Business vs Business disputes, e.g., IP, fraud, contract breaches, antitrust, whistleblowers, M&A, trade secrets, poaching.

Fall bellwether trials for social media addiction cases to test novel legal theories

March 3rd, 2025|Categories: Class Actions, Complex Business Litigation, HB Tort Notes, Journal, Mass Torts, New Featured Post for Home Page, News|Tags: , , , |

Are social media platforms the next Big Tobacco? A major lawsuit argues they’re designed to be addictive—will the courts agree? Justin Ward explores the upcoming bellwether trials against major social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube. The consolidated lawsuits, involving over 1,900 claims, argue these platforms are deliberately designed to exploit young users and cause addiction—drawing comparisons to cases against nicotine and opioids. Ward examines the complex legal challenges, including First Amendment issues and Section 230 protections, as courts determine whether these claims of negligence and failure to warn will move forward. The trials could set major precedents for social media regulation and corporate accountability.

22 States Sue New York Over Climate Fund, Calling It an ‘Unconstitutional Shakedown’

March 3rd, 2025|Categories: Complex Business Litigation, Corporate Compliance, Environmental Torts, HB Tort Notes, Journal, New Featured Post for Home Page, News|Tags: , , , |

Tim Zyla examines the high-stakes legal battle between New York and a coalition of 22 states, led by West Virginia, over the state’s newly enacted Climate Change Superfund Act. The law requires energy producers to pay $75 billion over 25 years to fund climate damage recovery efforts. The lawsuit, filed in federal court, argues that New York’s law is unconstitutional, overreaches state authority, and unfairly targets out-of-state energy companies. Plaintiffs claim the Act violates multiple constitutional provisions, including the Commerce Clause, Due Process, and Equal Protection Clauses, as well as federal environmental law. Meanwhile, a pro se West Virginia resident has filed a motion to dismiss the case, defending New York’s actions as necessary for public health and climate accountability. Zyla highlights how this case could set a major precedent for state-level climate initiatives and corporate liability for environmental damage.

When Litigation Financing Goes Wrong, Who Pays?

February 27th, 2025|Categories: Complex Business Litigation, HB Tort Notes, Journal, Mass Torts, New Featured Post for Home Page, News|Tags: , , |

The bankruptcy of Houston's AkinMears LLP highlights the risks of relying too heavily on third-party litigation financing and the broader implications for transparency, regulation, and financial sustainability in mass torts. The firm filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy citing more than $200 million in debt owed to litigation funding companies Virage SPV 1 and Rocade Capital. According to Bloomberg Law’s U.S. Bankruptcy Tracker, AkinMears LLP was the only U.S. law firm filing for bankruptcy in January 2025 with $50 million or more in liabilities. In total, 12 large law firms declared bankruptcy in January 2025, up from seven in January 2024 but slightly below the 17 cases recorded in January 2023. Read our report by guest contributor Jennifer Holmes.

Appellate Lawyers at Trial: Don’t Wait Until Your Ox is in the Ditch with Jeff Doss

February 16th, 2025|Categories: Complex Business Litigation, ELP, Law Firm Operations|Tags: , , , , |

In this episode of the Emerging Litigation Podcast, you will discover how appellate counsel can strengthen trial strategy and improve post-verdict outcomes in high-stakes cases. Our guest, Jeffrey P. Doss, a partner in the White-Collar Criminal Defense & Corporate Investigations practice group at Lightfoot, Franklin & White LLC, explores their critical role in error preservation, evidentiary challenges, and navigating appeals. Don't miss this episode!

Key Developments in Antitrust Class Action Litigation: Recent Developments, Key Class Action Trends, Significant Rulings, and Major Settlements Shaping the Future of Antitrust

February 11th, 2025|Categories: Class Actions, CLE OnDemand, Complex Business Litigation, New Webinars|Tags: , , |

Gain an understanding of the latest developments in antitrust class action litigation, including evolving class certification standards, key rulings on multi-district litigation, and major settlements shaping the field on a CLE webinar featuring experienced antitrust attorneys Gerald L. Maatman, Jr., Jennifer A. Riley, and Sean P. McConnell. Explore significant court decisions on pricing algorithms, the right-to-repair movement, and baseball’s antitrust exemption while staying informed on critical trends in competition law. Register now!

Trends and Strategies in Wage & Hour Class and Collective Actions

February 8th, 2025|Categories: Class Actions, CLE OnDemand, Complex Business Litigation, Employment, New Webinars|Tags: , |

Gain a better understanding of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and wage and hour collective actions, get up to date on significant trends and recent key settlements in this area of law, and grasp the main considerations for conditional class certification and decertification and the key collective action rulings handed down in 2023 on a CLE webinar featuring experienced class action defense litigators Gerald L. Maatman, Jr., Jennifer A. Riley, and Greg Tsonis. Sign up today!

When Chemical Crises Strike with Ed Gentle and Kip Benson

November 12th, 2024|Categories: Complex Business Litigation, ELP, Environmental Torts, Insurance, Mass Torts|Tags: , , , |

Soon after emergency response teams scramble into action to address chemical fires, explosions, or other toxic events, attorneys begin gathering and analyzing information either to mitigate corporate risk or to seek remedies for anyone impacted by such an event. Listen to our interview with Edgar C. "Ed" Gentle III and Katherine "Kip" Benson of Gentle, Turner & Benson LLC, about legal activity that goes on in the immediate aftermath of a toxic event. Ed and Kip draw on their deep experience resolving this type of litigation to discuss the flurry of activity that unfolds at law firms and inside legal departments within hours of a disaster.

Defense of Data Breach Class Actions: Key Trends, Rulings, and Settlements

September 26th, 2024|Categories: Class Actions, CLE OnDemand, Complex Business Litigation, New Webinars|Tags: , , , |

Data breach class actions have emerged as one of the fastest growing areas in the complex litigation space, forcing companies to navigate evolving cybersecurity risks, negative publicity, and costly litigation as a result. Litigation was particularly notable in 2023, with a record-breaking number of filings and several high-profile cases resulting in substantial settlements. The sheer volume of individuals affected by data breaches has grown significantly, leading to larger classes and subsequently higher settlement demands. Furthermore, the nature of the data being compromised is becoming more sensitive – including financial and health information – which increases the potential damages awarded in these cases. Join experienced class action defense litigators Gerald L. Maatman, Jr. and Jennifer A. Riley for a high-level breakdown of the data breach class action landscape through analysis of key trends, rulings, and litigation strategies.

AI Survival Guide: Best Practices to Mitigate AI Litigation Risk

September 18th, 2024|Categories: Class Actions, CLE OnDemand, Complex Business Litigation, Corporate Compliance, Emerging Litigation & Risk|Tags: , , , |

Organizations using artificial intelligence-based technologies that perform facial recognition or other facial analysis, website advertising, profiling, automated decision making, educational operations, clinical medicine, generative AI, and more, increasingly face the risk of being targeted by class action lawsuits and government enforcement actions alleging that they improperly obtained, disclosed, and misused personal data of website visitors, employees, customers, students, patients, and others, or that they infringed copyrights, fixed prices, and more. These disputes often seek millions or billions of dollars against businesses of all sizes. This webinar identifies recent trends in such varied but similar AI litigation, draws common threads, and discusses best practices that corporate counsel should consider to mitigate AI litigation risk. Our excellent speakers are Jerry Maatman and Justin Donoho of Duane Morris.

False Claims Act, Health Care Whistleblowers, and Whistling in the Wind with Justin Lugar

August 17th, 2024|Categories: Complex Business Litigation, Corporate Compliance, ELP|Tags: , , , , |

In this episode, we discuss How whistleblower cases come about, the benefits of rewarding whistleblowers, how things are done differently outside the U.S., what’s driving the acceleration of this area of law, and best practices when your company is served with guest Justin Lugar of WoodsRogers. Drawing on his background as both public servant and private practitioner, Justin walks through these issues and others.

Avoiding the Nuclear Verdict or the Defense Verdict

August 14th, 2024|Categories: CLE OnDemand, Complex Business Litigation, Insurance|Tags: , , , , |

According to professionals in the insurance industry and the defense bar, the number of nuclear verdicts, or verdicts that exceed $10M, is on the rise. Although the defense may prevail over plaintiffs more often at trial, when the defense loses, they lose big. And plaintiffs who could have obtained needed resources in settlement, sometimes "roll the dice" at trial and get less, or nothing at all. Do clients really want to engage in such high stakes showdowns? Is there a better way to administer "justice?" In this CLE webinar, Mediator Arbitrator Jeff Trueman and Negotiation Educator and Author, John Lowry discuss these very questions. Register for the on-demand webinar today!

Algorithmic Software Facilitated Price Fixing with Jonathan Rubin

July 3rd, 2024|Categories: Complex Business Litigation, ELP, Technology Law|Tags: , , , , |

Everyone knows that price fixing is against the law, chiefly Section 1 of the federal Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890. Competitors may not collude to set prices. However, there are relatively new price-calculation tools that some companies maintain take them out of the equation. With these tools, shared across an industry, firms do not have to directly swap private information with competitors. Instead, they feed their data to a third-party which uses algorithms to come up with prices. In this episode, we discuss what algorithmic or software-facilitated pricing is, what the law says about price collusion, how this new pricing mechanism violates the law, and recent developments in litigation. Our guest highly regarded antitrust attorney Jonathan Rubin, Partner and Co-Founder of MoginRubin LLP.

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