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Summary A relatively small number of law schools dominate federal clerkships(Reuters) - A quarter of Stanford Law School’s 2022 graduates landed federal clerkships—the highest percentage among all U.S. law schools, according to new data from the American Bar Association. The University of Notre Dame Law School and the University of Virginia School of Law round out the top five with 15% and nearly 13% of 2022 graduates in federal clerkships. The latest ABA data shows that just 3% of the 36,078 law graduates in 2022 are clerking for federal judges. Some federal judges hire law students for clerkships that won't begin for a year or two, allowing them to gain experience first. Read more:These law schools aced the job market in 2022Large U.S. law firms love hiring from these schoolsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The U.S. Treasury Department since 2020 has protected Citgo from creditors with claims against Venezuela, and its change of heart will allow claims to be settled by negotiation or through an auction of shares in Citgo parent PDV Holding. Citgo is PDV Holding's only asset. Houston-based Citgo is the seventh-largest U.S. oil refiner. Other creditors with at least $2.6 billion in claims against Venezuela have received conditional approvals to join the case. Pincus proposed starting the sales process on Sept. 5 with the highest bid reviewed by the court in June 2024.

According to complaints filed on Friday, Energizer agreed "under pressure from Walmart" to inflate wholesale battery prices for other retailers starting around January 2018, and require those retailers not to undercut Walmart on price. Walmart rivals allegedly risked higher wholesale prices or being cut off by Energizer, the largest U.S. disposable battery maker, if they charged less at checkout than Walmart, the world's largest retailer. According to the plaintiffs, Energizer's share of the U.S. disposable battery market has risen to more than 50% from 40% in 2018. The cases in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, are: Copeland et al v Energizer Holdings Inc et al, No. 23-02091, and Schuman et al v Energizer Holdings Inc et al, No.

WASHINGTON, April 28 (Reuters) - A U.S. federal judge on Friday denied Google's motion to dismiss a Department of Justice antitrust case focused on advertising technology. "I'm going to deny the defendant's motion to dismiss," Judge Leonie Brinkema said in a federal court in Virginia. It also said that the government's estimate of Google's ad exchange as having "more than 50%" of the market fell short of the 70% needed to allege market power. Google's motion is the company's latest effort to end costly, time-consuming antitrust lawsuits. It also asked a federal court in Washington to dismiss claims in a 2020 lawsuit filed by the government.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said the law, which instructed the U.S. Circuit said the law "makes clear" that those leases are no longer subject to requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act, which requires a thorough look at environmental impacts of proposed major federal actions. Earthjustice attorney Steve Mashuda, who represented the environmental groups, said in a statement that the decision will harm Gulf communities and ecosystems. A spokesperson for the American Petroleum Institute called the order a “positive step toward more certainty and clarity for energy producers.”The Interior Department, which did not appeal the lower court decision, declined to comment. v. Debra Haaland et al., U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, case No.

April 28 (Reuters) - A federal judge in Denver on Friday rejected a Catholic medical center's bid to block Colorado from banning an unproven treatment meant to reverse the effects of a medication abortion drug. Medication abortion begins with the drug mifepristone, which blocks action of the hormone progesterone, crucial for sustaining pregnancy, and is completed with a second drug, misoprostol. Proponents of medication abortion reversal say that if a woman changes her mind after taking mifepristone but before taking misoprostol, the pregnancy can be continued by administering a high dose of progesterone. Mifepristone is the subject of a heated legal battle as anti-abortion groups seek to pull it from the market. Republican state legislatures have also taken steps to restrict access to the drug, while Democratic legislatures have sought to protect it.

Companies Johnson & Johnson FollowApril 27 (Reuters) - Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) said on Thursday it has agreed to retain all talc-related liabilities arising from litigation in the United States and Canada and will "indemnify" newly formed consumer health unit Kenvue for all costs. "As unequivocally and unambiguously stated, Johnson & Johnson has agreed to retain all the talc-related liabilities -and indemnify Kenvue for any and all costs - arising from litigation in the United States and Canada. Any suggestion to the contrary is false and misleading," Erik Haas, vice president of litigation, Johnson & Johnson, said in a statement. The news comes as Johnson & Johnson (J&J) seeks a valuation of up to $42.95 billion for Kenvue in its initial public offering. Their lawsuit claims Justin Bergeron contracted mesothelioma, a cancer associated with asbestos exposure, as a result of using J&J talc, FT reported.

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Companies Meta Platforms Inc FollowWASHINGTON, April 27 (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Thursday refused to revive a lawsuit filed by states against Meta's (META.O) Facebook that alleged the company had broken antitrust law. Dozens of states led by New York asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia last year to reinstate the lawsuit, which U.S. District Judge James Boasberg of the District of Columbia rejected, saying they had waited too long to file. The three-judge unanimous appeals court panel said it agreed that "the states unduly delayed in bringing suit." Both were publicized," Circuit Judge A. Raymond Randolph wrote, noting that the FTC had investigated both transactions. Neither the New York attorney general's office nor Facebook immediately responded to a request for comment.

Under questioning from her lawyers on Wednesday, Carroll testified in graphic detail about how Trump allegedly assaulted her in a department store dressing room in the mid-1990s. Trump has consistently denied the allegations and claimed that Carroll made them up to sell books and hurt him politically. Lawyers for Carroll are expected to resume their questioning on Thursday, and Trump's team will then get to cross-examine her. He scorned the case in Wednesday posts on his Truth Social platform, saying Carroll was promoting a "fraudulent & false story" and calling her lawyer a "political operative." U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan warned that Trump could face more legal problems if he kept discussing the case outside of court, and twice advised Trump's legal team to speak with the former president about it.

April 26 (Reuters) - Former U.S. President Donald Trump has lost an appeal to block former Vice President Mike Pence from testifying in the special counsel probe into efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, CNN reported on Wednesday. Earlier this month, Trump lawyers filed the appeal after a ruling related to the Justice Department investigation of efforts to undermine the election that Trump, a Republican, lost to Democrat Joe Biden. However, Pence disclosed that he would not appeal a judge's ruling that requires him to testify to a federal grand jury about conversations he had with Trump leading up to the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. A representative for Trump did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Reporting by Sheena K Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/6] Photo evidence collected during the investigation into U.S. Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira, who is accused of leaking classified documents online, is released in a document by the U.S. Department of Justice. Department of Justice/Handout via REUTERSApril 26 (Reuters) - U.S. Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira, accused of leaking classified documents online, may still have access to classified materials, federal prosecutors said in court documents filed on Wednesday. Teixeira also "took steps to obstruct the government's investigation" into the leaks, prosecutors said, in a motion filed ahead of a hearing into his detention. "His release would heighten the risk that he would make further unauthorized disclosures of classified national defense information," prosecutors said in the documents. The motion said that in February 2022 Teixeira began to access hundreds of classified documents that had no bearing on his job.

April 26 (Reuters) - A California judge on Wednesday tentatively ordered Tesla CEO Elon Musk to be interviewed under oath about whether he made certain statements regarding the safety and capabilities of the carmaker’s Autopilot features. Plaintiff attorneys sought to depose Musk regarding recorded statements that tout the capabilities of Autopilot. Right now.”Tesla, however, opposed the request in court filings, arguing that Musk cannot recall details about statements. The lawsuit is scheduled to go into trial on July 31, adding to growing legal and regulatory scrutiny over Tesla's Autopilot system. A California state court jury on Friday found Tesla's Autopilot feature did not fail in what appeared to be the first trial related to a crash involving the partially automated driving software.

☆ Despite tough talk, Ron DeSantis can’t shake Disney’s grip on Florida
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Although Disney has thwarted the state’s most aggressive efforts against it, Ron DeSantis has repeatedly promised he will win out in the end. In the governor’s effort to wrest control of Disney’s Orlando-area theme parks, he found that Disney’s corporate lawyers have routinely outmaneuvered him. “The question is, how much are you willing to hurt everybody else?”Legally, he says, DeSantis can’t single out Disney explicitly because retaliation against a single company is unconstitutional. To be sure, Disney’s parks division is a huge part of its business. In other words: Florida needs Disney more than Disney needs Florida.

Circuit Court of Appeals, called the April 7 order by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk "abrupt and profoundly disruptive." The 5th Circuit is preparing to hear May 17 arguments on the matter after the U.S. Supreme Court last week put on hold Kacsmaryk's order. Danco Laboratories, which manufactures the brand-name version of the drug, was due to make a separate filing with the 5th Circuit. A panel of three 5th Circuit judges is scheduled to hear arguments on whether to uphold Kacsmaryk's order. The 5th Circuit has a conservative reputation, with 12 of its 16 active judges appointed by Republican presidents.

April 26 (Reuters) - With more and more lawyers at major law firms using fast-advancing generative artificial intelligence tools, legal AI startup Harvey said Wednesday that it raised $21 million in fresh investor cash. Sequoia Capital, which is leading the Series A fundraising round, said more than 15,000 law firms are on a waiting list to start using Harvey. The company says it builds custom large language models for law firms. Technology companies and investors have rushed to embrace large language model-based generative AI since Microsoft-backed OpenAI's ChatGPT debuted in November. Casetext in March released its AI legal assistant product, CoCounsel, which uses GPT-4 to speed up tasks like legal research, contract analysis and document review.

☆ Bannon associate sentenced to more than 4 years for fraud over Trump border wall
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Luc Cohen | Thomson Reuters | Reports On The New York Federal Courts. Previously Worked As A Correspondent In Venezuela | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Kolfage, 41, pleaded guilty last year to misappropriating funds meant for the "We Build the Wall" campaign. Andrew Badolato, 58, another former Bannon associate, also pleaded guilty and was sentenced to three years in prison at the same hearing. "The fraud perpetrated by Mr. Kolfage and Mr. Badolato went well beyond ripping off individual donors," Torres told the hearing. He also pleaded guilty to tax charges. In September, Bannon, 69, was indicted in New York state court in Manhattan on money laundering and conspiracy charges over the planned wall.

The dispute concerns Minnesota's tax regime under which the state takes "absolute title" of a property if an owner fails to pay property taxes for five years. Tyler's attorneys said in a court filing that 13 other states have similar policies that let government or private investors benefit when collecting delinquent property taxes. She owed $15,000, including roughly $2,300 in property taxes, as well as penalties, interests and costs. States have long permitted forfeitures of an entire property for neglecting to pay taxes, which are a reasonable condition of property ownership, the county said. Rulings in this case and any others not yet decided by the Supreme Court are due by the end of June.

[1/5] Singer Ed Sheeran arrives at Manhattan Federal Court for his copyright trial in New York City, U.S., April 25, 2023. "We don't allow dancing," U.S. District Judge Louis Stanton instructed the seven-member jury. The trial is the first of three Sheeran could face from lawsuits over similarities between the two hits. Sheeran is expected to testify again later in the trial as part of the defense case. If the jury finds Sheeran liable for copyright infringement, the trial will enter a second phase to determine how much he and his labels owe in damages.

She told jurors they would also hear testimony from two other women who say Trump sexually assaulted them, which Trump denies. Trump's lawyer Joe Tacopina countered in his opening statement that the evidence will show the former U.S. president did not assault Carroll. Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts on April 4 at a New York state courthouse, a three-minute walk from Tuesday's trial. Trump did not attend the trial and is not required to, and according to lawyers from both sides is unlikely to testify. Carroll is also suing Trump for defamation after he first denied her rape claim in June 2019, when he was still president.

[1/2] Police officers guard the Tree of Life synagogue following Saturday's shooting at the synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S., October 28, 2018. REUTERS/Aaron JosefczykApril 24 (Reuters) - The man accused of opening fire and killing 11 worshippers in a Pittsburgh synagogue in the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history faces a potential death sentence at the end of a federal trial that begins on Monday with jury selection. Robert Bowers, 50, is accused of dozens of charges, including 11 counts of hate crimes resulting in death, in a massacre that unfolded at Pittsburgh's Tree of Life synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018. In seeking the death penalty, federal prosecutors will try to prove aggravating factors in their case against Bowers, including that he substantially planned the attack and that he targeted vulnerable victims. Federal authorities said Bowers entered the synagogue in the city’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood where many residents are Jewish, armed with multiple firearms.

At issue is whether a public official's social media activity can amount to governmental action bound by First Amendment limits on government regulation of speech. The Garniers sued O'Connor-Ratcliff and Zane in federal court, claiming their free speech rights under the First Amendment were violated. Zane and O'Connor-Ratcliff each had public Facebook pages identifying them as government officials, according to the Garniers' court filing. O'Connor-Ratcliff also had a public Twitter profile. Circuit Court of Appeals last July agreed, finding that the school board members had presented their social media accounts as "channels of communication with the public" about school board business.

That is because algorithms that power generative AI tools like ChatGPT and its successor GPT-4 operate in a somewhat similar way as those that suggest videos to YouTube users, the experts added. While the case does not directly relate to generative AI, Justice Neil Gorsuch noted that AI tools that generate "poetry" and "polemics" likely would not enjoy such legal protections. Section 230 protections generally apply to third-party content from users of a technology platform and not to information a company helped to develop. 'CONSEQUENCES OF THEIR OWN ACTIONS'Democratic Senator Ron Wyden, who helped draft that law while in the House of Representatives, said the liability shield should not apply to generative AI tools because such tools "create content." They said tools like ChatGPT operate like search engines, directing users to existing content in response to a query.

It is considered the first criminal insider trading case involving such assets. "He abused that position of trust," prosecutors said in an April 4 filing. He added that if prosecutors mention insider trading, "there is a substantial danger of undue prejudice and confusion of the jury." "Is it insider trading of anything?" "If this case sticks, there is precedent that insider trading theory can be applied to any asset class."

☆ Factbox: Industry targets of U.S. Republicans' anti-ESG efforts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Ross Kerber | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Here is a look at major efforts and, in some cases, their impact on specific industries. In addition, legislation pending in states, including Texas and Florida, aims to limit the consideration of ESG factors by pension funds, which could cut off fund firms from public contracts. Top fund firms such as BlackRock Inc (BLK.N) and State Street Corp (STT.N) - both NZAM members - have said their ESG efforts only support clients concerns, for instance the view that climate change poses investment risks. Several of the bills have been passed into law in states including Mississippi and West Virginia. Republicans failed to gain control of the U.S. Senate in elections held Nov. 8, however, limiting their investigative powers.

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