Litigation

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The growth in size of companies dominating sectors of the entertainment industry has been subject to antitrust challenges with mixed results. What are some notable recent developments in this area?

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An involuntary bankruptcy petition is a limited, risky remedy for both creditors' counsel and debtor's counsel. The fee problems encountered by counsel for the petitioners and the putative debtor in this case provide a cautionary tale.

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Despite a provision in a commercial lease that prohibited electronic notice, the Massachusetts Appeals Court sided with a tenant in holding that an email to its landlord constituted effective notice to opt out of an automatic five-year lease extension.

Columns & Departments

Court Reserves Decision Pending Further Proceedings When ZBA Produced Inadequate Findings of Fact to Support Variance Grant Landmark Designation Upheld Despite Town's Failure to Call Public Hearing Within Code's Time Limit

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The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit made clear its view — that class-action plaintiffs' lawyers generally should not be awarded fees that exceed the amount their clients get from a settlement — as the court struck down a $1.7 million fee award in which a copyright plaintiffs' class received less than $53,000 in an infringement dispute settlement.

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The Second Circuit had a tough call to make in the Purdue Pharmacy bankruptcy appeal: What to do about the release given to the Sackler families who had agreed to contribute $5.5 to $6 billion to Purdue's reorganization plan but were not themselves in bankruptcy.

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Simply because the expert is retained by counsel in anticipation of litigation, does not automatically render all communications privileged.

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U.S. Chief Bankruptcy Judge Jeffrey Graham found that 3M subsidiary Aearo Technologies, which is financially solvent, had no "valid reorganization purpose" to file for Chapter 11 protection last year.