Ex-Twitter employees sue company over firing
| LAW 360 |
| Media & Entertainment |
| MONDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2022 |
TOP NEWS
Ex-Twitter Employees Sue Company Over Firings
By Irene Spezzamonte
Twitter violated the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act when it suddenly started firing workers shortly after Elon Musk closed his $44 billion deal to buy the social media platform, four former employees said in a proposed class action in California federal court.
Complaint attached | Read full article »
Ex-Apple Product Designer Pays To End Media Leak Suit
By Dave Simpson
A former Apple product designer has agreed to a deal that involves payment to the tech giant to end claims he stole trade secrets to help his new employer and leaked other secrets to a reporter in an attempt to benefit a startup he had invested in, the parties told a California federal court.
Order attached | Read full article »
Masseuse Says Weinstein ‘Embarrassed And Humiliated’ Her
By Craig Clough
A masseuse who claims Harvey Weinstein sexually assaulted her spent a second day under cross-examination by the disgraced mogul’s attorney Friday, describing a complicated relationship in which she continued to interact with Weinstein after the assault while she sought a book deal and accepted his invitations to Hollywood events.
MoviePass Execs Inflated Stock With False Claims, Feds Say
By Elliot Weld
Former top executives at now-bankrupt MoviePass Inc. and its parent company have been charged with fraud for allegedly duping investors through false representations about the subscription service’s profitability.
Meta Tries To Ditch Media Co.’s Suit Over Lost Advertisers
By Lauraann Wood
Meta has urged an Illinois federal judge to permanently toss a media company’s proposed class action accusing Meta of unlawfully luring ad buyers away from its news sites and radio stations, arguing the company’s legal theory is “flawed at every turn.”
Memorandum attached | Read full article »
Ga. Court Must Reconsider Toss Of Rep. Greene Slander Suit
By Rosie Manins
A Georgia trial court must reconsider the dismissal of a defamation case against U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and her campaign over social media comments and political advertisements about the firing of a mortgage company worker, the Georgia Court of Appeals has ruled.
Opinion attached | Read full article »
Analysis
Boston’s US Atty Has Had A Rough Start. It May Get Worse
By Brian Dowling and Chris Villani
Talk of low morale, a lack of veteran prosecutors, and plummeting indictment numbers have plagued the U.S. attorney’s office in Boston under Rachael Rollins as it prepares to defend its crown jewel “Varsity Blues” trial conviction to a First Circuit panel.
DEALS
Diddy Buys Cannabis Operations In Deal Worth Up To $185M
By Elaine Briseño
From rap mogul to entrepreneur, now Sean “Diddy” Combs will enter the realm of cannabis as he prepares to spend up to $185 million to buy assets in three states from operators Cresco Labs and Columbia Care so the companies can clear the way to complete their merger, according to a Friday announcement.
PRIVACY & CONSUMER PROTECTION
Privacy Rules Should Be Up To Congress, GOP Sens. Tell FTC
By Allison Grande
Three Senate Republicans are pressing the Federal Trade Commission to back off its ambitious efforts to craft sweeping data privacy and security rules, arguing that Congress is the “only appropriate venue” to set a consistent national standard that protects consumers and doesn’t stifle innovation.
Letter attached | Read full article »
COMPETITION
Comcast, NBC Settle With Visa, Mastercard In Swipe Fees Suit
By Dave Simpson
NBCUniversal and Comcast have settled out of an antitrust suit that accuses Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. of employing anti-competitive rules and restraints that cause merchants to overpay for transaction fees, the parties told a New York federal court on Thursday.
Order attached | Read full article »
Google Fights Sanctions Bid In Play Store Case
By Matthew Perlman
Google told a California federal court it has done enough to preserve employee chats and should not be sanctioned in a case from state attorneys general and others alleging the tech giant’s Play Store policies violate antitrust law.
Response attached | Read full article »
Standard General, Unions Still Tussling Over Tegna Takeover
By Nadia Dreid
As Standard General and Tegna grow more and more frustrated with the amount of time the Federal Communications Commission is taking to review their proposed takeover, the companies continue to trade barbs with the unions that oppose the deal to take the broadcasting giant private.
1 document attached | Read full article »
Cox Says T-Mobile Claims ‘Flout’ Del. Supreme Court Remand
By Leslie A. Pappas
T-Mobile US Inc. urged Delaware’s Chancery Court on Friday to preserve new allegations it levied against Cox Communications Inc. in the companies’ ongoing dispute over a broken partnership on wireless service, arguing at a hearing in Wilmington that Cox’s newest alleged breaches went beyond the narrow scope of a Delaware Supreme Court remand.
EMPLOYMENT
NFL Union Wants Out Of $300M Racial Bias Suit
By Irene Spezzamonte
The NFL Players Association urged a Florida federal judge to free it from former linebacker Junior Galette’s $300 million discrimination suit, arguing that the suit falls short of showing the union discriminated against him.
Memorandum attached | Read full article »
Roundup
EEOC Weekly Recap: Agency Seeks Input On Strategic Plan
By Amanda Ottaway
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission opened its strategic plan for the next four years to public comment, and said that it struck a deal to end a pregnancy bias suit against Ford Motor Co. Here’s what happened last week at the EEOC.
SECURITIES & WHITE COLLAR
‘Hotel California’ Theft Suspects Say DA’s Case Is Too Old
By Rachel Scharf
The Manhattan district attorney waited far too long to charge three men with a nearly 50-year-old scheme to peddle stolen handwritten lyrics for the Eagles’ 1976 album “Hotel California,” defense lawyers told a judge Friday.
Boston Globe Reporter Fights Harvard Bribe Case Subpoena
By Ivan Moreno
A Boston Globe journalist who wrote about a Maryland businessman accused of bribing a Harvard University fencing coach said he shouldn’t be forced to testify at trial because “the government has charged and proceeded with this case based on its own ample investigatory powers.”
Memorandum attached | Read full article »
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
MLB Accused Of Harassing Broadcasting Affiliate In $6M Suit
By Caleb Symons
Major League Baseball continues to spar with an affiliate of its former Dominican broadcasting partner amid the league’s effort to enforce a $6 million arbitral award against the broadcaster, whose holding company now accuses MLB of inappropriately seeking its financial records.
2 documents attached | Read full article »
REAL ESTATE
El Paso Seeks Escape From Historic Site Row
By Isaac Monterose
The Texas city of El Paso urged the state’s Supreme Court to review a lower court ruling that revived a suit that seeks to protect a possible Apache historical site by challenging a survey permit for a proposed arena project, arguing that the lower court erred by nixing the city’s sovereign immunity against the suit.
Brief attached | Read full article »
Topgolf Plans Construction Of New Venue In Boston Area
By Joyce Hanson
Topgolf International Inc. said Friday that it has started to build a new entertainment, sports bar and restaurant venue in the Boston area, bringing the 81-location multinational company to Massachusetts for the first time.
INSURANCE
Minn. Concert Venue Loses COVID-19 Coverage Bid
By Riley Murdock
A Minnesota federal judge rejected a Minneapolis entertainment venue’s COVID-19 business interruption suit against Philadelphia Indemnity Insurance Co., finding that it couldn’t show any physical loss or damage that would trigger insurance coverage.
Order attached | Read full article »
BANKRUPTCY
3rd Circ. Partly Revives Stream TV Founder’s Asset Claims
By Leslie A. Pappas
The Third Circuit has partly revived claims filed by Stream TV Networks Inc. founder Mathu Rajan in the ongoing conflict over Stream and its assets, vacating a district court’s dismissal of Rajan’s claims for tortious interference with contract and civil conspiracy, while affirming the court’s dismissal of Rajan’s other two counts.
Opinion attached | Read full article »
PEOPLE
Twitter Compliance Officer Jumps To Privacy Software Firm
By James Mills
Amid the turmoil surrounding Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter, the company’s head of regulatory compliance and risk has joined privacy and security software firm OneTrust LLC as its chief ethics and compliance officer.
EXPERT ANALYSIS
Web IP Ruling Illustrates Ways To Clear Hurdles To Eligibility
By Eric Sophir and Evan Glass
The Federal Circuit’s reasoning in the recent Cooperative Entertainment v. Kollective Technology decision to reverse a district court’s software arts patent ruling offers several guideposts for surviving challenges to eligibility, including the accurate identification and description of the relevant prior art in a specification, say Eric Sophir and Evan Glass of Foley & Lardner.
Opinion attached | Read full article »
What To Expect From The Post-Midterms Lame-Duck Session
By James Brandell
Depending on the results of the midterm elections, the upcoming lame-duck session may be the last chance for Congress to enact meaningful legislation for the next several years, so organizations must push through legislative priorities now, lest they are forced to restart their efforts in a much different environment next year, says James Brandell at Dykema.
LEGAL INDUSTRY
Legal Industry Adds 3,400 Jobs In October, Following Losses
By Kevin Penton
Job growth in the legal industry rebounded in October after two months of job losses, with the sector gaining approximately 3,400 jobs since September, according to preliminary data released Friday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
IBA Conference Closes With Call To Protect The Rule Of Law
By Carolina Bolado
The International Bar Association’s annual conference that opened in Miami with a plea by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for attorneys to prosecute Russian war crimes ended Friday with a lifetime achievement award for the last living Nuremburg prosecutor and a call to protect the rule of law around the world.
Penn Carey Law Launches New Legal Industry Center
By Kevin Penton
The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School intends to launch an interdisciplinary center that will aim to tackle issues facing the legal industry, the school announced Friday.
Trump Org. Trial Delayed Again With Key Witness Still Unwell
By Frank G. Runyeon
The Manhattan district attorney’s criminal case against the Trump Organization was delayed again Friday when the judge learned company controller and lead witness Jeffrey McConney was “still sick” with COVID-19, a court official said, pushing trial back another week.
GOP Senators Prime BigLaw For Look Into ESG Work
By Alison Knezevich
A group of Senate Republicans took aim this week at law firms that advise clients on environmental, social and corporate governance matters, saying they should prepare for congressional investigations of ESG efforts.
Letter attached | Read full article »
Analysis
Congress Faces Substantial Post-Election To-Do List
By James Arkin
Democrats are fighting to preserve their congressional majorities next year, but they will return to Washington after Election Day with a substantial to-do list, and priorities on the agenda could be shaped by Tuesday’s outcome.
Analysis
Kavanaugh May Prove Unlikely SEC Ally In Accountant’s Case
By Jessica Corso
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh may not have proven himself the biggest fan of the administrative state in the past, but an opinion he joined in favor of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission seven years ago could prove critical for the agency as it prepares to defend against a challenge to its in-house court on Monday.
Up Next At High Court: Suing The FTC And SEC
By Jimmy Hoover
The U.S. Supreme Court will consider how to properly challenge the constitutionality of an agency’s in-house enforcement action, along with the fate of the Indian Child Welfare Act at this week’s oral arguments. Here, Law360 previews what’s on the docket.
10th Circ. Rejects Ex-Ballard Spahr Partner’s Energy Credits
By Theresa Schliep
The U.S. Tax Court properly denied depreciation deductions and energy credits to an ex-Ballard Spahr LLP partner caught up in a $50 million solar tax credit scheme, the Tenth Circuit said Friday, finding his solar lens business activities lacked a profit motive.
Decision attached | Read full article »
Fla. Defense Attys Complain About Parkland Judge’s Conduct
By Hailey Konnath
Florida criminal defense attorneys said the judge overseeing sentencing of the shooter in the 2018 Parkland school shooting was “hostile and demeaning” toward defense counsel, conduct that “reveals temperament ill-suited to the criminal bench.”
GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week
By Michele Gorman
A GOP senator said investor research firms are “stonewalling” his investigation into how they calculate the financial risks of companies’ ESG policies, and the Financial Reporting Council said its assessment of 100 U.K. companies showed many fall short of the governance disclosures it sought. These are some of the stories in corporate legal news you may have missed this past week.
UK Litigation Roundup: Here’s What You Missed In London
By Tabitha Burbidge
The past week in London has seen three insurers sue a bankrupt opioid distributor, French film production company StudioCanal bring a copyright claim against its former subdivision, and a computer microchip maker bring its patent dispute with Intel to the U.K. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
In Case You Missed It: Hottest Firms And Stories On Law360
For those who missed out, here’s a look back at the law firms, stories and expert analyses that generated the most buzz on Law360 last week.
Podcast
Pro Say: The Antitrust Brawl Rocking The Publishing World
A $2.2 billion merger between Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster was blocked this week by a federal judge who found that the tie-up poses a likely threat to the market for publishing top-selling books, handing a win to the Justice Department and welcome news to literary giants like Stephen King who warned against the dangers of consolidation in the publishing industry.
| Associate – Trademark, Copyright, Advertising and Media (T-CAM) Faegre Drinker -, – | Senior Counsel, Content Acquisition Tubi San Francisco, California |
| Senior Counsel, Marketing and Advertising Tubi San Francisco, California |
