Public Policy

  • August 13, 2025

    Pennsylvania Drops $2B Suit After Federal Funds Restored

    Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro voluntarily dismissed on Wednesday a lawsuit against the Trump administration seeking to restore $2 billion in federal funds designated for Pennsylvania in light of the government's release of the money.

  • August 13, 2025

    Business Groups Fail To Halt Calif. Climate Reporting Rules

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups lost a bid to block new California state regulation requiring large companies to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related financial risks that they said violated their First Amendment rights, when a federal judge Wednesday denied them preliminary injunction.

  • August 13, 2025

    Colo. Dispensary Says Weed Regulator Made Invalid Rule

    The owners of a cannabis company told a state judge on Tuesday that an industry bulletin posted about them by Colorado's marijuana regulator was "quasi-legislative" and created new enforcement rules in the industry without approval.

  • August 13, 2025

    High Court's Trans Ruling Doesn't Change Insurer's ACA Loss

    A Washington federal judge has reaffirmed his finding that Premera Blue Cross' coverage policy for gender-affirming chest surgery violates the Affordable Care Act, rejecting the insurer's bid for a redo following the Supreme Court's decision in U.S. v. Skrmetti.

  • August 13, 2025

    Trump Taps Democratic Commissioner As Acting FERC Chair

    President Donald Trump on Wednesday named Democratic Commissioner David Rosner as acting chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, citing his support for expanding the electric grid to better serve data centers and artificial intelligence, which is an administration priority.

  • August 13, 2025

    Trump Admin Bid To Kill SSA Data Suit Ruled Premature

    The Trump administration can't fight an injunction in Maryland federal court and the Fourth Circuit simultaneously, a Maryland federal judge said Wednesday, tabling the administration's dismissal bid while the Fourth Circuit considers whether to lift a ban on the Department of Government Efficiency accessing unredacted Social Security data.

  • August 13, 2025

    8th Circ. Revives Ark. Ban On Youth Gender-Affirming Care

    A split Eighth Circuit en banc panel revived an Arkansas state law banning gender-affirming care for minors, finding that a district court erred in blocking the law because it does not discriminate based on sex but instead classifies based only on age and medical procedure.

  • August 13, 2025

    Trump's Troop Deployment In Calif. Troubles Judge

    A California federal judge overseeing a bench trial over the state's claims that President Donald Trump unlawfully deployed troops there told a U.S. Justice Department lawyer Wednesday that he was troubled by the seeming lack of limits on the use of the soldiers once they're in place.

  • August 13, 2025

    Trump's 'Debanking' Push May Run Up Against Biden-Era Wall

    President Donald Trump wants federal regulators to punish banks that they find have unfairly closed accounts belonging to conservatives, but those plans could collide with a court decision that his administration chose to stop fighting earlier this year.

  • August 13, 2025

    DC Circ. Greenlights Trump's Freeze On Foreign Aid

    A divided D.C. Circuit on Wednesday lifted an injunction requiring the Trump administration to release funding for foreign aid work done before Feb. 13, with a dissenting judge saying the decision lets the administration sidestep judicial review of unconstitutional actions.

  • August 13, 2025

    Gun Rights Orgs. Drop NJ Gov. From Suit Over Age Limits

    Two firearm-ownership advocacy groups and a New Jersey teen seeking to invalidate prohibitions on teens buying and carrying handguns have dropped New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy from their lawsuit, choosing to focus on other state officials and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi.

  • August 13, 2025

    Cannabis' Social Equity Efforts In Doubt After 2nd Circ. Ruling

    A Second Circuit decision Tuesday, finding that the Constitution's dormant commerce clause applies to the federally illegal marijuana industry, further constricts states' ability to implement programs intended to award so-called social equity licenses favoring those harmed by past cannabis prohibition, experts told Law360.

  • August 13, 2025

    Water Law & Real Estate: A Special Report

    What's more summery than a trip to the shore? That's where Law360 Real Estate Authority has headed — not for a break, but for a special section looking at waterfront real estate, from coastal development challenges to big projects and the lawyers keeping them on course.

  • August 13, 2025

    FCC Waives Local Radio Ownership Cap In East Texas

    The Federal Communications Commission will allow an acquisition of several commercial FM radio stations in east Texas to go through by waiving the agency's local ownership cap, the agency said Wednesday.

  • August 13, 2025

    Wash. Agencies Must Give Up Docs In Medicaid Fraud Case

    A Washington federal judge has ordered the state attorney general's office to hand over certain records to a hospital system accused of overbilling Medicaid in connection to a neurosurgeon's fraud scheme, rejecting the argument that the documents at issue belong to other state agencies that must be subpoenaed.

  • August 13, 2025

    5th Circ. Again Reverses Class Cert. In Kids' Medicaid Suit

    The Fifth Circuit again on Tuesday instructed a Louisiana court to narrow the definition of a class of patients who allege that the state's health department has failed to provide mental health services for Medicaid-eligible children.

  • August 13, 2025

    2nd Circ. Upholds Ban On Certain SALT Cap Workarounds

    An Internal Revenue Service rule prohibiting charitable donation workarounds to the federal cap on state and local tax deductions will remain in place, a Second Circuit panel said Wednesday, affirming a district court determination that upheld the agency's ban on the programs.

  • August 13, 2025

    USPTO Caps Briefs At 20 Pages For Discretionary Reviews

    Patent owners and challengers will be limited to 20-page briefs when arguing over whether a Patent Trial and Appeal Board petition should be discretionarily denied, board leaders announced Wednesday in a webinar.

  • August 13, 2025

    Judge Blocks Trump Restrictions For $12B In Federal Grants

    A Washington federal judge temporarily blocked restrictions imposed by the Trump administration, such as an anti-gender ideology restriction, on access to more than $12 billion worth of federal grants, ruling in part that the federal government exceeded its authority.

  • August 13, 2025

    FCC Pushes Back Prison Call Fee Reports After Rule Delay

    The Federal Communications Commission is giving prison phone companies more time to file annual reports and certifications, saying that the companies would not have otherwise had "sufficient time for a fulsome response."

  • August 13, 2025

    Pa. Judge Ends Employers' Expanded Birth Control Exemptions

    A Pennsylvania federal judge on Wednesday struck down rules set by the first Trump administration enabling employers to refuse coverage of employees' contraceptives on moral and religious grounds, holding that the government failed to provide a good reason for the broadening of exemptions.

  • August 13, 2025

    High Court May Take Up Ban On Under-21 Handgun Purchases

    The U.S. Supreme Court has been asked to decide whether Congress is violating the Constitution by banning the sale of handguns to people under 21 years old, and it has given the government extra time to give its thoughts on what the justices should do.

  • August 13, 2025

    Media Matters Judge 'Troubled' By FTC Subpoena Args

    A D.C. federal judge reacted with incredulity Wednesday to Federal Trade Commission arguments that Media Matters can't challenge a subpoena unless the agency itself sues to enforce it, adding during a hearing that the FTC can't ignore its current leadership's recent history of targeting progressives.

  • August 13, 2025

    Settlement Win Protects In-Home Care For 280,000 NYers

    The New York State Health Department has resolved a class action filed by a group of chronically ill Medicaid recipients who accused the state of violating their due process rights by failing to provide enough time to register their home care workers through a new system, attorneys said on Wednesday.

  • August 13, 2025

    Mich. Tribe Can't Get $1.5M In Legal Fees In Recognition Fight

    A D.C. federal court judge on Wednesday denied a Michigan tribe's bid to recoup $1.5 million in legal fees from the U.S. Department of the Interior over the tribe's challenge to a federal recognition status denial, saying the motion is untimely because a decision to remand the dispute is final.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Playing Baseball Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Playing baseball in college, and now Wiffle ball in a local league, has taught me that teamwork, mental endurance and emotional intelligence are not only important to success in the sport, but also to success as a trial attorney, says Kevan Dorsey at Swift Currie.

  • Assessing Impact Of USPTO's New Patent Policies

    Author Photo

    Recent data shows how the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's new patent policies are affecting America Invents Act trial institution rates, including spurring an uptick in discretionary denials, say attorneys at Armond Wilson.

  • What US Medicine Onshoring Means For Indian Life Sciences

    Author Photo

    Despite the Trump administration's latest moves to onshore essential medicine manufacturing, India will likely remain an indispensable component of the U.S. drug supply chain, but Indian manufacturers should prepare for stricter compliance checks, says Jashaswi Ghosh at Holon Law Partners.

  • APA Relief May Blunt Justices' Universal Injunction Ruling

    Author Photo

    The Administrative Procedure Act’s avenue for universal preliminary relief seems to hold the most promise for neutralizing the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Trump v. CASA to limit federal district courts' nationally applicable orders, say attorneys at Crowell.

  • Wells Fargo Suit Shows Consumer Protection Limits In Mass.

    Author Photo

    The Massachusetts Appeals Court's May decision in Wells Fargo Bank v. Coulsey underscores that consumer rights are balanced against the need for closure, and even the broad protections of state consumer protection law will not open the door to relitigating the same claims, say attorneys at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Series

    Ohio Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

    Author Photo

    Ohio's financial services sector saw several significant developments in the second quarter of 2025, including a case that confirmed credit unions' setoff rights, another that established contract rights between banks and cardholders, and the House passage of a digital asset bill, say attorneys at Frost Brown.

  • Building Better Earnouts In The Current M&A Climate

    Author Photo

    In the face of market uncertainty, we've seen a continued reliance on earnouts in M&A deals so far this year, but to reduce the risk of related litigation, it's important to use objective standards, apply company metrics cautiously and ensure short time periods, among other best practices, say attorneys at White & Case.

  • Managing Risks As State AGs Seek To Fill Enforcement Gap

    Author Photo

    Given an unprecedented surge in state attorney general activity resulting from significant shifts in federal enforcement priorities, companies must consider tailored strategies for navigating the ever-evolving risk landscape, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • A Deep Dive Into 14 Nixed Gensler-Era SEC Rule Proposals

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last month formally withdrew 14 notices of proposed rulemaking, including several significant and widely criticized proposals that had been issued under former Chair Gary Gensler's leadership, signaling a clear and definitive shift away from the previous administration, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Skillful Persuasion

    Author Photo

    In many ways, law school teaches us how to argue, but when the ultimate goal is to get your client what they want, being persuasive through preparation and humility is the more likely key to success, says Michael Friedland at Friedland Cianfrani.

  • A Look At Trump 2.0 Antitrust Enforcement So Far

    Author Photo

    The first six months of President Donald Trump's second administration were marked by aggressive antitrust enforcement tempered by traditional structural remedies for mergers, but other unprecedented actions, like the firing of Federal Trade Commission Democrats, will likely stoke heated discussion ahead, says Richard Dagen at Axinn.

  • Reform Partly Modernizes Small Biz Stock Gains Exclusion

    Author Photo

    Changes to the Internal Revenue Code in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act update the qualified small business stock gains exclusion to reflect inflation, but the regime would be more in line with current business realities if Congress had also made the exemption available to additional business structures, says Mark Parthemer at Glenmede.

  • Breaking Down Novel Va. Social Media Law For Minors

    Author Photo

    While a Virginia bill passed in May is notable for setting a one-hour daily limit on minors' use of social media, other provisions create compliance burdens for social media operators and app store providers, and increase privacy and security risks associated with the collection of sensitive information to prove identity, says Jenna Rode at Hunton.

  • Lessons From Crackdown On Mexican Banks With Cartel Ties

    Author Photo

    Recent U.S. Treasury Department orders excluding three major Mexican financial institutions from the U.S. banking system for laundering drug cartel money and processing payments for fentanyl precursor chemicals offer guidance for companies in reviewing their procedures and controls to ensure they are not the next targets, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

  • Litigation Inspiration: How To Respond After A Loss

    Author Photo

    Every litigator loses a case now and then, and the sting of that loss can become a medicine that strengthens or a poison that corrodes, depending on how the attorney responds, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Public Policy archive.