Public Policy

  • July 24, 2025

    High Court Hits Pause On 8th Circ. Voting Rights Order

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday paused an Eighth Circuit order to vacate two North Dakota tribes' challenge to two of the state's voting laws that they allege will silence the state's Indigenous voters and disenfranchise millions across seven Midwestern states.

  • July 24, 2025

    DOL Relaunches Employer Self-Audit FLSA Program

    The U.S. Department of Labor relaunched an employer self-audit program Thursday that supports employers that seek to resolve potential wage violations and avoid litigation — an initiative from the first Trump administration that was popular among employers.

  • July 24, 2025

    Jeanine Pirro's Nomination Advances To Full Senate

    The Senate Judiciary Committee voted out seven U.S. attorney nominations Thursday, which include Jeanine Pirro, former Fox News host and New York state judge, and four others who had to be revoted on after Democrats walked out of last week's meeting over objections to how the consideration of controversial Third Circuit nominee Emil Bove was being handled.

  • July 24, 2025

    3rd Circ. Rules Philly Injection Site Equals Religious 'Person'

    A nonprofit battling government resistance to its planned safe drug injection site in Philadelphia can qualify for religious freedom protections, the Third Circuit said in a precedential opinion on Thursday, reasoning the organization meets the definition of a "person" practicing religion.

  • July 24, 2025

    NC Urges 4th Circ. Not To Block Vape Regs During Appeal

    North Carolina officials are urging the Fourth Circuit to deny a bid by vape interests to block enforcement of a new state vaping regulation while they appeal their case, saying the plaintiffs have already tried, and failed, three times to show they deserve an injunction.

  • July 23, 2025

    9th Circ. Upholds Birthright Citizenship EO Injunction

    The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday affirmed a lower court's preliminary injunction blocking President Donald Trump's executive order limiting birthright citizenship in a legal challenge by four states, ruling in a published opinion that Trump's order contradicts the "plain language" of the 14th Amendment's citizenship clause.

  • July 23, 2025

    Columbia Says It'll Pay $200M To Put To Rest Beef With Trump

    Columbia University said Wednesday that it has agreed to pay a $200 million settlement to the federal government to resolve the Trump administration's allegations the institution didn't do enough to protect Jewish students, a move Columbia said means the "vast majority" of federal funding will be restored.

  • July 23, 2025

    FTC Wants PE Firm's Medical Device Coating Deal Put On Ice

    Private equity firm GTCR BC Holdings' $627 million merger with Surmodics will bring the previously fierce competition for medical device coatings to a grinding halt, the FTC says, which is all the more reason a federal court should block the deal while an agency challenge plays out.

  • July 23, 2025

    Diversity Visa Winners Challenge New Travel Ban, Visa Policy

    More than 100 nationals of countries hit by President Donald Trump's latest travel ban filed suit Tuesday in D.C. federal court, accusing the Trump administration of unlawfully suspending visa processing under a program aimed at diversifying the immigrant community of the United States.

  • July 23, 2025

    CFPB Sued Over Retreat From Biden-Era Small-Biz Loan Rule

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was sued Wednesday in Washington, D.C., federal court over claims it is illegally dismantling a data-collection rule meant to expose discrimination in small-business lending, the latest twist in multi-front litigation over the Biden-era measure.

  • July 23, 2025

    911 Call Centers Face Cybersecurity Risks, Mich. Says

    As the Federal Communications Commission moves to transition the country to next-generation 911 services, it should take a closer look at cybersecurity, a Michigan emergency response panel told the agency.

  • July 23, 2025

    Epstein Grand Jury Files To Remain Sealed In Fla.

    A Florida federal judge on Wednesday rejected the U.S. Department of Justice's request to unseal grand jury transcripts from an investigation into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as President Donald Trump faces a growing number of Republicans asking for more transparency about the case.

  • July 23, 2025

    Red Wolf Survival Relies On Redesignation, Judge Told

    A conservation lawyer told a North Carolina federal judge in a dueling motions hearing Wednesday the state's experimental population of red wolves is still imperiled, arguing in federal court that the government needs to take another look at a petition to grant the wolves tighter protections.

  • July 23, 2025

    Trump Admin Appeals Ruling On NCUA Board Member Firings

    The Trump administration has asked a Washington, D.C., federal judge to pause a ruling reinstating two ousted Democratic members of the National Credit Union Administration board, arguing the decision represents an "extraordinary intrusion" into presidential power and is being swiftly appealed.

  • July 23, 2025

    Enviro Groups Slam FAA For SpaceX Review Shortcuts

    The Federal Aviation Administration knew SpaceX's plans to restore migratory birds' coastal habitats in the event of an explosion at its Boca Chica, Texas, launch site were inadequate, but allowed the company to bypass a full environmental impact statement nonetheless, environmental groups said Wednesday in D.C. federal court.

  • July 23, 2025

    North Carolina AG Defends Power To Pursue PFAS Suit

    North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson on Wednesday urged a state court judge not to dismiss his long-running lawsuit against DuPont spinoffs over groundwater contamination from forever chemicals, saying lawmakers have not revoked his power to continue pursuing the case.

  • July 23, 2025

    Pa. Justices Will Weigh Rollover For Other States' Pensions

    The Pennsylvania Supreme Court will weigh whether a teacher's years of service in another state can count toward her Pennsylvania retirement benefits after she had already cashed out her retirement account from her previous state.

  • July 23, 2025

    Ex-Copyright Chief Suggests Trump Fired Her Over AI Report

    An attorney for the fired leader of the U.S. Copyright Office suggested Wednesday that President Donald Trump "sought to sideline her" to stop her from advising Congress on issues related to the use of copyrighted material for training artificial intelligence models, noting her dismissal occurred shortly after she released a pivotal report on the subject.

  • July 23, 2025

    ICJ Puts Reparations On The Table In Climate Change Case

    The International Court of Justice on Wednesday delivered its long-awaited advisory opinion on governments' obligations with respect to climate change, issuing a rare, unanimous decision that opens the door for nations harmed by human-caused greenhouse gas emissions to seek reparations.

  • July 23, 2025

    8th Circ. Tosses FCC Dems' Local Media Ownership Rule

    The Eighth Circuit on Wednesday threw out local media ownership rules passed a year and a half ago by Democrats on a split Federal Communications Commission vote.

  • July 23, 2025

    Trump Wins 9th Circ. Block On Order Providing Reorg Plans

    The Ninth Circuit greenlighted the Trump administration's request to pause a lower court ruling requiring the government to turn over its layoff and reorganization plans in the case disputing whether the president can lawfully reshape federal agencies without congressional approval.

  • July 23, 2025

    False Ad Ruling Expanded Patent Law, Crocs Tells Justices

    Shoemaker Crocs Inc. has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to look at a Federal Circuit decision reviving false advertising claims that its shoes were made with "patented, proprietary, and exclusive" materials that weren't actually patented, arguing that the ruling would allow an "end run" around Congress' limitations on false marking suits.

  • July 23, 2025

    6th Circ. Questions Officials On Search: 'Pretty Darn Obvious'

    Sixth Circuit judges on Wednesday grilled Michigan zoning and building officials seeking immunity from an improper-search lawsuit, repeatedly suggesting it was "obvious" the officials should have known they were crossing property lines to look at dwellings and areas protected by the Fourth Amendment.

  • July 23, 2025

    FWS Wrongly Approved Bird-Harming Pesticide, Judge Says

    A North Carolina judge on Wednesday revoked the federal government's approval of a pesticide that is toxic to birds for use as an algal bloom control measure at a lake in a wildlife refuge, saying regulators bungled the environmental review.

  • July 23, 2025

    Creek High Court Grants Freedmen Descendants Citizenship

    The (Muscogee) Creek Nation Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld a lower court's decision to give citizenship to two descendants of those once enslaved by the tribe, saying a 19th century treaty that required the Five Civilized Tribes to abolish slavery should have applied to their applications seven years ago.

Expert Analysis

  • How Ending OFCCP Will Affect Affirmative Action Obligations

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    As President Donald Trump's administration plans to eliminate the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, which enforces federal contractor antidiscrimination compliance and affirmative action program obligations, contractors should consider the best compliance approaches available to them, especially given the False Claims Act implications, say attorneys at Ogletree.

  • Rising Enforcement Stakes For Pharma Telehealth Platforms

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    Two pieces of legislation recently introduced in Congress could transform the structure and promotion of telehealth arrangements as legislators increasingly scrutinize direct-to-consumer advertising platforms, potentially paving the way for a new U.S. Food and Drug Administration policy with bipartisan support, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Communicating With Clients

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    Law school curricula often overlook client communication procedures, and those who actively teach this crucial facet of the practice can create exceptional client satisfaction and success, says Patrick Hanson at Wiggam Law.

  • One Year On, Davidson Holds Lessons On 'Health Halo' Claims

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    A year after the Ninth Circuit's Davidson v. Sprout Foods decision — which raised the bar for so-called health halo claims — food and beverage companies can draw insights from its finding, subsequently expanded on by other courts, that plaintiffs must be specific when alleging fraud in healthfulness marketing, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Justices' NRC Ruling Raises New Regulatory Questions

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    In Nuclear Regulatory Commission v. Texas, the U.S. Supreme Court avoided ruling on the NRC's authority to license private, temporary nuclear waste storage facilities — and this failure to reach the merits question creates new regulatory uncertainty where none had existed for decades, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • 3 Judicial Approaches To Applying Loper Bright, 1 Year Later

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    In the year since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Chevron deference in its Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision, a few patterns have emerged in lower courts’ application of the precedent to determine whether agency actions are lawful, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • Navigating Antitrust Risks When Responding To Tariffs

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    Companies should assess competitive perils, implement compliance safeguards and document independent decision-making as they consider their responses to recent tariff pressures, say attorneys at White & Case.

  • Breaking Down Part 3 Of The Copyright Office's AI Report

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    On May 9, the U.S. Copyright Office published a prepublication version of the third and final part of its three-part report on artificial intelligence, offering key insights on the unauthorized use of copyrighted material by AI systems, says Courtney Sarnow at CM Law.

  • 8 Insurer Takeaways From Sweeping Georgia Tort Reform

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    Insurers should take note of several critical components of Georgia's tort litigation overhaul — including limitations on damages anchoring, procedural rules governing dismissals, and liability standards in negligent security cases — and adapt claims-handling strategies to reduce litigation risk, says Lucy Aquino at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Bill Leaves Renewable Cos. In Dark On Farmland Reporting

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    A U.S. Senate bill to update disclosure requirements for foreign control of U.S. farmland does not provide much-needed guidance on how to report renewable energy development on agricultural property, leaving significant compliance risks for project developers, say attorneys at Hodgson Russ.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From US Rep. To Boutique Firm

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    My transition from serving as a member of Congress to becoming a partner at a boutique firm has been remarkably smooth, in part because I never stopped exercising my legal muscles, maintained relationships with my former colleagues and set the right tone at the outset, says Mondaire Jones at Friedman Kaplan.

  • Opinion

    FCPA Shift Is A Good Start, But There's More DOJ Should Do

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    The U.S. Department of Justice’s new Foreign Corrupt Practices Act guidelines bring a needed course correction amid overexpansive enforcement, but there’s more the DOJ can do to provide additional clarity and predictability for global companies, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • Opinion

    IRS Should Work With Industry On Microcaptive Regs

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    The IRS should engage with microcaptive insurance owners to develop better regulations on these arrangements or risk the emergence of common law guidance as taxpayers with legitimate programs seek relief in the federal courts, says Dustin Carlson at SRA 831(b) Admin.

  • How Providers Can Brace For Drug Pricing Policy Changes

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    Though it's uncertain which provisions of the Trump administration's executive order aimed at addressing prescription drug costs will eventually be implemented, stakeholders can reduce potential negative outcomes by understanding pathways that could be used to effectuate the order's directives, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • Comparing New Neural Data Privacy Laws In 4 States

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    Although no federal law yet addresses neural privacy comprehensively, the combined effect of recent state laws in Colorado, California, Montana and Connecticut is already shaping the regulatory future, but a multistate compliance strategy has quickly become a gating item for those experimenting with neuro-enabled workplace tools, says Kristen Mathews at Cooley.

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