Top Legal Headlines
Here are today’s top legal stories making headlines:
Seventh Circuit Revives Suit Against Major Airlines in Lawsuit Over Explicit Language
After setting a low threshold for finding bad language to be "foul, obscene … or otherwise inappropriate" in the earlier decision, a Chicago-based federal appeals court has revived part of a lawsuit over the use of that type of language on American, United, and Southwest airlines. The decision in the case by Timothy Martin versus American Airlines et al may apply in other similar cases as well, said Mr. Martin’s attorney.
Airbnb Named a Defendant in New Lawsuit over San Francisco Law
In the latest legal battle for Airbnb, a new lawsuit has been filed naming Airbnb as a defendant over a San Francisco law requiring short-term rental platforms to pay a 14% hotel tax. The law in question passed earlier this year and to date, San Francisco has collected over $4 million in funds through this ruling, though more than $5 million more is expected to be collected before the end of the fiscal year .
Court Dismisses Bank Settlement in Credit Check Fraud Class Action
A federal judge rejected a proposed class settlement in a lawsuit brought against two subsidiaries of one of the nation’s largest banks this week, stating that the key requirement of good faith and fair dealing was violated by one side. The banker’s agreement in dispute covered allegations that the bank violated legal requirements relating to the credit histories of applicants and employees.
McDonald’s Workers Stage Small Black Friday Protests
As they have done in years past, low-paid workers walked off the job and protested outside McDonald’s restaurants (among a number of other major retailers) today to demand a $15 per hour wage for their work. Near the McDonald’s headquarters in Oak Brook, protesters were found demanding respect from company leaders.
Latest Developments
The Southern District of New York dismissed a lawsuit filed by The Safeport Group relating to maritime salvage rights stemming from the wreck of the steamship SYDNEY. After being discovered in 2015, the wreck was laid bare on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 125 miles out from New York City. Though conceding that it was not the first to locate the wreck, The Safeport Group brought suit seeking payment under shipwreck salvaging laws. The Court found that the shipwreck laws do not require a claimant to be the first to discover a shipwreck in order to succeed on a claim and that Safeport’s status as second discoverer of the SYDNEY wreck was immaterial. The Court further distinguished the case of Wilkes v. Zion Sabbeth Bond #2, which prohibited a second discoverer from maintaining an action for salvage, but in which Wilkes was the first to discover the site, after the first discoverer had abandoned his salvage rights. The Court explained that Wilkes derived its holding from principles of property law rather than maritime salvage law, and that the factual underpinnings did not apply to Safeport’s claims.
A group of individuals and companies alleged that Boston Scientific, Ethicon, and other medical device and pharmaceutical manufacturing companies violated federal anti-kickback laws when making payments to physician co-authors of allegedly unreasonably priced studies. The Court dismissed the complaint, finding that the complaint did not allege that the alleged kickbacks were connected to a purchase or referral as required under the Anti-kickback laws or that the medications were sold at an inflated price. The plaintiffs failed to meet the pleading requirements and "repeatedly referred the Court to various paragraphs of the complaint without incorporating any of them" making it difficult to ascertain the factual bases for their claims.
A United States Bankruptcy Court in the District of Delaware issued a ruling rejecting Valeant Pharmaceuticals’ proposal to pay $223 million to acquire Salix Pharmaceuticals. Key to the Court’s decision was its holding that the deal went through before the Court allowed it, in spite of a "refusal" to pay $175 million in hearing. In the Court’s view, the agreement between Valeant and Salix was an enforceable contract, granting Valeant the right to purchase Salix at the price of $175 million and in shiny new stock. Not only did the Court maintain that it would be inaccurate to describe Valeant’s offer as a "bidding war," the Court agreed with Valeant that the hearing was a mere formality.
Legal Analysis
The U.S. Department of Labor has promulgated a new rule on the definition of an employee or independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The rule focuses on whether a worker is economically dependent on the employer and identifies five factors of economic dependence: the nature and degree of control over the work; the opportunity for profit or loss; the investment in equipment or facilities; whether the services require special skill or initiative; and the permanency of the relationship. While the new rule does not significantly depart from current law in the Fourth Circuit, it is expected to impact many other districts. Legal experts’ opinions as to its impact vary, from predicting that "the perception is that worker classification in the traditional employer-independent contractor sense is really a thing of the past" to expressing the opinion that the rule’s five factors signal to employers that they should "really take a close look at whether you’re going to rely on this rule right now. The answer is no."
Regulations and Public Policy
As we look ahead to November 1, additional regulatory updates are coming into focus. In today’s Daily Legal News, we cover the latest information from the courts and the federal government on regulatory and policy shifts that may impact business or individuals.
SEC: Citing a continuing trend of excessive and frivolous discovery demands, the SEC announced it would begin requiring parties to show their requests were relevant and proportional to the case at hand. The SEC’s new proposal would require that a discovery request include initial arguments for why a request is proportional, including the significance of the discovery to the case, its relevance to the claims at issue, the parties’ initial disclosures and discovery already produced, and any other applicable factors.
EPA: Concerned about overreach by state and federal environmental regulators, the U.S . Chamber of Commerce continues its fight against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The suit seeks to rein in local and state regulators who the Chamber claims do not have the power to regulate wetlands. Over 1,500 outings to wetlands regulations have occurred since the 2015 Waters of the U.S. rule went into effect. The rule is currently on hold, and the Chamber is looking to establish a new, more lenient rule, as well as awarding attorney fees related to the previously dismissed case.
DOJ: Nominees to the new Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis have recently been announced, including former House Speaker John Boehner. Members of the commission include governors, members of Congress and pharmaceutical executives. The commission will provide recommendations for President Trump to incorporate in his opioid and drug abuse policies.
Interviews with Top Legal Minds
We reached out to a few legal experts to get their insight into some of today’s most important issues. Here’s what they had to say:
"The future of eLitigation has arrived in the form of paperless eFiling and paperless juror management, which gives us an opportunity to revolutionize the way courts conduct its business in this area. eLitigation solutions will help with all that and then some." – Thomas G. Slade, CEO, Juror eXpress.
"Attorneys can’t afford to let their practices go dark for several weeks or months while they battle with their competitors and clients over payment. My firm has been preparing clients for this for years and expects that eBilling will be the new normal for the next decade. Firms that aren’t ready are going to be left behind." – Donson O’Donnell, Chief Operating Officer, Harrison & Held, LLP.
"We’ve been working hard to provide our customers with a comprehensive suite of online forms that make it easy for consumers to understand their rights and ensure that nothing gets lost in translation between them and their attorney when they go to hire one." – David Lichtenstein, General Counsel, Allstate.
"For manufacturers dealing with hazardous or toxic materials, managing the risk and regulation compliance of what’s being shipped is crucial. Using cloud tech to digitalize and streamline processes will enable them to avoid costly fines and other penalties." – Paul O’Dwyer, Partner, Crowley Sullivan & Co.
"The crazy thing about retaliatory discharge is that clients are often surprised when they get fired, even when they clearly did something to deserve it. It’s like we’ve conditioned people to believe that people can’t be penalized or fired for doing bad things, and that’s just wrong." – Joe Kerrigan, Litigation Associate, Law Office of Joseph T. Kerrigan.
Notices and Upcoming Events
08/09: Law Day w/Chief Justice Roberts at the Supreme Court of Delaware at 1:00 pm. Chief Justice Roberts will be visiting the court to discuss a variety of topics relating to our state’s judiciary.
08/10: New Federal Rule 23 Class Action Amendments: The Good, the Bad, and the Uncertain: 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. mezzanine level, D.C. office of the Delaware State Bar Association. The speakers will be: Garan Orsi, Sidley Austin LLP, Washington, D.C., and Chair of DSBA’s Litigation Section; Eileen Kent, West Virginia Certified Trial Lawyer, American Association for Justice, and Former Chair of the Litigation Section, American Association for Justice; and John Giordano, Counsel to the Majority Leader, U.S. House of Representatives, and Former Staff Director of the House Judiciary Committee. Lunch will be served to attendees. Space is limited; please RSVP by August 3rd . DSBA members: FREE. Non-DSBA members: $10.00. We accept credit card payments; you can also prepay or pay at the door. Registration for this seminar closes at 5:00 p.m. the day before the seminar or when capacity is reached.
8/10: Law Day w/Chief Justice Roberts at the Supreme Court of Delaware at 1:00 pm. Chief Justice Roberts will be visiting the court to discuss a variety of topics relating to our state’s judiciary.
08/13: 22nd Annual Workers’ Compensation Conference: 9:00 a.m. – 4:20 p.m. Dover Downs Hotel, Dover, DE. There will be various speakers and topics that day related directly to Workers Compensation including a Keynote Speaker, Chief Justice Myron T. Steele speaking on Caselaw Update on Drug and Amputation Cases, Attorney General Beau Biden on Medicaid Recovery, and Janet Allen on the role of the Office of Workers Compensation.