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Plus, J&J talc suit funders unmasked, and Sidley chair Yvette Ostolaza is
interviewed by columnist Vivia Chen

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Business & Practice
Monday, April 10, 2023

Inside:    Leading the News    Wake Up Call    Dealmaking    In-House   
Insights    Litigation    Judiciary    Also in the News    Companies & Law Firms


CRUCIAL WEEK FOR MEDICATION ABORTION AFTER CONFLICTING RULINGS

Dueling orders issued by federal district court judges in Texas and Washington
call into question the legal status of a drug used in almost all medication
abortions in the US, potentially setting up another politically seismic ruling
by the Supreme Court, Madlin Mekelburg reports.




Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk issued an order Friday to suspend the US Food and Drug
Administration’s decades-old approval of mifepristone, part of a two-pill
regimen commonly used to end a pregnancy within the first 10 weeks. Kacsmaryk,
appointed to the bench in the Northern District of Texas by President Donald
Trump, held that the FDA overstepped its authority when it first approved the
abortion pill. Read More

Conflicting Ruling: Shortly after Kacsmaryk’s order, Judge Thomas O. Rice of the
Eastern District of Washington—an Obama appointee—affirmed the FDA’s approval of
mifepristone and blocked the government from restricting access. Read More

Crucial Week Ahead: Kacsmaryk’s order won’t go into effect for seven days, which
gives the Biden administration time to appeal to the Fifth Circuit. HHS
Secretary Xavier Becerra said Sunday that “every option is on the table” to
fight that ruling. “It’s incumbent upon us as a country to make sure women have
safe and effective medication available,” he said during an appearance on CNN.
Read More

The opposing orders will put pressure on federal appellate judges—and possibly
the Supreme Court—to step in quickly before Kacsmaryk’s ruling goes into effect,
said University of Texas law professor Steve Vladeck, a law professor at the
University of Texas. “Presumably, someone has to rule by next Friday, or else
Saturday we have chaos,” he said.

For more details on mifepristone, click here for an explainer from Ella Ceron.


J&J TALC SUITS' OUTSIDE FUNDERS UNVEILED VIA LITTLE USED NJ RULE

An ongoing legal battle against Johnson & Johnson over baby products said to
cause cancer was aided by outside funders who put up cash in exchange for a
stake in hundreds of claims. The case is one of few in which litigation funders
have been unmasked under a New Jersey federal court’s disclosure rule.

Litigants have flagged outside funding in only nine cases since the New Jersey
rule took effect in June 2021. The handful of disclosures offer minimal insight
into the $12 billion business of betting on lawsuits.

J&J is offering to pay $8.9 billion to settle the talc litigation, including
claims backed by outside funders. It’s part of the companies’ latest bid to use
bankruptcy laws to limit the impact of the litigation.

Read More




LEADING THE NEWS


PROSKAUER CYBER ATTACK LEFT SENSITIVE CLIENT DATA UNGUARDED

A data breach at Proskauer Rose exposed client data, including sensitive legal
and financial information, the law firm confirmed Friday. Read More


FTX FAILURE ROOTED IN ‘HUBRIS,’ ‘GREED,’ DEBTORS REPORT SAYS

Failed crypto exchange FTX Trading Ltd. lacked fundamental financial and
accounting controls, stifled dissent within the company and joked internally
about their tendency to lose track of millions of dollars in assets, according
to a report by the company’s debtors. Read More


SUPREME COURT’S THOMAS SAYS HE HEEDED GIFT DISCLOSURE RULES

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas defended himself against allegations that
he may have violated the law by not reporting vacations paid for by a
billionaire Republican donor, saying he’d been told he didn’t have to report the
trips. Read More


LAWYERS’ ROW OVER FEES FROM SYNGENTA LITIGATION HEADED TO TRIAL

Documents Attached

Three law firms fighting over more than $29 million in attorneys’ fees stemming
from the $1.5 billion class settlement with Syngenta AG over genetically
modified corn will have to proceed to trial to resolve their claims. Read More


FOUR HURDLES FOR IRS TO IMPLEMENTING ITS $80 BILLION PLAN

The IRS finally has a blueprint for spending the $80 billion it got from the
tax-and-climate law. The long-awaited document lays out key goals and timetables
to boost taxpayer services, technology, and enforcement. But key details that
lawmakers, former Treasury and IRS officials, and tax professionals were hoping
to see are missing. And IRS observers see potential pitfalls the agency will
have to avoid. Read More


THIS WEEK IN CHANCERY COURT: AT&T SUBPOENA, GEN DIGITAL SETTLES

AT&T Inc. already has prevailed twice over the state of Delaware’s attempts to
enforce an unclaimed funds subpoena against the telecom giant. Now, the Court of
Chancery will consider another subpoena from the state issued in the wake of
those AT&T legal victories. Read More


WHY CRYPTO IS WATCHING ETHEREUM’S ‘SHANGHAI’ UPGRADE: QUICKTAKE

The Ethereum network is set to undergo a technical revamp on April 12 that will
allow users to withdraw tens of billions of dollars of its native token, Ether.
Known as the “Shanghai” upgrade, it’s a necessary step after the world’s most
commercially important crypto platform shifted to a less power-hungry process
for ordering transactions. Investors burned by recent turmoil in crypto markets
will be wondering if, presented with their first opportunity to withdraw their
tokens, some Ether holders will run for the hills. Read More


WAKE UP CALL

Fenwick & West grew its revenues 3.8% to $750.4 million in 2022, as the Silicon
Valley founded firm’s intellectual property practice expanded its regulatory
capabilities in Washington and had solid growth. (The Recorder)

Most of Washington’s biggest law firms expanded their revenues last year, but
several saw profits pulled down by sinking demand and rising expenses. (National
Law Journal)

Hunton Andrews Kurth was hit by a legal malpractice suit filed by a Miami,
Florida-based former client that alleged it lost $6.2 million it wired to a Thai
scammer after getting bad from advice from a Hunton partner in China. (Daily
Business Review)

Read these and other legal industry stories in today’s Wake Up Call.

Read More




COLUMNIST CORNER

IN HER LATEST Unfiltered column, Vivia Chen interviews Sidley Austin chair
Yvette Ostolaza as part of a series about women law firm leaders. Ostolaza’s
career path stands out: She is the only Latina to lead a firm in the top 10 for
gross revenue.

Sidley got flak for tying bonuses to return to office stats. Vivia asked if
people expected a female leader to be a stronger advocate for flexible work
arrangements.

“We were latecomers, based on client feedback and what our associates told us,”
Ostolaza replied. “We did this because clients are back in the office. I
personally saw some mental health issues from being away from people for long
periods of time. There’s something to being present and normalcy. Work is a good
place to be!” Read More


DEALMAKING


FOUR DEMOCRATS SEEK DOJ PROBE OF WARNER BROS. DISCOVERY MERGER

BLAW Resources Attached

Four Democratic members of Congress on Friday asked the Department of Justice to
investigate Warner Bros. Discovery over alleged anticompetitive practices a year
after the company’s merger. Read More


BAKER MCKENZIE HELPS AURELIUS GROUP BUY LUFTHANSA CATERING UNIT

Baker McKenzie is advising European private equity firm Aurelius Group on its
acquisition of the non-European catering and in-flight retail business of
Germany’s flagship airline, Deutsche Lufthansa AG, the law firm said. Read More


TECK MINING MAGNATE STANDS BETWEEN GLENCORE AND MEGA DEAL

The fate of the biggest mining deal in more than a decade lies in the hands of a
Canadian magnate who built a fortune on copper and coal. Read More


ANALYSIS: THERE WAS NO SIGN OF AN M&A MARKET REBOUND IN Q1 2023

After the M&A market’s disappointing end to 2022, it is hard to imagine M&A deal
volumes dropping lower. But that is exactly what happened to begin 2023. Read
More


UNIONS REPORT KEY MEMBERSHIP GAINS IN 2022

Several large US unions saw double-digit growth in 2022 at the same time
employers were weathering a tight labor market and a wave of worker
dissatisfaction, according to a Bloomberg Law analysis of new federal filings
from the previous calendar year. Read More





IN-HOUSE

Column


PUNCHING IN: DOL DEFENDS ITS AUTHORITY TO REGULATE OVERTIME PAY

Documents Attached

Attorneys for the US Labor Department are defending a Trump-era update to
overtime rules to preserve the agency’s authority to regulate OT. Meanwhile,
states and New York City are pursuing legislation to expand anti-discrimination
statutes. Read More


WALMART SUES CAPITAL ONE TO END ITS CREDIT-CARD PARTNERSHIP

Walmart Inc. asked a federal court to allow it to end its credit-card
partnership with Capital One Financial Corp., saying the bank has failed to meet
critical standards for customer care. Read More


MOLSON COORS LEGAL CHIEF LEAVES COMPANY AFTER YEAR IN ROLE

Molson Coors Beverage Co.'s top lawyer Anne-Marie D’Angelo has left the company
a little more than a year after coming aboard to succeed the beer giant’s
longtime legal chief. Read More


INSIGHTS


PERSPECTIVES FROM LEGAL PRACTITIONERS, LAW PROFESSORS AND OTHER THOUGHT LEADERS


STATES START TO REGULATE AI-BASED HIRING WITHOUT FEDERAL GUIDANCE

By Paul Daugherity, Bruce Liebman, and Kevin Yombor of Kaufman, Dolowich &
Voluck

States are moving to regulate use of artificial intelligence to prevent bias and
ensure applicants’ consent, while the federal government has been sluggish about
issuing guidance, Paul Daugherity, Bruce Liebman, and Kevin Yombor of Kaufman,
Dolowich & Voluck say. Read More


THE BANKING SYSTEM NEEDS WHOLESALE REFORM, NOT BIDEN’S PROPOSAL

By Yasho Lahiri of Kramer Levin

Kramer Levin partner Yasho Lahiri reviews President Joe Biden’s recent proposal
for addressing holes in the US banking system, contending that deeper systemic
reform is needed across agencies to prevent collapses from happening in the
future. Read More


OUTBOUND INVESTMENT REVIEW SWIFTLY TAKES SHAPE AMID CHINA WORRIES

By Stephenie Gosnell Handler, Annie Motto, and Chris Mullen of Gibson Dunn

As information trickles out about how the government will implement an outbound
investment review program or “reverse CFIUS,” Gibson Dunn attorneys Stephenie
Gosnell Handler, Annie Motto, and Chris Mullen say the program should be
narrowly tailored to critical technologies used in national security. Read More


LITIGATION


FOX NEWS SETTLES VENEZUELAN’S DEFAMATION SUIT OVER 2020 ELECTION

Fox News and former on-air host Lou Dobbs settled defamation claims by a
Venezuelan businessman falsely accused on-air of being a central player in an
effort to rig the 2020 presidential election against Donald Trump. Read More


NIMITZ DISCLOSES DOCUMENTS OVER OBJECTION IN DELAWARE PATENT ROW

Documents Attached

Nimitz Technologies LLC, an affiliate of prolific patent-assertion entity IP
Edge, produced documents in a Delaware federal court—though not publicly—after
months of resisting turning over files including bank statements and the content
of litigation-related discussions. Read More


KPMG, GOLDMAN SACHS FAULTED IN INVESTOR SUIT OVER SVB FAILURE

KPMG LLP was sued as Silicon Valley Bank’s auditor, along with underwriters
including Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Bank of America Corp. and Morgan Stanley &
Co. in an investor lawsuit based on alleged misstatements leading to the bank’s
collapse. Read More


ORACLE MUST FACE PRIVACY SUIT OVER ‘DIGITAL DOSSIER’ MARKETING

Oracle America Inc. failed to persuade a judge to throw out a lawsuit that
accused it of creating “digital dossiers” of online visitors and then selling
that information on its data marketplace. Read More


JUDICIARY


RETIRED CALIFORNIA JUDGES CAN’T FORCE RECUSAL IN AGE BIAS SUIT

Document Attached

Retired California judges Friday unsuccessfully urged one of their own to
disqualify himself and to keep alive their lawsuit alleging that the amount of
time they were allowed work on temporary assignments to the bench discriminated
based on age. Read More


ALSO IN THE NEWS


BENJAMIN FERENCZ, LAST OF THE NUREMBERG PROSECUTORS, DIES AT 103

Benjamin Ferencz, the last surviving prosecutor from the trials at Nuremberg
that held Nazi death-squad leaders accountable for killing more than 1 million
people in Eastern Europe during World War II, has died. He was 103. Read More


BIDEN RULEMAKING OVERHAUL OPENS PATH TO TOUGHER CLIMATE POLICIES

Proposed changes to the way federal agencies write rules would give the EPA more
leeway to issue tougher regulations on air emissions, toxic chemicals, and other
environmental harms, legal scholars say. Read More

Deep Dive


CONGRESS COULD BE YOUR NEXT WORKPLACE RETIREMENT PLAN SPONSOR

A steady rise in states considering guaranteed workplace retirement savings laws
has revived a debate over the potential for federal government intervention in
covering American workers whose employers don’t already offer 401(k)s. Read More


GAP BETWEEN US BLACK AND WHITE UNEMPLOYMENT DROPS TO RECORD LOW

The gap between the Black and White unemployment rate — a closely watched
benchmark of inequality in the labor market — shrank to its narrowest level on
record in March as African Americans saw outsize gains in employment. Read More


BIDEN CONDEMNS ‘SHOCKING’ TENNESSEE LEGISLATURE EXPULSIONS

President Joe Biden condemned Tennessee Republicans’ expulsion of two lawmakers
who protested a deadly Nashville school shooting last week, calling the episode
unprecedented and criticizing GOP leaders for refusing to enact tighter
gun-control laws. Read More


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COMPANIES

Mentioned in this issue
AT&T Inc
Bank of America Corp
Capital One Financial Corp
Glencore PLC
Goldman Sachs Group Inc/The
Johnson & Johnson
JPMorgan Chase & Co
KPMG LLP
L'Oreal SA
Legal & General Group PLC
Morgan Stanley
Oracle Corp
Symantec Corp
Syngenta AG
Teck Resources Ltd
Walmart Inc


LAW FIRMS

Mentioned in this issue
Baker McKenzie
Covington & Burling
DLA Piper
Fenwick & West
Gibson Dunn
Hanson Bridgett
Holland & Knight
Hunton Andrews Kurth
Jones Day
K&L Gates
Katten Muchin Rosenman
Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck
Kirkland & Ellis
Kramer Levin
Miller & Chevalier
Phillips Nizer
Proskauer Rose
Quinn Emanuel
Steptoe & Johnson (DC)

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