Gibson Dunn, Cooley Guide Merck's $9.2B Cidara Buy

By Al Barbarino

Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP-advised Merck on Friday said it will broaden its respiratory portfolio with a $9.2 billion deal to buy Cooley LLP-led Cidara Therapeutics, betting that an investigational antiviral could help the company tackle the global health burden of seasonal influenza.

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SEC's Atkins Turns A Critical Lens On BlackRock, Vanguard

By Jessica Corso

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Paul Atkins said Friday morning that his agency is working to rein in large institutional asset managers like BlackRock and Vanguard that "get out of line" by trying to influence management decisions.

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MVP: HSF Kramer's Gilbert K.S. Liu

By Lauren Berg

Gilbert K.S. Liu, who helped plan Kramer Levin's merger with Herbert Smith Freehills, led a $498.5 million securitization of Tesla solar retail installment contracts and a $228.2 million securitization of Puerto Rico solar and energy storage loans, earning him a spot as one of the 2025 Law360 Complex Financial Instruments MVPs.

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Analysis

SEC Off-Channel Sweep Led To Recordkeeping Compliance

By Sarah Jarvis

Despite Chairman Paul Atkins' criticism of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's previous off-channel communications settlements, that Biden-era enforcement sweep has boosted firms' recordkeeping compliance efforts, and a lack of big-dollar penalties on the horizon hasn't erased the pressure to comply, experts say.

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Chamber Asks Justices To Stop Calif. Climate Reporting Laws

By Juan-Carlos Rodriguez

Business groups challenging California laws that require large companies to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related financial risks have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to prohibit the state from enforcing the statutes during litigation in lower courts.

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Fintech Co. Synapse's Ch. 11 Tossed After Failed Sale Efforts

By Clara Geoghegan

Former banking middleware firm Synapse Financial Technologies Inc.'s Chapter 11 has been dismissed by a California bankruptcy judge after the debtor said it didn't have the funds to try to sell its assets again.

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Crypto Firm Founder Gets 5 Years For $9.4M Fraud Scheme

By Sydney Price

An Oklahoma federal court has ordered the co-founder of a cryptocurrency investment firm to serve five years in prison and pay more than $1.1 million for his role in a fraud conspiracy that involved making false promises of returns to thousands of investors via social media posts.

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Texas Justices Wall Off Shareholder Claims Against 3rd Party

By Spencer Brewer

The Texas Supreme Court found that individual shareholders have no right to bring direct claims against an outside party that has an agreement with the shareholders' company, saying Friday that they instead must file suit on behalf of the company they hold ownership in.

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Stanford Credit Union Says Pig Butchering Scam Suit Misfires

By Sydney Price

Stanford Federal Credit Union has asked a federal judge to toss claims alleging it failed to reasonably investigate fraud allegations by a couple who claim they lost $600,000 in a so-called pig butchering investing scam, arguing the wire transfers are outside the Fair Credit Billing Act's scope.

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Bank Receiver's $28M Fraud Claims Survive Dismissal Bid

By Carolina Bolado

A receiver for a Puerto Rican bank has standing to pursue fraud claims against its owners and directors over what it describes as a $28 million fraud that led to the bank's collapse, a Florida federal judge ruled Friday.

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FirstEnergy Investors Ask Again For 6th Circ. Clarification

By Katryna Perera

A week after the Sixth Circuit declined to reconsider a ruling blocking FirstEnergy investors from accessing documents prepared by BigLaw firms investigating the company's $1 billion bribery scandal, investors have once again asked the court to clarify its decision, arguing that it is "premised on a clear error of fact."

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Credit Suisse Bondholder Class Certified In Suit Over Collapse

By Katryna Perera

A New York federal judge has granted certification to a class of Credit Suisse bondholders and named Pomerantz LLP as class counsel in a securities fraud suit alleging the bank concealed the impact of quarterly losses and its inability to retain clients leading up to its takeover by UBS AG.

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Calif. Properties Off-Limits For Now In $300M Award Fight

By Isaac Monterose

A New York federal judge won't allow a group of companies to take over two multimillion-dollar Napa Valley, California, properties in their bid to enforce a more than $300 million arbitral award in their dispute with fellow shareholders of a Latin American telecommunications company.

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Texas Judge Rejects Bid To Block Kenvue's $398M Dividend

By Jonathan Capriel

Texas can't stop the makers of Tylenol from marketing the drug as safe for children and pregnant women or halt a nearly $400 million payment to shareholders, a state court ruled on Friday, rejecting arguments by Attorney General Ken Paxton's motion.

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6 Firms Guide Warburg Pincus-Led $1.4B ECN Capital Buyout

By Al Barbarino

Toronto-based ECN Capital Corp. announced that it has agreed to be taken private by an investor group led by Warburg Pincus, in an all-cash transaction valuing the specialty finance company at roughly 1.9 billion Canadian dollars ($1.4 billion).

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3 Firms Guide $746M Teamshares SPAC Merger

By Jared Foretek

Brooklyn, New York-based Teamshares announced Friday that it will join the Nasdaq Composite through special purpose acquisition company Live Oak Acquisition Corp. V with a $746 million valuation.

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Mayer Brown Adds Longtime Hogan Lovells Private Credit Attys

By Jack Rodgers

Two attorneys who both spent more than a decade each with Hogan Lovells working on deals and complex financial transactions have moved their practices to Mayer Brown LLP's Washington, D.C., office, the firm has said.

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Why Foreign Cos. Should Prep For Increased SEC Oversight

With the recent trading suspensions of 10 foreign-based issuers listed on the Nasdaq, an enforcement action against a U.K. security-based swap dealer and the announcement of a cross-border task force, it's clear that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will expand oversight on foreign companies participating in the U.S. capital markets, says Tejal Shah at Cooley.

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Lawyers Call On High Court To Stop 'Capitulating' To Trump

By Katie Buehler

Lawyers and legal advocates gathered in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on Saturday to protest rulings that have allowed President Donald Trump and his administration to implement allegedly "unlawful actions" amid legal battles, and to demand the justices act as a check on executive power in future cases.

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Frequent DEI Foe Takes Aim At Mich. Law Firm's Scholarships

By Madison Arnold

American Alliance for Equal Rights, a group known for challenging diversity, equity and inclusion scholarships, has set its sights on Michigan personal injury firm Buckfire & Buckfire PC for alleged discrimination via the firm's scholarship programs for minorities.

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How To Kill A Person: A Legal Battle Over Execution Methods

By Marco Poggio

As botched executions pile up and states reach for untested methods like nitrogen hypoxia, prisoners are turning to the courts for a say in how they will die — and are being met with a legal framework stacked against finding execution methods unconstitutional.

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Buchalter Won't Be Sanctioned For 'Hallucinated' AI Citations

By Rose Krebs

An Oregon federal judge has decided not to sanction Buchalter PC and other counsel representing an environmental nonprofit in a trademark infringement dispute for submitting "hallucinated" case citations generated by an artificial intelligence tool, saying he is satisfied with "remedial actions" already done or to be taken.

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Perkins Coie Sued By Omani Co. Over Trade Case Defense

By Rachel Riley

An Omani screw manufacturer has launched a legal malpractice suit in Washington state court accusing Perkins Coie LLP of a "series of deadly mistakes" while representing the Middle Eastern company in a U.S. Department of Commerce probe, allegedly leading to steep penalties and tariffs that cost the company hundreds of millions of dollars.

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Manning Kass Hit With Age Bias Suit In Calif.

By Christine DeRosa

Manning & Kass Ellrod Ramirez Trester LLP is facing an age bias lawsuit in California state court alleging a firm leader has made ageist comments at employees over 40 and is trying to drive those workers out of the firm.

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'Constitutional Word Salad': Judge Rips Suit Over Mascot Ban

By Bonnie Eslinger

A New York federal court judge denied a Long Island school district's bid to amend claims in a lawsuit challenging the state's ban on Indigenous mascots, calling proposed changes a "constitutional word salad," but said a district parent could add First Amendment claims to the litigation.

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Non-Attys Could Help Close Georgia's Civil Justice Gap

By Emily Johnson

Low-income Georgians and rural Georgians face several barriers to accessing legal services, including living in a legal desert, according to a Georgia Supreme Court committee’s report. The panel's proposal allowing "limited licensed legal practitioners" to assist with civil housing and consumer debt matters could improve access to justice across the state.

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DOJ Official Among Trump Picks For District Courts

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump announced judicial nominees for federal courts in Tennessee, Indiana and Missouri on Friday, including a current U.S. Department of Justice official.

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King & Spalding, Atty Move To End Bias Suit At 4th Circ.

By Grace Elletson

King & Spalding LLP and an attorney who complained that she didn't apply to a summer associate program as a straight, white woman because the firm sought diverse applicants have agreed to end her bias case, according to a filing in the Fourth Circuit.

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New California Bar Leader Aims To Rebuild Public Trust

By Tracey Read

After less than two weeks on the job, Laura Enderton-Speed, the California State Bar's new executive director, is already busy working to strengthen trust in the organization following the botched administration of the February bar exam.

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Analysis

Feds' Use Of AI In Permitting, Rulemaking Raises Concerns

By Juan-Carlos Rodriguez

Federal government agencies with environmental responsibilities have begun using artificial intelligence tools, but attorneys say information about exactly why, how and when they are being used has been hard to get, leading to uncertainty about their effectiveness and shortcomings.

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NC, Utah Attorneys General Launch Nationwide AI Task Force

By Matt Perez

Democratic North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson and Republican Utah Attorney General Derek Brown have announced the formation of a nationwide artificial intelligence task force in collaboration with developers OpenAI and Microsoft, as well as the Attorney General Alliance, a nonprofit group of bipartisan state attorneys general.

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Northern NY US Atty To Defend DOJ In Maurene Comey Suit

By Jack Karp

The U.S. attorney's office for the Northern District of New York has agreed to defend the U.S. Department of Justice against a lawsuit from former FBI Director James Comey's daughter over what she calls her illegal firing, that office informed a New York federal judge this week.

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House Eyes Vote To Repeal Provision On Senators' Lawsuits

By Courtney Bublé

A House bill to repeal a controversial provision tucked into the government funding package that would allow senators investigated by former special counsel Jack Smith to sue for damages is listed for possible consideration on the schedule for the week of Nov. 17.

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Roundup

UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

By Laura Stewart Liberty

This past week in London has seen Freeths face a professional negligence claim from a Scottish car dealership, Rolls-Royce sue logistics giant Kuehne + Nagel, and a team of Oberon Investments Group investment managers sued by their former employer.  

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Roundup

GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

By Michele Gorman

Experts say it will likely take at least a month for the thousands of SEC employees now back to work after the government shutdown to catch up with submissions for initial public offerings. Meanwhile, clean energy developers are increasingly looking to privately held investors amid a race to beat a July 2026 cutoff to maintain eligibility for clean electricity investment and production tax credits. These are some of the stories in corporate legal news you may have missed in the past week.

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Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Kevin Penton

Sidley Austin LLP and Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP lead this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after a Washington federal jury cleared Novo Nordisk of allegations that it defrauded the state's Medicaid and Medicare systems by paying kickbacks and promoting off-label use to illegally boost prescriptions of its hemophilia drug NovoSeven.

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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.

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