Washington

  • 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.  

  • 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.

  • 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putative class action that accused Twitter Inc., now called X, of deceptively obtaining his phone number, saying in an unpublished opinion that a state law he leaned on prohibited the fraudulent collection of telephone records, "not numbers."

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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."

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • April 28, 2025

    Tenant Right To Counsel Grows But Faces Major Hurdles

    Five states, 17 cities and one county enacted laws between 2017 and 2024 guaranteeing tenants the right to legal counsel in eviction proceedings, but uneven implementation, chronic underfunding and persistent court barriers have sharply limited the programs' effectiveness, according to a new national study published Friday.

  • April 28, 2025

    Trump To Target Sanctuary Cities With New Executive Order

    President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday evening directing the attorney general and secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to publish a list of sanctuary cities, which are often found in Democratic states, as they "obstruct" the federal immigration efforts, according to the administration.

  • April 28, 2025

    9th Circ. Nixes COVID-19 App Suit Appeal Against Apple

    The Ninth Circuit has once again shut the door on a doctor's suit accusing Apple of illegally refusing to distribute his COVID-19 tracking app through its app store, affirming a lower court ruling from October 2024 that denied his motion to reopen.

  • April 28, 2025

    Compass Calls Wash. Listing Service Rules Anticompetitive

    Compass told a Washington federal court that Northwest Multiple Listing Service and its broker-led board of directors have stifled competition, thwarting a product that allows home sellers to test home sales privately before registering them with the multiple listing service.

  • April 28, 2025

    Estate Sues Insurer Over 'Paltry' Offer In DUI Death Case

    The estate of a motorcyclist killed by a driver allegedly overserved at a Washington bar has sued to force the bar's specialty insurance company to cover a partial settlement in an underlying wrongful death suit.

  • April 28, 2025

    Walgreens Opposes Merging 'Non-Drowsy' Labeling Suits

    Walgreens is pushing back on a bid to consolidate two Illinois federal lawsuits alleging the "non-drowsy" label on some of the retailer's cough suppressant medications is misleading, saying the two cases involve different allegations and are at different stages, and arguing that consolidation would cause a delay in the litigation.

  • April 28, 2025

    Comair Seeks Boeing Sanctions Over 737 Max Refund Letter

    Defunct airline Comair Ltd. is asking a Washington federal judge to sanction The Boeing Co. for deleting evidence of a "side letter" assuring it that its deposits to buy seven 737 Max aircraft would be fully refundable and arguing the letter never existed.

  • April 28, 2025

    Justices Won't Disturb 9th Circ.'s AT&T 401(k) Suit Revival

    The U.S. Supreme Court declined on Monday to hear AT&T's bid for review of a Ninth Circuit panel decision reviving a class action against the telecom giant alleging mismanagement of an employee 401(k) plan, rejecting employers' request for more clarity from the court on the pleading standard for federal benefits lawsuits alleging excessive fees.

Expert Analysis

  • Firms Must Offer A Trifecta Of Services In Post-Chevron World

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    After the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision overturning Chevron deference, law firms will need to integrate litigation, lobbying and communications functions to keep up with the ramifications of the ruling and provide adequate counsel quickly, says Neil Hare at Dentons.

  • 5 Tips To Succeed In A Master Of Laws Program And Beyond

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    As lawyers and recent law school graduates begin their Master of Laws coursework across the country, they should keep a few pointers in mind to get the most out of their programs and kick-start successful careers in their practice areas, says Kelley Miller at Reed Smith.

  • NYC Wage Info Bill Highlights Rise In Pay Transparency Laws

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    With New York City the latest to mull requiring companies to annually report employee wage data, national employers should consider adapting their compliance practices to comply with increasingly common pay transparency and disclosure obligations at state and local levels, says Kelly Cardin at Littler Mendelson.

  • Series

    Being An Opera Singer Made Me A Better Lawyer

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    My journey from the stage to the courtroom has shown that the skills I honed as an opera singer – punctuality, memorization, creativity and more – have all played a vital role in my success as an attorney, says Gerard D'Emilio at GableGotwals.

  • How Law Firms Can Avoid 'Collaboration Drag'

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    Law firm decision making can be stifled by “collaboration drag” — characterized by too many pointless meetings, too much peer feedback and too little dissent — but a few strategies can help stakeholders improve decision-making processes and build consensus, says Steve Groom at Miles Mediation.

  • Election Outlook: A Precedent Primer On Content Moderation

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    With the 2024 election season now in full swing, online platforms will face difficult and politically sensitive decisions about content moderation, but U.S. Supreme Court decisions from last term offer much-needed certainty about their rights, say Jonathan Blavin and Helen White at Munger Tolles.

  • Opinion

    Litigation Funding Disclosure Key To Open, Impartial Process

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    Blanket investor and funding agreement disclosures should be required in all civil cases where the investor has a financial interest in the outcome in order to address issues ranging from potential conflicts of interest to national security concerns, says Bob Goodlatte, former U.S. House Representative for Virginia.

  • What NFL Draft Picks Have In Common With Lateral Law Hires

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    Nearly half of law firm lateral hires leave within a few years — a failure rate that is strikingly similar to the performance of NFL quarterbacks drafted in the first round — in part because evaluators focus too heavily on quantifiable metrics and not enough on a prospect's character traits, says Howard Rosenberg at Baretz+Brunelle.

  • Replacing The Stigma Of Menopause With Law Firm Support

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    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.

  • Planning Law Firm Content Calendars: What, When, Where

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    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.

  • What To Expect From Evolving Wash. Development Plans

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    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.

  • Notable Q2 Updates In Insurance Class Actions

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    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.

  • Series

    Playing Golf Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    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.

  • Law Firms Should Move From Reactive To Proactive Marketing

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    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.

  • Opinion

    The Big Issues A BigLaw Associates' Union Could Address

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    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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