States' Temporary Aid Data-Sharing Injunction Bid Falls Short

By Lauren Berg

A D.C. federal judge declined to block a Trump administration policy allowing disclosures of temporary financial assistance recipients' sensitive personal information to federal authorities, saying that while it "seems plausible" this will chill participation in the program, Democratic-led states challenging the policy haven't provided "concrete evidence" of such harm.

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Jack Smith Says He Won't Be Intimidated By Trump Threats

By Courtney Bublé

Former special counsel Jack Smith testified on Tuesday he "will not be silenced" by threats of prosecution by the president or others.

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DC Circ. Weighs Limits On Boasberg's Contempt Inquiry

By Jared Foretek

A top Justice Department official told an en banc D.C. Circuit panel that a district judge should refer former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for contempt over the 2025 deportation flights to El Salvador and move on, saying the judge had no authority to wrap others into his inquiry.

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OpenAI Knew AI Was Rogue Before Hugging Face, Suit Says

By Dorothy Atkins

A public interest law nonprofit sued OpenAI in California state court Tuesday, seeking to hold the ChatGPT maker liable for a July cyberattack on Hugging Face, arguing OpenAI "straightforwardly violated California law" by failing to rein in hundreds of rogue AI agents that OpenAI knew were running amok without proper safeguards.

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Trump Admin Can't Dodge Claims Over Slashed Foreign Aid

By Nadia Dreid

The Trump administration has persuaded a D.C. federal judge to cut three claims from a suit seeking to stop it from terminating foreign assistance grants and contracts en masse, but most of the suit — another 15 claims — marched forward untouched.

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CNN Wants Preliminary Injunction In White House Ban Case

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

News outlets CNN, Politico and MS Now have asked for a preliminary injunction in their suit against the Trump administration over its ban on their journalists from entering the White House.

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NY Court Officials Must Disclose Secret Guidance To Judges

By Jack Karp

The New York State Office of Court Administration must hand over a batch of memos instructing state judges how to interpret the law after fighting for years to keep them under wraps, a New York state appeals court ruled Tuesday.

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Key Bank Policymaking Official To Depart Treasury

By Jon Hill

Luke Pettit, a top U.S. Department of the Treasury official who has helped shepherd the Trump administration's financial services policy agenda will step down next month, becoming the latest federal regulatory official to decamp in advance of the midterm elections.  

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CFTC Sends Event-Contracts Swaps Proposal To White House

By Aislinn Keely

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has submitted two rule proposals to the White House that appear to explicitly establish event contracts as swaps while excluding "casino-style gambling products," updates that could affirm the agency's view that prediction markets are under its "exclusive jurisdiction" and beyond the reach of states.

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Groups Say Calif. Biogas Credits Incentivize More Methane

By Gautama Mehta

Four environmental groups accused California regulators of violating state law by allowing factory farm biogas producers to receive carbon credits — a practice they said is notionally aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions but in reality incentivizes more methane production.

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Suit Accuses USDA Of Unlawfully Gutting Aid For Rural Solar

By Tom Lotshaw

A coalition including farm and renewable energy trade groups has accused the Trump administration of abruptly and unlawfully making most solar projects ineligible for a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant and loan program created to advance renewable energy in rural areas.

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Squires Confirms PTAB Judges Will Resume Institution Calls

By Dani Kass

Administrative patent judges will soon resume deciding whether Patent Trial and Appeal Board challenges will be instituted on the merits, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires told the Senate on Tuesday during a hearing that also raised questions about if the office has sacrificed patent quality to speed through an examination backlog.

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USPTO Details Best Practices For Subject Matter Declarations

By Adam Lidgett

Patent applicants submitting declarations explaining why their patents are eligible under Section 101 of the Patent Act should hand in those statements separately from other evidence and also send them in sooner rather than later, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires recommended on Tuesday.

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Qualcomm Presses High Court To Ignore FedEx RPI Dispute

By Adam Lidgett

Qualcomm wants the U.S. Supreme Court to skip a bid from FedEx to examine the Federal Circuit's refusal to review whether the technology company complied with real-party-in-interest requirements in a patent challenge, arguing the same type of dispute won't likely come up again.

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Tech Giants Tell Fed. Circ. To Spurn Squires Remand Bid

By Adam Lidgett

Google, Meta and other tech giants that challenged an Express Mobile website building patent have asked the Federal Circuit to reject the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's bid to remand the case to the patent office for further proceedings, after a panel of top Patent Trial and Appeal Board judges upheld the patent.

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Public Citizen Files 2 Complaints Over Trump Ads

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

Nonprofit advocacy group Public Citizen has filed two complaints following the appearance of an ad boosting the image of President Donald Trump that was paid for by government funds.

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11th Circ. Urged To Undo School's Ban On Penguins Book

By David Minsky

Book authors urged the Eleventh Circuit on Tuesday to overturn a Florida school's ban on a children's novel about two male penguins that partnered to raise a chick, arguing that the lower court unlawfully created a new exception for governments to regulate private speech. 

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Analysis

NHTSA Fuel Economy Regs Overhaul Crushes EV Ambitions

By Linda Chiem

The elimination of strict federal mandates for higher fuel efficiency in new cars crushes momentum for the U.S. auto industry to pivot toward alternative-powered vehicles, ensuring that manufacturers will again be caught in litigation limbo as environmental groups prepare challenges to seemingly inconsequential standards with no penalties, experts say.

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X Corp. Says Crypto Gambling Company Bribed X Employees

By Spencer Brewer

X Corp. told a Texas federal court that a company behind two controversial crypto gambling websites, which allegedly bribed X employees, cannot arbitrate claims that X unfairly removed their access to its website.

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Late Notice Can't Void Rent Control Exemption, Judge Rules

By Carla Baranauckas

A New Jersey federal judge has sided with the owners of two apartment towers on Jersey City's waterfront, ruling that the buildings qualify for an exemption from rent control under state law despite the city's contention that the owners failed to meet a notice requirement.

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NYC Property Owners Say 2nd-Home Tax Is Unconstitutional

By Isaac Monterose

A group of New York City property owners and other parties sued the New York state government on Tuesday over its pied-à-terre tax for certain high-value second homes, alleging in state court that the tax is unconstitutional because it discriminates against people who don't primarily live in the city.

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NY, Brooklyn Landlord Settle Rent Stabilization Suit

By Isaac Monterose

New York has agreed to settle a state court lawsuit against a Brooklyn landlord whom it accused of failing to register his rent-stabilized units with the state government, the New York Attorney General's Office announced.

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DOJ Says Trump Name Is Key To Kennedy Center Survival

By Jared Foretek

The U.S. Department of Justice told the D.C. Circuit the Kennedy Center's donors will flee if his name isn't put back on the building, arguing in its opening brief to the appeals court that the institution faces "financial ruin" without "appropriate recognition" for Trump.

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Ministry Stance In Anti-LGBTQ+ Hiring Suit Confuses 9th Circ.

By Rachel Riley

An en banc Ninth Circuit struggled Tuesday to understand a Washington-based Christian ministry's legal stance as it sought to preserve its ability to reject job applicants who are gay, with several judges suggesting it was immune from enforcement action since the state recognized the jobs as ministerial and therefore constitutionally exempt from anti-discrimination laws.

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Brief

Davis-Bacon Rule Fight Resumes In Texas

By Benjamin Morse

A Texas federal court will rule on dueling bids for early wins between construction groups and the U.S. Department of Labor over a challenge to 2023 Davis-Bacon Act regulations, according to an order lifting a stay in the case.

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RealPage Wins Injunction Against NY Rent Software Law

By Bonnie Eslinger

A federal judge in Manhattan granted RealPage's request for a preliminary injunction blocking a New York law banning building owners from using the property management platform to set residential rents, saying the company is "marginally" likely to prevail on its claim the statute regulates speech protected by the First Amendment.

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Lupin Strikes Deal In States' Generic Drug-Price Fixing Suit

By Gina Kim

Lupin Pharmaceuticals has reached a settlement with multiple states to resolve allegations that it conspired with G&W Laboratories Inc. to raise prices of the tuberculosis drug Ethambutol during a supply shortage years ago, according to a minute order entered in Connecticut federal court on Monday.

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Surgical Robot Co. Says 9th Circ. 'Expands' Antitrust Law

By Bryan Koenig

Intuitive Surgical asked the full Ninth Circuit to reconsider a decision reviving a surgical repair company's claims that it blocked third parties from refurbishing components for its popular da Vinci surgery robot, arguing the panel created a whole new pathway to alleging monopolization of secondary markets.

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Aldi Sued Over Online Order Delivery Fees By SNAP Users

By Gina Kim

Aldi illegally charges ancillary, nonfood-related delivery, expedited fulfillment and convenience fees to customers who use SNAP-EBT benefits to buy grocery items online through Instacart or Aldi Express, alleges a proposed consumer protection class action filed Monday in California state court. 

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Summer Vacation Rules Save Texas Slip-And-Fall Suit

By Mike Curley

A Texas appeals panel on Tuesday revived a woman's slip-and-fall suit, finding the trial court judge abused their discretion by ignoring her attorney's summer vacation designation and dismissing the case with prejudice when he was unprepared at trial.

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Glock Says Conn. Wouldn't Clarify Convertible Pistol Sale Ban

By Aaron Keller

Glock Inc. criticized Connecticut's attorney general and other state authorities Tuesday, arguing litigation was necessary because officials provided no clear answers when asked whether certain pistols violate a new law that bans the importation, advertising or sale of newly manufactured handguns that can be "readily converted" into fully automatic weapons.

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Analysis

DC Circ. Anthropic Ruling Could Chill Contractor Speech

By Madeline Lyskawa

The D.C. Circuit's decision backing the U.S. Department of Defense's removal of Anthropic from its supply chain was based on a broad reading of the Federal Acquisition Supply Chain Security Act, which could lead contractors to be more careful about publicizing disputes with the department.

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Feds Seek To Throw Out States' Challenge To DEI Contract EO

By Ganesh Setty

The Trump administration told a Maryland federal court that it should toss a lawsuit from states challenging its implementation of an executive order targeting diversity, equity and inclusion practices in the government contracting space, arguing the order falls within well-settled law.

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Brief

Chinese, Indian Electrodes Dumped, Commerce Finds

By Jack McLoone

Imports of electrodes used for smelting from India and China are facing possible antidumping duties, the U.S. Department of Commerce said Tuesday, finding they are being sold in the U.S. at less than fair value.

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Brief

CBP Bars Indonesian Palm Oil With Possible Illicit Labor Ties

By Dylan Moroses

Imported palm oil products from two Indonesian companies will be barred from entering the U.S. because of suspected ties to forced labor, Customs and Border Protection announced Tuesday.

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11th Circ. Won't Pause Sanctions Against Trump In IRS Case

By Jack McLoone

An Eleventh Circuit panel refused Tuesday to pause a district court's sanctions order barring President Donald Trump and others from citing the agreement he made to settle his $10 billion suit against the Internal Revenue Service while they appeal the order.

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Tax Co. Urges 5th Circ. To Deny Microcaptive Rules Case Stay

By Zak Kostro

A global tax services provider asked the Fifth Circuit to deny the IRS' request to stay its challenge to the agency's reporting rules for microcaptive insurance companies pending the resolution of a similar case before the appeals court, saying it should be allowed to present its own arguments.

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Brief

Senate Passes Bankruptcy Bill Restoring Higher Debt Limits

By Yun Park

The U.S. Senate passed a House-approved bill that would bring back and make permanent higher debt limits for small businesses and individuals accessing streamlined restructuring processes.

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Justices Allow Third-Country Removals To Resume, For Now

By Britain Eakin

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed the Trump administration to resume, for now, deporting immigrants to countries besides their own, while agreeing to review the legality of the practice.

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EB-5 Visa Fees More Than Double For Individual Investors

By Elaine Briseño

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced increased filing fees Tuesday for the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program — more than double for individual investors — saying the higher price tag is needed to close a $48.4 million annual funding gap.

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Feds Tell 4th Circ. Ábrego García Delayed His Own Removal

By Ganesh Setty

The Trump administration is telling the Fourth Circuit that a Maryland federal judge shouldn't have granted Kilmar Ábrego García protection from continued immigration detention, saying the unlawful rulings he successfully sought are what's preventing his removal to Liberia.

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Colo. Says DHS, ICE Flouted Notice Laws For Detention Site

By Rachel Konieczny

Colorado urged a federal judge to nullify a government contract for the renovation and operation of a federal immigrant detention facility northeast of Denver, alleging Tuesday that federal agencies flouted their legal obligations to conduct an environmental analysis and to notify the public about the planned facility's environmental impact.

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Trump Admin Can't Use Anti-DEI, Citizenship Rules For Grants

By Bonnie Eslinger

A Rhode Island federal judge on Tuesday said the U.S. Department of Justice can't impose new conditions related to diversity, equity and inclusion activities and immigration status on domestic violence assistance grants, a ruling that sides with a coalition of states and nonprofits that challenged the restrictions.

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Housing Agency Says Indicted Ex-Boss Can't Use Home For Bond

By Brian Steele

The former executive director of two Connecticut housing authorities cannot use his home to secure a $500,000 bond in his federal wire fraud case, the Groton Housing Authority and related entities told the state court judge overseeing a civil case arising from his alleged theft.

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Fugitive Ex-Conn. Budget Official Seeks To Split Restitution

By Aaron Keller

A onetime Connecticut budget official now on the lam in Greece asked a federal judge Tuesday to postpone restitution until two admitted co-conspirators who testified against him are sentenced, arguing their plea agreements could force them to shoulder at least some of the costs of a school construction bribery scheme.

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DC Circ. Won't Rehear Ute Tribe's 1.5M-Acre Land Fight

By Crystal Owens

An en banc D.C. Circuit won't rehear a Utah tribe's petition to overturn a decision that says it has no compensable title to 1.5 million acres in the state after the Indigenous nation argued that the lower court misinterpreted an 1880 law.

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Fed Bill Seeks To End NY Control Of Seneca Policing

By Crystal Owens

U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., has introduced companion legislation that will establish a path to end a federal law that gave the state criminal jurisdiction over Seneca Nation territory, which is designed to resolve overlapping responsibilities among federal, state and tribal authorities.

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FCC Looking To Duck Mandamus In 2021 RF Exposure Order

By Nadia Dreid

Five years after the D.C. Circuit told the FCC it needed to provide more in-depth reasoning for why it believes cellphones and other wireless devices don't pose a risk to humans, the agency is arguing it needs more time to sort out a response.

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FCC Can Step Into Idaho Pole Dispute With Utility, ISP Says

By Christopher Cole

An internet service provider insisted the Federal Communications Commission has jurisdiction in its fight with a utility over pole upgrades for broadband gear in Idaho, saying state regulators lacked authority over the issue when the dispute first occurred.

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DEA Judge Pauses Marijuana Rescheduling Over GAO Report

By Sam Reisman

A U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration administrative law judge on Tuesday paused consideration of a pending proposal to reclassify marijuana after opponents of cannabis reform said a recent U.S. Government Accountability Office report found that regulators did not articulate the reasoning behind their recommendation to loosen restrictions on marijuana.

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Akin Adds House Financial Services Staffer To Lobbying Team

By Alison Knezevich

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP said Tuesday a former senior staff member on the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services has joined its lobbying and public policy practice in Washington, D.C.

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What Comes Next For Digital Asset Regs After Clarity Act Flop

After the U.S. Senate recently blocked the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, agency rulemaking could still offer a near-term remedy, and companies meanwhile should monitor the existing framework assembled from enforcement precedent and case law in the absence of a purpose-built statute, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

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Species 'Harm' Definition Rollback Brings Risk For Developers

A rule recently adopted by federal agencies rescinds the definition of "harm" in Endangered Species Act regulations to exclude habitat destruction — but while the move is aimed at reducing regulatory burdens, it creates new uncertainty for developers, and may trigger increased environmental protections in California, say attorneys at Cox Castle.

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How Employers Can Navigate NLRB Rulings Ripe For Reversal

Given a recent National Labor Relations Board memo seeking to reverse several precedents — including on severance agreements and workplace policies — employers should prepare now to restore broader protections when the board acts, while following the law as it exists today, says Howard Lavin at Thompson Coburn.

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FDA Bill Shows Risk Of Inexact Statute Text, Post-Loper Bright

A recent House bill to amend the Food and Drug Administration's drug preclusion framework reveals the increased importance of precision when drafting statutory rules in a post-Loper Bright landscape, as several minor errors in the text could lock in unintended results that will be difficult to repeal, say attorneys at Venable.

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$95M Nev. Case Provides Clues On Wound Care Enforcement

Federal prosecutors’ recent U.S. v. Dubin indictment, charging a Nevada physician with healthcare fraud over an alleged $95 million Medicare billing scheme involving amniotic wound allografts, provides a clearer picture of an increasingly data-driven enforcement strategy that follows the entire wound care transaction, say attorneys at Bass Berry.

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Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: September Lessons

In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy discusses six recent rulings involving pecuniary loss in false price comparison advertising, privity in an insurance fee class, antitrust standing, immigration class representatives, retirement beneficiary class commonality, and Rule 23(f) appeals in Fair Labor Standards Act claims.

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3rd Circ. Affirms Thomson Reuters' Westlaw AI Copyright Win

By Ivan Moreno

The Third Circuit on Tuesday upheld Thomson Reuters' victory against Ross Intelligence Inc. in the first U.S. appellate ruling to address whether artificial intelligence training can be fair use of copyrighted material, upholding a Delaware federal court's decision that the startup infringed Westlaw headnotes by using material derived from them to develop an AI-powered legal search tool.

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Baker Botts Atty Disputes Inventor's Claim Of Defamation Deal

By Madison Arnold

A Baker Botts LLP patent attorney is pushing back on an inventor's claim that they reached a settlement agreement in the inventor's defamation suit in Florida federal court.

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Richards Layton Atty's Chancery Nomination Advanced

By Rose Krebs

A Delaware senate committee Tuesday advanced the nomination for a Richards Layton & Finger PA director to serve as a vice chancellor on the nationally important Chancery Court, with him vowing to continue the court's esteemed legacy for corporate law jurisprudence.

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