Washington

  • September 18, 2025

    Wash. Panel Calls Gas Station Co.'s Insurance Delay Risky

    Whether gas station operator Gull Industries Inc. is entitled to legal defense costs from Granite State Insurance Co. in long-running litigation over the company's environmental liability may ultimately boil down to timing, Washington state appellate judges suggested at a hearing Thursday.

  • September 18, 2025

    FTC Greenlights Amazon Prime Trial For Next Week

    A Seattle federal judge has cleared the Federal Trade Commission's consumer protection case against Amazon to go to trial on Monday, finding the company violated at least one requirement of an e-commerce law, yet jurors must still decide if it clearly disclosed Prime subscription terms to users and offered simple cancellation methods.

  • September 18, 2025

    Feds Hit With Protest Over Project Labor Deal Requirement

    A joint venture sued the federal government in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, saying the Navy's requirement that companies enter into a project labor agreement with a labor union to be considered for a construction project contract violated federal law.

  • September 18, 2025

    9th Circ. Won't Stay Venezuelans' TPS Win Amid Feds' Appeal

    The Ninth Circuit denied on Wednesday the Trump administration's latest emergency-stay request, which would have let the government continue to unwind temporary protected status for 600,000 Venezuelans as it challenges its summary-judgment loss on appeal, rejecting the government's argument that the U.S. Supreme Court's prior stay ruling in the case controls.

  • September 18, 2025

    AI Firm's Ex-CTO Barred From Using Trade Secrets

    A Washington federal judge has barred an artificial intelligence startup's former chief technology officer from using trade secrets to hurt the company, making disparaging statements about it or contacting the company's current or prospective customers.

  • September 18, 2025

    Apple Affiliate Can't Ax Classes After Wage Trial, Court Told

    An Apple-affiliated repair company cannot undo five classes in a wage and hour suit that snagged a nearly $840,000 win for employees, the workers told a North Carolina federal court, arguing the company's decertification request is a "Hail Mary" attempt to delay its appeal.

  • September 18, 2025

    1st Circ. Won't Lift Block On HHS Job, Program Cuts

    The First Circuit on Wednesday rejected a bid by the Trump administration to let it move ahead with cutting 10,000 jobs and end a number of programs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services while it appeals a Rhode Island federal judge's order temporarily barring the plan.

  • September 18, 2025

    Chinook Tribe Asks High Court To Reverse Recognition Denial

    The Chinook Indian Nation is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to undo a Ninth Circuit order that denied the tribe federal recognition, arguing that the appellate court misinterpreted a law that lays a path for the status through judiciary or regulatory decisions.

  • September 17, 2025

    'It Doesn't Look Good': CoComelon Foe Faces Uphill IP Fight

    Ninth Circuit panel judges doubted Wednesday a Chinese company's appeal of its $23.4 million copyright-trial loss to the maker of the children's YouTube channel CoComelon, with one judge telling counsel "it doesn't look good for you," and another observing he's "never seen copying evidence quite as compelling as this record."

  • September 17, 2025

    9th Circ. Judge Hints At Upholding Seattle Housing Ordinance

    A Ninth Circuit judge suggested on Wednesday that a waiver provision written into a Seattle affordable housing policy is enough to "save" the ordinance from a homeowner's constitutional claim that it kept her from realizing her property's full value by adding townhomes.  

  • September 17, 2025

    9th Circ. Denies Appeal Of Wash. Anti-Vaxxers' Med Board Suit

    The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday rejected an appeal brought by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on behalf of anti-vaxxers challenging a Washington state medical board's disciplinary proceedings against doctors who allegedly spread false information about COVID-19.

  • September 17, 2025

    Boeing, DOJ Say FAA Fines Don't Sway Conspiracy Case

    Boeing and the federal government have told a Texas federal judge that the Federal Aviation Administration's recent proposal to fine Boeing $3.1 million for safety violations shouldn't factor into the 737 Max 8 criminal conspiracy case they're hoping to have wiped from the docket.

  • September 17, 2025

    9th Circ. Seems Split On School Principal's Free Speech Suit

    A Ninth Circuit panel appeared split on Wednesday over a Washington state public school employee's claims that he was unfairly punished for a political rant on Facebook, with one judge pushing back on his stance that he was speaking privately while also balking at the district's position that the post was disruptive.

  • September 17, 2025

    Tribal Members Tell 9th Circ. Tariff Suit Belongs In Fed. Court

    Counsel for members of the Blackfeet Nation tribe told the Ninth Circuit on Wednesday their suit challenging President Donald Trump's emergency tariffs should stay in federal district courts, where constitutional and congressional claims over tribal commerce must be heard.

  • September 17, 2025

    No Response From Insurers To Coverage Requests, Co. Says

    A Seattle-based marine logistics company told a Washington federal court that a trio of marine insurers failed to issue a coverage opinion before it ultimately settled an arbitration earlier this year involving an $18.6 million counterclaim over vessel damage, adding that the insurers conducted no investigation, either.

  • September 17, 2025

    Feds Must Review Wash. Logging Project Over Map Concerns

    A Washington federal judge on Tuesday ordered the U.S. Forest Service to reconsider its approval of a timber harvesting and forest restoration project, finding the agency failed to provide adequate maps of the area to the public.

  • September 16, 2025

    Dr.'s COVID Falsehoods Are Free Speech, Wash. Panel Says

    A Washington state appeals court unanimously ruled Tuesday that the Washington Medical Commission overstepped its authority by punishing a doctor for COVID-19 falsehoods he published to his blog, but affirmed the commission's decision to discipline him for prescribing ivermectin to COVID-19 patients.

  • September 16, 2025

    9th Circ. Affirms Payment Plan For Poor Drug Dealer

    A Ninth Circuit panel has found that an Idaho federal court was within the law to require both an immediate payment and a payment plan over time for a fine and an assessment totaling $1,100 against an indigent drug dealer.

  • September 16, 2025

    Roundup User Fights Uphill To Revive Cancer Suit At 9th Circ.

    A Ninth Circuit judge expressed doubts Tuesday that a lower court erred in tossing a personal-injury plaintiff's claims that Monsanto's Roundup likely caused his non-Hodgkin lymphoma, saying during a hearing the trial judge had a "great deal of discretion" to decide whether a general-causation expert's opinion was based on "junk science."

  • September 16, 2025

    White House Fights Seattle's Bid To Block DEI Grant Rules

    The Trump administration on Tuesday called on a Washington federal judge to let it proceed with federal grant conditions forcing recipients to drop efforts related to diversity and "gender ideology," contending that Seattle is challenging the terms based on mere speculation that the city may one day be targeted for "hypothetical noncompliance."  

  • September 16, 2025

    DOE Asks Judge To Pull Plug On States' Cost Cap Suit

    The U.S. Department of Energy has asked an Oregon federal judge to toss a New York-led lawsuit challenging a new policy that would cap certain overhead costs under energy assistance awards, arguing the change falls within its discretionary authorities.

  • September 16, 2025

    Biz Groups Ask 9th Circ. To Block Calif. Climate Rules

    A coalition of business groups asked the Ninth Circuit to halt two new California climate regulations requiring large companies to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related financial risks, while they appeal a lower court's refusal to preliminarily block the rules that they say violate their First Amendment rights.

  • September 16, 2025

    'Incurably Premature': Suit Over Alleged EB-5 Rule Tossed

    A Seattle federal judge on Monday tossed an immigrant investor's lawsuit challenging an allegedly arbitrary action that resulted in U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services revoking her visa petition, saying she could not sue since she did not first exhaust administrative remedies.

  • September 16, 2025

    Avalara Investors' Claims Pass Muster After 9th Circ. Revival

    A Washington federal judge has allowed a proposed class action to proceed accusing tax software company Avalara Inc. of misleading investors ahead of an $8.4 billion deal to take the company private, but said the suit failed to adequately allege negligence by individual board members, giving investors one week to amend those claims.

  • September 16, 2025

    Feds Can't Avoid Property Owners' Navy Flight Takings Claims

    A U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge rejected the government's attempt to shutter property owners' claims accusing the U.S. Navy of violating the Fifth Amendment by boosting flight operations at a Washington air strip, paving the way for a March trial.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • Series

    Performing As A Clown Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    To say that being a clown in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has changed my legal career would truly be an understatement — by creating an opening to converse on a unique topic, it has allowed me to connect with clients, counsel and even judges on a deeper level, says Charles Tatelbaum at Tripp Scott.

  • Focusing On Fluoride: From FDA To Class Action

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    A class action filed two days after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced plans to remove ingestible fluoride prescription drug products for children from the market may be the tip of the iceberg in terms of the connection between government pronouncements on safety and their immediate use as evidence in lawsuits, says Rachel Turow at Skadden.

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