Washington

  • May 15, 2026

    Spokane Firefighters Denied Early Win In Vax Exemption Suit

    A federal court refused Friday to hand a quick win to a group of firefighters who said the city of Spokane, Washington, refused to accommodate their religious objections to a COVID-19 vaccine mandate, ruling they hadn't provided enough information about their beliefs.

  • May 15, 2026

    IRS Asks Fed. Circ. To Overturn COVID-Era Deadline Ruling

    The IRS announced Friday that it will ask the Federal Circuit to overturn a claims court decision allowing a California business owner to recover penalties and interest he had tried to get refunded during the COVID-19 pandemic, challenging an interpretation that offered potential relief for others. 

  • May 15, 2026

    Minn. Twins Doctor Can't Claim Immunity In Player Death Suit

    A doctor employed by the Minnesota Twins can't claim immunity in a lawsuit alleging he failed to diagnose a heart condition in a ballplayer that led to his death, a Florida appeals panel ruled on Friday.

  • May 15, 2026

    9th Circ. Won't Revisit Wash. Professor Free Speech Ruling

    The Ninth Circuit won't revisit a decision saying the University of Washington violated a computer science professor's First Amendment rights after he voiced opposition to the school's policy that acknowledges Indigenous tribes as the traditional caretakers of the campus' land.

  • May 15, 2026

    X.AI Urges 9th Circ. To Block Calif. AI Data Disclosure Law

    Elon Musk's company, X.AI LLC, has asked the Ninth Circuit to overturn a California court's refusal to block a state law that requires artificial intelligence developers to publicly disclose details about their training data, saying the judge's decision was "flawed from top to bottom."

  • May 15, 2026

    8th Circ. Wells Fargo Ruling Focuses On Establishing Injury

    The Eighth Circuit's recent decision affirming the dismissal of a proposed class action claiming Wells Fargo misspent 401(k) forfeitures won't dissuade workers from filing similar suits, attorneys say, but those plan participants will likely include more details on how they were allegedly hurt.

  • May 14, 2026

    Foster Garvey Names New CEO, CFO In Pacific Northwest

    Foster Garvey PC promoted two leaders in Seattle and Portland, Oregon, the law firm announced Thursday, naming Scott Flichtbeil as CEO and Andrew Randles as chief financial officer.

  • May 14, 2026

    Fla. Property Manager To Pay Evicted Sailor $60K In DOJ Deal

    A Florida property management company will pay $60,000 to a U.S. Navy sailor to settle allegations by federal prosecutors that the company used a false affidavit to win an eviction that forced the sailor to live apart from his wife — at times on a Navy ship with no heat.

  • May 14, 2026

    Moda Health Settles Wilderness Therapy Coverage Suit

    Health insurance provider Moda Health has agreed to settle a lawsuit alleging it unlawfully denied a family's claims for their daughter's stays at two wilderness therapy programs and left them with thousands of dollars in medical bills, according to a filing in Oregon federal court.

  • May 14, 2026

    Investment Co. Settles Carpenters' $250M Pension Loss Suit

    Callan LLC has reached a deal in a class action from a group of union carpenters who claimed the investment consulting firm and their pension funds' trustees lost them $250 million in assets by investing in Allianz index funds, according to a Washington federal court filing.

  • May 14, 2026

    Alaska Flew Into Violent Turbulence, Injured Passenger Says

    An Alaska Airlines Inc. passenger who claims she was injured when her plane encountered turbulence and suddenly plummeted 200 feet sued the carrier in Washington state court Wednesday, accusing dispatchers and pilots of negligently steering the plane into danger despite repeated weather warnings.

  • May 14, 2026

    'People Could Die': Wash. Justice Dings Appeal Of COVID Fine

    A Washington State Supreme Court justice pushed back Thursday after a restaurant argued state regulators improperly fined it nearly $1 million for offering indoor dining during the COVID-19 pandemic, spurning the eatery's claim that regulators failed to cite any harm by noting "people could die" from the disease's spread.

  • May 14, 2026

    Fortive, Subsidiary Seek Early Win In Wrongful Firing Suit

    Technology company Fortive and a medical equipment subsidiary asked a Colorado federal judge for an early win in a former regional sales director's lawsuit alleging she was fired for raising concerns about compliance with anti-kickback rules, contending the subsidiary terminated her due to a restructuring and that Fortive wasn't her employer.

  • May 14, 2026

    Cushman & Wakefield Wants Discovery Stay For 401(k) Suit

    Commercial real estate services company Cushman & Wakefield told a Washington federal court Thursday that a proposed 401(k) class action's discovery deadlines need to be paused because of the company's pending dismissal and venue transfer motions.

  • May 13, 2026

    EPA Must Reconsider Flame Retardant Regs, 9th Circ. Says

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency must revisit rulemaking on a flame retardant known as decaBDE, a Ninth Circuit panel said Wednesday, agreeing with a Native American tribe and environmental groups that the federal agency failed to adequately explain its past decisions declining to further regulate the chemical's disposal.

  • May 13, 2026

    Columbia Bank Didn't Encrypt Client Data, Class Action Says

    A Columbia Bank customer whose personal information was allegedly compromised in a 2025 data breach filed a proposed class action Tuesday in Seattle federal court, accusing the bank of failing to follow federal cybersecurity guidance and industry best practices, including encrypting details such as clients' Social Security numbers and account numbers.

  • May 13, 2026

    Swiss Army Knife Co. Has Knives Out For Amazon Suppliers

    Victorinox Swiss Army Inc. filed suit Tuesday in an effort to identify the authorized sellers of its iconic knives and other products who are allegedly diverting goods to unauthorized resellers, including merchants on Amazon.com.

  • May 13, 2026

    Big Fish Games Buyer Evading Royalty Duties, Studio Claims

    The new owner of Seattle-based desktop game publisher Big Fish Games has been accused of attempting to illegally rewrite deals with a studio that helped develop many of its titles to avoid paying royalties and revoke mobile distribution rights, according to a fresh lawsuit in Washington state court.

  • May 13, 2026

    Washington Hits Providence Health With Pregnancy Bias Suit

    Washington slapped Providence Health & Services with a lawsuit Wednesday claiming the health system routinely rejected accommodation requests from pregnant employees, denying them spaces to pump breast milk, seating and schedule flexibility to attend doctor appointments.

  • May 13, 2026

    Denny's Franchisees Say Insurers Shirked Wage Suit Defense

    A group of Washington-based Denny's franchise operators said their Liberty Mutual insurers wrongfully refused coverage for a wage and hour class action, telling a federal court that they are entitled to recoup nearly $700,000 in costs they incurred to defend and settle the underlying suit.

  • May 12, 2026

    Homeaglow To Pay $2.3M In Wash. AG's Deceptive Ad Suit

    Cleaning service Homeaglow Inc. agreed Monday to pay $2.25 million to resolve claims by the Washington State Office of the Attorney General that the company tricked customers into joining a $59-per-month recurring membership plan that carried "exorbitant" cancellation fees.

  • May 12, 2026

    ​​​​​​​Amazon Beats Sanctions Bid Over Supplement Product Pages

    A Washington federal judge declined to sanction Amazon for allegedly failing to preserve product pages for dietary supplements that shoppers claim were improperly labeled, ruling that the retail giant fulfilled its duty to retain the information despite storing it as lines of code instead of viewable documents.

  • May 12, 2026

    Feds Tell 9th Circ. They Have Last Word On Pipeline Restart

    A federal pipeline regulator told the Ninth Circuit on Monday it reasonably asserted jurisdiction over an oil pipeline system near Santa Barbara, California, and approved a Texas company's restart plan, saying challenges brought by California and environmental groups are unfounded.

  • May 12, 2026

    9th Circ. Orders New Tax Fraud Trial Over Juror's Racial Bias

    An Idaho federal court wrongly denied a man of Mexican descent a new trial after discovering a juror had made racially biased comments about people of Mexican ethnicity during deliberations on whether to convict him of preparing false tax returns, a split Ninth Circuit panel said Tuesday.

  • May 12, 2026

    Alaska Airlines Strikes Deal In Military Pilots' Leave Suit

    Alaska Airlines has agreed to settle a pilot's class action claiming the company didn't let employees on military leave accrue the same amount of sick and vacation time benefits civilian employees collected on other types of leave, according to a Washington federal court filing.

Expert Analysis

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On ESI Control

    Author Photo

    Several recent federal court decisions have perpetuated a split over what constitutes “control” of electronically stored information — with judges divided on whether the standard should turn on a party's legal right or practical ability to obtain the information, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • 2 Discovery Rulings Break With Heppner On AI Privilege Issue

    Author Photo

    While a New York federal court’s recent ruling in U.S. v. Heppner suggests that some litigants’ communications with AI tools are discoverable, two other recent federal court decisions demonstrate that such interactions generally qualify for work-product protection under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, says Joshua Dunn at Brown Rudnick.

  • Series

    Isshin-Ryu Karate Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    My involvement in martial arts, specifically Isshin-ryu, which has principles rooted in the eight codes of karate, has been one of the most foundational in the development of my personality, and particularly my approach to challenges — including in my practice of law, says Kaitlyn Stone at Barnes & Thornburg.

  • CFTC Chair's Speech Hints At Innovation-Friendly Policies

    Author Photo

    Remarks made by Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chair Michael Selig at the Futures Industry Association's conference last month provided the most comprehensive articulation of his regulatory agenda and signaled a shift in the CFTC's regulatory posture, including a rare focus on agency coordination and support for digital asset innovation, say attorneys at Willkie.

  • 'Made In America' EO May Not Survive Section 230

    Author Photo

    President Donald Trump's recent executive order to combat fraudulent "Made in America" claims in advertising directs the Federal Trade Commission to deem online marketplaces' failure to verify third-party origin claims as unlawful, but such a rule would likely run into Section 230's publisher immunity doctrine, say attorneys at Blank Rome.

  • CFTC Actions Show Prediction Market Insider Trading Risks

    Author Photo

    It is a myth that insider trading law does not apply in prediction markets, as the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's recent enforcement actions illustrate that it has full authority to pursue such cases federally — and intends to, says attorney Gregg Goldfarb.

  • Prepping For White House's Proposed AI Framework

    Author Photo

    The artificial intelligence legislative framework issued by the White House last month reframes the policy landscape, creating a number of near-term developments for companies to track as congressional committees attempt to convert the framework into legislative text, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Opinion

    Apple Discovery Fight Could Revive DOJ's Antitrust Appetite

    Author Photo

    Winning discovery disputes in the ongoing federal antitrust litigation over Apple’s app store practices is a huge opportunity for the Justice Department to return to its once-vigorous pursuit of product tying by tech monopolies, catch up with foreign competition regulators and establish clear standards for digital markets, says Ediberto Roman at Florida International University.

  • Opinion

    State Bars Need To Get Specific About AI Confidentiality

    Author Photo

    Lawyers need to put actual client information into artificial intelligence tools to get their full value, but they cannot confidently do so until state bars offer clear, formal authority on which plan tiers of the three most popular generative AI tools are safe to use when sharing specific client details, says attorney Nick Berk.

  • What Justices' Review Of Guam Case Will Mean For Permitting

    Author Photo

    In U.S. Department of the Air Force v. Prutehi Guahan, the U.S. Supreme Court will address whether a federal agency's permit application is a final decision that courts can review — a question whose answer could reshape the timing and strategy of environmental litigation across the federal permitting landscape, say attorneys at Foley Hoag.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Restraint Anchors Constitutional Order

    Author Photo

    Contrasting opinions in two recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings — Trump v. CASA and Bost v. Illinois State Board of Elections — demonstrate how the judiciary’s constitutionally entrusted role can easily be preserved or disrupted, and invite renewed attention to the enduring importance of judicial restraint, says Ninth Circuit Judge J. Clifford Wallace.

  • Series

    Alpine Skiing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Skiing has shaped habits I rely on daily as an attorney — focus, resilience and the ability to remain steady when circumstances shift rapidly — and influences the way I approach legal strategy, client counseling and teamwork, says Isaku Begert at Marshall Gerstein.

  • Telehealth Suit May Redraw Rules For Physician Classification

    Author Photo

    A new class action in California federal court, Cioppettini v. Mochi Medical, alleging a telehealth company misclassified providers as independent contractors, suggests that traditional markers of physician independence may not apply to telehealth, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

  • Opinion

    Wash. Amazon Ruling Should Reshape Suicide Liability

    Author Photo

    The Washington Supreme Court's reinstatement of negligence claims in Scott v. Amazon.com, brought by the families of people who died by suicide after purchasing chemicals online, signals a reckoning for digital commerce and the rejection of the defense that online marketplaces are merely passive technology platforms, says Donald Fountain at Clark Fountain.

  • Pivotal 6th Circ. Ruling Threatens Decades Of NLRB Decisions

    Author Photo

    The Sixth Circuit's recent decision in Brown-Forman v. National Labor Relations Board fundamentally challenged the NLRB's long-standing practice of establishing policies through adjudication rather than formal rulemaking, giving employers and unions a new avenue to procedurally attack the vast majority of its rules, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Washington archive.