In an opinion today, the Second Circuit ordered a retrial of Sarah Palin’s defamation suit against the New York Times (see our prior coverage here). The suit arises from an editorial suggesting that her political action committee’s use of “stylized cross hairs” over the districts of several members of Congress in online materials incited
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Judge Cote: Jimmy Kimmel’s Segment on George Santos’s “Cameo” Videos Constitutes “Fair Use”
On Monday, Judge Cote granted a motion to dismiss claims that George Santos, former Congressman, brought against Jimmy Kimmel, ABC, and Disney regarding “Cameo” videos by Santos that Kimmel featured on his show, Jimmy Kimmel Live! Cameo is “a website that allows fans [] to request personalized video messages from public figures and celebrities.”…
Judge Woods: Class Decertified Due to Counsel’s Continued Inadequacy
Last week, Judge Woods granted defendants’ motion to decertify a class because plaintiffs’ counsel failed to comply with its obligation to produce a viable class-wide statement of damages. Judge Woods explained that counsel for plaintiffs had been incompetent throughout the litigation, and the Court was no longer satisfied that plaintiffs’ counsel could adequately represent the…
Judge Rakoff: Unproduced Emails — Although Relevant — Do Not Warrant New Trial Or Sanctions
On Monday, Judge Rakoff held that a discovery error—uncovered after the parties went to trial—did not merit a redo or sanctions. In June 2021, Adidas brought a trademark action against Thom Browne, alleging that Thom Browne’s four-bar and grosgrain design on its activewear infringed Adidas’s trademarked three-stripe design. The case went to trial in January…
Judge Engelmayer: Securities Law Requiring “Internal Accounting Controls” Does Not Reach Cybersecurity Deficiencies
In an opinion last week, Judge Engelmayer dismissed most of the SEC’s fraud claims against the software company SolarWinds over the so-called “SUNBURST” cyberattack in 2020 that is generally attributed to state-sponsored Russian hackers.
Judge Engelmayer allowed the SEC’s claims to proceed as to certain pre-SUNBURST statements on SolarWinds’ website touting its cybersecurity practices, but…
Magistrate Judge Wang Warns Against “Protracted Letter-Writing Campaigns” Over Discovery
In an Order last week, Magistrate Judge Wang chided the parties in a terrorism funding case for having filed a joint, 73-page discovery letter, consistent with a pattern of “protracted letter-writing campaigns” that have embroiled the Judge in “day-to-day supervision” of discovery.
She ordered the offending letter stricken, but an an earlier one (at 54…
Updated Local Rules Go Into Effect Today
Amendments to the SDNY local rules are effective as of today. The changes can be seen in redline here. The following are a few of the more notable changes:…
Judge Engelmayer: Summary Judgment Is Not Appropriate Where “Uncontradicted” Testimonial Evidence Could Still Be Disbelieved By Jury
In an opinion last week, Judge Engelmayer denied defendant’s motion for summary judgment regarding the “unorthodox transaction” exception to Section 16(b) of the Securities Exchange Act. Previously, the Second Circuit had vacated and remanded Judge Engelmayer’s earlier decision, which had granted summary judgment, on the grounds that the defendant had not “carried his burden”…
Magistrate Judge Cave: Eleventh Amendment Sovereign Immunity Bars Enforcement of Document Subpoena to NY Attorney General’s Office
Last week, Magistrate Judge Cave ruled that the New York Attorney General’s Office (“OAG”) was protected from having to comply with a document subpoena under Eleventh Amendment sovereign immunity. The subpoena was issued by former Governor Cuomo, in connection with a defending against a civil lawsuit involving allegations overlapping with matters that OAG had investigated.…
Judge Broderick Rejects as Speculative Anonymous Plaintiff’s Claims that NYU Law Review’s Diversity Policies Unlawfully Discriminate
Last week, Judge Broderick granted NYU’s motion to dismiss a class action complaint brought by a “John Doe” alleging that NYU Law Review gives “preferential treatment to women, non-Asian racial minorities, homosexuals, and transgender people when selecting its members” due, in part, to the journal’s practice of “requir[ing] each applicant to submit a statement of…