Public Policy

  • March 25, 2024

    Mich. Justices Asked To Review Duration Of Income Tax Cut

    A coalition of Michigan lawmakers, business groups and residents asked the state Supreme Court on Monday to review an appeals court's decision that said a cut to Michigan's income tax rate in 2023 was in effect for only one year.

  • March 25, 2024

    Fla. Pharmacy Says It Was Cut From Federal PrEP Program

    A Florida pharmacy says it was abruptly shut out of a federal program that provides free access to preexposure prophylaxis HIV-prevention medication, asking a D.C. federal judge on Monday to force the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and two contractors to reinstate the pharmacy to the program.

  • March 25, 2024

    Texas Challenge To HHS Adoption Discrimination Rule Tossed

    A Texas federal judge has scrapped a lawsuit challenging an Obama-era rule prohibiting recipients of adoption-related federal funding from discriminating based on gender and sexual orientation, writing that the federal government's decision not to enforce the regulation moots the case. 

  • March 25, 2024

    EPA Takes Heat Over Latest Renewable Fuel Regs

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's latest renewable fuel blending requirements took a legal beating from all sides Friday, with refiners, biofuel producers and environmentalists urging the D.C. Circuit to send the agency back to the drawing board.

  • March 25, 2024

    Cannabis Bill Roundup: NY Targets Illicit Pot Sellers

    New York lawmakers introduced legislation to punish unlicensed cannabis sellers, Hawaii legislators made modifications to a proposal to legalize recreational marijuana, and a Connecticut bill targeting synthetic cannabinoids was referred to a legislative research office. Here are the major moves in cannabis legislation from the past week.

  • March 25, 2024

    Justices' Immunity Review Too Soon In Terrorism Suit, Bank Says

    A Lebanese bank has urged the U.S. Supreme Court not to review a Second Circuit ruling that it could have sovereign immunity over terrorism victims' claims that it funded Hezbollah, saying the appeals court had not offered a final ruling appropriate for review.

  • March 25, 2024

    Kamala Harris Touts Central American Economic Investments

    Vice President Kamala Harris announced Monday that the Partnership for Central America has drawn $5.2 billion in investments to boost economic opportunities and reduce migration from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, with $1 billion of that marking new private-sector funding.

  • March 25, 2024

    5th Circ. Told Procurement Act Limits Biden's Wage Power

    The Biden administration lacks authority to implement a $15-per-hour minimum wage for government contractors, three Southern states told the Fifth Circuit, because the Procurement Act only empowers the executive branch to trim federal expenditures.

  • March 25, 2024

    Rep. Kim Still Suing Over NJ Ballot Issue Post-Murphy Exit

    U.S. Rep. Andy Kim, D-N.J., is not dropping his lawsuit challenging the fairness of New Jersey's layout for the primary election ballot despite the fact that his opponent for the Democratic nomination for the Senate, New Jersey first lady Tammy Murphy, ended her campaign on Sunday.

  • March 25, 2024

    Spending Bill Gives $260M To DOL Wage Division

    The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division is expected to receive $260 million through the end of the fiscal year after President Joe Biden signed off on the latest bipartisan government funding bill.

  • March 25, 2024

    Ohio AG Says Pol Used Campaign Funds For Bribery Case Fees

    The legal woes of former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder were compounded Monday with state charges that he used campaign money to cover legal fees stemming from his blockbuster conviction in federal court over the FirstEnergy Corp. bailout scandal.

  • March 25, 2024

    Black La. Residents Ask 5th Circ. To Revive Pollution Suit

    Black Louisianans are asking the Fifth Circuit to revive their lawsuit that alleges St. James Parish's government and the state Legislature intentionally approved harmful petrochemical facilities in predominantly Black districts and protected predominantly white districts from those facilities.

  • March 25, 2024

    'Mini' Arguments Loom Large On Mich. High Court's Docket

    A court rule unique to Michigan allows state Supreme Court justices to hear oral arguments without formally granting review in a case. The court has increasingly used the mechanism over the last decade, but it has divided the appellate bar. 

  • March 25, 2024

    Justices Nix Lenient Drug Sentence After 'Safety Valve' Ruling

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday vacated a 100-month sentence given to a woman who pled guilty to drug offenses and remanded the case to the Fourth Circuit after the justices recently clarified which defendants qualify for "safety valve" relief under a 2018 federal law.

  • March 25, 2024

    High Court Won't Weigh In On ND Mineral Rights Takings Suit

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to wade into a fight over oil and gas mineral rights underneath a North Dakota lake, rejecting former rights owners' argument that states' sovereign immunity does not protect them from takings claims in federal court.

  • March 25, 2024

    Texas Judge Extends Stay On Border Wall Funding Order

    A Texas federal judge briefly extended a pause on an injunction directing the Biden administration to use funding Congress appropriated to build physical barriers on the Southwest border for that purpose, as the administration asks for clarification of the order, saying it could otherwise make it hard to build anything.

  • March 25, 2024

    Justices Won't Review Nullification Of Puerto Rico Labor Law

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to review a First Circuit finding that Puerto Rico's fiscal management board was within its authority to void a 2022 labor law expanding some benefits for private employees because it had not been given an opportunity to review the legislation.

  • March 25, 2024

    Farmers, Attys Say USDA Bias Payouts Can't Snub Fee Deals

    A pair of law firms from Ohio and Florida and their farmer clients have asked a federal judge to block the U.S. Department of Agriculture from paying out $2.2 billion in assistance directly to minority farmers it discriminated against, claiming the government disregarded contingent-fee agreements between the firms and the farmers.

  • March 25, 2024

    Minn. Bill Seeks Tax Credit For Building Conversions

    Minnesota would allow tax credits for certain costs related to the conversion of underutilized buildings to other commercial uses under legislation introduced Monday in the state Senate.

  • March 25, 2024

    Trump Gets Late Reprieve After Failing To Post $465M Bond

    A New York appellate panel said Monday that Donald Trump can pause enforcement of the state attorney general's $465 million civil fraud judgment by posting just $175 million while he appeals, after the former president complained that he was unable to secure a bond for the entire amount.

  • March 25, 2024

    FTX Clawbacks Unlikely To Help Bankman-Fried At Sentencing

    FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried probably won't find much success in arguing for a shorter prison term based on the billions of dollars recovered by the shuttered crypto exchange's bankruptcy estate, experts told Law360 ahead of this week's much-anticipated sentencing hearing.

  • March 25, 2024

    Justices Preserve Obama-Era Forest Monument Expansion

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to review two appellate court rulings upholding former President Barack Obama's expansion of the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument on the Oregon-California border.

  • March 25, 2024

    Trump Can't Dismiss Hush Money Case, Trial Set For April

    A New York state judge on Monday emphatically denied Donald Trump's motion to dismiss the Manhattan district attorney's hush money case in the wake of a late evidence dump by federal prosecutors, scolding the former president's attorney and setting trial for April 15.

  • March 22, 2024

    Golfers Demand City Of LA End Tee Time Black Market

    Los Angeles golfers have sued the city claiming it's failing to stop black-market brokers from snatching up affordable tee times on municipal courses and reselling them for a profit.

  • March 22, 2024

    Feds Urge Justices To Reject Idaho's Abortion Ban Revival Bid

    The federal government said Idaho is pushing inconsistent positions on healthcare law as it tries to reinstate its abortion prohibition, telling the U.S. Supreme Court that the state still hasn't clearly articulated when it thinks abortions are federally required to save a person's life.

Expert Analysis

  • Insurance Implications Of Trump's NY Civil Fraud Verdict

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    A New York state trial court’s $450 million judgment against former President Donald Trump and affiliated entities for valuation fraud offers several important lessons for companies seeking to obtain directors and officers insurance, including the consequences of fraudulent misrepresentations and critical areas of underwriting risk, says Kevin LaCroix at RT ProExec.

  • Opinion

    NY Gubernatorial Absence Provision Is Obsolete And Harmful

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    An outdated provision in the New York Constitution means that the governor loses power whenever they leave the state, creating legal uncertainty and undermining confidence in the rule of law — but fortunately, the solution is straightforward, say Liam Turner and John Rogan at Fordham Law School.

  • Opinion

    European Union Criticisms Of The FCPA Are Misguided

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    Some in the European Union have criticized U.S. enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act for what they perceive as jurisdictional overreach, but this appears to overlook the crucial fact that jurisdiction is voluntary, and critics should focus instead on the lack of equivalent laws in their own region, say John Joy and YuTong Wang at FTI Law.

  • What Fed's Credit-Linked Note FAQ Means For Capital Relief

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    U.S. banks that seek to mitigate their loss of liquidity under the Basel III capital requirements by issuing direct credit-linked notes should turn to recent Federal Reserve FAQs for insight into how this new use of synthetic securitizations may reshape risk and regulation in the U.S. market, says Cris Cicala at Stinson.

  • Wildfire Challenges For Utility Investors: Regs And Financing

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    For investors in public utilities, wildfire liability considerations include not only regulatory complexities, but also bankruptcy claims resolution, financing judgments and settlements, and how to leverage organizational structures to maximize investment protections, say David Botter and Lisa Schweitzer at Cleary.

  • Fintech Compliance Does Not Always Equal Bank Compliance

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    Recent enforcement actions are a reminder for banks working with financial technology providers — whether as partners to extend their reach or as internal resources to support existing operations — that few areas of risk need more frequent attention than Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering compliance, says Christopher Couch at Phelps Dunbar.

  • Making The Pitch For A Civil Resolution In A Criminal Case

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    Even without the depth of visibility into prosecutorial decision making offered by special counsel Robert Hur’s recently released report, defense counsel may be able to make the case for civil resolutions of criminal investigations while minimizing a potential negative response from prosecutors to such an argument, says Bill Athanas at Bradley Arant.

  • Del. Dispatch: How Moelis Upends Stockholder Agreements

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    The Delaware Court of Chancery's Moelis decision last month upended the standard corporate practice of providing governance rights in stockholder agreements and adds to a recent line of surprising decisions holding that long-standing, common market practices violate Delaware law, say attorneys at Fried Frank.

  • Enforcement Risk Amid Increased Consumer Data Use

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    While no state has introduced a private right of action for noncompliance with a comprehensive consumer privacy law — except for the California Consumer Privacy Act's data breach provision — organizations and retailers face risk from enforcement actions by state attorneys general and privacy regulators, say attorneys at Dentons.

  • Business Litigators Have A Source Of Untapped Fulfillment

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    As increasing numbers of attorneys struggle with stress and mental health issues, business litigators can find protection against burnout by remembering their important role in society — because fulfillment in one’s work isn’t just reserved for public interest lawyers, say Bennett Rawicki and Peter Bigelow at Hilgers Graben.

  • Takeaways From USPTO's AI-Assisted Invention Guidance

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    Recently issued guidance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office clarifies how patent inventorship is to be determined when AI is involved, and while the immediate risk of prosecution for failing to meet the new standards appears low, the extent of examiners’ scrutiny remains to be seen, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.

  • Opinion

    The Problems In Calif. Draft Behavioral Ad Privacy Regs

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    The California Privacy Protection Agency has an opportunity with its automated decision-making technology and profiling rulemaking to harmonize California's regulation of data-driven advertising, but this will be a failure unless several things are changed in its proposed treatment of behavioral advertising, say Alan Friel and Kyle Fath at Squire Patton.

  • A New Push To Clear Up Marijuana's Foggy Legal Status

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    A recently publicized U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommendation to reschedule marijuana has reignited discourse over the drug's federal legal status — and although rescheduling would mitigate the legal risks for the industry and drastically increase the resources available for industry participants, the path forward will not be clear cut, say Joseph Cioffi and Louis DiLorenzo at Davis+Gilbert.

  • Wildfire Challenges For Utility Investors: Liability Theories

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    The greater frequency and scale of wildfires in the last several years have created operational and fiscal challenges for electric utility companies, including new theories of liability and unique operational and risk management considerations — all of which must be carefully considered by utility investors, say David Botter and Lisa Schweitzer at Cleary.

  • Under The Hood Of The SEC Securitization Conflict Rule

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    Elanit Snow and Julia Vitter of Proskauer consider the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recently finalized rule that prohibits conflicts of interest in certain securitization transactions, uncovering what the new regulation does and doesn’t entail, why it was adopted, and how commenters' remarks affected the process.

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