The National Law Journal

3rd Circuit Judges Zero in on Constitutional Challenges to Medicare Drug Pricing Program

Who Got the Work: Latham & Watkins and Shumaker Defend NASCAR in Antitrust Case

DiCello Levitt and Murphy, Falcon & Murphy have filed a lawsuit accusing the founders of World Wrestling Entertainment of failing to prevent the systemic sexual abuse of underage boys. Vince McMahon, Linda McMahon, WWE and TKO Group Holdings Inc. are named as defendants in the lawsuit filed in Maryland state court. Five plaintiffs identified by the pseudonyms John Doe 1–5 say they have suffered "systemic and pervasive" abuse at the hands of former WWE ringside announcer Melvin Phillips Jr. "Thanks to the bravery of our clients, we finally have a chance to hold accountable those who allowed and enabled the open, rampant sexual abuse of these young boys," DiCello Levitt partner Greg Gutzler said in a press statement. "That so many were aware of the sexual abuse of the Ring Boys and did nothing to prevent or stop it is simply unconscionable." According to the allegations in the complaint, the McMahons and WWE knew about the sexual abuse of underaged boys "but did not take any measures to prevent it." Full story from Sulaiman Abdur-Rahman: https://lnkd.in/ePj962yi

Sulaiman Abdur-Rahman: "Russia faced sweeping U.S. sanctions after invading Ukraine. Then Russia banned you and hundreds of other Americans from traveling there in May 2023. How do you feel about Russia's retaliatory sanctions against you?" Jeffrey Smith: "My views on the role of international law are, you know, pretty embedded in my soul. But one of the things that bothers me most of all is the fact that the world order that we created, largely the United States after World War II, is now coming apart. Everything we did, all the international organizations, the United Nations, the emphasis on law, the emphasis on the Nuremberg courts and the subsequent trial of war criminals: The Russians don't like it. "It's not entirely clear to me why the Russians signal me out to be banned from travel, but I'm very pleased about it. It's an honor, actually. My daughter made a mug for me with my picture on it that says, 'Banned from travel to Russia.' So it's proudly displayed on my mantel." Full interview: https://lnkd.in/e__dwB3R

The 2024 NLJ Awards: Professional Excellence—Community Impact Leaders

With the creeping tide of election cases now hitting the court's emergency docket, just 20% of Americans are confident in the court's ability to be "neutral" in a ruling on the 2024 election, according to the Pew Research Center. One would think David Boies, of all people, would share that cynicism. After all, three of the court's current members—Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. and Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett—worked for Bush's legal team in some form or another. But Boies tends to see the 2000 ruling as an aberration of sorts, rather than a turning point against democratic elections, and thinks the current court has no "appetite to get involved." "I think they recognize the damage that was done to the Supreme Court's standing by Bush v. Gore and I don't think they are interested in repeating that," he said. "[Roberts, Kavanaugh and Barrett] are among the three justices that I think are going to be restrained with election results," Boies added. "I think that, to some extent, the experience of going through that gives them a perspective that should and I think will influence them to, as I say, stay out of the electoral process." Of the dozens, perhaps hundreds, of election lawsuits being filed around the country, Boies doesn't consider any of them "very serious." Full story from Jimmy Hoover: https://lnkd.in/ezdiJ2jt

Democrats and Republicans have amassed large legal networks, including small firms and attorneys in Big Law, to spearhead election litigation, with dozens of election lawsuits already filed in a number of states and more likely to materialize after Election Day. The Republican National Committee has turned to firms such as Jones Day and Dhillon Law Group, while the Democratic National Committee has retained Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, Perkins Coie and Covington & Burling for legal services. These firms are in addition to attorneys for Kamala Harris and Donald Trump's presidential campaigns overseeing litigation. Earlier this year, the Trump campaign and the RNC launched an election integrity program, which they said would have more than 100,000 volunteers and attorneys deployed across battleground states, implementing what they called a "proactive litigation effort." The RNC has turned to Jones Day and the Dhillon Law Group for legal and compliance services in recent months, according to Federal Election Commission records. In August alone, the RNC paid Jones Day roughly $731,000. Jones Day partner John Gore has been involved in an RNC case in Pennsylvania over provisional ballots, appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to put on hold a Pennsylvania high court decision. Democrats have also created their own legal network to oversee and handle election litigation. The group leading that charge involves several Big Law attorneys and alumni. A top lawyer for the Harris campaign, Covington partner Dana Remus, is providing overall strategic direction and leading the campaign's legal election protection programs. Remus joined Covington in 2022 after serving as assistant to the president and White House counsel for President Joe Biden. Full story from Abigail Adcox: https://lnkd.in/eJHBX97f

Supreme Court Says Virginia Can Continue Voter Roll Purge

Will 9th Circuit Uphold NLRB's New Pro-Union Bargaining Orders Rule?

The 2024 NLJ Awards: Professional Excellence—Government Relations/Lobbying