Analysis

High Court's Guardrails Won't Ease Fight Over Trans Athletes

By Alex Lawson

The U.S. Supreme Court's decision permitting states to ban transgender athletes from girls' sports was written in simple terms, but attorneys tracking the issue see the ruling as a flashpoint for further litigation.

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White House Recordkeeping Suit Paused While Gov't Appeals

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

A D.C. federal judge has paused a suit accusing the Trump administration of skirting White House recordkeeping rules while the government appeals the preliminary injunction granted last month.

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Judiciary Dems Seek DOJ Replies Before Blanche Hearing

By Courtney Bublé

Ahead of acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's confirmation hearing for the permanent position, Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee are demanding he provide answers to their outstanding oversight inquiries.

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Michigan Launches New, Simplified Court Forms

By Susan Smiley

For the first time since 1979, the Michigan State Court Administrative Office is rolling out new, simplified court forms meant to increase access to justice.

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8th Circ. Keeps Missouri's 340B Contract Pharmacy Law Alive

By Mark Payne

The Eighth Circuit declined Wednesday to temporarily block a Missouri law that bars drugmakers from imposing restrictions on federally funded providers that contract with pharmacies to distribute discount drugs in the 340B drug discount program.

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5th Circ. Says Vape Co. Deserves Jury Trial For $19K HHS Fine

By Mike Curley

A split Fifth Circuit panel has thrown out a $19,192 civil penalty against a Texas vape seller issued by the Department of Health and Human Services, saying the company is entitled to a jury trial under the Seventh Amendment and recent U.S. Supreme Court precedent.

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USPS Mail-In Ballot Plan Breaches NAACP Deal, Judge Says

By Bonnie Eslinger

A D.C. federal judge Wednesday told the U.S. Postal Service it couldn't go forward with a proposed rule governing the delivery of mail-in ballots, saying it would violate the terms of the federal agency's 2021 settlement with the NAACP in its voting rights litigation.

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Amgen Wins Order Blocking Colorado's Enbrel Price Cap

By Lauren Berg

Colorado is preliminarily blocked from enforcing its price cap on Amgen's rheumatoid arthritis drug Enbrel, a federal judge ruled Wednesday, saying the biotech company is likely to succeed on its claim that federal patent law preempts the state's effort to limit the price of patented medications.

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Gov't Officials Tout Unprecedented Healthcare Fraud Push

By Gianna Ferrarin

It's been an unprecedented year for healthcare fraud enforcement, senior government officials from the U.S. Justice Department and Department of Health and Human Services told conference attendees gathered in a ballroom Wednesday morning at the Midtown Hilton in Manhattan.

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Resale Ticket Buyers Must Arbitrate Live Nation Claims

By Matthew Perlman

A New York federal court has sent antitrust claims from concertgoers who purchased Ticketmaster tickets on the secondary market to arbitration, after finding an arbitration clause in Live Nation's terms of service is enforceable.

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Chen Says Herridge Must Name Source Even Under Her Test

By Jared Foretek

A woman claiming that an FBI agent smeared her by leaking confidential records to then-Fox News journalist Catherine Herridge told the U.S. Supreme Court not to halt Herridge's contempt finding and $800-per-day fine any longer, saying that even under Herridge's preferred test, she would still have to identify her source.

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6th Circ. Affirms Mich. Airport PFAS Suit Belongs In State Court

By Jonathan Capriel

The international airport in Grand Rapids, Michigan, has failed at its second attempt to push into federal court Michigan's lawsuit over forever plastic pollution, allegedly caused by firefighting foam the airport used, after the Sixth Circuit ruled that the airport already tried identical arguments in the previous appeal.

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FTC Upholds Horse Trainer's Ban, Scraps $25K Penalty

By David Minsky

The Federal Trade Commission upheld a horse trainer's two-year suspension on an alleged banned substances violation, but reversed a $25,000 fine after finding an administrative law judge wasn't authorized to impose the civil monetary penalty. 

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Calif. Court Rejects Challenge To FAIR Plan Fee Pass-Through

By Eli Flesch

California's top insurance regulator has the authority to allow the private insurance companies that make up the state's FAIR Plan to recoup from policyholders payments the companies make to support the last-resort insurer when its claim-paying ability is tested.

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4 Big Colorado Rulings So Far In 2026

By Zach Dupont

Insurance law took center stage in Colorado's appellate courts during the first half of 2026, but civil rights litigation produced its own notable mark on the landscape. Here, Law360 breaks down four major rulings in Colorado courts from the first half of 2026.

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Union Local Can't Join Suit Over NASA Library Closure

By Emily Brill

The union local representing workers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center can't join its parent union's lawsuit against the Trump administration to save a NASA library, a D.C. federal judge ruled, denying the local's bid to intervene to obtain an injunction protecting the Goddard Information and Collaboration Center.

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Federal Judge Narrows Ex-DaVita Worker's Retaliation Suit

By Melanie Dorsey

A former dialysis worker lost her whistleblower claim against a DaVita Inc. unit on Wednesday, yet a Michigan federal judge allowed part of her wrongful discharge case to proceed, finding a jury could weigh whether she was fired after refusing to take part in conduct she believed was illegal. 

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Brief

DOL Nears ESG Rule Rollback As White House Review Begins

By Jessica Corso

The U.S. Department of Labor is gearing up to repeal a Biden-era rule allowing retirement fiduciaries to consider issues like climate change and social justice when choosing investments, sending the proposed repeal to the White House for review.

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Watchdog Says DOL Needs Better Info Sharing Controls

By Kellie Mejdrich

The U.S. Department of Labor's lack of controls over information sharing between subagencies and nongovernmental entities, including law firms and legal advocacy organizations, may have unfairly advantaged those parties with privileged investigative information, an agency watchdog reported, though use of the practice has dropped off. 

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Unions Sue HHS Over Rollback Of Childcare Rule

By Katherine Smith

Several unions have challenged a new rule from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that rescinded changes made to a federal grant program that helps low-income families pay for childcare, according to a complaint filed in Washington federal court.

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House Bill To Regulate Earned Wage Advances Clears Panel

By Aislinn Keely

The House Financial Services Committee has advanced a federal framework for fintechs offering paycheck advances despite pushback from some Democrats that the proposal hamstrings states by blocking them from applying their lending laws to the services and imposing stronger consumer protections.

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Monthly Merger Review Snapshot

By Bryan Koenig

Getty Images abandoned its plans to buy Shutterstock, Sysco disclosed an in-depth probe into its deal for Jetro Restaurant Depot, Nexstar and Tegna battled challenges to their tie-up, and Paramount Skydance navigated reviews and potential challenges to its purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery on both sides of the Atlantic.

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Wash. AI Task Force Forgoes Data Center, Labor Safeguards

By Rachel Riley

A Washington state task force made a series of recommendations to lawmakers Wednesday for promoting responsible use of artificial intelligence while declining to endorse proposed guardrails on data center development and the use of generative AI by state agencies, according to a final report.

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FTC Says Distorting AI Outputs To Follow State Laws Won't Fly

By Allison Grande

Companies that "alter or steer" the outputs of artificial intelligence models to comply with legislation in Colorado and other states that aim to regulate the use of the emerging technology risk deceiving consumers and facing federal enforcement, the Federal Trade Commission warned in a proposed policy statement released Wednesday.

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AI Scams Drive Need For More Action To ID Callers, FCC Told

By Christopher Cole

With data showing robocall scams even more rampant than reported and artificial intelligence making fraud easier, the Federal Communications Commission needs to take action to better identify the sources of calls, a consumer advocacy group said.

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3 NJ Bills On Data Center Regulation Sent To Governor

By Isaac Monterose

The New Jersey Senate and the state's General Assembly recently passed three data center regulation bills that will be considered by Gov. Mikie Sherrill.

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NC Panel Revives Constitutional Fight Over Vendor Ordinance

By Hayley Fowler

The ability of local governments to regulate street vendors does not prevent a merchant in the Outer Banks from mounting a constitutional challenge against a city ordinance that restricted her ability to run a pop-up artists market, the North Carolina Court of Appeals said in an opinion switched Tuesday from unpublished to published.

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Ukrainian Civilian Suit Against Semiconductor Cos. Dismissed

By Spencer Brewer

A Texas federal judge on Wednesday dismissed claims that semiconductor manufacturers negligently sold products the Russian government used to build missiles that killed Ukrainian civilians, but gave the Ukrainian civilians who brought the suit another shot at pleading their claims.

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DOJ Lacks Authority To Challenge Magazine Ban, Colo. Says

By Rachel Konieczny

The federal government lacks the authority to challenge the constitutionality of a 2013 Colorado law that bans large-capacity magazines, the state told a Colorado federal judge in urging the court to toss the Second Amendment case.

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DC Judge Blocks More USDA Grant Terminations

By Ganesh Setty

A D.C. federal court has preliminarily reinstated U.S. Department of Agriculture grants totaling roughly $127 million under a program aimed at helping underserved farmers, finding the department's grant terminations likely flouted Congress' priorities under two Biden-era laws.

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Analysis

USMCA Nonrenewal Brings New Caution For Business

By Dylan Moroses

The joint review process for the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement formally kicked off Wednesday as the U.S. announced its intent not to renew the agreement without changes, leaving practitioners with questions about the outcomes of negotiations and expectations of continued business uncertainty.

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US Not Renewing USMCA, But Deal Still In Force For Now

By Jack McLoone

The U.S. will not to renew the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, the Office of the U.S. Trade Ambassador announced Wednesday, though the deal will remain in force as the three sides continue to negotiate.

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Tatneft Fights 'Indefinite' Stay In $173M Ukraine Award Case

By Caroline Simson

One of Russia's largest oil companies pressed the D.C. Circuit on Tuesday to unpause litigation aimed at enforcing a confirmed $173 million arbitral award against Ukraine, saying that the proceedings have now been on hold for more than four years without any indication of when they might resume.

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Pullman & Comley Escapes Challenge To Municipal Tax Work

By Aaron Keller

Pullman & Comley LLC has escaped claims that a Connecticut town illegally delegated its tax collection authority to it and one of its attorneys, with a judge agreeing to dissolve an order blocking a home sale and dismiss the action at the request of the parties.

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DHS Proposes 'Major Revisions' To EB-5 Investor Program

By Rae Ann Varona

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's bid to overhaul the EB-5 investment visa program targets fraud and national security threats, expands DHS authority and adds protections for good-faith investors, among other "major revisions," according to a soon-to-be-published proposed rule.

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Aide To Ex-NYC Mayor Cites 'Glaring Holes' In Bribery Case

By Stewart Bishop

An attorney for Frank Carone, the former chief of staff to former New York Mayor Eric Adams, on Wednesday said there are "glaring holes" in the indictment alleging Carone took bribes from a hotel owner in exchange for a multimillion-dollar migrant housing contract. 

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Calif. Tribe Seeks To Block July 8 Wild Horse Roundup

By Crystal Owens

A California tribe is looking to block the U.S. Department of the Interior from removing more than 600 wild horses via helicopter from a protected habitat starting July 8, arguing that the federal government has been on notice for nearly four decades that aboriginal interests are implicated by the territory's management activities.

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Calif. City Looks To Escape Tribe's Land Advisory Suit

By Crystal Owens

A California city is asking a district court to dismiss a challenge by the Yurok Tribe that looks to block the municipality from asserting jurisdiction over an Indigenous village site, saying it's well within its authority to appoint another tribe regarding management of the city-owned real property.

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NJ Cops Can Accept Warrantless Location Info From Feds

By Nadia Dreid

A New Jersey appeals court has said it won't overturn the gun trafficking conviction of a man who was arrested in part due to cellphone location data that was acquired by federal law enforcement in Ohio, which didn't require a warrant to get the information.

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Pa. Court's Verizon Tower Approval Comes With New Test

By Matthew Santoni

A Pennsylvania appellate court Wednesday set new standards for wireless providers like Verizon to seek local zoning variances, upholding approval of a Lehigh County cell tower while throwing out old Federal Communications Commission guidance on interpreting the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

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FCC Wants To Extend Covered List's Reach To Components

By Nadia Dreid

The Federal Communications Commission Wednesday announced new plans to expand the so-called covered list of telecommunications equipment — equipment deemed to be a national security risk — even further so that it bans not only a completed item but all the parts that make it up.

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Brief

FCC To Vote On Revamping Space, Earth Station Licensing

By Nadia Dreid

The Federal Communications Commission on Wednesday released the order it wants to vote on later this month to overhaul the licensing process for satellite and earth stations by creating an "assembly line" process that the agency says will slash red tape.

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U Of Ky. Appoints Controversial Dean Pick For Law School

By Courtney Bublé

U.S. District Judge Gregory Van Tatenhove of the Eastern District of Kentucky will retire from the bench later this month to become dean of the University of Kentucky's J. David Rosenberg College of Law, a move that sparked controversy in the state.

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How DOJ Is Approaching Monitorship After Signaling Limits

As the U.S. Department of Justice keeps more monitors in place than expected, a look at the matters in which prosecutors are maintaining oversight reveals the sort of companies enforcers might trust to self-remediate, and also those that may receive independent supervision, say attorneys at Kendall Brill.

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More Cos. Will Copy SpaceX's Shareholder Proposal Opt-Out

For more than 80 years, the shareholder proposal looked like a federal right guaranteed to all public company investors, but after SpaceX opted out before its recent initial public offering, other companies are likely to follow, says Mohsen Manesh at the University of Oregon School of Law.

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DOJ China Container Indictments Signal Global Cartel Risk

The U.S. Department of Justice's recent announcement that it had indicted Chinese manufacturers for conspiring to drive up the price of shipping containers sold in the U.S. illustrates the Antitrust Division's interest in pursuing overseas cartel conduct, especially in China, signaling that multinational companies with employees abroad should strengthen antitrust compliance to avoid running afoul of U.S. national security policy, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

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Series

Illinois Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

The last three months were particularly consequential for Illinois banking law, with a federal court ruling reshaping the Interchange Fee Prohibition Act, the state filling enforcement gaps, significant legislative activity and a revision to the community bank leverage ratio, say attorneys at Riley Safer.

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Md. Ruling Reflects Classic Administrative Law Principle

A Maryland federal court's recent decision in Columbus v. Kennedy significantly limits how far the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services can go in reshaping the Affordable Care Act through regulation, highlighting a principle that will likely be applied in similar Administrative Procedure Act challenges, says Michael King at Brownstein Hyatt.

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Attorney Mental Health Is An Ethical Obligation In The AI Era

As attorneys cope with the increasing unpredictability that artificial intelligence and constant policy changes have created, particularly in practice areas where they carry the emotional weight of clients’ most consequential life events, otherwise soft discussions about self-care are a matter of professional competence, says attorney Jack Jrada.

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Goldstein Calls Gov't's Attack On Text Messages 'Hypocrisy'

By Jared Foretek

Lawyers for convicted SCOTUSblog founder Thomas Goldstein have rejected prosecutors' claims that the famed U.S. Supreme Court lawyer may have deleted messages between himself and his poker backers, calling the government "hypocritical" after it had previously argued that Goldstein could authenticate the messages if he took the stand at trial.

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Brief

Texas Federal Judge Requires Confirmation Of AI Checks

By Emily Sawicki

Attorneys and self-represented parties appearing before U.S. District Judge Ernest Gonzalez of the Western District of Texas are now required to certify that they have independently verified the contents of any filings created or edited using artificial intelligence.

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'Do Your Part,' Mass. Judge Chides Read Case Attys Post-Leak

By Cara Salvatore

A Massachusetts judge on Wednesday lectured counsel in the high-profile civil case against Karen Read, the Massachusetts woman acquitted of murdering her Boston police officer boyfriend, to honor their ethical obligations after sensitive information leaked on social media.

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Wash. Atty Loses Bid For Jury In Dispute Over Bar Sanctions

By Emily Sawicki

A Washington lawyer sanctioned and disciplined for bringing a "frivolous" election suit in 2021 against then-Gov. Jay Inslee has lost her bid to have her ethics charges heard by a jury, with a state appeals panel finding no error in a trial court's ruling that it lacked jurisdiction to take on the disciplinary matter.

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Analysis

Plea Deals Get Scrutiny In 'Hunter,' But Justices Stay Cautious

By Brandon Lowrey

The shock for Mary Fan came almost immediately after she began her career as a federal prosecutor in Southern California in the mid-2000s.

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5 NYC Legal Service Provider Union Contracts Have Expired

By Andrea Keckley

The collective bargaining agreements for five New York City-based indigent defense and civil legal aid providers expired at the end of the day Tuesday as multiple unions reported outstanding points of contention in their negotiations.

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Roundup

The Top In-House Hires Of June

By Michele Gorman

Legal department hires during the past month included high-profile appointments at Bayer, Harley-Davidson and PBS. Here, Law360 Pulse looks at some of the top in-house announcements from June.

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