EPA Waiver Review Could Upend Rulemaking, Judge Signals

By Jared Foretek

A D.C. federal judge predicted Wednesday that there could be wide-ranging implications for oversight of agency rulemaking if the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is allowed to put California emissions waivers up for congressional review more than a decade after they were first granted.

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Trump Delays Canada Tariffs, Says Deal Imminent

By Dylan Moroses

President Donald Trump delayed for three days 50% tariffs on select Canadian goods scheduled to take effect Wednesday in an effort to strike a deal with the Canadian government, he said late Tuesday evening.

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Feds Accuse Comey Of Trying To 'Shortcircuit' '86 47' Case

By Jake Maher

Former FBI Director James Comey is seeking to end the case over an allegedly threatening photo of seashells he posted online before the government has had a chance to present the full context for its case, prosecutors argued this week.

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Over 120 Ex-Judges Demand Probe Of DHS GC's 'Worst' Posts

By Adrian Cruz

A pair of nonprofits along with a bipartisan group of 128 former state and federal judges have asked the Florida Bar to investigate the general counsel of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for a recent series of social media posts attacking sitting judges.

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Zuckerberg Can't Be Trusted On Kids' Safety Online, Jury Told

By Dorothy Atkins

A Meta whistleblower testified Wednesday in a California federal jury trial over states' claims Meta hid social media's harms that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg ignored calls for Meta to prioritize kids' safety while publicly touting Meta's safety practices, saying "I feel that you just cannot trust Mark Zuckerberg with kids."

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OCC Advancing Stablecoin Rule At 'Great Speed,' Gould Says

By Jon Hill

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency plans to issue the main rule establishing its stablecoin oversight framework by November and expects to be ready to process issuer licensing applications as soon as January, the agency's top official said Wednesday.

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German Entrepreneur's Dad Can't Nix SEC Tab, 1st Circ. Rules

By Rae Ann Varona

The First Circuit on Wednesday affirmed a judgment against the father of German billionaire Michael Gastauer, saying the parent "waited too long" to object to a lower court's personal jurisdiction over him as a relief defendant in a case concerning his son's alleged participation in an international pump-and-dump scheme.

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Air Force Urges Justices Not To 'Engraft' NEPA Onto RCRA

By Tom Lotshaw

The Air Force on Wednesday urged the U.S. Supreme Court to reject a Guam nonprofit's assertion that the military branch should have completed an environmental review before it applied to renew a hazardous waste permit allowing it to detonate expired munitions on the island.

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DC Circ. Won't Block Loan For Mozambique LNG Project

By Tom Lotshaw

A D.C. Circuit panel denied an environmental group's push to block $4.7 billion in financing the U.S. Export-Import Bank approved for a TotalEnergies EP liquefied natural gas project in Mozambique, finding the group unlikely to prevail in its challenge.

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Mining Project Beats Suit, But Species Harm Estimate Flagged

By Crystal Owens

The federal government won dismissal of most claims from environmental groups challenging a gold mining project, but the presiding federal Idaho judge did order the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to revise a statement estimating harm to wolverine and bull trout.

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Pa. Court Lets Off-Grid Solar Projects Get Energy Credits

By Matthew Santoni

Solar energy projects in Pennsylvania do not have to connect to the electrical grid to qualify for "solar renewable energy credits," allowing gas pipeline operator Williams Companies Inc. to get and sell credits for solar arrays that only power two remote compressor stations, a state appellate court ruled Wednesday.

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Groups Say NOAA Failed To Vet Samoan Seabed Mining Harm

By Elaine Briseño

Two conservation groups have sued to stop the sale of deep-sea mining rights across 31 million acres of seabed around American Samoa, arguing the National Marine Fisheries Service unlawfully determined the activity would not adversely affect endangered species and their habitat.

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Brief

DOJ Enviro Deputy AG Leaves Post

By Keith Goldberg

A top deputy in the U.S. Department of Justice's Energy and Natural Resources Division is leaving the agency, according to court documents filed on Wednesday.

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HHS, USDA Must Withdraw Dietary Guidelines, DC Court Told

By Gianna Ferrarin

A public health nonprofit on Wednesday urged a D.C. federal court to order the federal government to withdraw dietary guidelines it issued earlier this year, arguing that reviewers who advised on the guidelines had significant conflicts of interest and were selected without public oversight.

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FTC Asks Court To Keep Trans Health Suit In Texas

By Spencer Brewer

The Federal Trade Commission has asked a Texas federal court to keep its suit against the World Professional Association for Transgender Health in the Lone Star State, saying that the organization incorporated there in 1980.

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Albertsons Says Wash. Failed To Prove Opioid Claims At Trial

By Ben Adlin

Albertsons Cos. Inc. urged a Seattle judge on Tuesday to throw out Washington state's lawsuit accusing the chain and its subsidiary Safeway Inc. of fueling Washington's opioid crisis, arguing that the state failed to prove wrongdoing by the companies after nearly five weeks of an ongoing bench trial.

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Colo. Sues GEO Group To Allow Tuberculosis Probe At ICE Camp

By Gina Kim

Colorado sued private prison operator GEO Group in state court Wednesday, accusing it of failing to comply with a public health order seeking compliance with a tuberculosis investigation in the only immigration detention camp in the state.

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USPTO Says Patent Atty's Suit Shouldn't Stop Discipline Case

By Theresa Schliep

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has said an Ohio federal court shouldn't pause professional discipline proceedings against an attorney while he sues the agency, saying he's likely to fail with his suit challenging the fact that a judge from another agency is overseeing his discipline case.

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Paramount Viewers Stuck With Bringing Amended Suit

By Bryan Koenig

A California federal judge refused Tuesday to reconsider dismissing a consumer complaint challenging Paramount's completed merger with Skydance and its planned purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery, holding that the filing of an amended complaint mooted the motion.

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Caesars Looks To Dodge Tribe's Suit Over NY Mobile Betting

By Crystal Owens

Caesars Sportsbook is asking a district court to dismiss the Cayuga Nation's claims that its entity is illegally offering mobile sports betting on tribal lands, saying the New York Indigenous nation is looking to create a remedy that Congress chose not to provide.

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Mass. Top Court Clears Path For $325M Pro Soccer Stadium

By Julie Manganis

Massachusetts' highest court on Wednesday cleared the way for construction to continue on a $325 million women's professional soccer stadium on a parcel within Boston's historic Franklin Park, finding that the project is not subject to a state law protecting parkland from development.

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Feds Urge Wash. Court To Back Axing Dam Workers' CBA

By Katherine Smith

The Trump administration urged a Washington federal court to deny a labor union's bid to block the government from terminating a collective bargaining agreement covering hydropower dam workers, arguing that appellate courts have rejected similar injunction requests from other unions.

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Prison Phone Co. Says Techs Aren't Owed Public Works Pay

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

A prison phone service provider told a New York federal judge that three field service technicians who installed and maintained telecommunications systems in hospitals and prisons did not agree to a "public works" contract and aren't guaranteed higher pay under state labor laws.

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9th Circ. Says Initial Arbitration No Obstacle To EFAA

By Grace Elletson

A split Ninth Circuit panel ruled Wednesday that a fired biopharmaceutical executive could quit arbitration and file a suit claiming her boss subjected her to gender-based harassment, finding the pivot was fair game under a law that shields sex misconduct disputes from out-of-court resolutions.

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DOJ Touts 'Targeted' Probes In Sales Software Merger OK

By Bryan Koenig

The U.S. Department of Justice said Wednesday it had closed an in-depth review into a sales tracking software merger, mollified by the likelihood of artificial intelligence-enabled competition, in an announcement touting the use of "targeted" scrutiny to end the probe quickly.

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Paramount Judge Urges Parties To Be 'More Reasonable'

By Bonnie Eslinger

A California federal judge overseeing the challenge to Paramount Skydance's $110 billion Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition brought by the Writers Guild of America and state attorneys general urged the parties Wednesday to be "much more reasonable" with discovery disputes, warning that if they aren't, "you will find yourself asked to engage a special master."

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Nonprofits Urge Court To Block HHS From Sharing Aid Data

By Stewart Bishop

Counsel for a group of nonprofits on Wednesday asked a Brooklyn federal judge to block the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from sharing personal information, including immigration status, of recipients of financial assistance with the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies, saying the proposed disclosure has "no statutory authority whatsoever."

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Social Media Use Has Addiction Hallmarks, Meta Jury Told

By Cara Salvatore

A psychologist told a Tennessee jury considering claims against Meta on Wednesday that it's well accepted in his field that social media use can cause behavior that looks like addiction, and social media is a challenging presence in the lives of 15% to 20% of his patients.

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FTC Warns Secret Personalized Prices Likely To Draw Scrutiny

By Allison Grande

Retailers and other businesses that use consumers' personal data to set individualized prices are likely to face regulatory backlash if these practices aren't clearly disclosed, the Federal Trade Commission cautioned in a proposed policy statement issued Wednesday that vowed the agency would "aggressively" enforce such misconduct.

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5th Circ. Backs Delay Of FDA's 11-Warning Cigarette Rule

By Danielle Ferguson

The Fifth Circuit on Tuesday upheld the delay of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration rule requiring the addition of graphic warning labels to cigarette packages, saying tobacco companies that challenged the rule showed the agency likely overstepped its narrow authority to adjust existing warnings by creating two new ones.

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Baltimore Can't Send Payday Lender Suit Back To State Court

By Sydney Price

A Maryland federal judge refused to remand a suit brought by the city of Baltimore against Los Angeles-based lender Dave Inc. to state court, ruling that the city failed to explain how federal courts' interpretation and application of the city's consumer protection ordinance would disrupt the state's efforts to establish a policy regulating consumer loans.

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CFPB Pursues Early Win In Hagens Berman Lender Docs Suit

By Rachel Riley

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is seeking to beat Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP's suit accusing the agency of illegally withholding information about any investigations into mortgage lender Veterans United, arguing that acknowledging any such probe could thwart the bureau's law enforcement efforts.

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PFAS Turnout Gear Buyer Lawsuits Get Consolidated In Minn.

By Aaron Keller

Minnesota will be home to firefighter turnout gear PFAS "forever chemical" federal lawsuits filed by municipal purchasers from 14 separate states, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation has decided, consolidating current actions in Montana and California with lawsuits filed in the corporate home state of 3M Co.

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Trade Court Judge Mulls Class Cert. For IEEPA Refunds

By Jack McLoone

A U.S. Court of International Trade judge on Wednesday didn't commit to certifying a class of importers who paid tariffs under President Donald Trump's struck-down global regime, though the option seemed to intrigue him.

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Trade Court Rejects Bahrain Importer's FTA Theory

By Dylan Moroses

Film imported from Bahrain cannot qualify for preferential tariff treatment under a free trade agreement because the importer failed to meet its requirements, and those of the law underlying the deal, according to a U.S. Court of International Trade opinion published Wednesday.

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IRS Aims To Limit Tax Credits For Authorized Immigrants

By Kevin Pinner

Fewer immigrants living in the U.S. legally would have access to refunds from individual tax credits under proposed regulations released Wednesday by the IRS that would link eligibility to welfare requirements rather than just work authorization.

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Venable Hires Treasury Legislative Deputy With Tax Experience

By Jack Rodgers

Venable LLP's latest hire in the legislative and public policy group in Washington, D.C., is a U.S. Department of the Treasury official who most recently worked as the deputy undersecretary for legislative affairs.

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4th Circ. Ends Immigration Judges' Free Speech Suit

By Britain Eakin

The Fourth Circuit on Wednesday affirmed that a district court lacked authority to hear a suit from an immigration judges' union challenging a policy barring judges from speaking publicly about immigration without prior approval.

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Ruling Lets Ethiopia's Protected Status End As Case Proceeds

By Ganesh Setty

A Massachusetts federal court has ruled the Trump administration's termination of Ethiopia's temporary protected status designation can now take effect, though allowing Ethiopian nationals to continue arguing that the administration acted at least partly out of racial animus.

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Immigration Board Says Migrants Get 1 Shot To Reopen Case

By Ganesh Setty

The Immigration and Nationality Act generally limits noncitizens in immigration proceedings to only one motion to reopen a case, the Board of Immigration Appeals ruled, adding that statutory restriction cannot be equitably tolled, either.

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Convicted Ex-Atty Deserves Redemption, Pardoned Client Says

By Brian Steele

A former Connecticut attorney under suspension for the past decade over his role in a $3 million stock pump-and-dump scheme deserves reinstatement and redemption, a client of his pardon consulting firm told a state bar admissions committee on Wednesday.

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Ex-US Attys Protest Trump's Swift Firing Of Rogoff In Seattle

By Rachel Riley

Thirty former U.S. attorneys backed Roger Rogoff's bid for reinstatement as Seattle's top federal prosecutor after President Donald Trump fired him on the heels of his court-ordered appointment, arguing Tuesday that Trump is trying to "sidestep the Senate's advice-and-consent role and sideline the judiciary" by letting unappointed individuals play such roles.

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Broadband Co. Asks FCC To Fix 'Ineffective' State Pole Regs

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

Broadband provider GoNetSpeed has asked the Federal Communications Commission to open a rulemaking proceeding to tackle "ineffective" state regulation of utility pole attachments for broadband equipment.

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Digital Equity Suit On Ice As Gov't Preps Program Relaunch

By Nadia Dreid

The D.C. federal judge overseeing a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's shutdown of the Digital Equity Act's Competitive Grant Program has put the case on hold until the government relaunches the program without provisions that consider the applicants' race, as it has agreed to do.

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Brief

FCC Seeks Comments On Proposal To End E-Rate Program

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

The Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau is seeking public input on a proposal to amend, and possibly curtail, a broadband subsidy for schools and libraries.

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Ohio Urges 6th Circ. To Allow Hemp Reclassification

By Sam Reisman

The state of Ohio urged the Sixth Circuit on Wednesday to reverse a lower court's decision halting enforcement of a new state law that reclassified hemp products as marijuana, accusing the hemp companies who sought the injunction of pushing an "aggressive theory" of the case.

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6 Key Takeaways From CFIUS Annual Report

Attorneys at Simpson Thacher review highlights from the annual report of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., released to Congress this month, including the launch of the American First Investment Policy and the Known Investor Pilot Program, and the agency's continued focus on enforcement despite its resource constraints.

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Opinion

Correctional Healthcare Requires Clearer Legal Standards

As the correctional healthcare industry increasingly faces financial instability due to litigation, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons should develop clear standards for constitutionally adequate care for incarcerated patients, says Susanne Moore at Blackstone Trial Group.

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6 Risk Areas Future Fla. Stablecoin Issuers Should Plan For

Companies hoping to issue stablecoins under Florida’s new supervision regime should prioritize constructing robust risk management architecture across key areas before the Oct. 1 effective date so they can secure licenses, avoid a web of potential liabilities, and operate sustainably as state and federal regulations evolve, says Elizabeth Brusa at Shumaker.

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Series

Law School's Missed Lessons: Surviving A Long Trial

Most of law school trial advocacy is geared toward the sprint of trying a short case, but beyond managing a cross-examination or closing argument, effectively handling the marathon of a lengthy trial requires the ability to maintain composure, organization and credibility with the jury, says Mihir Elchuri at Hirschler.

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SCOTUSblog Founder Goldstein Seeks Release During Appeal

By Rachel Rippetoe

SCOTUSblog founder Thomas Goldstein on Tuesday asked to be released from federal custody while he appeals his 12 tax and mortgage fraud convictions and a six-year prison sentence, saying he is not a flight risk and it would be a "grave injustice" for him to begin a sentence he believes will eventually get axed.

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Davis Wright Vets Scolded: Don't Tell Foes 'How To Run Firm'

By Jeff Overley

Davis Wright Tremaine LLP veterans have failed to dodge six-figure sanctions in a prominent discovery donnybrook, and a California magistrate judge added invective to the financial injury, lambasting "troubling" omissions in case citations and heavy-handed "nitpicking" akin to commandeering an adversary's law firm.

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Atty, Son Charged In Probe Of Alleged Penn State Drug Ring

By Rose Krebs

An equity partner based in Meyer Darragh Buckler Bebenek & Eck PLLC's Pittsburgh office has been charged with tampering with evidence and obstructing an investigation in connection with an alleged cocaine ring at Penn State University that allegedly involved his son, according to news reports.

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Texas Judge Flags 'Alarming' Number Of Bogus Citations

By Emily Sawicki

A federal judge presiding over an Austin, Texas, immigration case is warning of possible future sanctions after an attorney included an "alarming" number of "hallucinated" case citations in support of a habeas corpus petition.  

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Jackson Walker Says US Trustee Can't Claw Back Legal Fees

By Clara Geoghegan

Jackson Walker said this week that the U.S. Department of Justice's bankruptcy watchdog is beyond the bounds of its authority in a yearslong effort to force the firm to return millions of dollars in legal fees over an undisclosed relationship between a former partner and a Texas bankruptcy judge.

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Polsinelli Can't Rep Doctor In 'Bad Faith' IP Suits, Cos. Say

By Lauren Berg

Two medical device companies suing Polsinelli PC and its longtime client, a patent-holding doctor, for allegedly pursuing "bad faith" infringement claims asked federal courts in Tennessee and Mississippi to disqualify the firm from defending the doctor in the lawsuits, citing their "diverging interests and liabilities."

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DOJ Urges Court Not To Dismiss Suit Against DC Bar

By Alison Knezevich

The U.S. Department of Justice is urging a federal judge not to toss its lawsuit against Washington, D.C., attorney disciplinary authorities, saying the court "needs to halt defendants' flagrantly unconstitutional overreach into the president's executive power."

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Firms Cut From $101M Anthropic Atty Fees Appeal To 9th Circ.

By Lauren Berg

Two law firms involved in securing artificial intelligence company Anthropic's $1.5 billion copyright settlement with a class of authors and publishers are appealing to the Ninth Circuit an order excluding them from attorney fees awarded to court-appointed class counsel.

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Sinema Says Brief Signal Chat Can't Anchor NC Affair Suit

By Hayley Fowler

A single exchange on the encrypted messaging app Signal became the focal point of former Arizona U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema's testimony on Wednesday as she sought to convince a North Carolina federal judge that she cannot be hauled into court in the Tar Heel state over an affair — which she declined to characterize as a "passionate" romance — she had with her married security guard.

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