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Commercial Contracts
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September 23, 2025
5th Circ. Clears Tugboat Firm In Barge Sinking Dispute
The Fifth Circuit on Monday said a lower court did not err in finding that a marine transportation services company wasn't liable for all claims arising from a June 2022 capsizing and sinking of a barge, saying that the barge's structure made it unseaworthy.
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September 23, 2025
DC Circ. Scraps OK Of $8.7M Equatorial Guinea Hospital Award
The D.C. Circuit Tuesday overturned enforcement of an $8.7 million arbitral award issued against Equatorial Guinea in a dispute over an ill-fated hospital operating contract, ruling that a lower court wrongly deferred to the arbitrators' interpretation of an ambiguous arbitration clause.
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September 23, 2025
Software Co. Says Seller Is Trying To Back Out Of Merger Deal
Software company Livefront LLC has sued in the Delaware Chancery Court to force through a stalled acquisition, accusing seller Zeal IT Consultants of trying to get out of an already agreed-upon deal.
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September 23, 2025
Ship's Owner Can't Shift Blame For Bridge Collapse, Court Told
The Singaporean owner and manager of the container ship that slammed into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge and triggered its collapse cannot try to shift blame for its own failings, the South Korean shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. has told a Pennsylvania federal court.
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September 23, 2025
Judge Slams Hogan Estate's Standing For Sex Tape Film Suit
A Florida federal judge who dissolved an order blocking the release of a documentary that features excerpts of Hulk Hogan's sex tape faulted representatives of his estate for bringing the lawsuit before being authorized to do so, while also saying their copyright claim might fail because of fair use.
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September 23, 2025
Conn. Atty Denies Blame For Title Co.'s $920K Refinancing Loss
A Connecticut lawyer sought to fend off arguments in state court by Fidelity National Title Insurance Co. that his alleged mistakes on a $2.5 million refinancing led to a $920,000 loss for the insurer, claiming he and the company owed distinct duties to a policy-holder.
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September 23, 2025
Cannabis Fertilizer Cos. Say They've Made Peace In TM Case
Rival fertilizer-makers Athena AG Inc. and Advanced Nutrients US LLC have reached a tentative deal to end a trademark dispute involving their cannabis-focused products, the companies told a federal judge in Washington just days after the court cleared the case for trial.
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September 22, 2025
Oracle To Secure TikTok Users' Data In Deal To Skirt US Ban
Tech giant Oracle will be tasked with safeguarding U.S. TikTok users' personal data, and the app's recommendation algorithm will be "retrained" and operated outside the control of TikTok's Chinese parent company under a deal that President Donald Trump is expected to sign this week to avert a shutdown of TikTok, the White House said Monday.Â
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September 22, 2025
Meta Can't Ditch Revived Contract Fight Over Scam Ads
A California federal judge Monday trimmed a proposed consumer class action against Meta Platforms Inc. over Chinese vendors' scam ads on Facebook and Instagram that was recently revived by the Ninth Circuit, tossing for good a negligent failure-to-warn claim, but keeping intact the consumers' remaining contact claims.
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September 22, 2025
Judge Blocks New Claims In BNY Mellon Self-Dealing Suit
A pair of investors with the Bank of New York Mellon can't use an amended complaint to raise a relatively new theory of liability against the bank nearly five years after filing their original suit, a Pennsylvania federal judge ruled Monday.
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September 22, 2025
Freight Broker, Widow Tell 4th Circ. To Note Preempted Claims
Echo Global Logistics Inc. and a widow suing the freight broker over a 2022 South Carolina trucking accident have called the Fourth Circuit's attention to recent appellate decisions that have further divided courts considering whether freight brokers can be held liable for allegedly negligently picking motor carriers.
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September 22, 2025
Contractor's Insurers Owe $7M For Bridal Shop Fire, Suit Says
A bridal shop said a contractor's insurers must pay their combined $7 million policy limits toward a $38 million judgment in an underlying suit over a fire caused by the contractor's demolition work at another property, according to a complaint removed to New York federal court Monday.
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September 22, 2025
Judge Lets Suit Over Audible's Expiring Credits Move Forward
A Washington federal judge has declined to toss a consumer's proposed class action against Audible Inc. over the expiration dates on membership "credits," saying such vouchers don't have to be backed by a specific cash value to be covered by the Evergreen State's gift card law.
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September 22, 2025
Fifth Third Can Keep $30M In Escrow Fight, Judge Rules
A New York federal judge has sided with Fifth Third Bank in a $30 million escrow fight, finding its claim notice over alleged "platform fee" violations was timely and valid, in a ruling that will require the suing private equity seller to return $10 million that was already released.
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September 22, 2025
Judge Gets More Details On Proposed $1.5B Anthropic IP Deal
Authors who have inked a proposed $1.5 billion deal to end their copyright class action against artificial intelligence developer Anthropic PBC are saying they have worked out all the issues a California federal judge pointed out when he initially declined to give the deal approval.
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September 22, 2025
5th Circ.'s 340B Ruling 'Limited,' Pharma Cos. Tell 4th Circ.
The Fifth Circuit's recent refusal to block a Mississippi law regulating the delivery of discounted drugs to rural providers can't be wielded by West Virginia in its battle over the law's constitutionality because of the distinctions between the two state laws, a coalition of pharmaceutical companies told the Fourth Circuit.
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September 22, 2025
Ga. College Can't Slip $240K Loss For Athletic Conference Exit
A rural Georgia college will be forced to pay $240,000 in damages to the athletic conference it left several years ago after the Georgia Court of Appeals backed the conference Monday in a dispute over whether their contract's fee provision was enforceable.
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September 22, 2025
Experian Asks 4th Circ. To Reverse Arb. Ruling In FCRA Suit
Consumer reporting agency Experian has asked the Fourth Circuit to overturn a lower court's decision concerning the arbitration of a lawsuit brought by a consumer falsely reported as dead, saying the judge was wrong not to enforce clauses in the consumer's agreement that delegated such decisions to an arbitrator.
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September 22, 2025
Amex Can't Push 'Illusory' Arbitration Over 'Anti-Steering' Rule
A putative class of businesses does not have to arbitrate claims that American Express violated antitrust laws by effectively preventing merchants that accept credit cards from incentivizing customers to use lower-fee cards, after a Massachusetts federal court ruled it will not "close its eyes" to the "illusory" arbitration agreement.
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September 22, 2025
Social Media Co. Calls For Disqualification Of Influencer's Atty
A social media optimization company has moved to disqualify a social media influencer's attorney from a copyright infringement suit in Texas federal court, saying attorneys from the same firm had previously met with the company in meetings where confidential information was discussed.
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September 19, 2025
Judge Won't Enforce Injunction Against Pot Co. Shareholder
A Colorado state judge denied a Canadian cannabis company's request for a preliminary injunction against an investor Friday, finding that the injunction request was too broad, and many of the requests needed to be litigated elsewhere.
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September 19, 2025
Film Co. Founders Accused Of $1.2M Con For Fake Pot Co.
A Los Angeles film company and its founders are accused of fraudulently taking $1.2 million from a private equity fund, spending it on luxury properties, artwork and their existing ventures, but never putting a dime of the loan on its intended purpose, launching a "booming cannabis empire," according to a lawsuit filed in California state court.
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September 19, 2025
Call For Gov't Cut Of University Patent Cash Spurs Concern
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick's comments that the government should get as much as half of the revenue that universities generate from patents developed with federal funding have caused worry among industry groups and attorneys, who say it would inhibit efforts to commercialize publicly funded inventions.
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September 19, 2025
PTAB Invalidates Johns Hopkins Patent In Keytruda Fight
The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has invalidated an anti-cancer therapy patent owned by Johns Hopkins University, handing a win to challenger Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC in a larger fight relating to Merck's Keytruda treatment.
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September 19, 2025
DC Judge Cuts Proud Boys Atty's Bill To Researcher
A D.C. federal judge reduced the amount an attorney who represented Proud Boys members in their Jan. 6 criminal trial owes to a researcher who sued him over unpaid work, dropping a jury's award of $77,000 to just $30,000.
Expert Analysis
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Texas' Cactus Ruling Clarifies 'Produced Water' Rules
The Texas Supreme Court's decision in Cactus Water Services v. COG Operating, holding that mineral interest lessees have the rights to water extracted alongside oil and gas, should benefit industry players by clarifying the rules — but it leaves important questions about royalties unresolved, say attorneys at Yetter Coleman.
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ABA Opinion Makes It A Bit Easier To Drop A 'Hot Potato'
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.
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A Look At Trump Admin's Shifting Strategies To Curtail sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½
The Trump administration has so far carried out its goal of minimizing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's authority and footprint via an individualized approach comprising rule rollbacks, litigation moves and administrative tools, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.
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Series
My Opera And Baseball Careers Make Me A Better Lawyer
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.
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8 Ways Lawyers Can Protect The Rule Of Law In Their Work
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.
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Google Damages Ruling Offers Lessons For Testifying Experts
The Federal Circuit's recent decision in EcoFactor v. Google represents a shift in how courts evaluate expert testimony in patent cases, offering a practical guide for how litigators and testifying experts can refine their work, says Adam Rhoten at Secretariat.
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Series
Law School's Missed Lessons: Communicating With Clients
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.
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Rocket Mortgage Appeal May Push Justices To Curb Classes
Should the U.S. Supreme Court agree to hear Alig v. Rocket Mortgage, the resulting decision could limit class sizes based on commonality under Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Evidence as opposed to standing under Article III of the U.S. Constitution, say attorneys at Carr Maloney.
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3 Judicial Approaches To Applying Loper Bright, 1 Year Later
In the year since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Chevron deference in its Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision, a few patterns have emerged in lower courts’ application of the precedent to determine whether agency actions are lawful, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.
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Employer Best Practices For Navigating Worker Separations
As job cuts hit several major industries, employers should take steps to minimize their exposure to discrimination claims, information leaks and enforcement challenges, such as maintaining sound documentation, strategic planning and legal coordination, says Mark Romance at Day Pitney.
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Series
Adapting To Private Practice: From US Rep. To Boutique Firm
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.
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Opinion
IRS Should Work With Industry On Microcaptive Regs
The IRS should engage with microcaptive insurance owners to develop better regulations on these arrangements or risk the emergence of common law guidance as taxpayers with legitimate programs seek relief in the federal courts, says Dustin Carlson at SRA 831(b) Admin.
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Opinion
Senate's 41% Litigation Finance Tax Would Hurt Legal System
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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Series
Performing As A Clown Makes Me A Better Lawyer
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.
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Series
Law School's Missed Lessons: Rejecting Biz Dev Myths
Law schools don’t spend sufficient time dispelling certain myths that prevent young lawyers from exploring new business opportunities, but by dismissing these misguided beliefs, even an introverted first-year associate with a small network of contacts can find long-term success, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.