Washington

  • February 27, 2026

    6 Arguments Sessions Benefits Attys Should Watch In March

    An ex-Wells Fargo worker will ask the Eighth Circuit to revive a suit challenging 401(k) forfeiture spending, the Trump administration will push the Ninth Circuit to greenlight its transgender health coverage policies and the Fourth Circuit will hear a severance fight from manufacturing plant workers. Here, Law360 looks at six oral argument sessions to watch out for in the coming month.

  • February 27, 2026

    Blue States Rally Behind Birthright Citizenship At High Court

    More than two dozen state and local governments urged the U.S. Supreme Court to reject President Donald Trump's effort to end automatic birthright citizenship, filing an amicus brief arguing that the executive order violates the Constitution and would impose sweeping harms on states and their residents.

  • February 27, 2026

    121-Year-Old Ruling Still A Shot In The Arm For Vax Mandates

    Having already withstood five global pandemics, 21 presidencies and more than a century of developments in both the law and public health policy, the U.S. Supreme Court's most durable precedent blessing mandatory vaccination is well positioned to survive a new wave of challenges, experts say.

  • February 27, 2026

    Amazon Ruling May Shift E-Commerce Litigation, Attys Say

    The Washington State Supreme Court signaled a willingness to hold online platforms accountable for societal harm and took a progressive stance on mental health in a recent decision reinstating lawsuits against Amazon over the suicides of teens who died by ingesting sodium nitrite purchased on the platform, legal experts say.

  • February 26, 2026

    Shake Shack Served With Wash. Class Action Over Breaks, OT

    Burger chain Shake Shack failed to provide workers in Washington state with mandatory meal and rest breaks, as well as proper overtime and sick leave pay, according to a proposed class action removed Wednesday to Seattle federal court.

  • February 26, 2026

    9th Circ. Lifts Injunction That Blocked Federal Union Ouster

    The Ninth Circuit gave the Trump administration the green light to kick unions out of nearly two dozen federal agencies Thursday, lifting a block on an executive order that let the agencies cut union ties claiming national security concerns.

  • February 26, 2026

    Cisco Shouldn't Face Falun Gong Torture Suit, Feds Tell Justices

    The federal government has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse a Ninth Circuit ruling that allowed Falun Gong practitioners to pursue Alien Tort Statute claims accusing Cisco of aiding China's oppression and torture of its members, saying federal courts lack the authority to create new ATS causes of action.

  • February 26, 2026

    Amazon Loses Bid For 'Hot Tub' Hearing In Antitrust Suit

    A Washington federal judge on Thursday shot down Amazon.com Inc.'s push for a concurrent hearing with multiple expert witnesses in a proposed class action accusing the retail giant of artificially inflating consumer prices, ruling that what's known as a "hot tub" hearing is "not necessary at this time."

  • February 26, 2026

    Tokio Marine Unit Need Not Defend CEO In Sex Abuse Row

    A Tokio Marine unit has no duty to defend or indemnify a sporting goods store and its former chief executive officer from underlying litigation by high school students alleging that he sexually exploited them during their employment at the store, a Washington federal judge ruled Thursday.

  • February 26, 2026

    Defense Atty In Valve Patent Troll Trial Says He Never Used AI

    An intellectual property attorney who defended inventor Leigh Rothschild in a landmark patent-trolling trial has denied allegations that his firm used artificial intelligence to prep a pretrial brief, according to a Thursday filing, following a Seattle federal jury's Feb. 17 verdict in favor of plaintiff video game company Valve Corp.

  • February 26, 2026

    Starbucks, Army Veteran Resolve Paternity Leave Firing Suit

    An Army veteran and former Starbucks employee has agreed to end his lawsuit accusing the coffee giant of failing to address his supervisor's insulting comments about veterans and firing him for taking parental leave, according to a Thursday filing in Washington federal court.

  • February 26, 2026

    Yardi Urges No More Discovery In Wash. Rent-Fixing Suit

    Yardi Systems Inc. asked a Washington federal court not to grant renters' bid for further discovery in their proposed antitrust class action over rent-setting algorithms, arguing that the renters haven't even identified what other materials they might still seek.

  • February 26, 2026

    9th Circ. Backs L3Harris In Fired Worker's PTSD Bias Suit

    The Ninth Circuit backed defense contractor L3Harris' win in a suit claiming it unlawfully fired a painter because of his post-traumatic stress disorder, finding he admitted in an application for disability benefits that he wasn't able to work by the time he was terminated.

  • February 25, 2026

    EPA's Cancellation Of Solar Program Is Illegal, States Say

    A coalition of states has urged a Washington federal court to bar the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from clawing back roughly $3 billion in federal funding for solar energy projects, arguing it can't rescind funds already obligated.

  • February 25, 2026

    9th Circ. Upends $8M Asbestos Verdict Against BNSF

    The Ninth Circuit has ruled that BNSF Railway Co. cannot be held strictly liable under Montana law for transporting asbestos-containing vermiculite and letting vermiculite dust collect on tracks and its railyard, upending the $8 million jury verdict awarded to the estates of two former Libby, Montana, residents who developed mesothelioma.

  • February 25, 2026

    Alibaba Faces Wash. Spam Suit Over Text Referral Program

    Alibaba has been hit with a proposed class action claiming the e-commerce giant sent tens of thousands of text messages to Washington state consumers in violation of the Washington Consumer Electronic Mail Act, which is meant to guard residents against advertising spam.

  • February 25, 2026

    $17.9M Drug Price-Fixing Deal Advances Despite Objections

    A Connecticut federal judge on Wednesday advanced a $17.9 million generic drug price-fixing settlement between 48 states and territories and pharmaceutical companies Bausch Health US LLC, Bausch Health Americas Inc. and Lannett Co. Inc., sidelining objections by consumers suing separately in a Pennsylvania multidistrict litigation case.

  • February 25, 2026

    BP Says Wash. 'Odors' Suit Smells No Better 2nd Time Around

    BP Products North America Inc. again urged a Seattle federal judge to reject a putative class action over fumes from the petroleum company's Cherry Point Refinery in Blaine, Washington, arguing the two named plaintiffs are poor representatives of the proposed class.

  • February 25, 2026

    Judge Skeptical Of Bid To Toss FTC's Zillow, Redfin Case

    A Virginia federal judge seemed skeptical on Wednesday as Zillow Group Inc. and Redfin Corp. pushed their bid to toss the Federal Trade Commission's case over an alleged agreement between the real estate listing companies to not compete for rental ads.

  • February 25, 2026

    9th Circ. Undoes $278M Eli Lilly Payment In Insulin Case

    The Ninth Circuit ruled against a lower court Wednesday in saying pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly does not owe $278 million in royalties to an Arizona company for insulin-brands sales, saying an agreement between the companies did not cover insulin products Eli Lilly made using a certain yeast expression technology.

  • February 25, 2026

    9th Circ. Nixes ID Theft Sentence In Medicare Fraud Case

    The Ninth Circuit ordered resentencing of a defendant in a case over a $24 million scheme to fraudulently bill Medicare for power wheelchairs and wheelchair repair, finding evidence presented at trial did not support her conviction by a jury on two aggravated identity theft charges.

  • February 25, 2026

    Amazon, DC AG Delay Antitrust Trial, Again

    A local D.C. judge has agreed to delay trial in the city's antitrust lawsuit against Amazon once again, pushing the scheduled start next year from May to September, with the two sides citing the government shutdown's impact on a related Federal Trade Commission case as the cause for the hold-up.

  • February 25, 2026

    9th Circ. Rules K-12 Mental Health Grants Must Continue

    The U.S. Department of Education must fund K-12 mental health grants given to public schools to help students cope with school shootings, the Ninth Circuit ruled, denying the agency's emergency request to pause a lower court's permanent injunction pending an appeal. 

  • February 25, 2026

    Live Nation Judge Not 'Inclined' To Delay Trial For Appeal

    A Manhattan federal judge said Wednesday he is likely to deny counsel for Live Nation's request to appeal rulings sending the government's monopolization claims to trial, after antitrust regulators called that request a "desperate plea" for a delay.

  • February 24, 2026

    9th Circ. Grants Atty Fee Appeal In Eye Drop Pricing Suit

    District courts cannot reduce fee awards to attorneys based on a firm's size, the Ninth Circuit ruled in a published opinion Tuesday, sending a case back to a California federal court to recalculate attorney fees awarded to a "small" firm that represented wholesalers in a Robinson-Patman Act suit against eye drop manufacturers.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • Justices Rethink Minimum Contacts For Foreign Entities

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    Two recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions, Devas v. Antrix and Fuld v. Palestine Liberation Organization, suggest that federal statutes may confer personal jurisdiction over foreign entities that have little to no contact with the U.S. — a significant departure from traditional due process principles, says Gary Shaw at Pillsbury.

  • Gauging The Risky Business Of Business Risk Disclosures

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    With the recent rise of securities fraud actions based on external events — like a data breach or environmental disaster — that drive down stock prices, risk disclosures have become more of a sword for the plaintiffs bar than a shield for public companies, now the subject of a growing circuit split, say attorneys at A&O Shearman.

  • 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.

  • Plan For Increased HSR Info Sharing With Wash. Antitrust Law

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    Washington's merger notification requirements, effective later this month, combined with the Federal Trade Commission's new Hart-Scott-Rodino Act rules, will result in greater information sharing among state and federal agencies, making it important for merging parties to consider their transaction's potential state antitrust implications early on, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • How High Court Ruling Can Aid Judgment Enforcement In US

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    In CC/Devas (Mauritius) v. Antrix, a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that only two steps are required to keep a foreign sovereign in federal court, making it a little easier for investors to successfully bring foreign states and sovereign-owned and -controlled entities into U.S. courts, says Kristie Blase at Felicello Law.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • One Year On, Davidson Holds Lessons On 'Health Halo' Claims

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    A year after the Ninth Circuit's Davidson v. Sprout Foods decision — which raised the bar for so-called health halo claims — food and beverage companies can draw insights from its finding, subsequently expanded on by other courts, that plaintiffs must be specific when alleging fraud in healthfulness marketing, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From US Rep. To Boutique Firm

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    My transition from serving as a member of Congress to becoming a partner at a boutique firm has been remarkably smooth, in part because I never stopped exercising my legal muscles, maintained relationships with my former colleagues and set the right tone at the outset, says Mondaire Jones at Friedman Kaplan.

  • Opinion

    Senate's 41% Litigation Finance Tax Would Hurt Legal System

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    The Senate’s latest version of the Big Beautiful Bill Act would impose a 41% tax on the litigation finance industry, but the tax is totally disconnected from the concerns it purports to address, and it would set the country back to a time when small plaintiffs had little recourse against big defendants, says Anthony Sebok at Cardozo School of Law.

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