Judge Katherine Forrest has announced that she will be retiring from the federal bench. Judge Forrest was nominated as a district judge by President Obama in 2011. For additional coverage, see the New York Law Journal piece here. Our full coverage of cases before Judge Forrest is here. H/T NYLJ… Continue Reading
In an opinion today, Judge Forrest dismissed a class action brought by a vegetarian who alleged she bought fries and mozzarella sticks at Buffalo Wild Wings without knowing that they were cooked in beef tallow. Judge Forrest found that, under the New York consumer protection law at issue, N.Y. Gen. Bus. L § 349, the … Continue Reading
In an opinion yesterday, Judge Forrest denied “dueling” motions for summary judgment in case over the shipment of allegedly spoiled strawberries, yet she at the same time observed that there were “serious questions as to whether it is worth incurring the expense of a trial,” given that “the amount in controversy is less than $100,000.” … Continue Reading
This week, Judge Forrest dismissed an action by New York City pedicab drivers challenging city policies towards pedicabs as unconstitutional. The drivers claimed that NYPD officers were given instructions “from above” to “stop all pedicabs,” which resulted in unwarranted inspections, checkpoints, and fines. Judge Forrest found that the plaintiffs failed to allege a colorable Fourth Amendment claim:… Continue Reading
In an opinion this week by Judge Forrest (sitting by designation), the Second Circuit reversed in part Judge Castel’s dismissal (covered here) of claims brought by a University of Virginia fraternity against Rolling Stone magazine over a widely discredit article telling the story of a source named “Jackie” being gang raped at a fraternity party. The Second … Continue Reading
In an opinion unsealed last week, Judge Forrest ruled that a suit by the alleged ghostwriter of former Fox News host Andrea Tantaros’ book Tied Up in Knots could not stay sealed, merely because the revelation that there was a ghostwriter could cause Tarantos “humiliation”: Defendant argues that, as a well-known television journalist, her credibility … Continue Reading
In an Order Friday in a case in which an Italian fashion company accuses Ivanka Trump’s fashion label of creating copycat shoes (see our coverage of the complaint here), Judge Forrest ordered Ms. Trump to appear for a two-hour deposition, notwithstanding her claims to have had no personal involvement in the underlying issues:… Continue Reading
Judge Forrest awarded over $165 million to plaintiff New York State and over $81 million to plaintiff New York City for their claims that UPS failed to prevent the shipment of untaxed cigarettes using its parcel service (see our previous coverage here). Judge Forrest awarded damages under both a previous Assurance of Discontinuance agreed to … Continue Reading
On Friday, Judge Forrest held UPS liable to the City and State of New York for shipping millions of dollars worth of untaxed cigarettes from Native American reservations to locations elsewhere in the state (see our previous coverage of the case here). The order comes after a bench trial held last September, where UPS asserted that packages … Continue Reading
In an opinion Wednesday, Judge Forrest denied a summary judgment motion seeking to declare the plaintiff’s claimed patents ineligible for patent protection. The opinion begins with skepticism of the current “fad” of patent defendants seeking to declare patents ineligible with “reductionist” arguments that overly simplify the invention:… Continue Reading
Yesterday, Judge Forrest dismissed the remaining claims in the ongoing aluminum antitrust litigation, which alleged that aluminum trading firms and warehouses conspired to increase the price of aluminum. In August, the Second Circuit affirmed Judge Forrest’s dismissal of the claims brought by indirect purchaser plaintiffs who did not actually participate in the market that was supposedly … Continue Reading
In an opinion Friday, the Second Circuit affirmed Judge Forrest’s dismissal of a complaint (see our prior coverage here) accusing stock exchanges of improperly allowing high-frequency traders to pay to obtain and trade on market data faster than other investors — the conduct at issue in the Michael Lewis book “Flash Boys.” The Second Circuit agreed that … Continue Reading
In an opinion yesterday, the Second Circuit affirmed Judge Forrest’s ruling (covered here) dismissing claims by consumer and commercial end-users who alleged that aluminum trading firms and warehouses conspired to increase the price of aluminum. The Second Circuit ruled that the plaintiffs lacked antitrust standing because they did not participate in the markets where the … Continue Reading
Yesterday, Italian fashion company Aquazurra filed a complaint against Ivanka Trump and her partner Marc Fisher over shoes that allegedly infringe on Aquazurra’s designs. Trump’s company markets a red “Hettie” shoe that Aquazurra claims infringes on its famous “Wild Thing” shoe (pictured here): Aquazurra alleges that at least two other Trump shoes infringe on Aquazurra’s designs. … Continue Reading
The Supreme Court today affirmed, by a 7-2 vote, a judgment originally from Judge Forrest (see our coverage here) concluding that a law pertaining to the seizure of Iranian assets was not, as the defendants contended, effectively a direction to decide a single pending case in one side’s favor, in violation of the separation of powers doctrine. … Continue Reading
In an opinion Friday, Judge Forrest rejected claims by a group of defendants (referred to as the “Town Defendants”) and their public relations firm that their communications were in all circumstances privileged, because no one had done the necessary work to show, on a communication-by-communication basis, that the privilege would apply:… Continue Reading
In an opinion today, Judge Forrest allowed an investor to proceed with a suit against the trustee of a mortgage-backed security trust. She found that Rule 8 was satisfied in this context, even though the complaint did not refer to specific loans or say how any particular loan was a breach of the representations, because the … Continue Reading
In a wide-ranging opinion yesterday, Judge Forrest passed judgment on a slew of defenses asserted by UPS in a breach of contract action brought by the City and State of New York. The action seeks to enforce the terms of an Assurance of Discontinuance (“AOD”) whereby UPS agreed to comply with City and State laws regarding … Continue Reading
Judge Forrest yesterday granted the defendants’ summary judgment motion in a case accusing FedEx of violating RICO by overcharging for packages based on weight and Canadian customs fees. She found that the plaintiffs had failed to show the necessary “distinctness” between the FedEx affiliate that committed the alleged wrongs and the “enterprise” through which it allegedly acted: The RICO … Continue Reading
In an opinion today, Judge Forrest dismissed (with a limited right to replead) claims that various banks and their affiliates conspired to monopolize and inflate prices in the market for zinc stored in warehouses licensed by the London Metal Exchange. The case is similar to the aluminum antitrust cases before Judge Forrest (covered here). She … Continue Reading
In an opinion yesterday, Judge Forrest allowed a defendant in a putative class action concerning debt collection to submit to a judgment in the plaintiff’s favor, and moot the entire case: Defendant has now offered judgment referencing “unconditional surrender” and affording complete relief to plaintiff. Accordingly, judgment shall be entered against defendant under Rule 68. … Continue Reading
The Supreme Court yesterday granted certiorari in a case raising the question of whether Congress’ passage of a law pertaining to the seizure of Iranian assets violated separation-of-powers principles by effectively directing a particular result in a single Southern District case. Judge Forrest cited the law in ordering the seizure of $1.75 billion in Iranian … Continue Reading
The SDNY Blog is relaunching as a publication of Steptoe & Johnson LLP. We expect to post several times a week on decisions and other developments in the Southern District of New York. You can find us right here at www.sdnyblog.com, or follow us on Twitter or Facebook. Here’s a quick summary of what’s been happening in the Southern … Continue Reading
In an opinion Tuesday, Judge Forrest dismissed various class action suits accusing stock exchanges of improperly allowing high-frequency traders to pay to obtain and trade on market data faster than other investors. The plaintiffs subscribed to market data via subscriber contracts that, in turn, incorporated the terms of standardized market data dissemination “plans.” Those plans, which … Continue Reading
