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In a line of cases that even the most cynical of tort reformer wouldn’t blink an eye at, another tobacco company appeal has been swatted down by the appellate courts. In one of the thousands of Engle progeny cases, R.J. Reynolds and Phillip Morris unsuccessfully lobbed a Hail Mary appeal and, not surprisingly, lost. The tobacco giants challenged the multi-million dollar jury award to an individual plaintiff that suffered the harmful effects of smoking cigarettes....

Defendant’s carjacking conviction is vacated where: 1) the District Court did not comply with its obligation to independently review the government’s compliance with the Jencks Act; and 2) the record did not reflect that the District Court made any response to a jury note requesting copies of certain documents. Read US v. Gonzalez-Melendez, No. 08-1497. Appellate Information APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO, Hon....

While we may all be patiently waiting for the robot lawyer revolution, at the end of the day, legal ethics are probably not going to change due to the new emerging technology, including A.I. At least according to a recent multimedia exploration on the topic by Thomson Reuters and Above the Law partnership. (Disclaimer: Thomson Reuters is the parent company of FindLaw). However, what will change does concern the intersection of legal ethics and legal tech: How lawyers practice law....

Looks like Facebook isn’t just for grandparents and cat photos anymore. It’s also a great platform for labor organizing – or even just employee venting. And when employees get together online, they may find themselves facing recriminations at work. So when labor law, forged from the unrest, strikes, and Wobbly uprisings of the 1930’s, runs up against modern social media policies, who wins? The law, of course. Have you given a Facebook thumbs up to “I Hate My Boss,” “Work Sucks,” or “Dilbert?...

Automatic email response: “I am currently on vacation and not accepting any emails about anything.” “I’m not planning on reading any old emails when I get back, either, because that feels antithetical to the vacation experience.” So said writer Daniel Mallory Ortberg. That laid-back message may work for writers, but it may not work so well for lawyers. Most attorneys are a little more stressed when they take a vacation....

This article contains spoilers aplenty. If you’re not up to date on the TV version of “Game of Thrones” as of April 29, 2015, go watch that before you get any advice. Jon Snow may know nothing when it comes to … well, most things, apparently, but it turns out he’s a pretty good manager. (Barely) voted the 98th Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch, Jon has the unenviable task of keeping White Walkers, Wildlings, and Stannis Baratheon’s ego at bay....

These days, the last thing any company wants is to be put on blast by social media or a watchdog group with a good reputation and powerful following (like the ACLU). Safety First? While the concept behind using facial recognition software seems great, there’s certainly a problem when it comes to accuracy. For consumer purposes, such as unlocking that fancy iPhone X or Samsung, facial recognition is a viable alternative to other biometrics, like a fingerprint....

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Apple is being sued for anticompetitive behavior, and the evidence includes an email from the late Steve Jobs. Yep. It’s the e-book antitrust lawsuit all over again, except this time, the claims are swirling around the company’s legendary iPod and related iTunes service. When the products were launched, the two were inseparable: Only iTunes music files would play on iPods. Lawyers say this is anticompetitive behavior....

Best Buy’s practice of scanning the magnetic card strip of the drivers’ licenses of customers who made returns was not a violation of any privacy law, the Eleventh Circuit ruled last month. The court agreed with and affirmed the district court’s ruling that plaintiff Steven Siegler did not have any valid claim for relief under the Drivers’ Protection Privacy Act (“DPPA”). Siegler, who was hoping to launch a class action suit against Best Buy, was a customer who was attempting to return a computer mouse that he had purchased the day before....

Yesterday, we brought you a trifecta of Microsoft updates. Today? There’s more news from our favorite underdog, BlackBerry, which has finally stopped hemorrhaging cash and may be primed for a comeback. BlackBerry? Aren’t they the folks who made those keyboarded phones that businesspeople used to love? Yep, and they’re bringing the old-school devices back, at least for now. Meanwhile, for those who have moved on to an iPhone, but miss their QWERTY keyboards, there’s bad news: Typo, the company that produced a BlackBerry-esque keyboard attachment for iPhones, may be on its deathbed, after a California court granted BlackBerry’s request for an injunction....

Two years ago, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority discovered that one of its arbitrators was not what he claimed. James Frank had claimed to be a lawyer and member of several state bars. That, however, was not true. But the deception didn’t come to light until after Frank had overseen nearly 40 securities arbitration cases over a period of 15 years, involving major brokers and billions of dollars – all the while maintaining that he was an attorney....

Like other disruptive startups, Turo is having to litigate its way to success. Turo, the Airbnb of cars, is locked in litigation with Los Angeles and San Francisco airports over its business model. The company says it is not rental car company, and should not have to pay rental car fees. For now, Turo has the airports against the ropes and is gaining support from investors. Of course, it’s always a long, costly road when you have to go to court....

Class Action Against Fannie Mae In Casa Orlando Apts., Ltd. v. Fed’l Nat’l. Mortgage Assn., No. 09-40997, an action by mortgagors whose mortgages for low-income multi-family housing were held or serviced by the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and insured by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), for breach of fiduciary duty, the court affirmed the denial of class certification where 1) the District of Columbia could not have the most significant relationship to the issues unless the fiduciary relationship was created and maintained there, so D....

Courts must fully resolve issues around the existence of an arbitration agreement, including conducting an evidentiary hearing if there are factual disputes, the Fourth Circuit ruled last Friday. In a case involving online payday loans, a district court ruled that several banks had failed to meet their burden in showing the existence of an arbitration agreement. When the banks provided further evidence, the court refused to reconsider, finding the issue was already decided....

If you are techno-skeptical, virtual currencies like Bitcoin may be a good reason for that. Homero Josh Garza, who founded two cryptocurrency startups, has been ordered to pay nearly $10 million for wire fraud. His companies have been hit with a judgment of more than $10 million. The fines barely dent the $172 billion market, but it’s a shot across the bow to everyone dealing in digital currencies. And big banks like JP Morgan are saying, “we told you so....

Sorry, we’ve always wanted to use one of those titles. But seriously, you really won’t. Jennifer Gaubert is a lawyer, a radio host, and a self-described “public figure.” She also reportedly tried to sleep with a cab driver while very, very drunk. None of this is remarkable, or something we’d ordinarily care about, but then the courts got involved. The cab driver, Hervey Farell, accused her of assault, as she allegedly grabbed his genitals....

Though prosecutors might beg to differ on this one, for defense attorneys and defendants, perhaps the greatest legal word of all is acquittal. For the public, the term might be a bit mystifying, but for attorneys, an acquittal means it’s over. Given the significance of the word, you probably wouldn’t be surprised to learn that there’s nearly a 1,000 years of history behind it. However, if you aren’t well versed in Latin, or even if you are, the origin of the term acquittal might be illuminating, particularly from a present-day-archeologist-perspective....

Most in-house lawyers and general counsel have been in that unfortunate position of looking at an email that a c-level or other executive sent, and just being able to muster no other reaction than a face palm. You know the one where you slowly close your eyes, wonder for a moment if this is real life, or just fantasy, then abruptly bring your hand up to your forehead, cupping your brow, while shaking your head back and forth as disappointingly as you know how....

Here’s a hornbook-style negligence case out of the First Circuit to kick off the week. But the interesting dicta in this case doesn’t come from the negligence analysis. Rather, it takes us back to good old-fashioned jurisdictional issues, Erie style. In a decision posted on Friday, the First Circuit Court of Appeals talked about the liability of a gun owner, specifically when his gun is stolen to commit a crime....

Here’s a little political news to cap off your week, Fourth Circuit fans. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals Chief Judge William Traxler Jr. announced the three-judge panel that will consider the lawsuit contesting Maryland’s Congressional redistricting map this week. The judges are Fourth Circuit Judge Paul Niemeyer, and U.S. District Judges Alexander Williams and Roger Titus, both of the District Court for the District of Maryland. The map, which has the support of most Maryland Democrats, including Governor Martin O’Malley, would increase the Democratic majority in the state’s House delegation....