Articles by Joel Rosenblat and Peter Blumberg

Berkshire Unit Liable for Millions in Damages Over Oregon Fires

A Berkshire Hathaway Inc. unit is liable for destruction caused by the 2020 Labor Day Fires in Oregon, a jury concluded, exposing energy company PacifiCorp to potentially more than $1.5 billion in damages. Following a seven-week trial, a state court …

Elizabeth Holmes Should Get 15 Years’ Prison for Fraud, US Says

Former Theranos Inc. Chief Executive Officer Elizabeth Holmes should spend 15 years in prison for committing one of the most serious white-collar crimes in Silicon Valley history, prosecutors told the judge who will sentence her. In a request filed late …

Uber’s Former Security Chief Convicted of Data Hack Coverup

Uber Technologies Inc.’s former security chief was convicted of concealing a massive data breach in a case that prosecutors tied to the company’s troubled past under its original leadership. Joe Sullivan was found guilty in San Francisco federal court Wednesday …

Judge OKs Class Action Status for Suit by Women Employees Suing Google

Alphabet Inc.’s Google failed to persuade a judge to block class-action status for a gender-pay disparity lawsuit brought on behalf of almost 11,000 women. A San Francisco state judge certified the class action Thursday, allowing the four lead plaintiffs to …

Plaintiff Lawyers Accuse Bayer of ‘Pay to Appeal Scheme’ in Roundup Litigation

Bayer AG’s strategy to get a favorable ruling in its Roundup litigation is a manufactured “pay-to-appeal scheme” that will erode the U.S. system of justice if it’s permitted, plaintiffs’ lawyers said in a letter to a court. Lawyers who are …

Monitor: PG&E in California Prioritized Targets Over Reducing Wildfire Risk

PG&E Corp. prioritized meeting inspection targets over meaningful reduction of wildfire risk, according to a monitor overseeing the utility’s program of trimming trees and vegetation that pose a threat of igniting devastating blazes in California. Among the court-appointed compliance monitor’s …

Uber Gains in California Driver Classification But Case Isn’t Closed

Uber Technologies Inc. beat back an aggressive bid to force it to treat California drivers as employees, but a judge’s ruling may allow a long-running fight over pay and benefits to gain traction in 2020. U.S. District Judge Edward Chen …

Lawsuit Alleges Uber ‘Cheats’ Public by Avoiding Worker Insurance Payments, Taxes

Uber Technologies Inc. faces a new legal attack on its refusal to treat drivers as employees that depicts the company as mistreating not just them but the public at large. A lawyer who’s been fighting the ride-hailing giant in court …

PG&E: Some Fire Victim Claims, Including One for 500-Pound Emerald, Seem ‘Suspicious’

PG&E Corp. says it has found suspicious monetary claims by victims of California’s wildfires, including one from a man who says a 500-pound (227-kilogram) emerald worth $280 million was destroyed at his home a year ago in the most destructive …

Uber Refusing to Label Drivers as Employees Under California Law

Facing the most serious threat yet to its business model, Uber Technologies Inc. is dusting off a legal argument it has employed with mixed results: that it’s a technology platform, not a transportation company. Now, as a new California law …