Let’s start with Josh Rosenkranz of Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe who led an appellate team for Cox Communications that knocked out a $1 billion verdict record companies had won holding the internet service provider liable for its customers’ music piracy. The Fourth Circuit this week overturned a 2019 jury verdict finding Cox vicariously infringed more than 10,000 copyrighted works and tossed the damages award since the plaintiffs didn’t show that Cox profited from its subscribers’ infringement. The court, however, did uphold the jury’s finding of willful contributory infringement and remanded the case for a new trial on damages. The Orrick team on the matter also included Christopher Cariello, Mark Davies, Rachel Shalev, Alexandra Bursak and former associate Sheila Baynes with co-counsel from Winston & Strawn including Michael Elkin, Jennifer Golinveaux and former partner Geoffrey Eaton.
A trial team led by Robert Thackston of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough won a defense verdict for client American International Industries, the last talc defendant standing in a lawsuit brought in New York state court on behalf of the estate of a woman who died of mesothelioma. After six weeks of trial and two-and-a-half days of deliberations, a jury in Manhattan Supreme Court last week found that the plaintiff hadn’t proven that the talc in AII’s products were a substantial factor in causing the plaintiff’s injury. Jurors also sided with the company on the plaintiff’s failure to warn claims. The Nelson Mullins team also included Paula Pendley, Taylor Giannasi, Lana Morrison and Tanvi Deshpande, with local counsel from Christopher Kozak of Landman Corsi Ballaine & Ford.
