A newsletter by Reuters and Westlaw |
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Today, in a case closely watched by shareholder lawyers, the 9th Circuit will hear arguments in an appeal by Zillow seeking to overturn a district court order certifying a class in a securities fraud action. Here’s what to know: |
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Shareholders accuse the real estate listing company of lying to them about its now-shuttered program of buying, renovating and reselling houses, leading to a drop in stock prices. A federal judge in Seattle certified the class. Read that decision here.
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Zillow’s lawyers pitched the case as a chance for the 9th Circuit to clarify the impact of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in 2021’s Goldman Sachs Group v. Arkansas Teacher Retirement System, which warned courts to be wary of certifying shareholder classes with mismatched misrepresentations and revelations.
- They argue that the district court incorrectly applied the ruling and, because the 9th Circuit has not yet offered guidance, there is a gap between the 9th and 2nd Circuits on proper application.
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But the shareholders argue that because of the differences between the Goldman and Zillow cases, the Goldman precedent doesn't have a whole lot of relevance. Read their brief.
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A win for Zillow could make it substantially more difficult for investors to win class certification from federal trial judges in California and other states in the 9th Circuit.
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The Family Planning Association of Maine will urge Chief U.S. District Judge Lance Walker in Maine to block the Trump administration’s termination of its federal Medicaid funding over abortion-related restrictions in President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill.” Read the complaint.
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A Massachusetts man is slated to be sentenced for threatening to kill Jews and bomb a synagogue in a case that U.S. prosecutors said reflected a growing nationwide torrent of antisemitism after the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza began in 2023. John Reardon last year pleaded guilty to threatening to bomb the Congregation Agudas Achim and threatening to kill children in a voicemail he left with the Attleboro, Massachusetts-based synagogue in January.
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Court calendars are subject to last-minute docket changes. |
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That’s how much the 9th Circuit ordered private prison operator GEO Group to pay the state of Washington and hundreds of immigrant detainees who received $1 a day to participate in a work program. In a divided vote, the court declined to reconsider a January ruling that said GEO does not enjoy the same immunity from state minimum wage laws afforded to the federal government, even though it operates a Tacoma detention center under a contract with ICE. Read the order.
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"I think you probably picked up on the fact that I have some skepticism."
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—U.S. District Judge Thomas Cullen to a DOJ lawyer during a hearing over whether the department can pursue an unusual lawsuit against every federal judge in Maryland. The DOJ sued to challenge an order issued by the Maryland district court’s chief judge that blocked the Trump administration from immediately deporting migrants contesting their removal. Read more here.
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