Trump's $100K H-1B Fee Is Unauthorized Tax, Judge Rules

By Britain Eakin

A Massachusetts federal judge ruled Monday that President Donald Trump's $100,000 H-1B visa payment constitutes a tax that Congress did not authorize the president to impose, declaring the fee unlawful and vacating it in its entirety.

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Top Court Turns Away Sentencing Disparity Appeal

By Carolyn Muyskens

The U.S. Supreme Court declined Monday to hear the appeal of a man seeking early release from a life sentence for a drug offense, after ruling last month that reductions to mandatory minimum sentences cannot be cited as a reason for compassionate release.

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IRS-ICE Data Sharing Deal Lacked Safeguards, TIGTA Says

By Asha Glover

The data sharing agreement between the IRS and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not meet requirements to ensure the confidentiality and integrity of federal taxpayer data, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration said in a report released Monday.

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Bankman-Fried Seeks Trump Pardon On FTX Fraud Conviction

By Dorothy Atkins

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, who is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence, has asked President Donald Trump to pardon him for defrauding customers who placed billions of dollars with the fallen cryptocurrency exchange, according to the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of the Pardon Attorney.

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Mich. Dems Back Trump Judicial Pick After Blue-Slip Review

By Courtney Bublé

Michigan's Democratic U.S. senators, Gary Peters and Elissa Slotkin, announced on Monday they've returned their blue slips for the nomination of Michael Martin, a veteran career prosecutor, to be a judge in the Eastern District of Michigan.

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NJ Senators Advance Litigation Funding Disclosure Bill

By Carla Baranauckas

New Jersey state senators on Monday advanced legislation that would require disclosure of third-party litigation funding agreements over the objections of trial lawyers and litigation finance representatives, who warned that the bill could discourage funding for plaintiffs involved in costly cases.

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Colo. Justices Bar Retrial After Jury's Partial Acquittal

By Elizabeth Daley

In a split 4-2 decision Monday, the Colorado Supreme Court departed from federal precedent, finding that a defendant's double jeopardy protections were violated when a trial court declared a mistrial though a jury "spontaneously and unequivocally" signaled it acquitted a defendant of certain offenses.

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Trump Taps DC Appeals Court Picks To Fill Final Vacancies

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump has announced two picks for the D.C. Court of Appeals, which will fill the remaining vacancies on the District of Columbia's top court.

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Another Lawmaker Joins Impeachment Push For Ga. Judge

By Courtney Bublé

A Republican House member on Monday introduced articles of impeachment for U.S. District Judge Eleanor Ross of the Northern District of Georgia after she was reprimanded for having sex with a police officer in her chambers within earshot of staff.

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Law Student's Kirk Comment Discipline Stays During Appeal

By Spencer Brewer

A Texas federal judge on Monday kept intact a reprimand against a law student who allegedly celebrated following the death of Charlie Kirk during an appeal, saying that the student "again seeks the wrong remedy" in her request.

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DOJ Says Maurene Comey's Firing Was Constitutional

By Adrian Cruz

Following an April ruling that cleared former New York federal prosecutor Maurene Comey's suit challenging the legality of her firing, the U.S. Department of Justice reiterated its position Friday that her firing was constitutional based on the executive powers of the president.

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Brief

Todd Blanche Officially Nominated To Be AG

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump on Monday officially nominated Todd Blanche to be attorney general.

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Mich. Panel Keeps Detroit-Area Mayoral Candidates On Ballot

By Melanie Dorsey

Two candidates for mayor of a Detroit-area suburb will remain on the August primary ballot after a Michigan appellate panel rejected a challenger's allegations of defective identity documentation and campaign finance violations.

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NCUA Moves To Preempt Ill. Swipe-Fee Law For Credit Unions

By Jon Hill

The National Credit Union Administration moved Monday to shield federal credit unions from state-level efforts to limit swipe fees, issuing a fast-tracked rule that escalates national regulatory pushback against the Illinois Interchange Fee Prohibition Act.

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Over 200 Crypto Orgs Urge Senate To Act On Clarity Bill

By Aislinn Keely

More than 200 crypto firms and industry groups are urging Senate leaders to set a full vote for the crypto market structure bill the Clarity Act.

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High Court Reopens Review Of DOE Furnace Efficiency Rules

By Keith Goldberg

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday vacated a D.C. Circuit decision that upheld Biden-era energy efficiency standards for furnaces and water heaters and ordered the circuit court to take another look in light of the Trump administration's intent to revise the rules.

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High Court Won't Let Pa. AG Enter Grid Project Suit

By Keith Goldberg

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rebuffed a plea from Pennsylvania's attorney general to let him intervene in Third Circuit proceedings that allowed an electricity transmission project to proceed despite having been rejected by state utility regulators.

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DC Circ. Backs FERC Rejection Of Grid-Planning Deal

By Nadia Dreid

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission was allowed to reject a proposal by PJM transmission owners that would've allowed the regional grid operator to make grid-planning decisions without the approval of its members committee over an issue with a single amendment, the D.C. Circuit has said.

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SF Sues DOE Over Clean Energy Grant's Anti-Diversity Terms

By Dorothy Atkins

San Francisco hit the Energy Department with a lawsuit in California federal court Friday, alleging the Trump administration is trying to coerce the city to impose contradictory and legally questionable anti-equity policy funding conditions or else face $130,000 cuts in clean energy infrastructure grants awarded to the city.

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Conn. Expands Solar Energy System Tax, Limits Exemption

By Zak Kostro

Connecticut expanded the scope of a tax on solar energy systems and limited a property tax exemption for solar energy facilities under a bill signed by the governor.

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Cleveland Clinic Deal With DOJ Bars Trans Care For Minors

By Gianna Ferrarin

The Cleveland Clinic Foundation will pay over $2.3 million under agreements with the U.S. Department of Justice and the Ohio attorney general to prohibit the provision of puberty blockers and other forms of medical care for minors going through gender transition.

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AIPLA, NAM Rally Behind Moderna's Fight Over Vax Patents

By Theresa Schliep

The American Intellectual Property Law Association, National Association of Manufacturers and others urged the Federal Circuit to undo a lower court's ruling that Moderna, and not the government, must face a multibillion-dollar patent infringement suit over its COVID-19 vaccine.

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Analysis

USPTO Clamping Down Reexam Bids After IPR Denials

By Ryan Davis

A U.S. Patent and Trademark Office decision denying a request for ex parte reexamination of a patent because it reused arguments from an inter partes review that was discretionarily denied sends a clear message that the office wants challengers to pick one of the two options, attorneys say.

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Meta Tries Again To End Mass. Instagram Addiction Case

By Julie Manganis

Meta Platforms is again asking a judge to toss a complaint by Massachusetts over its allegedly addictive Instagram platform, saying any purported harms to teens are caused by third-party content rather than its own features, which it says are shielded by the First Amendment and federal law.

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States Preparing To Challenge Paramount-Warner Bros. Deal

By Matthew Perlman

The New York Attorney General's Office is among state enforcers preparing to file a lawsuit challenging Paramount Skydance Corp.'s $110 billion deal for Warner Bros. Discovery Inc., the office confirmed to Law360 Monday.

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Lawsuit Seeks To Stop White House UFC Fight

By Jared Foretek

Two D.C.-area residents sued the National Park Service on Saturday in a bid to halt the UFC mixed martial arts event scheduled for the White House South Lawn on June 14, arguing that the Trump administration illegally authorized the private event by using a regulation meant for government functions.

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Colo. Justices OK Extra Evidence In Insurer Breach Cases

By Zach Dupont

The Colorado Supreme Court unanimously ruled Monday that judges evaluating breach of contract claims against insurers are not bound to only allow evidence available to a carrier at the time of an accident, upholding a decision ordering a woman to provide certain documents in her suit seeking uninsured motorist coverage.

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Mich. Panel Lets Class Suit Against Drainage District Proceed

By Susan Smiley

Residents in Royal Oak, Michigan, can seek financial restitution from their local drainage district for what the residents claim is almost a decade of overcharges for sewage treatment and disposal, a Michigan state appeals court has affirmed.

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7th Circ. Says Wis. County Jail Must Face Forced Labor Suit

By Gina Kim

The Seventh Circuit revived a lawsuit alleging Kenosha County forced civil immigrant detainees housed at its jail to do unpaid janitorial work or be punished, ruling Friday the forced labor statute doesn't allow local jails to force detainees to work "on pain of solitary confinement" or loss of phone privileges. 

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Seattle Fights Uber, Instacart Bid To Undo 9th Circ. Gig Ruling

By Benjamin Morse

The city of Seattle urged the Ninth Circuit not to revisit a panel decision backing its app-based worker deactivation ordinance against a First Amendment challenge from Uber and Instacart, arguing the companies are trying to turn an ordinary worker protection law into a speech case.

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Payment Co. Omitted Pay Info From Job Posts, Suit Claims

By Ben Adlin

Payment processor Vendara routinely omitted pay and benefits information from job postings in violation of Washington state law, an applicant has claimed in a proposed class action, alleging the missing information wasted his time and negatively impacted his earnings.

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Advocates Can't Bring Cocoa Labor Suit, Fed. Circ. Affirms

By Jack McLoone

A labor rights organization hasn't suffered the harm needed to bring a suit against U.S. Customs and Border Protection for not responding to a petition to ban U.S. chocolate producers from importing cocoa from the Ivory Coast, a Federal Circuit panel affirmed.

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Boat Strike Victims' Suit Should Be Tossed, Feds Say

By Carolyn Muyskens

The federal government has asked a Massachusetts judge to throw out a lawsuit filed by family members of men killed in a U.S. boat strike near Venezuela last fall, saying venue and standing issues doom the claims.

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Conn. Objects To Wiggin Partner's 'Ghost Gun' Suit Advice

By Emily Field

The Connecticut state attorney general on Sunday objected to a state judge's request for advice from a Wiggin and Dana LLP attorney on how to handle the state's $7.7 million suit against a Florida-based "ghost gun" supplier, saying the lawyer is involved in other claims against the state that pose a conflict.

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7th Circ. Says Hotel Must Rehire Worker Fired Over Knife

By Celeste Bott

The Seventh Circuit on Friday affirmed an arbitration award requiring a Chicago hotel group to reinstate a union employee fired for displaying a knife at work, saying the arbitrator deemed the incident nonviolent and that courts can't second-guess an arbitrator's factual conclusions.

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Analysis

Developers Stumped By Energy Credits' Foreign Debt Limits

By Kat Lucero

Developers seeking to finalize projects financed with clean energy tax credits and several loans are hitting a roadblock in demonstrating to the IRS that their debt has limited ties to prohibited foreign entities, a requirement for qualifying for the incentives.

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DC Judge Undoes IRS Wind, Solar Tax Credit Limitations

By Ganesh Setty

A D.C. federal judge has vacated an Internal Revenue Service notice limiting how wind and large-scale solar projects can qualify for two Biden-era clean energy tax credits, finding the Trump administration didn't sufficiently consider reliance interests and explain its rationale for the change.

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Ariz. Authorizes Special Tax Districts To Fund Infrastructure

By Zak Kostro

Arizona authorized the formation of special taxing districts to fund infrastructure projects with revenue from property taxes and other sources under a bill signed by the governor.

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7th Circ. Denies Spousal Petition Review After Conviction

By Elaine Briseño

An American man convicted of sexually abusing a minor cannot sponsor his wife for a green card, the Seventh Circuit ruled after concluding it lacks the authority to review immigration officials' assessment that he may pose a risk to her.

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DOJ Seeks To Denaturalize 17 Citizens For 'Serious Offenses'

By Rae Ann Varona

The Trump administration said Monday it is working on revoking U.S. citizenship of 17 more individuals, filing complaints in courts throughout the country that cite convictions for fraud, drug trafficking and sex abuse offenses.

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100+ Ex-Prosecutors Question Chicago US Atty's Leadership

By Celeste Bott

More than 100 former Illinois federal prosecutors issued a statement Monday saying there's been a "failure of leadership" in the U.S. attorney's office in Chicago and that "once-forbidden political considerations are infecting prosecutorial decisions" in the wake of an Illinois federal judge accusing the office of mishandling grand jury proceedings in a case against six immigration activists.

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Justices Uphold 10th Circ. Native American Assault Rulings

By Crystal Owens

The U.S. Supreme Court won't overturn a pair of Tenth Circuit decisions that found that two Native American men cannot be convicted of simple assault under the Major Crimes Act after the federal government argued that the "senseless result" can't be reconciled with the law's plain text.

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Feds Probe Bonfire, Gunfire Damage To Wyoming Petroglyphs

By Crystal Owens

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management says it's investigating six acts of vandalism toward Indigenous petroglyph sites in Wyoming's Bighorn Basin that have caused irreparable damage to the centuries old archaeological sites.

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Wash. Tribe Says Court Misread Prior Fishing Boundary Case

By Crystal Owens

A Washington tribe wants a federal court to rethink a decision to deny its bid to open a new sub-proceeding regarding its fishing treaty limits within Evergreen State waterways, saying it's the first time a district court has denied such a request on jurisdictional grounds in the case's 50-year history.

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Calif. Tribe Sues To Block Rival Casino In Madera County

By Gina Kim

The Picayune Rancheria of the Chukchansi Indians sued the North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians in California federal court Friday to keep it from developing a competing casino in Madera County, arguing the proposed site doesn't qualify for exceptions under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act that allow gambling.

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FCC Considering 120-Day Deadline For Permit Approvals

By Nadia Dreid

The Federal Communications Commission plans to propose telling states and municipalities that they have four months to act on applications before it will presume they've "effectively prohibited the provision of wireline telecommunications services," as part of a push to reduce what it perceives as barriers to broadband deployment.

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AT&T Pushes Feds To Preempt Calif. Copper Network Rules

By Christopher Cole

AT&T continues to press the Federal Communications Commission to declare that agency policy favoring the phaseout of copper wire networks should supersede California rules that make them harder to remove.

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FCC Needs To Clarify Router Ban's Scope, Tech Retailers Say

By Christopher Cole

Retailers are worried about the effect of a Federal Communications Commission effort to clamp down on foreign-made routers sold to consumers, saying the agency needs to better define the range of products covered by the new restrictions, which are aimed at reducing device security risks.

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Appeals Court OKs Texas To Enforce Challenged Hemp Rules

By Sam Reisman

A Texas intermediate appellate court has lifted a stay that had blocked the state from enforcing new rules restricting the sale of certain hemp products.

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Brief

NY Bill Would Bar Cannabis Products Resembling Other Goods

By Sam Reisman

A New York state lawmaker has introduced legislation banning any cannabis product that could be confused with a non-cannabis product.

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Gibson Dunn Adds Ex-Kirkland, Senate Lawyer In DC

By Jack Rodgers

Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP has hired a former Kirkland & Ellis LLP trial lawyer and litigator who previously clerked for two U.S. Supreme Court justices, and who was a top attorney for U.S. Senate subcommittees focused on antitrust and investigations.

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Opinion

SEC Enforcement Reforms Must Address Post-Wells Limbo

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent changes to how it notifies companies of a potential enforcement action fail to address what happens after the Wells process is over, highlighting the need for meaningful process reform that includes a formal closure determination, says Kimble Cannon at Mahdavi Bacon.

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Green Card Memo Warps Long-Standing Adjustment Process

A recent policy memorandum that treats a nonimmigrant visa holder’s decision to seek adjustment of status in the U.S., rather than at a U.S. consulate, as an adverse factor reinterprets existing discretionary frameworks, compounds risks for applicants required to apply abroad and changes practitioner approaches to application preparation, says attorney Jack Jrada.

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Opinion

Congress Must Bolster Wrongful Conviction Framework

The Trump administration's recent decision to abandon its flawed “anti-weaponization” fund should not end the conversation about compensating those wronged by the U.S. justice system, — it should open the door for Congress to build a principled system that strengthens and expands the existing framework, say Marc Levin and Khalil Cumberbatch at the Council on Criminal Justice.

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The Law360 400: A Look At The Top 100 Firms

By Xiumei Dong

The race to build the legal industry's largest law firm accelerated in 2025, with major firms leaning on mergers, lateral hiring and strategic expansion to climb the ranks of the Law360 400.

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2nd Circ. Wary Of Nadine Menendez's Args At Bail Hearing

By Carla Baranauckas

A Second Circuit panel signaled skepticism Tuesday toward Nadine Menendez during a hearing on her bid for bail pending appeal of her bribery conviction, repeatedly questioning her claim that prosecutors had misled her about their plans to use her former lawyer as a witness against her.

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Q&A

Next ABA International Ethics Chair Looks To Year Ahead

By Emily Sawicki

Rob Misey, incoming chair of the American Bar Association's International Ethics Committee, brings a passion for international dialogue to his new role, set to begin in September. Misey discussed his goals of initiating ethics conversations throughout the ABA and with counterparts overseas.

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Regulatory Litigator Joins Steptoe In SF From K&L Gates

By Lynn LaRowe

Steptoe LLP announced Tuesday that it is growing its U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulatory bench and its West Coast offerings with a San Francisco-based litigator who came aboard from K&L Gates LLP.

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Trial Boutiques Roll Out Associate Pay Raises

By Andrea Keckley

Three trial boutiques are planning to bump associate salaries by at least $10,000 next month, the firms confirmed to Law360 Pulse Tuesday.

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Pa. Law Firm Calls Uber's RICO Suit A 'Sham'

By James Boyle

Nearly a month after its motion to dismiss a RICO suit filed by Uber and FedEx was denied by a Philadelphia federal judge, personal injury firm Simon & Simon PC has lodged a counterclaim against the companies, saying their complaint is a "frivolous sham."

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Senate Confirms Kansas Prosecutor To Federal Bench

By Courtney Bublé

The Senate voted 51-46, along party lines, on Tuesday to confirm Tony Mattivi, director of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, to serve on the bench in the District of Kansas.

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Ex-EDNY Acting US Atty Joins Akerman's White Collar Practice

By Phillip Bantz

A longtime senior federal prosecutor in New York has returned to private practice as co-leader of the white collar crime and government investigations group at Akerman LLP, the firm announced Tuesday.

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Judge Candidate Loses Ballot Challenge At Mich. High Court

By Melanie Dorsey

An Oakland County probate judge candidate will remain off the August primary ballot after the Michigan Supreme Court declined to review his challenge to the rejection of hundreds of petition signatures, while one justice urged lawmakers to reconsider election rules under which officials were not required to review affidavits that could have validated more than 100 disputed signatures.

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Q&A

Key Freight Broker Negligence Win A 'Relief' For Plaintiffs Atty

By Linda Chiem

The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that freight brokers might also be liable under state law for selecting unsafe motor carriers involved in catastrophic crashes will ultimately improve highway safety by ensuring that the industry's longtime gatekeepers strengthen their vetting protocols, according to a plaintiffs attorney that helped secure the pivotal win.

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