, 2025

    Baker Donelson Adds 14 Akerman Attys, Opens New NC Office

    Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz PC announced on Monday that it is opening its fourth location in the Carolinas in four years, recruiting 11 Akerman LLP attorneys to establish a presence in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and three other Akerman attorneys to join in different locations.

  • December 15, 2025

    High Court Won't Review Doctor 'Upcoding' Acquittal Decision

    The U.S. Supreme Court said Monday that it won't review a decision allowing a retrial of a Maryland doctor who was initially found guilty of a COVID-19 testing scheme but then secured an acquittal.

  • December 12, 2025

    1st Circ. OKs Barring Medicaid Planned Parenthood Coverage

    A First Circuit panel on Friday upheld the Trump administration's ban on Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood, vacating a lower court's order that would've kept in place Medicaid reimbursements for Planned Parenthood clinics in 22 states.

  • December 12, 2025

    Real Estate Recap: Empowering NYC Nonprofit Buyers

    Catch up on this past week's key developments by state from Law360 Real Estate Authority — including attorney reactions to a New York City a bill that would give nonprofits the opportunity to buy certain residential buildings.

  • December 12, 2025

    NC Justices Won't Revive Developer's Fraud Suit

    North Carolina's highest court sided with two real estate companies against a suit filed by their former partner on a multifamily redevelopment project, ruling on Friday that the businesses were contractually allowed to boot the plaintiff from the project's company.

  • December 12, 2025

    NC Supreme Court Clarifies Tax On Prepaid Wireless

    A North Carolina cellphone retailer for Boost Mobile products is responsible for tax on prepaid wireless calling services, the state's highest court ruled Friday, though finding that when those services changed to take the form of cards with stored value, tax liability shifted to Boost.

  • December 12, 2025

    Duke Energy Pushes Back On DOJ's View Of 'Monopoly Broth'

    Duke Energy told the U.S. Supreme Court the government is backing a rival's antitrust claims accusing the power giant of squeezing it out of the North Carolina market simply to help enforcers' own cases accusing Big Tech companies of using a "monopoly broth" to thwart competition.

  • December 12, 2025

    20 States Sue Trump Admin Over $100K H-1B Visa Fee

    A coalition of 20 states, led by the California attorney general, sued the Trump administration Friday to challenge a new $100,000 fee for H-1B visa applications, saying the fee goes against Congress' intent for the work visa program.

  • December 12, 2025

    NC Justices Won't Let Tech Parent Co. Exit Fraud Case

    North Carolina's highest court refused Friday to free the parent company of a security technology business and one of its executives from a lawsuit alleging they conspired to devalue the majority member's stake and funnel assets out of reach.

  • December 12, 2025

    4th Circ. Won't Revive Black Worker's Promotion Bias Suit

    The Fourth Circuit backed a community college's win Friday in a Black former employee's suit claiming her race and gender caused her to lose out on a promotion, ruling she failed to rebut the college's explanation that the white, male candidate who got the role was more qualified.

  • December 12, 2025

    Shipbuilders, Naval Engineer Spar Over Witness Statements

    Shipbuilders and design consultants accused of illegally conspiring to suppress industry wages are clashing with a former naval engineer over what various witnesses told her in support of her proposed class action against the companies.

  • December 12, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Says PTAB Was Right To Ax Tracking Patent Claims

    The Federal Circuit on Friday refused to revive claims in a group of patents for tracking items during surgeries and other uses, rejecting challenges to how the Patent Trial and Appeal Board interpreted key claim terms.

  • December 11, 2025

    9th Circ. Upholds Apple App Store Injunction In Epic Fight

    The Ninth Circuit mostly affirmed an injunction blocking Apple Inc. from charging developers "prohibitive" commissions on iPhone app purchases made outside its systems on Thursday, handing Epic Games Inc. a partial win in their hotly contested compliance fight while agreeing with Apple that the injunction's commissions ban and certain restrictions are punitive and overbroad.

Expert Analysis

  • The Metamorphosis Of The Major Questions Doctrine

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    The so-called major questions doctrine arose as a counterweight to Chevron deference over the past few decades, but invocations of the doctrine have persisted in the year since Chevron was overturned, suggesting it still has a role to play in reining in agency overreach, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • Series

    Playing Mah-Jongg Makes Me A Better Mediator

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    Mah-jongg rewards patience, pattern recognition, adaptability and keen observation, all skills that are invaluable to my role as a mediator, and to all mediating parties, says Marina Corodemus.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Navigating Client Trauma

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    Law schools don't train students to handle repeated exposure to clients' traumatic experiences, but for litigators practicing in areas like civil rights and personal injury, success depends on the ability to view cases clinically and to recognize when you may need to seek help, says Katie Bennett at Robins Kaplan.

  • Opinion

    4 Former Justices Would Likely Frown On Litigation Funding

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    As courts increasingly confront cases involving hidden litigation finance contracts, the jurisprudence of four former U.S. Supreme Court justices establishes a constitutional framework that risks erosion by undisclosed financial interests, says Roland Eisenhuth at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.

  • How Attys Can Use AI To Surface Narratives In E-Discovery

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    E-discovery has reached a turning point where document review is no longer just about procedural tasks like identifying relevance and redacting privilege — rather, generative artificial intelligence tools now allow attorneys to draw connections, extract meaning and tell a coherent story, says Rose Jones at Hilgers Graben.

  • How Justices' Ruling Limits Options To Challenge DHS Orders

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    In Riley v. Bondi, the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that a 30-day deadline for challenging deportation orders begins when the U.S. Department of Homeland Security issues a final administrative review order, opening the door for the government to effectively bar circuit court review in future similar cases, says Kevin Gregg at Kurzban Kurzban.

  • Series

    Playing The Violin Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing violin in a string quartet reminds me that flexibility, ambition, strong listening skills, thoughtful leadership and intentional collaboration are all keys to a successful legal practice, says Julie Park at MoFo.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Practicing Self-Care

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    Law schools don’t teach the mental, physical and emotional health maintenance tools necessary to deal with the profession's many demands, but practicing self-care is an important key to success that can help to improve focus, manage stress and reduce burnout, says Rachel Leonard​​​​​​​ at MG+M.

  • Birthright Opinions Reveal Views On Rule 23(b)(2) Relief

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    The justices' multiple opinions in the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 27 decision in the birthright citizenship case, Trump v. CASA, shed light on whether Rule 23(b)(2) could fill the void created by the court's decision to restrict nationwide injunctions, says Benjamin Johns at Shub Johns.

  • ABA Opinion Makes It A Bit Easier To Drop A 'Hot Potato'

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    The American Bar Association's recent ethics opinion clarifies when attorneys may terminate clients without good cause, though courts may still disqualify a lawyer who drops a client like a hot potato, so sending a closeout letter is always a best practice, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.

  • Series

    My Opera And Baseball Careers Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    Though participating in opera and the world of professional baseball often pulls me away from the office, my avocations improve my legal career by helping me perform under scrutiny, prioritize team success, and maintain joy and perspective at work, says Adam Unger at Herrick Feinstein.

  • 8 Ways Lawyers Can Protect The Rule Of Law In Their Work

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    Whether they are concerned with judicial independence, regulatory predictability or client confidence, lawyers can take specific meaningful actions on their own when traditional structures are too slow or too compromised to respond, says Angeli Patel at the Berkeley Center of Law and Business.

  • Justices' Review Of Fluor May Alter Gov't Contractor Liability

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision to review Hencely v. Fluor, a case involving a soldier’s personal injury claims against a government contractor, suggests the justices could reconsider a long-standing test for determining whether contractors are shielded from state-tort liability, says Lisa Himes at Rogers Joseph.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Communicating With Clients

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    Law school curricula often overlook client communication procedures, and those who actively teach this crucial facet of the practice can create exceptional client satisfaction and success, says Patrick Hanson at Wiggam Law.

  • Rocket Mortgage Appeal May Push Justices To Curb Classes

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    Should the U.S. Supreme Court agree to hear Alig v. Rocket Mortgage, the resulting decision could limit class sizes based on commonality under Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Evidence as opposed to standing under Article III of the U.S. Constitution, say attorneys at Carr Maloney.

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