Analysis

Why NY's Flagship Climate Law Is On The Rocks

By Gautama Mehta

Seven years ago, New York enacted an ambitious plan to minimize greenhouse gas emissions. But with few pertinent regulations on the books, Law360 takes a look at why that plan may not come to fruition despite a successful lawsuit challenging the state's lack of action to date.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ariz. Judge Says Border Wall Waiver Is Not Unconstitutional

By Gautama Mehta

An Arizona federal judge has rejected two environmental groups' constitutional arguments against a waiver under which the U.S. Department of Homeland Security had permitted 41 miles of border wall construction to be exempted from legal restrictions.

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

Up Next At High Court: Birthright Citizenship, Arbitration

By Katie Buehler

The U.S. Supreme Court will close out its March oral arguments session by hearing a nationwide class's blockbuster challenge to President Donald Trump's limited view of birthright citizenship, as well as a dispute over federal courts' authority to confirm or vacate arbitration awards in cases they've formerly overseen.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

House Rebukes Senate With Clean DHS Funding Vote

By Courtney Bublé

The House voted 213-203 on Friday night on a clean extension of funding for all operations of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, rebuking the Senate, which passed by voice vote in the early hours of Friday morning a bill to fund most of the department except the immigration components. 

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Judiciary Nixes Amicus Disclosure Reform Over Potential Chill

By Emily Sawicki

The federal judiciary has been asked not to move forward with a plan to add to amicus brief disclosure requirements designed to curb "dark money" groups from bankrolling amicus briefs, after rules committee chairs pulled the recommendation over concerns of a possible chilling effect.

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

2nd Circ. Says Earned Credits Can't Trim Supervised Release

By Elizabeth Daley

A Second Circuit panel rejected an inmate's argument that he was wrongly kept on house arrest for more than a year too long given that he had early release credits, finding in a reversal that such First Step Act reductions cannot be used to shorten time on supervised release.

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

Pa. Justices Keep Death Sentence Despite Flawed Cross-Exam

By Parker Quinlan

The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania has ruled that the execution of a man can move forward despite the high court agreeing that the man's attorneys did not do enough to impeach a jailhouse informant who was the prosecution's star witness.

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

Firms Targeted By Trump Urge DC Circ. To Uphold EO Rulings

By Alison Knezevich

Four law firms targeted last year by President Donald Trump urged the D.C. Circuit on Friday to affirm lower court rulings that struck down executive orders restricting their ability to practice law, saying the directives blatantly violate the Constitution.

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

Q&A

NAACP's New GC On Ramping Up Its Work In Courts

By Alison Knezevich

As she starts her new role as general counsel of the NAACP, Kristen Clarke told Law360 Pulse that the organization plans to turn more frequently to the courts to confront what she called the Trump administration's "aggressive attempts to roll back civil rights."

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

NC Judge Backs State In Same-Day Voter Registration Fight

By Abigail Harrison

Several civil rights groups have failed in their challenge to a 2023 North Carolina amendment to same-day registration voting law, with a North Carolina federal judge finding Thursday that Senate Bill 747 didn't violate the U.S. Constitution and didn't disenfranchise young voters.

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

Judge Seems Doubtful Of Fulton County's Ballot Retrieval Bid

By Chart Riggall

A Georgia federal judge appeared skeptical Friday of Fulton County's efforts to recover hundreds of boxes of 2020 election ballots that were seized by the FBI in a January raid on a county warehouse, signaling he wasn't sure whether the government had shown "callous disregard" for the Constitution.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Colo. Judge Upholds State's Campaign Contribution Limits

By Rachel Konieczny

Colorado's individual campaign contribution limits do not violate the First Amendment's political expression and association rights of candidates or contributors, a Colorado federal judge ruled in rejecting a challenge by Republican politicians to the state's campaign finance laws.

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

Kansas City Fed Pressed For Kraken Account Approval Terms

By Aislinn Keely

The ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee asked the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City to share more information about its decision to grant crypto firm Kraken Financial access to Fed payment rails, including what limits it imposed on the new type of tailored master account.

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

Split Fed Gives Morgan Stanley OK For European Arm Reorg

By Jon Hill

The Federal Reserve has narrowly granted its permission for Morgan Stanley to turn its European Union banking arm into a unit of its insured U.S. bank, a move that sharply divided the central bank's board amid concerns about straining the federal bank safety net.

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

DC Circ. Blocks Florida's Wetlands Permitting

By Jared Foretek

A D.C. Circuit panel on Friday upheld a district judge's order invalidating Florida's state-run Clean Water Act permitting program, ruling that federal wildlife agencies unlawfully bypassed key endangered species protections when clearing it.

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

25 Years Later, Dam Salmon Case Must Stay In Trial Court

By Crystal Owens

A district court judge in Oregon has rejected the federal government's efforts to end decades-long litigation over hydropower dam operations in the Columbia River Basin, saying arguments that the dispute is subject to Ninth Circuit review are unpersuasive and mistaken.

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

DC Judge Says 'God Squad' Can Meet Over Gulf Oil Drilling

By Gautama Mehta

A D.C. federal judge on Friday refused to block an upcoming meeting Tuesday within the U.S. Department of the Interior to consider an exemption to the Endangered Species Act for oil and gas activities in the Gulf of Mexico.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Court Keeps Alive EPI's Suit Over Ga. Commissioner Emails

By Kelcey Caulder

A Georgia state appellate court on Friday kept alive the Energy and Policy Institute's lawsuit alleging the Georgia Public Service Commission and one of its commissioners violated the state's public records law, affirming a lower court ruling.

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

Chemical Co. PQ Countersues Tacoma Port In Pollution Case

By Ben Adlin

The Port of Tacoma's suit wrongfully seeks millions in remediation costs for contamination not associated with chemical company PQ LLC's operations on a Tacoma Tideflats property, the company has said in counterclaims brought against the port.

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

Colo. County Says DOI Skirted Review For Utah Oil Project

By Keith Goldberg

A Colorado county has accused the U.S. Department of the Interior of unlawfully fast-tracking the approval of a Utah oil-by-rail transportation expansion project by misusing its emergency authority to bypass meaningful environmental review and public feedback.

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

Sens. Push Bill To Equip VA For Psychedelic Therapies

By Sam Reisman

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators has introduced legislation to broaden veterans' access to emerging therapies, including psychedelic-assisted treatments, that may be effective in addressing post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health issues.

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

FCC Can't Waive TV Broadcast Cap For Nexstar, DC Circ. Told

By Christopher Cole

Public interest and labor groups banded together with cable and satellite groups Friday to try convincing the D.C. Circuit that the Federal Communications Commission can't waive its 39% national audience cap to let the $6.2 billion merger of Nexstar and Tegna Inc. move forward.

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

Networks Using Legacy TV As A 'Cash Cow,' Advocates Say

By Nadia Dreid

Networks see local TV stations as little more than "cash cows" and are "sucking the lifeblood out of television stations" by demanding increasingly higher fees in exchange for allowing them to air network content, a pair of media advocacy groups have told the Federal Communications Commission.

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

DC Law Change Thwarts Sportsbook Recovery Suit

By Tom Lotshaw

A D.C. federal judge threw out a lawsuit seeking to claw back millions in gambling losses from major sportsbook operators under an old "Statute of Anne" law on the district's books, ruling that local officials clearly exempted authorized sports wagering from its recovery provisions.

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

Kalshi Sued By Wash. AG In Latest 'Illegal Gambling' Case

By Rachel Riley

The Washington state attorney general accused Kalshi Friday of operating an illegal online betting platform under the guise of a prediction market, joining a growing number of states that have taken court action against the company over alleged gambling law violations.

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

Mayer Brown's $21M Fee Bid In RI Truck Tolls Suit Rebuffed

By Linda Chiem

A Rhode Island federal judge on Friday rebuffed Mayer Brown LLP's bid for $21 million in attorney fees for representing the commercial trucking industry's lead trade group in long-running litigation over the state's truck tolling program, saying the American Trucking Associations ultimately was not the "prevailing party."

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

Kan. Board Complied With Remand In Property Tax Case

By Jaqueline McCool

The Kansas Board of Tax Appeals properly complied with an appellate court's instructions for remand in a property tax case, the court ruled Friday, finding that the board was able to explain the weighted value it gave to leases when appraising the property.

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

Hospital System Beats Most Of REIT's $50M Floodwall Suit

By Isaac Monterose

A New York federal judge on Friday mostly tossed a real estate investment trust's $50 million suit against the New York City Health and Hospitals Corp. and the NYC Economic Development Corp. over the design of a proposed floodwall for a downtown Manhattan life sciences campus project.

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

Brief

OSHA Proposes $116K In Fines Over Silica Dust Exposure

By Benjamin Morse

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration proposed more than $116,000 in penalties against two Georgia countertop manufacturers, after inspectors found workers exposed to respirable crystalline silica — an issue identified in previous investigations — and noise hazards.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Live Nation Beat Rivals With Better Tech, Jury Hears

By Stewart Bishop

A former executive for AEG Presents on Friday testified that his former employer's ticketing system was subpar to that of Live Nation's Ticketmaster, as counsel for the latter portrayed the live entertainment giant's dominant position in the market as a natural result of its superior services to clients.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

EU's Ribera: Antitrust Must 'Stay Strong' Against Politics

By Bryan Koenig

European Union antitrust chief Teresa Ribera had a word of caution Friday for competition enforcers who let political considerations influence their enforcement decisions, arguing in Washington, D.C., remarks that enforcement should remain stable against shifting political winds.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

State Privacy & AI Watch: 3 Legislative Developments To Know

By Allison Grande

As Congress pushes to limit regulation of artificial intelligence systems and struggles to put guardrails on companies' handling of personal data, states continue to step up, with a key jurisdiction making moves to update its landmark AI protections and the state data privacy law patchwork expanding for the first time in nearly two years. 

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

Trump Issues New DEI Order Aimed At Contractors

By Ganesh Setty

President Donald Trump has issued another executive order targeting diversity, equity and inclusion practices, this time requiring government contractors to agree that they won't engage in "racially discriminatory DEI activities," lest the government potentially declare them ineligible for future contracts.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Navy Fights Bid To Reopen Wash. Jet Flight Challenge

By Ganesh Setty

The U.S. Navy urged a Washington federal court Friday to reject an environmental group's bid to file a new complaint challenging its amended environmental impact analysis on expanding training flights on Whidbey Island, arguing that it would be "futile."

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

Texas Calls Vape Sellers' Suit Over China Law 'Speculative'

By Mike Curley

The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts is urging a federal court to throw out a suit from a group of vape sellers challenging a new law banning the sale of e-cigarette products that use liquids from China and other "adversaries," saying they don't have standing to sue.

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

Ga. Justices Revive Uber Fight Over Pre-Wayfair Sales Tax

By Maria Koklanaris

A Georgia appellate court must reconsider its opinion that Uber was required to collect and remit millions in sales taxes on behalf of drivers and customers who used its app before the Wayfair decision, the state's highest court said.

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

$70M Easement Tax Break Sticks After IRS Concedes Lateness

By Anna Scott Farrell

A partnership is entitled to all of its claimed $70 million tax deduction for donating a conservation easement in Louisiana, as the IRS stipulated to missing a notification deadline for disallowing the tax break, according to a decision entered Friday in the U.S. Tax Court.

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

DOL Says Visa Prevailing Wage Rule Would Add $6.5B In Pay

By Benjamin Morse

The U.S. Department of Labor proposed a rule that could drive roughly $6.5 billion in additional annual wages to foreign workers by overhauling how prevailing pay is calculated across high-skilled visa programs.

Proposed Rule attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

States Suspect ICE Obtained Medicaid Data Despite Order

By Julie Manganis

A coalition of states told a federal judge that the Trump administration appears to have ignored an order limiting the types of Medicaid data that can be shared with immigration officials, potentially handing over reams of "off limits" data on citizens and green card holders.

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

Disco Ball Theatrics Land Flat With Campaign Fraud Jury

By Aaron Keller

A defense lawyer who donned a metallic lei and held a disco ball during closing arguments did not help an attorney and former Connecticut state senator avoid guilty verdicts Friday on wire fraud and conspiracy charges connected to a BDK Law Group party prosecutors described as a campaign launch.

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

Lawyer Says Contract With Rivera Was For Venezuela's Oil Co.

By Carolina Bolado

The $50 million consulting contract that former Florida Congressman David Rivera signed with the U.S. affiliate of Venezuela's state-owned oil company was ultimately funded and controlled by the Venezuelan parent company, the attorney who drafted the document said Friday at Rivera's trial on charges of failing to register as a foreign agent.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

FCC Told It Can't Make Foreign Call Centers Speak English

By Nadia Dreid

The National Creditors Bar Association is not pleased with the Federal Communications Commission's plans to pass new rules that would require companies to make sure their foreign call center operators speak "American Standard English," saying the agency has no power over foreign employees.

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

Pa. Panel Rejects Proposed Verizon Tower In Pittsburgh

By Nadia Dreid

Verizon won't be able to build a 100-foot monopole in Pittsburgh after a Pennsylvania state court panel said that a local council was within its rights to revoke the permission it had given the mobile behemoth after it failed to get the requisite permits.

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

Brief

FCC Bars Another Chinese Test Lab Over Security Risk

By Christopher Cole

The Federal Communications Commission on Friday pulled the accreditation of another Chinese communications device testing lab due to concerns about Chinese state government control.

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

Mississippi Gov. Vetoes Medical Marijuana Expansion Bill

By Sam Reisman

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves has vetoed a bill to expand the state's medical cannabis program to include severely ill patients, while approving another bill to fund a clinical trial into the psychedelic ibogaine.

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

DOJ Actions Suggest Expansion Of Healthcare Enforcement

Recent actions by the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Food and Drug Administration suggest that federal healthcare enforcement efforts are moving away from traditional program-based fraud and toward cases centered on product integrity, regulatory transparency and telehealth marketing, effectively widening the government's enforcement playbook, say attorneys at MoFo.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Opinion

USPTO Has A Chance To Correct Double-Patenting Doctrine

Now that the issue of obviousness-type double patenting is front and center before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Appeals Review Panel, the agency should put an end to the practice of rejecting earlier-expiring patents in favor of later-expiring ones, say attorneys at Orrick.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Navigating Life Sciences Deals Amid Heightened Scrutiny

With pricing reform initiatives, national security legislation and evolving trade policy currently contributing to meaningful uncertainty for life sciences companies, it is important to proactively structure deals to avoid downstream complications, say attorneys at Cooley.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Defense Deals Can Trigger Extra HSR Filing With The DOD

Certain aerospace, defense and national security M&A transactions will require a concurrent Hart-Scott-Rodino Act filing to the U.S. Department of Defense, and practice tips for navigating this extra filing include early analysis of competitive implications of sector deals and planning for concurrent filings, say attorneys at White & Case.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

8 Tariff Refund Questions For Restructuring Professionals

For restructuring and turnaround professionals, seeking refunds following the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision invalidating tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act raises several questions about how to capture legitimate recoveries while protecting an enterprise from the consequences of its own history, says Jonny Frank and Laura Greenman at StoneTurn, and Andrew Popescu at Province.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

1st AI Acquisition Regulation Raises Contractor Concerns

The General Services Administration’s recently published contract clause addressing artificial intelligence systems is problematic in a number of ways, underscoring the complex legal and practical issues that will need to be addressed as AI becomes more widely deployed in federal contracting, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.

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

Series

Watching Hallmark Movies Makes Me A Better Lawyer

I realize you may be judging me for watching, and actually enjoying, Hallmark Channel movies, but the escapism and storylines actually demonstrate qualities and actions that lead to an efficient, productive and positive legal practice, says Karen Ross at Tucker Ellis.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Pillsbury Asks To Toss Suit Over Nonclient Data Breach

By Matt Perez

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP sought dismissal of a consolidated data breach action in New York federal court Friday due to the plaintiffs' alleged lack of relationship with the firm and inability to identify any cognizable damages.

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

Burford Considers Arbitration After 2nd Circ. Tosses $16B Win

By Nadia Dreid

Burford Capital Ltd. says it is contemplating taking its $16 billion fight with Argentina into international arbitration after the Second Circuit wiped out a judgment the litigation funding firm had won against the nation in New York federal court, sending its stock prices tumbling.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

'Is It Kafka?' Judge Presses Pentagon On Press Restrictions

By Jared Foretek

A D.C. federal judge requested additional briefing Monday from the Trump administration before deciding whether to toss the U.S. Department of Defense's revised rules restricting journalists' access to the Pentagon but said some new allegations from reporters read like the revisions came from a Franz Kafka novel.

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

Ex-Laffey Bucci Atty Accused Of Stealing Over $1.3M

By James Boyle

Laffey Bucci D'Andrea Reich & Ryan has accused a former name partner in a Pennsylvania state court suit of misdirecting more than $1.3 million in referral and case fees through a secret agreement with another firm and misusing the plaintiffs firm's resources for personal expenses, including an affair with a client.

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

Analysis

Exchanges Are First Line In CFTC Prediction Market Policing

By Aislinn Keely

As the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission insists it will be the primary cop for the growing expanse of prediction markets, experts said the agency is signaling that its first line of defense will be the internal enforcement programs of registrants like Kalshi.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

FCA Qui Tams Are Unconstitutional, Eli Lilly Tells Justices

By Mark Payne

The False Claims Act's whistleblower provisions are unconstitutional, drugmaker Eli Lilly has told the U.S. Supreme Court, asking it to overturn a Seventh Circuit decision upholding a $183 million trial win for a whistleblower who claimed the drug company hid how much it charged for Medicaid-covered drugs. 

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

Justices Wary Of 'Odd' Arbitration Jurisdiction Theory

By Caroline Simson

A lawyer urging the U.S. Supreme Court to find that federal courts that have sent a dispute to arbitration do not automatically have jurisdiction to confirm or vacate a subsequent award faced heavy skepticism Monday from the justices, who called his argument during oral arguments "odd" and "peculiar."

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court's docket this past week featured disputes involving globally recognized companies, high-dollar contract fights, revived claims from the state's high court and the resolution of a closely watched de-SPAC case.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Blumenthal Questions SEC Over Crypto Cases, Ryan Exit

By Katryna Perera

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal is demanding answers from U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Paul Atkins about the sudden resignation of the regulator's enforcement director and whether her departure was related to cryptocurrency cases, including one touching on the Trump family's ventures.

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