Articles by Lawrence Hurley

Supreme Court Denies BP Bid to Halt Claim Payments

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to block payments BP PLC is required to make to businesses demanding compensation for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill as the company fights a lower court ruling. The high court rejected …

Supreme Court Justices Signal Radical Change in Software Patents Unlikely

U.S. Supreme Court justices stepped gingerly into a raging debate over computer software on Monday, voicing concerns about vaguely defined patents but signaling they would avoid any radical change to existing law. This may help tech companies fend off lawsuits …

Supreme Court Takes On Software Patents Today

The U.S. Supreme Court will on Monday delve into the hotly contested question of when software is eligible for patent protection. The nine justices will hear a one-hour oral argument in a case of interest not just to software companies …

Supreme Court Justices Signal Compromise on Securities Class Actions

U.S. Supreme Court justices on Wednesday appeared to look for a compromise that would give publicly traded companies better defenses against securities class actions without overruling a 26-year-old precedent that made it easier for plaintiffs to negotiate large settlements. During …

Supreme Court Could Take Up Religious Rights of Corporations

U.S. Supreme Court justices could decide on Tuesday to review religious objections made by corporations to a provision of the 2010 federal healthcare law requiring employers to provide health insurance that covers birth control. The key question before the court …

Supreme Court Justices Probe Private Company Whistleblower Protections

U.S. Supreme Court justices on Tuesday signaled they may have some difficulty deciding whether employees at private firms that contract with public companies are subject to whistleblower protections. The justices appeared conflicted as they considered whether two whistleblowers are legally …

A Wary Supreme Court Allows Facebook’s $9.5M Privacy Settlement

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday let stand Facebook Inc.’s $9.5 million class action settlement over allegations the social networking company’s defunct “Beacon” service violated its members’ privacy rights. Although the court declined to hear the case, Chief Justice John …

Supreme Court Declines Privacy Claim Against Resale of Driving Records

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to consider whether a unit of Thomson Reuters Corp. can obtain and sell information on drivers provided by state agencies without violating a federal privacy law. The decision not to hear the matter …

Supreme Court Tackles Suits Against Firms for Human Rights Violations Abroad

A majority of U.S. Supreme Court justices raised doubts on Tuesday over whether Daimler AG can be sued in federal court for allegations that a subsidiary violated the human rights of workers at a plant in Argentina in the 1970s. …

Big Business the Winner in U.S. Supreme Court Class Actions

In a series of rulings this year, the U.S. Supreme Court has steered a consistent course against consumers or small businesses that want to bring class action lawsuits against corporate defendants. Comcast Corp, Whirlpool Corp and Sears Holdings Corp’s Sears …