Analysis

'Best Judicial System In The World': Alsup Reflects On Career

By Bonnie Eslinger

Before taking inactive status late last year, U.S. District Judge William H. Alsup presided over historic litigation in California's Northern District for 26 years, arriving at his San Francisco chambers every weekday before dawn to prepare for the day's work.

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Ex-FirstEnergy Execs' Bribe Trial Ends After Jury Hits Impasse

By Cara Salvatore

An Ohio judge on Tuesday dismissed a jury weighing charges that two former FirstEnergy Corp. executives bribed a utility regulator to help secure a controversial $1.3 billion bailout for two of the company's nuclear plants, after the jury reported an impasse following more than a week of deliberations.

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'God Squad' Exempts Gulf Drillers From Species Protections

By Gautama Mehta

A federal committee with the power to waive Endangered Species Act protections convened for the first time in 34 years on Tuesday and granted an exemption for oil and gas activities in the Gulf of Mexico.

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Public Health Groups Challenge EPA's Mercury Limits Repeal

By Jared Foretek

The American Academy of Pediatrics and more than a dozen environmental and public health groups are calling on the D.C. Circuit to vacate the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's repeal of Biden-era limits on mercury and air toxins, saying the move will jeopardize children's health across the country.

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Insurer Can't Dodge Oxy Suit Over $22M Settlement Fight

By José Luis Martínez

A Texas federal judge has declined to let Berkley National Insurance Co. off the hook in a lawsuit accusing it of mishandling competing settlement demands, finding that a group of energy companies stated a viable claim in an amended petition that the insurer exposed them to out-of-pocket liability after exhausting most of a $22 million policy on a separate claim.

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Commerce Finalizes 73% Algerian Steel Rebar Subsidy Duty

By Dylan Moroses

Following the finalization of triple-digit antidumping duties, steel concrete reinforcing bar from Algeria faces another nearly 73% duty after the U.S. International Trade Administration finalized its determinations in a countervailing duty investigation, according to a notice published Tuesday.

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Lobbyist Blocked Rivera After Tying Him To $50M Oil Deal

By Carolina Bolado

Republican lobbyist Brian Ballard was "exceptionally angry" and blocked former Florida Congressman David Rivera's number after Rivera insinuated Ballard was tied to a $50 million consulting agreement Rivera signed with the U.S. affiliate of Venezuela's state-owned company, Ballard testified Tuesday in federal court.

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Wash. Creates Electric Transmission Authority With New Law

By Rachel Riley

Washington passed a law on Monday forming a state electric transmission authority to supercharge efforts to build out the Evergreen State's power grid through public-private partnerships and other initiatives, with a focus on shifting to renewable energy sources to meet the state's decarbonization goals. 

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Teamsters Fund Sues To Block Clearway Reclassification

By Jarek Rutz

A Teamsters pension fund has filed a class action in the Delaware Chancery Court seeking to block a planned share reclassification by Clearway Energy Inc., alleging the deal would entrench the company's controlling stockholder while stripping public investors of voting power.

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Ford Says Suit Against Solar Battery Maker Is Valid

By Susan Smiley

Ford asked a Michigan federal court Monday to proceed with a breach of contract suit it brought against solar battery maker Sol-Ark over confidential technology Sol-Ark allegedly revealed in patent applications, arguing it is "demonstrably incorrect" that Sol-Ark came up with the technology on its own.

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Ariz. Judge Keeps Oak Flat Stay Pending 9th Circ. Rehearing

By Joyce Hanson

An Arizona federal judge has agreed with Apache tribal members and environmental groups that a stay should remain in place as they await a Ninth Circuit decision on their legal fight to block the transfer of 2,500 acres to a copper mining company.

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Steptoe Adds Vinson & Elkins Arbitration Pro

By Caroline Simson

Steptoe LLP has hired an international arbitration veteran from Vinson & Elkins LLP who helped secure a $1.47 billion award for Iraq to join the firm as a partner in its international disputes practice in Houston.

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In First For DOJ, Action Signals New CFIUS Enforcement Era

The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking judicial enforcement of a divestment order, an unprecedented action for the agency that ushers in a new phase for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, one in which judicial proceedings complement administrative oversight and presidential divestment orders may be enforced through litigation, says attorney Sohan Dasgupta.

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Getting The Most Out Of Learning And Development Programs

Junior associates can better develop the legal, business and interpersonal skills they need for long-term success by approaching their firms’ learning and development programs armed with five tips for getting the most out of these resources, says Lauren Hakala at Reed Smith.

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ABA Suit Over Trump's Crackdown On Firms Moves Forward

By Emily Sawicki

A D.C. federal judge has ruled the American Bar Association may pursue a challenge to the Trump administration's series of executive orders targeting law firms, finding the organization plausibly alleged the orders posed a "realistic threat" to its members.

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Khalil Seeks Bove's 3rd Circ. Recusal Over Ex-DOJ Roles

By Lauren Berg

Mahmoud Khalil, a lawful permanent resident targeted for deportation, asked a Third Circuit judge, U.S. Circuit Judge Emil Bove, to recuse himself from en banc review of a decision allowing for Khalil's detention, saying Wednesday the judge was likely involved in decisions related to the case while at the U.S. Department of Justice.

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Arbitration Association Must Face Suit Over Consumer Monopoly

By Caroline Simson

An Arizona federal judge ruled Tuesday that the American Arbitration Association must face a proposed class action accusing it of monopolizing the consumer arbitration services market, saying the suit provided sufficient allegations to "plausibly infer" that the institution engages in anticompetitive conduct.

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Sidley Beats Malpractice Suit Over Ex-Atty's Tax Scheme

By Chart Riggall

Sidley Austin LLP defeated a suit from a family of business magnates who said they were duped into a tax sheltering scheme by an ex-attorney, after a Georgia federal judge ruled the family should have suspected they were in legal trouble long before they filed their suit.

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Why Trump's Pursuit Of NY AG Is More Than Just 'Awkward'

By Phillip Bantz

Through its relentless pursuit of criminal charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James, the Trump administration has further opened itself up to allegations of vindictive and selective prosecution — with potentially far-reaching implications for a grand jury system that has traditionally given the government the benefit of the doubt, experts say.

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Analysis

Wheeling & Appealing: April's Most Notable Oral Arguments

By Jeff Overley

April is the coolest month, at least for appellate aficionados, featuring numerous important arguments with famous litigants, including U.S. senators, delivery apps Grubhub and Uber Eats, impresario Sean "Diddy" Combs, prediction platforms Kalshi and Robinhood, and a political giant known as the Velvet Hammer.

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Judiciary Seeks More Security Funding Amid Threat Surge

By Courtney Bublé

Court security is a top concern for the federal judiciary in its recently released budget request for fiscal 2027.

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Trump Announces Texas, Ohio, Florida Judicial Picks

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced four judicial nominees for Texas, Ohio and Florida. 

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Roundup

The Top In-House Hires Of March

By Michele Gorman

Legal department hires during the third month of 2026 included high-profile appointments at the NAACP, Walmart and Marriott Vacations. Here, Law360 Pulse looks at some of the top in-house announcements from March.

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Hub Hires: Reed Smith, Manatt, MoFo, Foley Hoag

By Chris Villani

March provided some madness in the Boston legal scene. Reed Smith launched its first-ever office in the Hub, Manatt hired a former Microsoft executive and Federal Trade Commission member, and Foley Hoag snagged a longtime K&L Gates insurance attorney.

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Monthly Merger Review Snapshot

By Bryan Koenig

The Justice Department allowed Live Nation to keep Ticketmaster while state attorneys general continue to sue, a $14 billion Boston Scientific deal drew Federal Trade Commission scrutiny, state enforcers challenged Nexstar's purchase of Tegna, and a threatened FTC challenge forced the abandonment of a laser eye surgery deal.

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