Litigation During the Pandemic: Views from the Law.com Newsroom
A Law.com analysis shows that jurisdictions around the country are experiencing deep slides in new civil case filings year-over-year, but to differing degrees. Our local reporters share some perspective about what's going on.
May 26, 2020 at 04:42 PM
4 minute read
We've been monitoring the trends in new commercial litigation in federal courts since the COVID-19 pandemic was declared, using the same data that powers Law.com's Legal Radar. This week, we take a closer look at individual districts and regions and get some perspective from the Law.com reporters who cover them.
Looking at the 10 calendar weeks ending May 17, federal court data show a dip of 21 percent in overall case volume compared to the same period in 2019. The slump is especially prominent in jurisdictions where local residents have been hard-hit by the pandemic.
Even jurisdictions that have not seen such a sharp drop in cases year-over-year—like California —have such a big volume generally that relatively smaller changes still have an outsize impact on the national trend year-over-year. (Our counts exclude most repetitious mass tort cases and certain non-commercial litigation, such as social security claims and immigration cases, as well as criminal cases.)
But why would the Central District of California—in Los Angeles County, where COVID-19 infections are high—look so different from Illinois?
"I think one reason that there hasn't been as dramatic a dip in California—and this is purely anecdotal—is that civil plaintiffs are almost completely shut off from the state courts in all but the most emergency matters here in California," suggests Ross Todd, the San Francisco-based bureau chief of Law.com affiliate The Recorder. "Some plaintiffs that typically might sue in state court might be taking a shot in federal court."
Looking at filings across all the district courts in Texas, we see that the state appears to be the exception. Compared to the same period last year, new commercial litigation filings are basically flat. But if that's what the numbers show for federal courts, it doesn't necessarily reflect Texas attorneys' anxiety over their business—or what's happening in state courts.
In a recent nationwide poll conducted by Texas litigation reporter Angela Morris, almost 65 percent of the 114 attorneys who said they practice in Texas said their case volume has decreased amid the pandemic. That's hard to reconcile with the federal court stats. But in an email, Morris questioned whether out-of-state attorneys filing lawsuits in Texas may account for federal litigation numbers staying stable in the state.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All'Parting Shot': SEC Issues Wells Notice to Immutable Ahead of US Election
3 minute readDapper Labs $4M Settlement, $1.3M in Attorney Fees Reveal NFT Settlement Trend
4 minute readTrending Stories
- 1Infant Formula Judge Sanctions Kirkland's Jim Hurst: 'Overtly Crossed the Lines'
- 2Abbott, Mead Johnson Win Defense Verdict Over Preemie Infant Formula
- 3Guarantees Are Back, Whether Law Firms Want to Talk About Them or Not
- 4Trump Files $10B Suit Against CBS in Amarillo Federal Court
- 5Preparing Your Law Firm for 2025: Smart Ways to Embrace AI & Other Technologies
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250