Bizlit News Blog

Federal courts are, of course, courts of limited jurisdiction, and they have a duty to ensure that subject matter jurisdiction exists.  If they determine that they lack jurisdiction, they must either dismiss or, in cases removed from state court, remand.  And remand orders, as most litigators know, are generally unreviewable.  But as a recent Fifth…

Here is something clients sometimes misunderstand about appellate legal services: the value of an appellate lawyer is not measured simply by the ability to research the law and write a persuasive brief. Those skills are essential. But a significant measure is experience—experience, which allows the lawyer to see what others may not. I recently read…

On October 15, 2026, the Mississippi Supreme Court issued an important decision clarifying the information required to establish an enforceable construction lien under Mississippi law. In Cuevas Machine Company, Inc. v. Calgon Carbon Corporation, No. 2026-FC-00451-SCT (Miss. Oct. 15, 2026), the Court held that simply attaching dated invoices to a construction lien does not satisfy…

The State of Texas signed a ten-year lease for office space. When the State later terminated the lease and stopped paying rent, the landlord sued for breach of contract. In an ordinary commercial dispute, that would be an obvious claim. But in State v. Broadmoor Austin Associates,[1]  the Fifteenth Court of Appeals held that sovereign…

Businesses operating websites and mobile applications have faced a growing wave of lawsuits under the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA), a 1967 statute enacted long before the modern internet. Plaintiffs increasingly argue that common website technologies—including cookies, pixels, and analytics tools—violate CIPA provisions originally aimed at wiretapping, eavesdropping, and pen registers. That landscape changed…

When a Texas regulator takes a position with serious consequences for a business, the administrative proceeding may not be the only place to challenge it. In some disputes involving agency rules, Texas law allows a business to go directly to court without waiting for the agency process to end. The Texas Supreme Court clarified that…

September is peak hurricane season. Even in a quieter year, the best time to address flood-claim documentation and insurance issues is before severe weather threatens the property. Once property is damaged, it can be difficult—or impossible—to recreate the evidence needed to establish its pre-loss condition, value, and contents. For businesses insured through the National Flood…

For many years now, third-party litigation financing has become an increasingly relevant consideration for parties to litigation nationwide.  Many states have implemented varying levels of restrictions and regulations, and North Carolina has recently prohibited it entirely in civil cases.[1]  In May of 2026, Tennessee enacted new regulations, amending its Litigation Financing Consumer Protection Act (“Act”). …

Corporate legal departments increasingly use third party platforms and managed billing services to review outside counsel invoices. In many cases, the client selects the system and directs its law firms to submit bills through it. Some of these services now use artificial intelligence, automated review, or a combination of technology and human reviewers to examine…

“When you strike at a king” begins the legendary admonition by Ralph Waldo Emerson to a young Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.[1] The young writer had asked for a review of his essay, which challenged the philosophy of Plato. Parties in serious litigation concerned about whether the presiding judge would be an impartial arbiter face a…