Analysis

Attys Ensure Voters' 'Right To Be Heard' In Midterm Elections

By James Boyle and Lynn LaRowe

From BigLaw attorneys and solo practitioners to university professors, thousands of attorney volunteers turned out for Tuesday's midterm elections to ensure American voters' ballots would be counted.

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Analysis

Fintechs Prepare For Blue Wave's Flood Of Investigations

By Aislinn Keely

Democrats rode Tuesday night's blue wave to take control of both chambers of Congress, scuttling the legislative hopes of a crypto industry that's now battening down the hatches for a flood of investigations into its ties to the Trump administration, consumer protection and financial crime.

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Analysis

Senate Permitting Bill May Sink Beneath Blue Wave

By Keith Goldberg

The chances of Congress passing legislation aimed at speeding permits for infrastructure projects plummeted as Democrats seized control of Capitol Hill in Tuesday's elections, and any related bill introduced in 2027 could look a lot different than the current version.

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Analysis

Attys Consider Corporate Implications Of Blue Texas

By Spencer Brewer

Texas attorneys have already started weighing new strategies in the wake of Texas' historic blue shift, led by a new attorney general and a new governor who have pledged to bring more industry regulation and consumer protections to the Lone Star State.

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Analysis

Midterm Dem Wins To Scramble Lit Funding Legislative Efforts

By Ryan Boysen

Litigation funders can rest easy, for now, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce will need to rethink its approach after last night's midterm elections saw Democrats rout Republicans, scrambling a yearslong effort for federal regulation of litigation finance that's so far relied on Republicans.

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Former DOJ Officials See Mixed Results In Midterm Races

By Chris Villani

The 2026 midterm elections included bids for office by several former U.S. Department of Justice officials and nominees for the federal bench, with one race a dead heat and several others decided as of early Wednesday.

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State AG Race Wins Set To Give Dems Control Of Most Offices

By Madison Arnold

Democrats are poised to oversee a majority of state attorneys general offices around the country after Tuesday's elections saw the party hang on to all of its existing seats and flip control of five offices from the Republicans, according to unofficial election results.

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Ex-Diddy Prosecutor At Boies Schiller To Lead Cornell Case

By Andrea Keckley

A Cornell University alumna and former high-ranking federal prosecutor known for overseeing the criminal case against Sean "Diddy" Combs before joining Boies Schiller Flexner LLP last year will serve as outside counsel for the investigation into an alleged gang rape on Cornell's campus in 2024, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Wednesday.

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Fla. Judge Won't Allow Blanche Deposition In Epstein Suit Yet

By Carolina Bolado

A Florida federal magistrate judge said Wednesday he might consider allowing the deposition of U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche in a suit alleging the FBI mishandled a sex trafficking investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, but said the parties need to engage in more discovery first.

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DOJ Says Epshteyn Will Answer ABA Service Motion

By Jared Foretek

Trump advisor Boris Epshteyn will answer for himself why he has allegedly been evading subpoenas in the American Bar Association's legal challenge to the administration's law firm targeting campaign, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Wednesday.

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Michigan Think Tank Sues To Block Newly Passed Proposition

By Susan Smiley

A nonprofit organization in Michigan sued the state's attorney general and secretary of state in federal court late Tuesday night seeking to block the implementation of a campaign finance transparency proposition that was approved by 81% of voters.

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OCC Maps Out How Its Examiners Will Review Banks' AI Use

By Jon Hill

The use of artificial intelligence at banks to conduct payments, decide loan applications or perform other high-stakes activities autonomously could face closer examiner scrutiny under a new supervisory framework issued Wednesday by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

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SEC Classifies More Funds, Advisers As 'Small Entities'

By Jessica Corso

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday adopted regulations that designate more mutual funds and investment advisers as small entities in order to "eliminate unnecessary regulatory burdens," SEC Chairman Paul Atkins said.

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SpaceX Says Data Shows Need To Sunset High-Cost Program

By Christopher Cole

SpaceX has urged a Federal Communications Commission member to consider a phaseout of a high-cost program that serves rural areas, pointing to new data it says shows increasing overlap between subsidized and competing services.

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Judge Says CFTC Likely Overstepped On Stock Perpetuals

By Katryna Perera

A New York federal judge said the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission likely exceeded its authority when it signed off on the trading of perpetual contracts tied to individual stocks, but stopped short of hitting it with a temporary restraining order in a suit brought by a special interest organization backed by Cboe Global Markets Inc.

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DOD Says It Has Resumed Wind Project Reviews

By Madeline Lyskawa

The U.S. Department of Defense urged an Oregon federal judge to reject renewable energy backers' claim that the Pentagon has continued its unlawful freeze on reviewing proposed wind energy projects, saying reviews have resumed at every stage.

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States Ask DC Circ. To Revisit DOE Coal Plant Order Ruling

By Tom Lotshaw

A West Virginia-led coalition urged the full D.C. Circuit to revisit a panel ruling scrapping a U.S. Department of Energy order directing a retiring coal-fired power plant to remain open, arguing it improperly limited the department's powers "at a hard moment for the grid."

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Ex-Utility Regulator's $2,500 Fine Suit Meets Skeptical Judge

By Aaron Keller

A Connecticut judge appeared skeptical Wednesday of former Public Utilities Regulatory Authority chair Marissa P. Gillett's bid to keep alive a lawsuit challenging a $2,500 open records commission fine, pushing Gillett's lawyer to concede that because the authority tendered payment, the ex-chairperson was no longer personally on the hook.

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Abortion Measures Split State Voters In Midterm Election

By Chris Villani

Reproductive and gender-affirming care rights were on ballots in several states Tuesday night, as the Idaho electorate rejected a measure that would have overturned its anti-abortion laws, while voters in Nevada and other states passed measures expanding abortion protections.

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Brief

EU Committees OK Tighter Controls On Drug Inputs

By Jack McLoone

Two European Parliament committees voted Wednesday to advance draft measures they said would strengthen controls on chemicals used to manufacture illegal drugs like heroin and cocaine.

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1st Circ. Revives Temu Suit Against IP Atty, Citing Jurisdiction

By Hailey Konnath

The First Circuit has revived Chinese e-commerce company Temu's lawsuit accusing an intellectual property attorney of lying to secure settlements with a pair of clients, finding that the lower court failed to consider jurisdictional questions.

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Altria Tells 4th Circ. ITC Patent Cases Are Unconstitutional

By Elliot Weld

Altria has asked the Fourth Circuit to undo a district court decision allowing a patent case in the U.S. International Trade Commission brought against it by Juul to proceed, saying the Constitution dictates that private patent disputes belong in the courts.

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1st Circ. Sees Mass. Promise To Robinhood As 'Cold Comfort'

By Carolyn Muyskens

First Circuit judges on Wednesday appeared sympathetic to Robinhood's bid to have a federal court determine if Massachusetts can regulate prediction markets, with two judges calling the state's temporary promise not to sue the fintech platform "cold comfort." 

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NC Security Co. Not Covered For Transit Attacks, Insurer Says

By Hope Patti

A security contractor for a North Carolina city's transit system is not owed coverage for claims stemming from two fatal attacks and a debilitating assault, an insurer told a federal court, saying the company voided its 2025 policies by failing to disclose the incidents in its insurance renewal application.

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NY Panel Tosses Challenge To Rollout Of NYC 2nd-Home Tax

By Paul Williams

A New York state appeals court threw out a challenge lodged by homeowners to the rollout of New York City's tax on high-value second homes, saying they lacked standing to bring the suit.

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Woman Tells 11th Circ. Sexual Assault Gag Clause Is Invalid

By Carolina Bolado

A woman who claimed she was sexually assaulted by her former intimate partner asked the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday to overturn a $2.7 million judgment against her for breaching a confidential agreement with the ex-partner, arguing the question of the contract's validity is one for a jury.

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7th Circ. Probes Milwaukee Tool's Forced-Labor Liability

By Celeste Bott

Seventh Circuit judges grappled Wednesday with whether a federal anti-trafficking law allows a former Chinese prisoner to sue Milwaukee Tool over allegations it sold gloves made with forced prison labor in China, questioning the international consequences of allowing private lawsuits over foreign conduct and probing whether the company's alleged profits from that labor in the United States are sufficient to keep the case alive.

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Mass. Voters Approve Public Defenders' Bid For Union Rights

By Julie Manganis

Attorneys and other employees of Massachusetts' public defender agency should have the opportunity to decide whether to form a union, voters said Tuesday in approving a ballot measure authorizing a change to state law.

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Mass. Justices Doubt Nantucket's Rationale For PFML Denial

By Julie Manganis

Massachusetts' highest court appeared to push back Wednesday on assertions by Nantucket that it cannot implement the state's Paid Family and Medical Leave Act for employees of the island enclave, despite a town meeting vote, because some of its unions have not agreed to bargain over the cost.

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Wash. Justices Won't Hear Concrete Co.'s $649K Wage Appeal

By MJ Koo

Washington's highest court declined to review a concrete company's challenge to a state agency's finding that it underpaid workers who used radar and X-ray imaging to scan concrete on a Seattle-area light rail bridge project, leaving the company on the hook for nearly $649,000 in unpaid wages and interest.

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House Democrat Urges Labor Agencies To Preserve Records

By Benjamin Morse

The top Democrat on the House Education and Workforce Committee urged the U.S. Department of Labor, the National Labor Relations Board and other federal agencies on Wednesday to preserve government records ahead of the next Congress, warning that officials who unlawfully destroy documents could face criminal penalties.

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Ex-Avangrid Atty Who Raised Bribery Concerns Fights Firing

By Brian Steele

The chief compliance officer of an Avangrid unit lost his job because he cooperated with a federal regulator's audit and refused to downplay a bribery matter involving a Maine-based offshoot, according to a whistleblower lawsuit in Connecticut state court.

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Ex-Pardon Atty's Firing Is Not Reviewable, DOJ Tells Court

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

The Justice Department has asked a federal court to dismiss a lawsuit from a former U.S. pardon attorney who alleges she was fired for not recommending restoration of actor Mel Gibson's gun rights.

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Gene Firm Sues Pentagon Over 'Chinese Military' Label

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

A Chinese genetic sequencing company has sued the Pentagon, saying it was wrongly labeled a "Chinese military company" without a warning or a chance to respond.

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AGs Say Taro's $200M MDL Deal Doesn't Bar Their Claims

By Bryan Koenig

Dozens of state attorneys general urged a Connecticut federal judge Tuesday not to let Taro Pharmaceuticals block a swath of their price-fixing claims with a $200 million settlement it struck with plaintiffs in separate multidistrict litigation, arguing the claims and plaintiffs are too separate to bind one another.

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Brief

State AGs Tell Congress $17B Meta Deal Didn't Go Far Enough

By David Aaro

A bipartisan coalition that includes nearly every state attorney general is urging Congress to pass legislation designed to further improve online protections for minors, just two months after a $17 billion multistate settlement was reached with Meta.

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NJ Justices Skeptical Court Can Void Jersey City Sewer Pact

By George Woolston

The New Jersey Supreme Court appeared skeptical Wednesday that it had the authority to void a decades-old settlement agreement requiring Jersey City to pay for the water treatment costs of nine municipalities, with justices questioning whether they were being asked to overrule the state's sewage authority law.

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Strand Bookstore To Pay $1.5 Million Over Improper PPP Loan

By Katryna Perera

New York's Strand Bookstore has agreed to pay nearly $1.5 million to resolve claims that it improperly applied for and received a Paycheck Protection Program loan that it was not eligible for, while under the control of the wife of U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.

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Wash. Voters Reject Repeal Of Tax On Millionaires

By Maria Koklanaris

Washington will allow taxation of individual income and, in turn, keep a recently approved high-earner tax, the state's governor said Wednesday.

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Groups Ask 11th Circ. To Affirm Block Of Trump-IRS Deal

By Zak Kostro

A consumer advocacy organization and an ethics watchdog group urged the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday to affirm a Florida federal judge's order finding President Donald Trump's $10 billion suit against the IRS and the resulting settlement deal lacked legitimate controversy, saying his suit threatens the judicial branch's integrity.

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NY Judge Won't Block State Ban On Local ICE Agreements

By Ganesh Setty

A New York federal court declined to block a new state law barring local law enforcement from reaching voluntary agreements with the federal government to assist in immigration enforcement, finding that a group of sheriffs likely lack the capacity to sue.

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ICE Must Free Detainee Rearrested At Detention Center

By Elaine Briseño

A federal judge in Colorado ordered immigration officials to immediately release a detainee who was rearrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers before leaving the detention center grounds, arguing cruelty was the motivation.

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Pa. Court Says INA Shields Removal Decisions From Review

By Elaine Briseño

A Pennsylvania federal judge tossed a request from a group of children seeking to halt their deportation, finding the Immigration and Nationality Act has limited the court's jurisdiction to review the petitioners' claims and therefore the court lacked jurisdiction.

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Trump Officials Seek To Escape Khalil's Conspiracy Suit

By Ganesh Setty

Trump administration officials have urged a New York federal court to toss a civil lawsuit from pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil alleging a conspiracy to target him before the administration ultimately sought his deportation on foreign policy grounds, arguing the court lacks jurisdiction.

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Md. Judge Extends Asylum Deal Over 84 Wrongful Removals

By Nadia Dreid

A Maryland federal judge is extending the deadline for a settlement that protects certain asylum-seekers from deportation until their applications are fully processed, after finding that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security wrongfully deported at least 84 people covered by the settlement. 

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Witness Against Fugitive Conn. Budget Official Gets Probation

By Brian Steele

A witness who testified that she hired the daughter of fugitive Konstantinos Diamantis under pressure was sentenced Wednesday to two years of probation after cooperating with the FBI and admitting to one count of conspiring to bribe the former Connecticut budget official.

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AT&T Seeks OK To Suspend LA Services Amid Copper Theft

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

AT&T has asked the Federal Communications Commission to again extend its emergency authorization to suspend phone services in parts of Los Angeles amid "repeated and pervasive" copper theft and vandalism incidents.

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NM Broadband Officials Say State Still Needs E-Rate

By Nadia Dreid

As the Federal Communications Commission considers the future of the E-Rate program, which subsidizes the cost of internet for schools and libraries, including whether to sunset it entirely, New Mexico has told the agency that ending the program would be a mistake.

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Analysis

Anti-Pot Group Eyes New Repeal Pushes After Mass. Loss

By Sam Reisman

After Election Day, anti-cannabis activists are pledging to bring repeal efforts to other states despite a decisive defeat in Massachusetts, while pro-cannabis industry and consumer-focused groups say they hope to work with a Democrat-controlled Congress to secure federal reform.

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Democrat Savit Wins Michigan AG Race To Succeed Nessel

By Melanie Dorsey

Michigan voters chose Democrat Eli Savit as their new attorney general Tuesday in a six-candidate race led by two county prosecutors with contrasting priorities for the role of the state's top legal officer.

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Conflicting Rulings Cloud NCAA Eligibility Rule

The NCAA's adoption of the five-to-five eligibility rule has resulted in a genuinely fractured landscape, with the qualification for members of the class of 2022 essentially dependent upon the location of the athlete and the institution rather than on the underlying facts of the case, says Andrew Hope at Buchanan Ingersoll.

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SEC's 'Innovation Exemption' Isn't A Substitute For Legislation

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recently announced innovation exemption, allowing trading in certain tokenized securities on permissioned on-chain trading platforms, is a temporary and conditional solution for a specific market model, not a general exemption for on-chain securities trading, says Niels Lemmers at Flow Traders.

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What To Expect From Calif.'s Incoming Health AI Laws

California's new statewide ground rules for artificial intelligence in clinical care, set to take effect on Jan. 1, reveal the Legislature's choice to regulate healthcare AI primarily though institutions, rather than direct product regulation, and providers should shape their compliance plans accordingly, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

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Opinion

The Invisible AI Danger That May Undermine Legal Profession

A public database tracking cases involving hallucinations generated by artificial intelligence recently surpassed 2,200 entries, but the bigger risk underlying attorneys’ use of such tools is that they will slowly surrender their judgment to AI and lose analytical skills, says Massachusetts District Court Associate Justice Brian Palmucci.

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Gibson Dunn Set To Bring On 120 Lawyers From Weil

By Daniel Moritz-Rabson and Marialuisa Taddia

Gibson Dunn is set to hire the U.S. and London-based private funds teams from Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP, bringing on 120 attorneys in the largest group move reported since Weil's management committee recommended last week that the firm wind down operations.

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Goldstein Ordered To Pay Trimmed $1M Forfeiture

By Nadia Dreid

Former SCOTUSblog publisher Tom Goldstein was hit with a $1 million forfeiture order Wednesday by a Maryland federal judge in the wake of his tax and mortgage fraud trial, where the appellate advocate was convicted on a dozen charges.

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Holland & Hart Cost Ex-Client $23M Stake In Co., Suit Says

By Zach Dupont

Holland & Hart LLP and two of its attorneys were accused of malpractice in Colorado state court Tuesday by a former client who claims the attorneys failed to inform her that a wealth transfer plan with her then-husband left her iced out of the couple's most valuable asset.

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DOJ Accused Of Unlawfully Ending Crime Victim Agreement

By Tom Lotshaw

The National Crime Victim Law Institute has accused the U.S. Department of Justice in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims of unlawfully terminating a $500,000 cooperative agreement aimed at strengthening legal support for disabled crime victims in the wake of an executive order against diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

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