U.S. To Settle With Remaining Defendants In Idaho CERCLA Asbestos Cleanup Case
POCATELLO, Idaho — The remaining two defendants named in a federal lawsuit filed by the United States seeking reimbursement of response costs incurred for cleanup of hazardous materials under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act at a shuttered Idaho industrial site stemming from the demolition of two buildings damaged by fire in a pair of proposed May 18 consent decrees agreed to pay a total of $360,000 to settle the claims, with one defendant set to pay significantly less than the other due to financial constraints.
Split Colorado Supreme Court Orders Injunction In Gender-Affirming Care Case
DENVER — A Colorado trial court erred in its application of the preliminary injunction test in Rathke v. MacFarlane, a divided Colorado Supreme Court ruled May 18, directing the trial court to issue a preliminary injunction in the class case ordering Children’s Hospital Colorado (CHC) “to restore its offering of medically necessary gender-affirming care, pending a decision on the merits” of the case brought by minor patients after CHC suspended such care due to a risk of losing hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding.
Monsanto Settles PCB Claims With 2 States For A Combined Minimum Of $133 Million
LEVERKUSEN, Germany — Bayer AG on May 18 announced settlements with Michigan and Rhode Island for potential claims by the states related to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) pollution. The settlements have a combined total minimum payment of $133 million, with the possibility of additional contingent payments tied to an indemnity lawsuit that Monsanto Co. filed against companies that it says agreed to cover certain liabilities from PCBs.
Massachusetts Federal Jury Hits Takeda With $474M Verdict In Antitrust Class Action
BOSTON — A federal jury in Massachusetts on May 18 found Takeda Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. liable for $474.89 million in damages in a class action alleging that the pharmaceutical company violated federal and state antitrust laws by working with a competitor to delay the availability of a generic version of its drug to treat irritable bowel syndrome and chronic constipation.
4th Circuit Says Express Scripts Entitled To Jury Trial In W.Va. Opioid Case
RICHMOND, Va. — Express Scripts is entitled to a jury trial over allegations that the pharmacy benefits manager contributed to an “oversupply” of prescription opioids throughout West Virginia, the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals held, granting in part a petition for a writ of mandamus.
Panel: Diversity Jurisdiction Lacking In Coverage Dispute Over Negligence Claim
RICHMOND, Va. — The Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals held that there is not complete diversity of citizenship between parties in a lawsuit seeking a declaration that a professional and general liability insurer has a duty to defend its nonemergency medical transport company insured against an underlying negligence action, vacating a lower federal court’s dismissal of the lawsuit and remanding for the trial court to consider first whether the parties should be realigned.
High Court Won’t Review Ruling Finding X Immune Under CDA Over Porn Allegations
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on May 18 denied a petition for a writ of certiorari by two John Does seeking review of a Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruling finding that Twitter Inc. (now known as X Corp.) is immune pursuant to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA) to federal law claims and some product liability claims related to allegations that Twitter allowed child pornography to stay on the social media platform.
Attorney Says Simple Error, Not AI, Responsible For Citation Mistakes
JACKSON, Miss. — An attorney in a veteran’s First Amendment case took responsibility for errors in a brief and pointed to steps he has taken to prevent future mistakes, saying in a May 15 declaration in response to an order to show cause that incorrect citations were likely the result of switching between legal research tools, tight deadlines and simple error and not the use of artificial intelligence.
5th Circuit Reverses Dismissal Of Indictment Over Midtrial Disclosures
NEW ORLEANS — Concluding that the record showed that it was an abuse of discretion to dismiss an indictment without prejudice for the government’s late disclosure of two pieces of evidence, the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on May 15 reversed the dismissal order and remanded with instructions to reinstate the indictment in the case concerning charges of disaster relief fraud and wire fraud.
High Court Grants Fired Public University Workers’ Title IX Sex Bias Suit Petition
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on May 18 granted a petition for a writ of certiorari filed by two former employees of the University System of Georgia asking the court to determine whether they can privately sue their public employer for sex discrimination under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.
Clothing, Footwear Companies Named In Latest Class Suits Seeking Tariff Refunds
NEW YORK — Ralph Lauren Corp. owes consumers more than $5 million the company collected “based on or attributed to . . . unlawful tariffs,” a Florida woman alleges in a putative class complaint filed May 14 in a federal court in New York; the complaint is one of several tariff-related class complaints filed in the last week against clothing and shoe companies and one of several dozen filed in the last few months against various companies that collected tariffs pursuant to executive orders issued by President Donald J. Trump.