Staff Writer

  • Kroger-Albertson’s US Anti-Trust Trial to End But Other Legal Blocks Loom

    U.S. antitrust regulators actively presented their case to block Kroger’s $25 billion bid to acquire rival grocer Albertsons. The trial will wrap up on Tuesday, but the legal battle over the merger is far from over, with two more trials this month addressing concerns that the merger could increase grocery prices. For the past three…

  • Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs charged with racketeering, sex trafficking

    Sean “Diddy” Combs used his fame as one of hip-hop’s biggest stars to coerce women into demeaning sex acts as part of a decades-long scheme involving sex trafficking and racketeering, according to a federal indictment unsealed on Tuesday. Prosecutors stated that starting in 2009, Combs leveraged his vast media empire, including his record label Bad…

  • Lawsuit Claims Miley Cyrus Copied Bruno Mars Song For Hit ‘Flowers’

    Pop star Miley Cyrus copied Bruno Mars’ hit “When I Was Your Man” in her number-one single “Flowers,” according to a copyright lawsuit filed in California federal court. The complaint, filed by music-rights owner Tempo Music Investments on Monday, claims that “Flowers” replicates “numerous melodic, harmonic, and lyrical elements” from Mars’ 2013 chart-topping song. Spokespeople…

  • TikTok Faces Tough Questions Over Challenge to US Law

    A lawyer representing TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance urged a federal appeals court on Monday to block a U.S. law that would ban the app, which is used by 170 million Americans, starting January 19. The lawyer, Andrew Pincus, argued that the ban violates free speech protections under the U.S. Constitution. However, the…

  • Two Judges Cleared of Misconduct Over Columbia Clerk Boycott

    A federal judicial panel has rejected a misconduct complaint against two of the 13 judges who signed a letter in May announcing a boycott of hiring law clerks from Columbia University. The boycott was in response to the university’s handling of pro-Palestinian student demonstrations related to Israel’s war in Gaza. On August 12, the 11th…

  • As New SCOTUS Term Nears, Regulatory Power Faces Fresh Test

    The Supreme Court will have an opportunity to further erode the authority of federal regulatory agencies in a case involving the vape industry, following other major rulings. As the justices prepare for a new term featuring significant business-related questions, they will address these issues over a nine-month period beginning on October 7. This term will…

  • Naval Academy, Affirmative Action Foe Square Off at Baltimore Trial

    The group that successfully convinced the Supreme Court to ban the use of race in college admissions will take the Naval Academy to trial on Monday, challenging an exemption that allows military academies to continue using affirmative action policies. This two-week trial before a federal judge in Baltimore is the first to result from lawsuits…

  • Judge Boycotting Columbia Law Clerks Won’t Recuse From Protest Case

    A federal judge in North Dakota, U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor, on Friday rejected a request to recuse himself from a lawsuit involving current and former Columbia Law School faculty. The case concerns protests over the Dakota Access oil pipeline, and the recusal request followed a boycott by Traynor and 12 other judges against hiring…

  • California Lawyer Dues Hiked to $598 Amid State Bar’s Funding Woes

    California attorneys will pay an additional $88 in licensing fees next year, representing a 17% increase over the current $510 fee. Governor Gavin Newsom signed the fee increase into law on Thursday. Although bar officials initially requested a $125 hike, the approved increase will help stabilize the financially struggling agency. Earlier this year, the State…

  • Icahn Enterprises Wins Dismissal of Investor Lawsuit

    Carl Icahn’s investment company, Icahn Enterprises (IEP.O), won the dismissal of a lawsuit that accused it of artificially inflating its share price by issuing unsustainably high dividends to help Icahn secure large personal loans. On Friday, U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore in Miami ruled that shareholders in the proposed class action failed to prove…