Scott Colom Wins Mississippi Senate Race After Judicial Snub

By Courtney Bublé

Scott Colom was announced the winner of the Mississippi Senate race Wednesday, ousting the Republican senator who prevented him from becoming a federal judge by withholding her blue slip.

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Trump Swaps Out Blocked 8th Circ. Nominee With Ark. Justice

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump on Tuesday withdrew his pick for the Eighth Circuit and replaced him with a different nominee amid apparent opposition from Arkansas' senators. 

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Trump Asks High Court To Make Ballroom Decision Permanent

By Katie Buehler

President Donald Trump has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to make permanent its temporary order allowing construction to continue on the White House ballroom without further litigation, suggesting the justices could rely on an emergency docket ruling to quickly free the project from unnecessary "judicial superintendence." 

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Grassley Defends Rush To Confirm Trump Judicial Picks

By Courtney Bublé

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, on Tuesday defended how quickly the committee is moving to confirm President Donald Trump's judicial picks before Democrats control the Senate.

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Trump Admin Still Can't Cut Trees At DC Golf Course

By Lauren Berg

A D.C. federal judge issued a scathing order refusing to pause her injunction blocking the Trump administration from cutting down more trees at East Potomac Golf Course, rejecting the government's attempt to decouple the tree removals from its allegedly unlawful plan to develop a championship-style golf course.

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Justice Asks Gov't To Pick Best 'Poison' In H-2A Fine Case

By Britain Eakin

A government attorney told the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday that it would be highly disruptive to require civil fines for H-2A visa program violations to be adjudicated solely in federal court, instead of through the U.S. Department of Labor's in-house court.

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Trump Taps Consumer Protection Chief For FTC Spot

By Matthew Perlman

President Donald Trump nominated Christopher Mufarrige, director of the Federal Trade Commission's Consumer Protection Bureau, Monday to fill a vacant seat on the commission, but it's not clear if he will be confirmed ahead of the lame-duck session in Congress.

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Mass. Justices Say Gym's Waiver Not Valid In Child Injury Suit

By Julie Manganis

Massachusetts' highest court ruled Tuesday that a children's gymnastics school cannot rely on a liability waiver to shield itself from claims brought on behalf of a child injured during a class, reviving a negligence lawsuit against the facility.

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Mass. Auditor Says Lawmakers Must Comply With Demands

By Julie Manganis

Massachusetts' state auditor asked a judge to force lawmakers to comply with demands for documents for her long-sought — and voter-endorsed — audit of the Legislature.

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Kennedys Say Trump's Arch Would Mar Arlington Gravesites

By Lauren Berg

The Kennedy family Tuesday threw its storied political weight behind litigation seeking to stop President Donald Trump's planned 250-foot arch just east of Arlington National Cemetery, saying the unlawful project "will permanently cast shadows" over their family's graves and the graves of U.S. military members.

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SEC, Platforms Back CFTC In Stock Perpetuals Challenge

By Aislinn Keely

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is backing the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's approval of perpetual contracts tied to individual stocks, arguing the depiction in a special interest organization's lawsuit of "a CFTC gone rogue, and an SEC gone missing" is mistaken.

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SEC Reports Continued Decline In Enforcement Actions

By Sarah Jarvis

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission brought 22% fewer actions during its first full fiscal year under Chairman Paul Atkins compared to the prior year, according to a report the agency released Tuesday. It continues a downward trend in case counts, although the agency stresses the number of cases it brings is an incomplete measure of enforcement effectiveness.

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CalPERS, States Urge SEC To Keep Adviser Pay-To-Play Rule

By Jessica Corso

State officials and public pensions, including the California Public Employees' Retirement System, are urging the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission not to get rid of a 15-year-old rule blocking investment advisers that donate to certain political campaigns from working with municipal and state funds, arguing it protects retirees from corruption.

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No 3rd Circ. Redo For Green Group Over Pa. Pipeline Permits

By Matthew Santoni

The Third Circuit won't grant an en banc rehearing to an environmental group's challenge to a pair of Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Co. pipeline projects in Pennsylvania, after ruling in October that the state's permitting process wasn't deficient.

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Feds Swiped State Power For Calif. Pipeline, 9th Circ. Told

By Hailey Konnath

Environmental groups and the state of California have asked the Ninth Circuit to block the federal government's approval of a Texas company's restart plan for an oil pipeline system near Santa Barbara, arguing that regulation of the pipeline lies with the Golden State. 

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Feds Seek To Lift Power Line Injunction After Further Review

By Ganesh Setty

The federal government has urged a Colorado federal court to lift a preliminary injunction partially blocking a utility's construction of a transmission line in the Nebraska Sandhills, arguing that the issues the court identified in an "incidental take" permit have been fixed.

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Ark. Judge Allows State Abortion Ban Challenge To Proceed

By Gianna Ferrarin

An Arkansas physician and six women can proceed with claims that the state's near-total abortion ban violates the Arkansas Constitution by effectively chilling pregnancy-related care, a state judge ruled, denying the majority of the state's dismissal bid.

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Idaho Judge Stays Abortion Relief, Citing 9th Circ. Ruling

By Gianna Ferrarin

An Idaho federal judge on Tuesday stayed his finding that the state would violate the 14th Amendment by criminalizing certain abortions performed by a doctor challenging the state's abortion laws, saying he is bound by a Ninth Circuit decision he "strongly disagrees" with.

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Analysis

AI, Bulk TM Apps Might Be Spurring Intent-To-Use Increase

By Theresa Schliep

The share of intent-to-use trademark applications filed in the U.S. has increased over the past two years, and attorneys say the burgeoning trend hints at the increasing prevalence of artificial intelligence tools in trademark prosecution, as well as lawyers opting to file many applications at once to see what sticks.

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Squires Officially Returns Merits Institution To PTAB Judges

By Dani Kass

Starting Monday, Patent Trial and Appeal Board judges will again decide whether to institute patent challenges, according to a new memorandum from U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires.

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BBC Gets Trump Defamation Suit Trimmed But Not Tossed

By Hailey Konnath

A Florida federal judge on Tuesday refused to throw out the bulk of Donald Trump's $10 billion defamation suit against the BBC over its documentary on the 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, ruling that the president has plausibly alleged it caused reputational harm, at least for now.

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Judge Halts Discovery In Patel's Case Against Atlantic

By Jared Foretek

A D.C. federal judge paused all discovery in FBI Director Kash Patel's defamation suit against The Atlantic magazine on Tuesday until he rules on its motion to dismiss, only allowing the sides' "Touhy" requests for formal government information to proceed in the meantime.

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Texas Appeals Court Leery Of Dismissing Fatal Crash Suit

By Spencer Brewer

A Texas appeals court seemed skeptical of dismissing a lawsuit alleging that a construction company that didn't place warning signs near a roadway construction site caused a fatal crash, suggesting Tuesday that the plaintiffs' failure to file a certificate of merit at first didn't doom the suit.

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Trans Measure Doesn't Moot High Court Relief, Wrestler Says

By Ganesh Setty

A wrestler seeking an emergency injunction from the U.S. Supreme Court to avoid having to compete against transgender athletes told the justices Tuesday it's "highly unlikely" that a newly passed Washington state ballot initiative barring such competition will foreclose her bid.

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Robinhood, OG.com Sue Against State Sports Wager Actions

By Katryna Perera

The nationwide tangle of litigation over the regulation of prediction markets grew as Robinhood challenged Missouri and OG.com sued Arkansas in separate suits to fend off potential state enforcement actions targeting the companies' sports wagers as bets.

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Colo. Justices To Resolve Split On Insurer Disclosure Law

By Rachel Konieczny

The Colorado Supreme Court has agreed to resolve an appellate court split over whether state law imposes a penalty or damages against an insurer for failing to comply with a statute requiring it to provide certain policy information to claimants.

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Developer Says Data Center Campus Suit Isn't Moot

By Isaac Monterose

A developer urged a Michigan federal court on Tuesday to not toss its suit against a local city that has blocked the developer's data center campus plans, arguing that the suit shouldn't be dismissed, in part, because the company's claims aren't moot.

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Trump Taps DOJ Lawyer To Serve On EEOC

By Vin Gurrieri

President Donald Trump has nominated an attorney with the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division to fill one of two vacancies on the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, potentially solidifying a three-member Republican majority through at least 2029.

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EEOC Plan To Nix Workforce Reports Moves To White House

By Grace Elletson

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has moved a step closer to scrapping long-standing workforce demographic report requirements for large employers, sending a rule that would end the data filings to the White House for review.

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Colo. Agency Escapes Black Applicant's Hiring Bias Suit

By Grace Elletson

A federal judge tossed a Black job hopeful's suit claiming he was passed over for a policy role in a Colorado agency out of race bias, ruling his case is devoid of evidence that the white woman who got the job was given advantages he was denied.

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Feds Halt Title IX Funding Threat To Colo. Schools, For Now

By Zach Dupont

A Colorado federal judge Tuesday agreed to stay a school district's lawsuit asking the court to intervene after the U.S. Department of Education threatened to revoke $52 million in funding to the district over its policies for transgender students.

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DOL, Defense Research Co. Settle ESOP Stock Sale Fight

By Kellie Mejdrich

An Alabama federal judge agreed to stay a U.S. Department of Labor enforcement case against a research company that allegedly mismanaged an employee stock ownership plan, after the parties reported a settlement of their dispute.

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Philly Mayor Had Final Say On DEI Moves, Ex-Officer Says

By Matthew Santoni

The city of Philadelphia's former top DEI officer filed a new version of her federal lawsuit accusing the city of firing her in retaliation for reporting sexual harassment of a Black co-worker by her white boss, rendering the city's pending motion to dismiss moot.

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DaVita, Fresenius Sued By Wash. AG Over Noncompete Terms

By Rachel Riley

The Washington State Attorney General's Office accused for-profit kidney dialysis providers DaVita and Fresenius of illegally barring specialists contracted as medical directors from taking on similar roles at other local dialysis centers, thwarting competition and ultimately diminishing patient options, according to a new lawsuit.

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Wash. AG Proposes Notice Rule On AI Personal Data Access

By Rachel Riley

The Washington State Attorney General's Office has recommended that state lawmakers require businesses and organizations using artificial intelligence to inform residents if an AI agent gains access to their personal information without authorization, according to an annual data breach report issued Monday.

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'America First' Think Tank Backs Pentagon In Anthropic Fight

By Jared Foretek

A Trump-aligned think tank is backing the U.S. Department of Defense in its D.C. Circuit fight against Anthropic, urging the full circuit not to grant Anthropic's en banc rehearing request and pointing to the company's statements about the threats frontier AI models pose to the world.

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Microsoft Says Students' Data-Mining Allegations Fall Short

By Ben Adlin

Microsoft has urged a Washington state court to dismiss a proposed class action from four students who accused the company of collecting personal data through school-provided products such as Microsoft 365 and Minecraft Education, asserting that certain claims are federally preempted and that the students had no reasonable expectation of privacy.

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Shoppers Say Home Depot Must Pay Back Tariff Windfall

By Kelcey Caulder

Two shoppers filed suit in Georgia federal court claiming Home Depot pocketed roughly $730 million in refunds from struck-down tariffs that should have gone to consumers. 

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CIT Can't Order Universal Tariff Refunds, Gov't Tells Fed. Circ.

By Dylan Moroses

The U.S. Court of International Trade's order requiring refunds for all importers who paid illegal tariffs should be deemed unlawful, the government told the Federal Circuit, saying U.S. Supreme Court precedent bars such universal relief.

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UK Looking To Enhance Forced Labor Import Ban Regime

By Jack McLoone

The U.K. government committed to strengthening its measures protecting against forced labor in the country's supply chain after being pushed by a Parliamentary committee over U.S. tariffs tied to such measures.

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Healey Defends Frozen Tax Thresholds, Backs Leak Inquiry

By Josh White

Chancellor John Healey defended the decision to keep income tax thresholds frozen in the Budget during questioning from the Treasury Committee on Wednesday.

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Ky. Revenues Through October $603M Ahead Of Last Year

By Michael Nunes

Kentucky's general fund revenue collection from July through October outpaced last year by $603 million, the Office of State Budget Director said in a report released Tuesday.

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11th Circ. Asked To Nix Penalties For Captive Deductions

By Zak Kostro

The U.S. Tax Court improperly imposed additional accuracy-related penalties against a Florida business for deductions it took for microcaptive insurance expenses, the business's owner told the Eleventh Circuit, saying the Tax Court's analysis of the case can't be reconciled with binding circuit precedent.

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7th Circ. Orders BIA To Reconsider Deported Man's Visa Bid

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

A Seventh Circuit panel has ordered immigration officials to reconsider a Jamaican man's bid to reopen his deportation case.

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States Win 2nd Bid To Block New FEMA Immigration Terms

By George Woolston

A Rhode Island federal judge has granted a bid from 20 states asking the court to again enforce an order that barred the Trump administration from conditioning the receipt of federal emergency funds on whether the states aid in the enforcement of federal immigration policies.

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DOJ Says Privilege Shields Chicago Protest Case Talks

By Lauraann Wood

The U.S. Department of Justice asserted several privileges Monday over records that otherwise answer an Illinois federal judge's call for communications she'd sought while investigating a push to indict six ICE protesters, despite local prosecutors' earlier assertion that those same sorts of communications didn't exist.

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Brief

TPS Groups Drop Appeal Over One-Year Work Permit Cap

By Britain Eakin

The First Circuit dismissed an appeal from a coalition of immigration advocacy groups after the federal government extended work authorization for noncitizens with temporary protected status despite the Trump administration's one-year work authorization cap.

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Dems Vow More FCC Oversight, Want Their Seats Filled

By Christopher Cole

Democrats promised Tuesday to bring top Federal Communications Commission officials to Capitol Hill for aggressive oversight next year, as they took issue with President Donald Trump's nomination of a third Republican to the regulatory body while he left a Democratic seat open.

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NY, T-Mobile Reach Deal To End Affordable Internet Data Caps

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

T-Mobile has agreed to improve and expand access to its affordable home internet services, according to an agreement unveiled by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

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49 AGs Give FCC Tips On Strengthening Robocall Database

By Nadia Dreid

The nation's attorneys general have some suggestions for the Federal Communications Commission on what it could do to curb the onslaught of illegal robocalls, billions of which hound Americans each month.

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Banks Tell FCC Robocall Loopholes Must Be Closed

By Nadia Dreid

Bankers have come together to tell the Federal Communications Commission it's time to close some loopholes in the agency's anti-robocall regulations, including one that allows companies that have been booted from the compliance database to refile under a new name.

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Brief

FCC Urged To Dedicate More Airwaves For Satellite Use

By Nadia Dreid

The Federal Communications Commission's plan to open more than 200 megahertz of unlicensed spectrum up to satellite services such as direct-to-device technology is all well and good, said one industry organization, but the agency also needs to make some space for "dedicated satellite spectrum."

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10th Circ. Won't Revisit Psilocybin Church Case

By Jonathan Capriel

The Tenth Circuit will not give a religious group in Utah a second shot at arguing it should not be prosecuted for using psilocybin in its practices, despite the church's argument that its decision violates the First Amendment right to free exercise of religion.

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Texas State Lawmakers Prefile Marijuana Legalization Bills

By Sam Reisman

Texas Democratic state lawmakers have introduced legislation to legalize and regulate the sale of recreational marijuana ahead of the state's legislative session, which is due to begin in January.

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Mich. Judge Named Macomb County Chief Asst. Prosecutor

By Susan Smiley

Outgoing Macomb County Circuit Court Judge Joseph Toia will assume the county's chief assistant prosecutor position on Jan. 1, the day after departing the bench due to Michigan's mandatory retirement age of 70 for judges.

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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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What The 11th Circ.'s Qui Tam Ruling Left Unanswered

Although the Eleventh Circuit’s recent ruling in Zafirov v. Florida Medical Associates upheld the False Claims Act’s qui tam provisions under the appointments clause, its narrow reasoning leaves unresolved questions about presidential control over relator litigation that could sustain further constitutional challenges, says Taylor Chenery at Bass Berry.

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McDonald's Antitrust Suits Spotlight Risks Of AI Pricing Tools

A pair of recent class actions filed against McDonald's in Illinois federal court show how antitrust challenges can arise when companies use artificial intelligence pricing tools and personalize prices for individual consumers, say attorneys at Patterson Belknap.

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How Product Recalls Expose Insurance Coverage Gaps

The recent Cyclospora outbreak in iceberg lettuce highlights the potential insurance risks of a contaminated ingredient or defective product creating a ripple effect throughout an entire supply chain, leaving companies with substantial costs that standard policies may not cover, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

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Planning Personal Phone Collections Before Discovery Begins

For counsel planning a personal phone collection as part of the litigation discovery process, it's important to take early steps to ensure that necessary information will be obtained without exposing unrelated information or running into access issues, says Jeremy Horowitz at MARA Forensics.

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How A Child Of Immigrants Defends Abrego Garcia

By Corey Rothauser

Hecker Fink attorney Jeffrey Then grew up translating English-language letters for customers at his Dominican immigrant family’s Bronx business. Decades later, he drew on that experience while defending Kilmar Abrego Garcia from federal human smuggling charges, becoming a lifeline for Abrego Garcia during his detention.

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Q&A

John Morgan On Why Luck Matters More Than Most Admit

By Y. Peter Kang

John Morgan, founder of personal injury giant Morgan & Morgan PA, built the largest personal injury firm in the U.S., with 1,110 attorneys in 140 locations. In his new memoir, "Life Is Luck," the attorney who Forbes estimates has a net worth of $1.5 billion argues that success is about more than talent, intelligence or determination. It is also about recognizing opportunities, taking risks and capitalizing on fortunate breaks when they appear.

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Wachtell To Probe Nvidia CEO's Affair With Alleged China Spy

By Anna Scott Farrell and Sue Reisinger

Nvidia has hired Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz to lead an investigation into allegations that its founder and CEO had an affair with a business executive who U.S. intelligence believes is a Chinese spy, the artificial intelligence chipmaker said Tuesday.

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Girardi Estate's $54M Claim Put Behind Other Creditors

By Craig Clough

The trustees overseeing Tom Girardi's and his former law firm's bankruptcies struck a deal to put their claims against each other behind other approved general unsecured claims, according to a California bankruptcy court filing, with the firm's trustee saying neither estate is expected to collect on those claims.

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