Blogs

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 4 days ago
By Giancarla Sambo Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Below, for your browsing convenience, the categories are divided into: Entertainment, Arts, Sports, Technology/Media, and General News: Entertainment Longshot Bid to Block Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery Merger Filed with Supreme Court Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan rejected consumers’ emergency bid to block Paramount’s merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, clearing the final legal hurdle to completing the deal. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/bid-block-paramount-warner-bros-merger-supreme-court-1236722830/ How to Destroy ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 11 days ago
By Jessie Schuster Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Skydance Blasts Off: Can David Ellison Make Paramount-Warner Bros. Merger Fly? David Ellison’s Skydance is set to complete its $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, creating the largest merger in Hollywood history. The combined company will face the challenge of integrating major film, television, and streaming businesses while managing significant debt and navigating opposition from parts of the creative community. https://variety.com/2026/film/news/skydance-david-ellison-paramount-warner-bros-merger-debt-1236898108/ Erica Campbell’s ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 17 days ago
By Christine Coleman Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Paramount makes concessions to salvage $111 billion Warner Bros. Discovery deal Paramount's owners have made a series of concessions to a coalition of 12 Democratic state attorneys general to resolve a lawsuit that endangered the media company's $111 billion takeover bid of its larger Hollywood rival, Warner Bros. Discovery. https://www.npr.org/2026/09/21/nx-s1-5974909/paramount-warner-bros-lawsuit Inside the Weekend That Cemented Paramount’s Hollywood Coup After months of legal and political wrangling, the media mogul David Ellison arrived ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 24 days ago
By Haley Lyons Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Universal Music Group Sues Distrokid, Accusing It of ‘Unlawful Practices’ And ‘Flooding Platforms With AI-Generated Slop’ Universal Music Group sued DistroKid for alleged copyright infringement and deceptive trade practices, accusing the distributor of distributing thousands of infringing recordings and flooding music platforms with undisclosed AI-generated content that diverts revenue and listeners from legitimate artists and rightsholders. https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/universal-music-group-sues-distrokid-ai-generated-slop/ The End of ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 09-14-2026
By Giancarla Sambo Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Below, for your browsing convenience, the categories are divided into: Entertainment, Arts, Sports, Technology/Media, and General News: Entertainment AFM v. Universal Music and Warner Music Legal Battle Continues — Union Fires Back Against the Majors’ Aggressive Dismissal Push The American Federation of Musicians (AFM) is pushing back against the dismissal arguments filed by Universal Music Group (UMG) and Warner Music Group (WMG) over generative AI licensing. The dispute centers on whether the labor contract's "new use" provision covers AI training agreements with ...

Climate Change Blog 62

By Carl Howard posted 09-10-2026
Facts on the Ground In mid-March, Hawaii was pounded for over a week by relentless storms with 10 to 14 inches of rain falling on Oahu unleashing severe flooding. The storm moved to Maui, prompting more flash flood warnings. The severe rainfall caused the largest flooding in Oahu in 20 years prompting the issuance of evacuation orders and the rescue of 196. The torrential rainfall filled the Wahiawa Reservoir, with just a few feet below the top of a dam in in northern Oahu, prompting local officials to declare the dam at “imminent risk of failure.” The cost of the damage caused by the storm was estimated to be over $1 billion in public and private property ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 09-07-2026
Jessie Schuster Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Jason Isbell Files Class Action Lawsuit Against Suno, Accusing AI Music Company of Exploiting Artists’ Identities Jason Isbell and three other musicians are suing AI music company Suno, alleging that it commercially exploits musicians’ identities without consent without permission to generate music in their style. https://people.com/jason-isbell-sues-suno-accusing-ai-music-company-of-exploiting-artists-identities-12106940 Now Sony Music Publishing and Warner Chappell Sue Anthropic in Multi-Million Dollar Lawsuit: ‘One of the Largest ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 08-31-2026
By Christine Coleman Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Texas Law Targeting Drag Shows Is Struck Down Again by Judge A federal judge struck down for the second time a Texas law that aimed to ban drag performances in front of children, calling it overly broad and an unconstitutional restriction on protected speech. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/26/us/drag-show-ban-texas-judge.html Tupac Shakur Murder Trial: Takeaways From Week 2 The murder case against Duane Keith Davis, who is accused of orchestrating the shooting of the rapper Tupac Shakur, will be in the hands of the jury in Las Vegas. ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 08-24-2026
By Haley Lyons Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Paramount Asks States to Shoulder Costs of Delaying Warner Bros. Deal Paramount asked a federal judge to require 12 states and the Writers Guild of America to post a $1.88 billion bond to cover costs associated with delaying its $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery while the antitrust lawsuit seeking to block the deal proceeds. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/17/business/paramount-warner-bros-antitrust-trial.html Lawsuit Accuses Selena Gomez of Defrauding Investors in Mental Health Site Investors sued Selena Gomez, her mother ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 08-17-2026
By Giancarla Sambo Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Below, for your browsing convenience, the categories are divided into: Entertainment, Arts, Sports, Technology/Media, and General News: Entertainment David Ellison Floats Hollywood Exit as States Threaten His Warner Bros. Deal Paramount CEO David Ellison threatened to move the company out of California by October 1 if regulators don't advance a lawsuit against his $111 billion merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, which could create a Hollywood monopoly. Ellison faces $650 million in quarterly costs from October, with a trial in March. He plans to sell Paramount’s $4 billion backlot ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 08-04-2026
By Christine Coleman Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment D4vd Murder Case Can Go to Trial, Judge Rules After five days of often grim and unsettling testimony, Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo of Los Angeles County Superior Court said that she would allow the murder case against the singer D4vd to go to trial. The ruling by the judge indicates that she found probable cause that D4vd had killed Celeste Rivas Hernandez, a 14-year-old girl whose severely decomposed body was discovered in the trunk of his Tesla last fall. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/27/arts/music/d4vd-celesete-rivas-hernandez-murder.html A TV ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 07-27-2026
By Haley Lyons Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Judge Temporarily Pauses Paramount-Warner Bros. Deal A federal judge temporarily blocked Paramount’s $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery while the court considers a lawsuit by 12 states alleging that the merger violates antitrust laws. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/20/business/media/paramount-warner-bros-deal.html Paramount Agrees to Delay Warner Bros. Merger for Months Paramount agreed to freeze its $111 billion merger with Warner Bros. Discovery until June 2027 at the latest while a federal judge considers lawsuits from 12 state attorneys ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 07-20-2026
By Giancarla Sambo Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Below, for your browsing convenience, the categories are divided into: Entertainment, Arts, Sports, Technology/Media, and General News: Entertainment U.S. Copyright Royalty Board Proposes Extending Physical and Download Mechanical Rates Through 2032 The U.S. Copyright Royalty Board proposed extending the current royalty rates for physical music, downloads, ringtones, and bundles through 2032, with inflation adjustments. Filed by major labels, A2IM, and publishers, it keeps the per-track rate rising with the CPI, though groups like the Songwriters Guild of America ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 07-13-2026
By Jessie Schuster Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Taylor Swift Prevails in Poet's Plagiarism Lawsuit as Florida Judge Dismisses Case With Prejudice A federal judge dismissed, with prejudice, a lawsuit filed by Florida poet Kimberly Marasco alleging that Taylor Swift lifted phrases from her poetry books for songs including "The Man" and "The Great War." The judge ruled that Marasco's poems didn't contain protectable expression and that she failed to plausibly plead copying, closing the case just days after Swift's wedding to Travis Kelce. https://variety.com/2026/music/news/taylor-swift-wins-plagiarism-poet-lawsuit-florida-judge-1236802619/ ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 07-06-2026
By Christine Coleman Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Blake Lively Seeks $8 Million in Legal Bills in Dispute With Justin Baldoni Lawyers for Blake Lively asked for more than $8 million in legal fees and related costs after fighting a defamation lawsuit that Justin Baldoni filed as part of the legal battle over the making of the movie “It Ends With Us.” The figure represents only part of what Lively has spent on the litigation. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/30/movies/blake-lively-justin-baldoni-legal-fees.html A Firm Run by Trump Allies Is Organizing the 250th. Their Fee? Unclear. Event Strategies, ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 06-29-2026
By Haley Lyons Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Customers Sue Madison Square Garden Over Hacking of 26 Million Records Three class-action lawsuits were filed against Madison Square Garden after ShinyHunters, a hacking group, allegedly published more than 26 million stolen records, including customer and corporate data, following an unsuccessful ransom demand. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/23/nyregion/madison-square-garden-data-breach-hackers.html Weinstein Will Be Resentenced in California Rape Case A California appellate court upheld Harvey Weinstein’s 2022 rape conviction but ruled he must be ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 06-22-2026
By Giancarla Sambo Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Below, for your browsing convenience, the categories are divided into: Entertainment, Arts, Sports, Technology/Media, and General News: Entertainment Judge Tosses Out Dawn Richard's Lawsuit Against Sean 'Diddy' Combs A federal judge dismissed most of singer Dawn Richard's lawsuit against Sean “Diddy” Combs, ruling that her claims of abuse, groping, and false imprisonment were filed too late under New York law. Judge Katherine Polk Failla called the allegations "execrable" if true, but said the law required dismissal; one claim under the Gender-Motivated Violence Act was ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 06-15-2026
By Jessie Schuster Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Tyra Banks Sues Netflix Over America’s Next Top Model Documentary, Alleging Defamation Tyra Banks has filed a lawsuit against Netflix, claiming a documentary about America’s Next Top Model falsely portrayed her and damaged her reputation. The suit alleges that the streaming platform published misleading and defamatory statements about her conduct during the show's production. https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2026/jun/15/tyra-banks-sues-netflix-americas-next-top-model-documentary Blake Lively’s Legal Fees to Be Paid for by Justin Baldoni, ...

DEI, Legal Education, and the Rule of Law: A Narrower Path for the ABA

By Michael Diederich posted 06-09-2026
DEI, Legal Education, and the Rule of Law: A Narrower Path for the ABA By Michael Diederich, Jr. The American Bar Association is at a difficult crossroads. Its Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar has moved toward repeal of Standard 206, the law-school accreditation standard requiring schools to demonstrate a commitment to diversity and inclusion. At the same time, the ABA is considering changes to Standards 205 and 207, addressing nondiscrimination and disability accommodations, and Standard 303(c), addressing education on bias, cross-cultural competency, and racism. For NYSBA members, the issue should not be framed ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 06-08-2026
By Christine Coleman Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment After Musicians Revolt, Trump Plans Rally With Singer of ‘God Bless the U.S.A.’ President Trump said that he would hold a rally in Washington with performances from the country singer Lee Greenwood and the tenor Christopher Macchio after most artists dropped out of a series of concerts planned by a Trump-backed group in honor of the 250th anniversary of American independence. The confusion surrounding the concerts planned for the National Mall highlights the partisan tensions around national celebrations of America’s 250th anniversary. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/05/arts/music/freedom-250-trump-lee-greenwood-christopher-macchio.html ...