Public Policy

  • May 06, 2024

    US Army Looks To Dismiss Tribe's Repatriation Lawsuit

    The U.S. Army is seeking to dismiss efforts by a Native American tribe to repatriate the remains of two boys from one of the largest former Indian boarding schools in the country, arguing that it is "ready and willing" to assist to return them to their final resting places.

  • May 06, 2024

    Colo. Court Order Smashes Atty-Client Privilege, Insurer Says

    The Colorado Supreme Court has agreed to take up an appeal of a Denver trial court order in a construction insurance case that an insurer warns would "eviscerate privilege protection for the vast majority of attorney-client privileged communications in society."

  • May 06, 2024

    Colo. Justices To Hear College COVID Refund Case

    The Colorado Supreme Court said Monday it will consider whether students at Colorado State University campuses can still pursue a class action seeking fee refunds after a state appeals court found the public university system was justified in closing campuses because of the coronavirus pandemic.

  • May 06, 2024

    New EPA Policy Could Increase Criminal Enforcement

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has rolled out a new policy intended to foster communication and coordination between its civil and criminal enforcement offices, a move experts say could result in an increase in criminal investigations and cases.

  • May 06, 2024

    Fla. Judge Tosses Suit To Remove Miami Official From Office

    A Florida state court judge on Monday threw out a lawsuit brought by two real estate developers seeking to unseat a Miami commissioner from office over civil rights violations, citing a lack of standing to sue because they aren't residents of the city.

  • May 06, 2024

    US Thrashes Mexico's 'Inaccurate' Portrayal Of GMO Corn

    The United States has responded to Mexico's ban on imports of genetically modified corn, calling its portrayal of the risks of such crops an unscientific and "inaccurate" description as well as a violation of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

  • May 06, 2024

    Fed Law Doesn't Preempt Colo.'s Kroger Deal Challenge: DOJ

    The U.S. Department of Justice weighed in on Kroger and Alberton's arguments that the Colorado attorney general should not be able to challenge their national merger, arguing instead that states have an important solo role and there is nothing stopping a state court judge from blocking a deal regionally.

  • May 06, 2024

    Unclaimed Property Class Action Against Pa. Treasurer Axed

    A Pennsylvania federal judge has tossed a potential class action challenging the constitutionality of the state's unclaimed property law, finding that the state treasurer doesn't have to pay interest on property that was otherwise abandoned.

  • May 06, 2024

    Tribes, Groups Seek 9th Circ. Stay In Power Line Ruling

    Two Native American tribes and conservation groups are asking the Ninth Circuit for a stay on an order that allows work to continue on a $10 billion power line, saying that without an emergency injunction, SunZia Transmission LLC will race to finish erecting its remaining towers before an appeal can be resolved.

  • May 06, 2024

    FCC Only Commits To Normal Review Of Soros-Audacy Deal

    The FCC has informed two Republican lawmakers worried about Soros Fund Management's acquisition of an ownership interest in radio station owner Audacy that it will conduct a regular license review, but stopped short of promising the foreign ownership review that the legislators want due to their concerns about the fund's "deeply partisan" billionaire owner.

  • May 06, 2024

    Experts Predict Legal Immigration Curbs If Trump Wins Again

    Immigration experts warned Monday that the prospect of another Trump presidency may see limits introduced on legal immigration pathways, in part by curbing some temporary foreign worker programs and suspending immigration processing in excessively backlogged categories.

  • May 06, 2024

    CFPB Sues Pa. Student Loan Servicer, Trusts For $5M

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is seeking $5 million in penalties against a Pennsylvania public corporation that services almost $18 billion in student loans and a group of 15 securitization trusts, accusing them in federal court of ignoring or wrongly denying borrowers who requested relief.

  • May 06, 2024

    University Policy Is Enforceable Promise, Colo. Justices Find

    The University of Denver must face breach-of-contract claims by a former student who alleges school officials botched a sexual misconduct probe used to support his expulsion, with the Colorado Supreme Court concluding on Monday that the promise in university policy to conduct "thorough, impartial and fair" investigations is enforceable under contract law.

  • May 06, 2024

    Employer's Good Faith Axes Paystub Fine, Calif. Justices Rule

    The California Supreme Court on Monday held that if an employer had a good faith belief it was providing complete and accurate wage statements to its employees, it has not knowingly and intentionally violated state labor law, meaning workers cannot recover civil penalties offered for intentional violations of wage statement requirements.

  • May 06, 2024

    House Passes Bill To Prevent DOD Comms Breakdowns

    The House passed a bill by voice vote on Monday to prevent repeats of the communication lapse that occurred earlier this year when the secretary of defense was hospitalized and his deputy took over without the White House being informed.

  • May 06, 2024

    GEO Urges Fast End To State Law On Immigration Inspections

    GEO Group Inc. has told a Washington state federal judge that a state law allowing surprise inspections at private immigration detention centers so clearly targets its operations that the court should permanently bar the law now, instead of letting its defense continue.

  • May 06, 2024

    Foreign Grads Settle Suit Against DHS Over Visa Denials

    Dozens of foreign college graduates have settled their suit in Washington federal court accusing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security of treating them as accomplices in an alleged visa scam without letting them respond to the allegations, saying DHS has withdrawn its fraud findings relating to the plaintiffs.

  • May 06, 2024

    FCC Calls High Court Telecom Subsidy Challenge Premature

    The Federal Communications Commission has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to forgo review in two constitutional challenges to the agency's Universal Services Fund brought by free-enterprise groups, arguing that the appeals were filed too early and are based on a speculative circuit split that hasn't formed yet.

  • May 06, 2024

    NJ Justices Erase Gov't Workplace Probe Confidentiality Rule

    The New Jersey Supreme Court on Monday struck down part of a state statute that directs investigators to request, but not require, confidentiality in discrimination or harassment investigations involving state workers, ruling the provision still reached too far and chilled protected speech.

  • May 06, 2024

    Japan Floats Top Seat For Small Islands At UN Tax Convention

    The United Nations committee responsible for negotiating a framework convention on tax should have a co-chair for small island states in a subgroup that leads drafting of proposals, Japan's government said Monday.

  • May 06, 2024

    Mass. Justices Wary Of Spiking Uber, Lyft Ballot Questions

    Justices on Massachusetts' highest court appeared unlikely Monday to strike down ballot proposals to reinvent app-based drivers' relationships with Uber, Lyft and the like, commenting that the scattershot ideas for voters in March all carry the underlying theme of creating a carveout from the state's worker-friendly employee classification law.

  • May 06, 2024

    Chamber's Noncompete Challenge On Hold For Earlier Case

    A Texas federal court has paused the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's case challenging the Federal Trade Commission's pending ban on noncompetes and encouraged the group to join a case filed a day earlier by tax services and software company Ryan LLC.

  • May 06, 2024

    SEC Small Biz Panel Urges Relaxed Rules For Crowdfunding

    A U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission advisory committee recommended Monday that regulators raise the threshold at which equity crowdfunding issuers must obtain an independent review of financial statements, hoping to encourage the use of crowdfunding for cash-strapped entrepreneurs.

  • May 06, 2024

    EPA Finalizes Methane Reporting Regs For Oil And Gas Cos.

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday finalized revisions of its Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program regulations for the oil and gas sector, the latest step taken by the Biden administration to clamp down on methane emissions from the industry.

  • May 06, 2024

    Convicted Ga. Sheriff Hit With Civil Rights Suit From Detainee

    Former Georgia Sheriff Victor Hill, who was convicted in 2022 of violating his detainees' civil rights by leaving them strapped to a chair for hours at a time, was hit with a federal lawsuit Friday by an alleged victim of Hill's methods who testified against him in his criminal trial.

Expert Analysis

  • Cos. Should Prepare For Foreign Data Transfer Regulations

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    A new regulatory regime designed to protect U.S. sensitive data from countries of concern may complicate an already intricate geopolitical landscape and affect even companies beyond the data industry, but with careful preparation, such companies can endeavor to minimize the effect on their business operations and ensure compliance, say David Plotinsky and Jiazhen Guo at Morgan Lewis.

  • Series

    Playing Hockey Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Nearly a lifetime of playing hockey taught me the importance of avoiding burnout in all aspects of life, and the game ultimately ended up providing me with the balance I needed to maintain success in my legal career, says John Riccione at Taft.

  • A Closer Look At Antitrust Agencies' Chat Platforms Guidance

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    Following the U.S. antitrust agencies' clarification that companies' preservation obligations extend through applications that automatically delete communications, firms should look at new compliance measures, including keeping control over retention settings, say John Ingrassia and Tim Burroughs at Proskauer.

  • Expect CFPB Enforcement To Continue Ramping Up

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    From hiring and structural changes to continuous external pressure from a variety of sources, all signs indicate that the recent rise of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's public enforcement activity will continue throughout the rest of the year, despite ongoing litigation that could upend everything, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.

  • ESG Challenges In Focus After Sierra Club Opposes SEC Rule

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    The Sierra Club's recent objection to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's climate-related disclosures for investors presents an unusual — pro-disclosure — legal challenge and an opportunity to take a close look at the varying critiques of ESG regulations, say Colin Pohlman, and Jane Luxton and Paul Kisslinger at Lewis Brisbois.

  • Opinion

    Why Supreme Court Should Allow Repatriation Tax To Stand

    If the U.S. Supreme Court doesn't reject the taxpayers' misguided claims in Moore v. U.S. that the mandatory repatriation tax is unconstitutional, it could wreak havoc on our system of taxation and result in a catastrophic loss of revenue for the government, say Christina Mason and Theresa Balducci at Herrick Feinstein.

  • For Lawyers, Pessimism Should Be A Job Skill, Not A Life Skill

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    A pessimistic mindset allows attorneys to be effective advocates for their clients, but it can come with serious costs for their personal well-being, so it’s crucial to exercise strategies that produce flexible optimism and connect lawyers with their core values, says Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • High Court's Jan. 6 Rioter Case May Have Wide Ripple Effects

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    The U.S. Supreme Court will soon hear oral arguments in Fischer v. United States, a case that will determine whether a law enacted after the Enron scandal can be used to prosecute Jan. 6 rioters, and could affect the government’s ability to charge those who impede a range of official proceedings, say Brook Dooley and Sara Fitzpatrick at Keker Van Nest.

  • How Export Controls Are Evolving To Address Tech Security

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    Recently proposed export control regulations from the U.S. Department of Commerce are an opportunity for stakeholders to help pioneer compliance for the increasing reliance on the use of outsourced technology service providers, say attorneys at Benesch.

  • HHS Opioid Rule Generally Benefits Providers And Patients

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    The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' newly effective rule, the first substantial change to opioid treatment programs and delivery standards in over 20 years, significantly expands access and reduces stigma around certain medications, though the rule is narrow in scope and does have some limitations, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • 5th Circ. Clarifies What Is And Isn't A 'New Use' Of PFAS

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    The Fifth Circuit's March 21 decision in Inhance Technologies v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, preventing the EPA from regulating existing uses of PFAS under "significant new use" provisions of the Toxic Substances Control Act, provides industry with much-needed clarity, say Joseph Schaeffer and Sloane Wildman at Babst Calland.

  • Handling Customer Complaints In Bank-Fintech Partnerships

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    As regulators mine consumer complaint databases for their next investigative targets, it is critical that fintech and bank partners adopt a well-defined and monitored process for ensuring proper complaint handling, including by demonstrating proficiency and following interagency guidance, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • Trump's NY Civil Fraud Trial Spotlights Long-Criticized Law

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    A New York court’s recent decision holding former President Donald Trump liable for fraud brought old criticisms of the state law used against him back into the limelight — including its strikingly broad scope and its major departures from the traditional elements of common law fraud, say Mark Kelley and Lois Ahn at MoloLamken.

  • Opinion

    New Mexico Fire Victims Deserve Justice From Federal Gov't

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    Two years after the largest fire in New Mexico's history — a disaster caused by the U.S. government's mismanagement of prescribed burns — the Federal Emergency Management Agency must remedy its grossly inadequate relief efforts and flawed legal interpretations that have left victims of the fire still waiting for justice, says former New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas.

  • Opinion

    $175M Bond Refiled By Trump Is Still Substantively Flawed

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    The corrected $175 million bond posted by former President Donald Trump on Thursday to stave off enforcement of the New York attorney general's fraud judgment against him remains substantively and procedurally flawed, as well as inadequately secured, says Adam Pollock of Pollock Cohen.

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