+ DOGE can’t get Social Security data.

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The Daily Docket

The Daily Docket

A newsletter by Reuters and Westlaw

 

By Diana Novak Jones, Mike Scarcella and Sara Merken

Good morning. Here’s what’s going on: U.S. District Judge Vincent Chhabria in San Francisco is slated to weigh arguments from Meta and a group of authors in the first hearing over fair use and AI training. Plus, the House Judiciary Committee has backed off a proposal to remove the FTC’s antitrust authority; the U.S. Supreme Court seems to be leaning toward allowing a religious public school; and Sean “Diddy” Combs is due in court as opening statements in his sex trafficking trial draw closer. Thanks for reading.

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Judge weighs key copyright question for AI 

 

REUTERS/Yves Herman

Today, a federal judge in San Francisco will consider arguments from Meta Platforms and a group of authors in the first court hearing concerning a key part of several high-stakes copyright cases over AI training, reports Blake Brittain.

U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria will consider Meta's request for a pretrial ruling that it made "fair use" of books from writers including Junot Diaz and comedian Sarah Silverman to train its Llama large language model.

The fair use question hangs over lawsuits brought by authors, news outlets and other copyright owners against companies including Meta, OpenAI and Anthropic. The legal doctrine allows for the use of copyrighted work without the copyright owner's permission under some circumstances. Technology companies have said that being forced to pay copyright holders for their content could hamstring the burgeoning, multi-billion dollar AI industry.

 

More top news

  • US judge rules Apple violated order to reform App Store
  • US judge limits Trump's ability to swiftly deport migrants held at Guantanamo Bay
  • US appeals court will not allow DOGE to access Social Security data
 

The buzz

  • The House Judiciary Committee reversed course on a proposal to remove the FTC’s antitrust authority, days after its Republican leadership included the measure in a budget package.
  • The federal judge overseeing nationwide litigation over the opioid crisis, U.S. District Judge Dan Aaron Polster, has denied pharmacy benefit managers OptumRx and Express Scripts’ demand that he recuse himself from cases against them, saying that he did not have improper communications with plaintiffs' attorneys.
  • The California Supreme Court could ditch the state's redesigned bar exam in July amid mounting criticism of the new test's problem-plagued February debut.
 

"And when you have a program that's open to all comers, except religion ... that seems like rank discrimination against religion."

— U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was among the justices who seemed sympathetic toward an effort led by two Catholic dioceses to establish in Oklahoma the nation's first taxpayer-funded religious charter school. Kavanaugh pressed an attorney for the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office, which is arguing against the establishment of the school, to explain why the exclusion of St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School would not amount to religious discrimination.

 

Coming up today

  • The 5th Circuit will hear arguments in a lawsuit against the University of Texas at Austin brought by anti-affirmative action group Students for Fair Admissions over claims that the school failed to reform its admissions process after the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling striking down race-conscious college admissions. The appeals court is considering whether to revive the case.
  • Sean "Diddy" Combs is due in court for a conference ahead of the hip-hop mogul's sex trafficking trial. At the conference, the judge will resolve any disputes over prospective jurors' responses to questionnaires.
  • A Venezuelan man held in Texas is due to attend a court hearing over whether the Trump administration is still seeking to deport him under the Alien Enemies Act. U.S. District Judge James Wesley Hendrix is expected to ask a Trump administration official to testify about whether the man, referred to in court papers as F.G.M., is still being targeted for removal under the law.

    Court calendars are subject to last-minute docket changes.
 

In the courts

  • Columbia University student Mohsen Mahdawi was released from U.S. immigration custody, after a judge ruled that he should be allowed to challenge the Trump administration's efforts to deport him over his participation in pro-Palestinian protests while free on bail.
  • In a 5-4 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court said federal civilian employees are entitled to their full salaries while on military leave during a national emergency, regardless of whether their duty is directly related to that emergency.
  • Apartment management giant Greystar is facing a growing number of consumer lawsuits after the FTC accused the company earlier this year of duping tenants with hidden “junk” fees.
 

Industry moves

  • Venable added cybersecurity partner Jennifer Daskal in D.C. She most recently was at the White House National Security Council. (Venable)
  • Cahill added tech IP partners Chris Campbell, Britton Davis, and Alfonso Garcia Chan from King & Spalding. Campbell, based in D.C., will be chair of Cahill’s tech IP litigation practice. (Cahill)
  • Foley & Lardner added five IP partners in California. John Schnurer, Louise Lu, Kevin Patariu and Miguel Bombach join from Perkins Coie, while Tom Anderton comes from K&L Gates. (Foley & Lardner)
  • Haynes Boone added M&A partner Janice Davis from Morgan Lewis, where she led the Dallas office. (Haynes Boone)
  • Squire Patton Boggs hired financial services partner Cassandra Borchers in Cincinnati from Thompson Hine, where she chaired the blockchain and digital assets group. (