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Washington
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May 02, 2025
Live Nation Antitrust Fight Won't Have Split Damages Phase
A Manhattan federal judge declined Friday to break out a possible monetary damages phase in a suit by federal and state authorities accusing Live Nation of quashing competition in live entertainment, saying the move would be unlikely to streamline the complex case.
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May 02, 2025
Dickinson Wright Combines With Firm, Opens Seattle Office
Dickinson Wright PLLC announced that it has combined with Seattle-based Ashbaugh Beal LLP and opened a full-service office in the city, now home to 11 attorneys and the firm's first foray into the Northwest.
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May 01, 2025
DOJ Grilled On 'Bottleneck' After Refugee Processing Orders
A Washington federal judge expressed frustration with the federal government Thursday for moving "with one hand behind its back" to resume processing of certain refugees after the Ninth Circuit clarified the scope of a partial block on the Trump administration's refugee program shutdown.
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May 01, 2025
Wash. Justices Take Up Meta's $35M Political Ad Penalty
The Washington State Supreme Court has agreed to review a $35 million judgment for penalties and legal fees against Facebook parent company Meta for repeatedly running afoul of the state's political advertising transparency law.
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May 01, 2025
9th Circ. Asked To Revisit Ruling On Guam Munitions Suit
A Ninth Circuit decision allowing a Guam group to challenge an Air Force permit renewal application to detonate expired munitions conflicts with precedent and threatens to burden permit applicants, agencies and courts, the U.S. government said in a rehearing petition filed Wednesday.
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May 01, 2025
401(k) Forfeiture Suit Not Backed By ERISA, Judge Says
An Arizona federal judge nixed a proposed class action from workers who claimed a trucking company illegally used abandoned cash in its retirement fund to pay down its own contributions rather than covering plan fees, saying the workers' "novel theory" wasn't in line with federal benefits law.
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May 01, 2025
States Urge 1st Circ. To Reinstate Federal Housing Grants
A coalition of states urged the First Circuit to reinstate a ruling that had blocked the Trump administration from cutting $30 million in fair housing grants, saying the federal government failed to consider the impact this decision would have on the groups' operations.
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April 30, 2025
SEC Says $2.7M Ponzi-Like Scheme Targeted Elderly Koreans
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has sued a Washington woman and a company she controls, alleging she fraudulently raised $2.7 million from at least 33 investors, including elderly Korean-Americans, gaining their trust by using her family relationships and affiliation as a member of their community, and then gambling some of those funds away.
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April 30, 2025
Colo. Chicken Co. On Hook For $3M Supply Chain Settlement
A Washington federal judge has ordered a Colorado-based poultry processor to reimburse a grocery distributor's $3 million settlement with an ex-Trader Joe's vendor that sued over a bony batch of meat, adding to more than $13.5 million the chicken producer owes following a December trial.
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April 30, 2025
Amazon's Suit Over Soured Solar Deals Survives Dismissal
Amazon can sue a California-based private equity company and firms tied to a pair of Golden State solar energy developments for allegedly trying to sabotage the projects after signing long-term power purchase deals, a Washington state judge has ruled, rejecting jurisdictional arguments from the defendants.
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April 30, 2025
9th Circ. Won't Revive Phone Number Privacy Suit Against X
The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday declined to revive a Washington resident's putative class action that accused Twitter Inc., now called X, of deceptively obtaining his phone number, saying in an unpublished opinion that a state law he leaned on prohibited the fraudulent collection of telephone records, "not numbers."
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April 30, 2025
Monthly Merger Review Snapshot
Enforcers opened high stakes court proceedings against Meta Platforms and Google for monopolization claims that could force the tech giants to sell pieces of the companies, while also moving ahead with several challenges and reviews of pending deals in other industries. Here, Law360 looks at the major merger review developments from April.
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April 30, 2025
Amazon Can't Claw Back 'Inadvertent' Discovery Docs
A Seattle federal judge has ruled that documents Amazon.com Inc. produced as part of three proposed antitrust class actions may not be clawed back, finding that despite the online retailer's claims that they were produced "inadvertently," there was no indication the document-sharing was a mistake.
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April 29, 2025
9th Circ. Revives Copyright Fight Over Sam Smith Tune
The Ninth Circuit on Tuesday resurrected a copyright lawsuit over pop stars Sam Smith and Normani's 2019 hit "Dancing With a Stranger," saying a reasonable jury could find that the song's hook shares protectable lyrics, pitches and rhythm with that of a 2015 track called "Dancing With Strangers."
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April 29, 2025
Deal Terms An Issue In $60M Mortgage Loan Sale Con Case
A Washington federal judge suggested on Tuesday that she might hold off on interpreting the terms of a multimillion-dollar mortgage loan sale agreement at issue in a racketeering suit, since a contractual dispute involving the same deal is slated for a bench trial before her in October.
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April 29, 2025
Justices Wary Of Issuing 'Advisory' Ruling In Class Cert. Row
The U.S. Supreme Court's latest attempt to address a pressing question about class certification standards may be doomed by a procedural hiccup, with a majority of justices expressing concern Tuesday that they didn't have the authority to wade into a dispute over approval of a class that contains uninjured members.
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April 29, 2025
Feds Urge Dismissal Of Suit Over Halted Refugee Program
The Trump administration on Monday urged a Washington state federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the government's suspension of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, citing a recent Ninth Circuit decision that limited the scope of the judge's preliminary injunction.
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April 29, 2025
Amazon Can't Shake Return Policy Suit, Wash. Judge Rules
A Washington federal judge refused Tuesday to dismiss claims accusing Amazon of unlawfully recharging consumers under its "advanced refund" return policy, ruling that the e-commerce giant could face tort and quasi-contract liability alongside breach of contract allegations.
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April 29, 2025
Gore-Tex Maker Seeks Dismissal Of PFAS Suit
The company behind the waterproof fabric brand Gore-Tex urged a Washington federal court to dismiss a lawsuit accusing it of manufacturing with toxic forever chemicals while also "greenwashing" its image, arguing that the buyers, who did not actually test their garments, provide no proof that the clothing they bought contains these substances.
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April 29, 2025
Insurers Say 9th Circ. Extended Tribal Jurisdiction Too Far
A group of insurers again urged the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Ninth Circuit decision ordering them to litigate COVID-19 coverage claims in Suquamish Tribal Court, saying Tuesday that the lower court's conception of tribal sovereignty is so broad that even the tribe is unwilling to defend it.
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April 29, 2025
2 Dozen States Say DOGE Can't 'Dismantle' AmeriCorps
Two dozen states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit on Tuesday challenging layoffs and $400 million in funding cuts to the national volunteer agency AmeriCorps, alleging the Trump administration is trampling over Congress' authority by trying to dismantle the agency.
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April 29, 2025
BNSF Says Tribe's $400M Trespass Win Unjustly Taps Profits
BNSF Railway Co. has urged the Ninth Circuit to derail the nearly $400 million a trial judge ruled it owes for years of illegally running oil cars across a Washington tribe's land, saying the disgorgement judgment goes after legitimate profits far removed from where the trespassing occurred.
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April 28, 2025
Wash. Judge Tosses Investor's $42M Real Estate Con Suit
A federal judge in Seattle threw out a Las Vegas investment company's lawsuit accusing four businessmen of a $42 million fraud scheme, saying on Monday that the firm hasn't shown a "substantial part" of the allegations occurred in western Washington.
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April 28, 2025
DHS Says Visa Record Restored For Foreign Student In Wash.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security told a Washington federal judge on Monday that a preliminary injunction was not needed to restore the student visa record of a University of Washington doctoral candidate from China, because U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has already returned the student's status to active.
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April 28, 2025
DOJ Wants Live Nation Case Split Between Liability, Damages
The U.S. Department of Justice asked a New York federal court on Monday to split the case accusing Live Nation of quashing competition in the live entertainment industry by having a jury decide if the company violated antitrust law and the judge decide what remedies to impose.
Expert Analysis
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Replacing The Stigma Of Menopause With Law Firm Support
A large proportion of the workforce is forced to pull the brakes on their career aspirations because of the taboo surrounding menopause and a lack of consistent support, but law firms can initiate the cultural shift needed by formulating thoughtful workplace policies, says Barbara Hamilton-Bruce at Simmons & Simmons.
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Planning Law Firm Content Calendars: What, When, Where
During the slower month of August, law firms should begin working on their 2025 content calendars, planning out a content creation and distribution framework that aligns with the firm’s objectives and maintains audience engagement throughout the year, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.
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What To Expect From Evolving Wash. Development Plans
The current round of periodic updates to Washington counties' growth and development plans will need to address new requirements from recent legislation, and will also likely bring changes that should please property owners and developers, says Jami Balint at Seyfarth.
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Notable Q2 Updates In Insurance Class Actions
Mark Johnson and Mathew Drocton at BakerHostetler discuss the muted nature of the property and casualty insurance class action space in the second quarter of the year, with no large waves made in labor depreciation and total-loss vehicle class actions, but a new offensive theory emerging for insurance companies.
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Series
Playing Golf Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Golf can positively affect your personal and professional life well beyond the final putt, and it’s helped enrich my legal practice by improving my ability to build lasting relationships, study and apply the rules, face adversity with grace, and maintain my mental and physical well-being, says Adam Kelly at Venable.
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Law Firms Should Move From Reactive To Proactive Marketing
Most law firm marketing and business development teams operate in silos, leading to an ad hoc, reactive approach, but shifting to a culture of proactive planning — beginning with comprehensive campaigns — can help firms effectively execute their broader business strategy, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.
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Opinion
The Big Issues A BigLaw Associates' Union Could Address
A BigLaw associates’ union could address a number of issues that have the potential to meaningfully improve working conditions, diversity and attorney well-being — from restructured billable hour requirements to origination credit allocation, return-to-office mandates and more, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.
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Opinion
It's Time For A BigLaw Associates' Union
As BigLaw faces a steady stream of criticism about its employment policies and practices, an associates union could effect real change — and it could start with law students organizing around opposition to recent recruiting trends, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.
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How Justices Upended The Administrative Procedure Act
In its recent Loper Bright, Corner Post and Jarkesy decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court fundamentally changed the Administrative Procedure Act in ways that undermine Congress and the executive branch, shift power to the judiciary, curtail public and business input, and create great uncertainty, say Alene Taber and Beth Hummer at Hanson Bridgett.
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9th Circ. Ruling Flags Work Harassment Risks Of Social Media
The recent Ninth Circuit ruling in Okonowsky v. Garland, holding an employer could be liable for a co-worker's harassing social media posts, highlights new challenges in technology-centered and remote workplaces, and underscores an employer's obligation to prevent hostile environments wherever their employees clock in, say Jennifer Lada and Phillip Schreiber at Holland & Knight.
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Mirror, Mirror On The Wall, Is My Counterclaim Bound To Fall?
A Pennsylvania federal court’s recent dismissal of the defendants’ counterclaims in Morgan v. Noss should remind attorneys to avoid the temptation to repackage a claim’s facts and law into a mirror-image counterclaim, as this approach will often result in a waste of time and resources, says Matthew Selmasska at Kaufman Dolowich.
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Series
Playing Dungeons & Dragons Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Playing Dungeons & Dragons – a tabletop role-playing game – helped pave the way for my legal career by providing me with foundational skills such as persuasion and team building, says Derrick Carman at Robins Kaplan.
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Class Action Law Makes An LLC A 'Jurisdictional Platypus'
The applicability of Section 1332(d)(10) of the Class Action Fairness Act is still widely misunderstood — and given the ambiguous nature of limited liability companies, the law will likely continue to confound courts and litigants — so parties should be prepared for a range of outcomes, says Andrew Gunem at Strauss Borrelli.
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Jarkesy Ruling May Redefine Jury Role In Patent Fraud
Regardless of whether the U.S. Supreme Court’s Jarkesy ruling implicates the direction of inequitable conduct, which requires showing that the patentee made material statements or omissions to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the decision has created opportunities for defendants to argue more substantively for jury trials than ever before, say attorneys at Cadwalader.
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3 Leadership Practices For A More Supportive Firm Culture
Traditional leadership styles frequently amplify the inherent pressures of legal work, but a few simple, time-neutral strategies can strengthen the skills and confidence of employees and foster a more collaborative culture, while supporting individual growth and contribution to organizational goals, says Benjamin Grimes at BKG Leadership.