Public Policy

  • March 25, 2026

    USPTO To Launch AI Image Search, Description Tools For TMs

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is launching artificial intelligence tools to help trademark attorneys look up images and write descriptions for their registrations, officials said at a webinar Wednesday, where they also discussed efforts to tackle certain pendency issues.

  • March 25, 2026

    Insurers, Brokers Can't Exit Medicare Advantage Steering Suit

    A Massachusetts federal judge on Wednesday largely rejected a bid by insurers and brokers to toss claims that they colluded in a kickback scheme to steer Medicare Advantage customers to certain companies and to push away disabled individuals.

  • March 25, 2026

    Judge Upholds Texas Gun Ban In Bars As Historically Sound

    A Texas federal judge has tossed a challenge to the constitutionality of state laws barring people from carrying guns in places like bars and at sporting events, saying the Texas public's right to limit firearm access in sensitive locations does not violate the Second Amendment.

  • March 25, 2026

    Ulta Seeks Quick Appeal To Challenge Wash. Antispam Statute

    Beauty retailer Ulta asked a Washington federal judge this week for permission to immediately appeal a February ruling that upheld the validity of a state law barring commercial emails with false or misleading subject lines, a move that could have sweeping implications for dozens of pending lawsuits brought under the statute.

  • March 25, 2026

    Starbucks Roasts Consumers' Suit Doubting Ethical Sourcing

    Starbucks is urging a Seattle federal judge to throw out a proposed class action accusing the java giant of playing up its "ethical sourcing" commitment despite supply chain labor violations, saying customers cannot sue based on mere disappointment with the company's coffee farm certification standards.

  • March 25, 2026

    Truck Makers Say Calif. Can't Ditch 'Clean Trucks' Pact Suit

    Heavy-duty truck manufacturers have told a California federal judge that state officials cannot be allowed to circumvent federal law and saddle manufacturers with stringent emissions standards and stiff penalties for noncompliance, saying the Golden State's regulations are unequivocally preempted.

  • March 25, 2026

    Lawmakers Aim To Advance Bills Bolstering Patent Rights

    A bipartisan pair of lawmakers said at a conference Wednesday that they plan to make a push to pass legislation aimed at establishing stronger patent rights in the coming year, including bills limiting patent challenges and setting rules on which inventions are eligible for patents.

  • March 25, 2026

    Mich. County Beats Class Claims Over Jail Release Delays

    People alleging they were detained too long at a county jail in Detroit saw their suit against Wayne County and its employees dismissed Wednesday by a Michigan federal judge who found their constitutional rights weren't violated, since there wasn't a right to be released in any particular time frame.

  • March 25, 2026

    House Panel Advances Bill To Re-Up FirstNet Until 2037

    U.S. House committee lawmakers voted unanimously Wednesday to reauthorize the First Responder Network Authority for more than a decade past its current sunset next February while adding two seats to the board for public safety experts.

  • March 25, 2026

    NJ Gov. Sherrill Signs Trio Of Bills To Protect Immigrants

    New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed on Wednesday three bills intended to limit state cooperation with federal immigration enforcement, strengthen privacy protections and require law enforcement officers — including federal agents — to identify themselves during public interactions.

  • March 25, 2026

    Warren Grills Fed's Ex-BigLaw Supervision Chief On Conflicts

    Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., on Wednesday asked former Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP veteran Randall Guynn, a recent addition to the Federal Reserve, to explain how he is dealing with potential conflicts of interest stemming from his previous role chairing the BigLaw firm's financial institutions group.

  • March 25, 2026

    Okla. High Court Says Fed Suit Will Decide Tribal Hunting Row

    The Oklahoma Supreme Court denied a bid by the governor to overturn a formal opinion by Attorney General Gentner Drummond that says U.S. law prohibits the state from citing tribal members for hunting and fishing on reservation lands, saying a federal lawsuit in the dispute will settle its legality.

  • March 25, 2026

    PBMs Say Mich. Price-Fixing Suit Lacks Specifics

    For the second time, pharmacy benefit managers Express Scripts Inc. and Prime Therapeutics LLC asked a Michigan federal judge on Monday to toss a price-fixing suit filed by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, arguing that the state has no standing to file the suit.

  • March 25, 2026

    Judge Backs USPTO's Ax Of Art Project Patent App

    A Virginia federal judge has tossed a challenge to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's decision to terminate a patent application from an art kit company after the agency found its filings had been signed by an attorney without her authorization or permission.

  • March 25, 2026

    8th Circ. Backs No-Bond Detention For Unauthorized Migrants

    A split Eighth Circuit panel on Wednesday sided with the Trump administration's position that it can detain noncitizens who crossed the border without authorization, no matter how long they've been in the U.S., without bond.

  • March 25, 2026

    Herschel Walker Campaign, Media Firm Wrap Up Contract Suit

    The campaign for former NFL star Herschel Walker's losing U.S. Senate bid and a Texas-based media firm that the campaign accused of charging inflated costs for advertising buys have reached an agreement to end their legal battle in Georgia federal court. 

  • March 25, 2026

    Ramp Up Router Power Levels, Electronics Biz Tells FCC

    Consumer electronics-makers want the Federal Communications Commission to ramp up allowed power levels for routers as one way to boost Wi-Fi performance in the U.S.

  • March 25, 2026

    Conn. Atty Faces Civil Arrest Bid In $10M Trust Account Probe

    A city housing authority and its corporate development arm have asked a Connecticut Superior Court judge to order the civil arrest of an attorney accused of funneling nearly $10 million in unauthorized loan proceeds into his lawyer trust account.

  • March 25, 2026

    Nicotine Pouch Maker Sues FDA Over Rejected Application

    A nicotine pouch manufacturer is asking a D.C. federal judge to force the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to review its "Zone" pouch products, claiming it spent nearly four years in regulatory limbo before the agency said the application was incomplete.

  • March 25, 2026

    Judge Lets NY Cannabis Licensing Challenge Proceed

    Following a recent Second Circuit ruling that the dormant commerce clause applies to marijuana, a New York federal judge Wednesday rejected state cannabis regulators' bid to dismiss a constitutional challenge to their licensure program.

  • March 25, 2026

    FSOC Seeks To Rein In Too-Big-To-Fail Labels In Latest Pivot

    Federal regulators moved Wednesday to curb their authority to subject large asset managers, insurers and other nonbank firms to heightened, bank-like supervision, proposing guidelines that would reinstitute tougher standards for these too-big-to-fail designations.

  • March 25, 2026

    After Overhaul Nixed, FTC, DOJ Mull New Merger Rulemaking

    The Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice are not giving up on attempting to overhaul the "insufficient" half-century-old merger notification form after its replacement was just struck down by a Texas federal judge, with the agencies now seeking public comment as they mull "a new rulemaking process."

  • March 25, 2026

    DOE Worker Who Took Buyout Admits To Attempted Bribery

    An ex-U.S. Department of Energy employee who accepted the Trump administration's "fork in the road" deferred resignation offer last year pled guilty Wednesday to trying to bribe a former co-worker to steer contracts to his new company, federal prosecutors announced.

  • March 25, 2026

    Trade Court Nom Regrets Past Tweets Critical Of GOP Sens.

    Kara Westercamp, associate counsel to the president, who was nominated for the U.S. Court of International Trade, said Wednesday she regretted her past social media posts critical of Republican senators.

  • March 25, 2026

    FBT Gibbons Lands Public Finance Pros From BigLaw Firms

    FBT Gibbons LLP has added two public finance partners, one from Bracewell LLP in Houston and another from Barnes & Thornburg LLP in Columbus, Ohio.

Expert Analysis

  • Pros And Cons Of FDA's Push For Nonprescription Drugs

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    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's recent moves to shift more prescription drugs to over-the-counter status could increase access to important medications, but also bring potential safety risks and other trade-offs for drug companies, say attorneys at Hogan Lovells.

  • Why SDNY May Be Dusting Off The Financial Kingpin Statute

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    The Southern District of New York’s recent fraud indictments against executives of bankrupt companies Tricolor and First Brands have seemingly revived the Continuing Financial Crimes Enterprise statute, and if the cases succeed, prosecutors across the country will have ample reason to reach for this long-dormant tool, say attorneys at Lankler Siffert & Wohl.

  • What's Changed In Army Corps' Reissued Nationwide Permits

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    The final rule recently issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, renewing and revising nationwide permits for projects covered by Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, makes measured adjustments rather than sweeping revisions, addressing key operational and compliance concerns while maintaining the existing framework, say attorneys at Spencer Fane.

  • What Kalshi Cases Reveal About State Authority, Regulation

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    Prediction markets like Kalshi have ignited complex legal battles that get to the heart of how novel financial products intersect with traditional state enforcement authority, and courts are already beginning to divide over whether federal law preempts state enforcement authority restricting these offerings, say attorneys at Holtzman Vogel.

  • Parsing Clarifications On Foreign Entity Rules For Tax Credits

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    Recent U.S. Internal Revenue Service and Treasury Department guidance answers taxpayer questions on several key foreign entity rules under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, but questions remain over transactions with companies that have ties to covered nations such as Iran, say attorneys at Cleary.

  • What US Arms Sales Reforms Mean For Defense Industry

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    A recent executive order with the goal of increasing U.S. arms sales transparency, speed and government-industry collaboration carries both promise and risk for the defense industry as the government seeks to leverage the private sector and use commercial products for defense purposes, say attorneys at Fluet.

  • Prepping For The Future Of No Surprises Act Enforcement

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    This year is expected to be a transition point for the No Surprises Act framework from regulatory delay to operational enforcement, so stakeholders should use this time to stress-test systems, clean up processes and prepare for enforcement, say attorneys at Akerman.

  • A Tale Of 2 Self-Disclosure Policies: How SDNY, DOJ Differ

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    Though the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York’s recently announced corporate enforcement and voluntary self-disclosure policy shares many similarities with that of the U.S. Department of Justice, the two programs differ in meaningful ways, including subject matter scope and timeline to declination, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Aligning Microsoft Tools With NYC Bar AI Recording Guidance

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    The New York City Bar Association’s recently issued formal opinion, providing ethical guidance on artificial intelligence-assisted recording, transcription and summarization, raises immediate questions about data governance and e-discovery for companies that use Microsoft 365 and Copilot, say Staci Kaliner, Martin Tully and John Collins at Redgrave.

  • What Employers Should Know About Calif. PAGA Proposal

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    Recently proposed regulations concerning the Private Attorneys General Act evidence an intent by California's Labor and Workforce Development Agency to play a greater role in the prosecution of PAGA actions, including more oversight over the exhaustion notices and settlement process, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.

  • FTC Focus: Antitrust Spotlight On 'Acqui-Hires,' Noncompetes

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    A recent Federal Trade Commission focus on labor issues, like 'acqui-hire' deals, in which only a company's workforce is acquired, and noncompetes, shows that the agency is scrutinizing these issues on a case-by-case basis, necessitating a meaningful look at these transactions, particularly in the technology and artificial intelligence industries, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • FDA's Biosimilarity Guidance Holds Uncertain Implications

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    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's new draft guidance aimed at simplifying the biosimilarity demonstration process may not be enough to overcome the barriers that have historically constrained biosimilar competition, and could affect biosimilar access in unexpected ways, say analysts at Analysis Group.

  • Unpacking Key Themes From NY's New Healthcare Strategy

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    New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's 2026 State of the State agenda, read together with the state's fiscal year 2027 executive budget, reflect a clear framework to utilize Medicaid as the state's operating platform for healthcare reform, say attorneys at Sheppard.

  • A Single DOJ Corporate Enforcement Policy Raises Questions

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's soon-to-be-released uniform corporate criminal enforcement policy could address the challenges raised by the current decentralized approach, but it will need to answer a number of potential questions amid scant details, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

  • WTO Most‑Favored‑Nation Reform May Hold Promise

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    When the World Trade Organization meets this month, it is expected to debate changing the most-favored-nation rule, a carefully calibrated loosening of which may be justified if it enables deeper liberalization and regulatory cooperation, says Alan Yanovich at Akin.

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