A U.S. Department of Defense official told lawmakers Thursday that the Pentagon plans to order 30,000 small one-way attack drones for $150 million over the next few days, amid concerns that the U.S. is lagging behind with regard to its drone capabilities. 
Law360
Aerospace & Defense
FRIDAY, MARCH 6, 2026 Law360 iOS App Law360 Android App Follow Law360 on Facebook Follow Law360 on LinkedIn Follow Law360 on Twitter

TOP NEWS

DOD Official Says 30,000 Small Drone Order Coming Soon

By Madeline Lyskawa

A U.S. Department of Defense official told lawmakers Thursday that the Pentagon plans to order 30,000 small one-way attack drones for $150 million over the next few days, amid concerns that the U.S. is lagging behind with regard to its drone capabilities. 

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Anthropic Deemed Supply Chain Risk By Pentagon, Vows Suit

By Rae Ann Varona

The Pentagon has officially informed Anthropic that it is a supply chain risk to the United States' national security, a designation that the artificial intelligence company plans to challenge in court as not "legally sound," according to a statement by Anthropic's CEO on Thursday.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

2 Defense Space Tech Companies Raise Combined $1.05B

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Two aerospace and defense tech companies announced Thursday that they have raised a combined $1.05 billion in recent funding rounds, which will go toward initiatives such as national security space efforts and creating low-Earth-orbit space stations.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Boeing Doesn't Owe Fees For Hauling Bias Suit To Fed. Court

By Grace Elletson

Boeing won't have to pay attorney fees for a worker who got a discrimination case over bonuses sent back to Washington state court after the company yanked it into a federal venue, as a judge ruled Thursday that the aerospace giant's removal of the case wasn't egregious.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

LITIGATION

Fla. Judge Blocks Terrorist Label For Muslim Rights Nonprofit

By David Minsky

A Florida federal judge has blocked the state's governor from designating a national Muslim civil rights nonprofit as a "terrorist organization," ruling that doing so to make a political statement violates the First Amendment. 

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Fla. Court Allows Chubb's Salvage Claim On Stolen Planes

By Mark Payne

Chubb European Group SE can move forward with a counterclaim against an aircraft leasing company that alleges the insurer can claim 23 Boeing and Airbus aircraft stolen by Russia at the start of the Ukraine war as salvaged, a Florida state court ruled.

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DEALS & CONTRACTS

SpaceX Taps Citigroup For Planned IPO, Plus More Rumors

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

SpaceX has added Citigroup to its lineup of banks leading its planned blockbuster initial public offering, Thrive Capital and Andreessen Horowitz are co-leading an investment in defense company Andural Industries that could value it at $60 billion, and Indian payments platform PhonePe is preparing plans for an initial public offering that would value it at $10.5 billion.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

EXPERT ANALYSIS

Series

Volunteering With Scouts Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Serving as an assistant scoutmaster for my son’s troop reaffirmed several skills and principles crucial to lawyering — from the importance of disconnecting to the value of morality, says Michael Warren at McManis Faulkner.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

LEGAL INDUSTRY

OpenAI Practices Law Without A License, Insurer Alleges

By Lauren Berg

OpenAI is practicing law without a license, according to an insurer's lawsuit filed in Illinois federal court that alleges artificial intelligence platform ChatGPT provided faulty legal advice to a woman seeking disability benefits that led to a breached settlement and a flurry of frivolous court filings.

Complaint attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

UK Law Sector's Private Equity Boom Offers Lessons For US

By Ryan Boysen

Private equity money is pouring into the U.K. legal sector, fueling a wave of consolidation in consumer-facing practices and offering a glimpse of what it could look like if outside investment in the U.S. legal industry takes off.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Criminal Contempt Of DOJ Attys Unlikely For Violating Orders

By Jack Karp

Federal judges have been floating the possibility of holding government attorneys in criminal contempt of court for violating immigration-related court orders, a potentially shocking move that scholars say is unlikely and probably less effective than civil contempt orders.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Lindsey Halligan Faces Fla. Bar Investigation, Watchdog Says

By Lauren Berg

The Florida Bar is investigating Lindsey Halligan, the former interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia who pursued controversial indictments against President Donald Trump's political opponents, according to a letter the Campaign for Accountability made public Thursday.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Troutman And Former Atty Push To Limit Scope Of Bias Trial

By Jake Maher

Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders LLP and a former associate suing the firm for racial discrimination and retaliation this week fought over the role that charged language and calculations of financial damages should play in an upcoming trial.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Atty's Scheduling Error Dooms Appeal In AT&T Forfeiture Suit

By Patrick Hoff

An AT&T worker can't ask the Ninth Circuit to review the dismissal of his proposed class action claiming the telecommunications company misused forfeited 401(k) funds, with a California federal judge saying his attorney's busy schedule was "one of the least compelling excuses" for filing a late appeal.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

A Look At Four States' Tort Reform Legislation Fights

By Y. Peter Kang

There are currently four states debating whether to install business-friendly tort reform legislation or medical malpractice guardrails. The issues include a potentially brutal showdown in California over auto collision litigation and efforts in Florida to expand wrongful death liability for healthcare providers.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ex-Judge In Wis. Says ICE Prosecution Theory Has No Limits

By Britain Eakin

A former Wisconsin judge has said the government's case against her for obstructing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has no limiting principle and wrongly turned her authority to manage her courtroom into a federal felony for impeding ICE.

1 document attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana Judicial Nominees Advance

By Courtney Bublé

Four judicial nominees advanced out of committee Thursday along party lines, which included two for Texas.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Promo that reads 2025 Practice Groups of the Year

COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

AT&T Inc.

Abaca

Acquira

AlixPartners LLP

American Bar Association

American International Group Inc.

Andreessen Horowitz LLC

Anduril Industries

Anthropic PBC

Bank of America Corp.

Boy Scouts of America

Carlyle Aviation Partners Ltd.

Citigroup Inc.

Coatue Management LLC

Consumer Attorneys of California

Deutsche Bank AG

Duke Street LLP

Federalist Society

Founders Fund

Hamilton Lincoln

JPMorgan Chase & Co.

LVMH Moet Hennessy

Lux Capital

Microsoft Corp.

Morgan Stanley

Muslim Legal Fund of America

Nippon Life Insurance Company of America

OpenAI OpCo LLC

Otis Worldwide Corp.

Qatar Investment Authority

Southern Poverty Law Center Inc.

Space Exploration Technologies Corp.

The Boeing Co.

The Florida Bar

The Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Uber Technologies Inc.

Virginia State Bar

Volkswagen AG

Walmart Inc.

LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

A&O Shearman

Akeel & Valentine

Carlton Fields

DWF LLP

Express Solicitors

Gimbel Reilly

Gupta Wessler

Haffner Law PC

Hunton Andrews

Keystone Law

Kudman Trachten

Latham & Watkins

Lehotsky Keller

Littler Mendelson

McManis Faulkner

O'Melveny & Myers

Podhurst Orseck

Pure Legal

Roberts Jackson

Sidley Austin

Stowe Family Law LLP

Strang Bradley

Troutman

Wigdor LLP

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Florida Attorney General's Office

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

New York Attorney General's Office

U.S. Army

U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin

U.S. Department of Defense

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. District Court for the Central District of California

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota

U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

U.S. Senate

U.S. Supreme Court

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin