Public Policy

  • May 21, 2025

    Lighting Biz Will Pay $300K For Providing Chinese Goods

    A Connecticut lighting company and its owner have reached a $300,000 settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice to resolve allegations it sold Chinese-made products to several government agencies in violation of the Buy American Act and the Trade Agreements Act.

  • May 21, 2025

    Democracy Forward Adds Another Ex-DOJ Hand

    Legal advocacy group Democracy Forward has added a former deputy associate U.S. attorney general and co-chair of the Supreme Court and appellate practice at WilmerHale to its ranks of former U.S. Department of Justice litigators.

  • May 21, 2025

    Conn. Public Defender Watchdog Wants Chief's Firing Upheld

    Connecticut's Public Defender Services Commission said in a state court brief that it was "significant misconduct," not racial bias, that caused it to fire the chief public defender, arguing the June 2024 firing came after a litany of complaints and a lengthy pattern of wrongdoing.

  • May 21, 2025

    Nadine Menendez Taps Cozen O'Connor To Fight Conviction

    Former Sen. Bob Menendez's wife, Nadine Menendez, has added Cozen O'Connor as co-counsel as she fights to overturn her conviction on bribery charges, according to a filing in New York federal court.

  • May 20, 2025

    Trump Gets Fla. Judge To Lob China Tariff Suit To Trade Court

    A Florida federal judge Tuesday relinquished jurisdiction over five small businesses' lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump's tariffs on Chinese imports, agreeing with Trump that the case fell within the U.S. Court of International Trade's "exclusive jurisdiction."

  • May 20, 2025

    'Not A Denny's': 5th Circ. Judge Chides High Court Stopwatch

    The Fifth Circuit on Tuesday expedited a case brought by Venezuelans who are accused of being gang members and who are challenging the use of a 1798 wartime law to deport them to an El Salvador prison, with one judge chastising the U.S. Supreme Court's majority for allowing the appeal to move forward.

  • May 20, 2025

    Ex-Emory Prof Says Palestine Support Led To 'Brazen' Ouster

    A former professor at Emory University's medical school has sued the university, alleging that she was ousted in 2023 for her social media posts in support of Palestinians, claiming she was the victim of a smear campaign coordinated between the university and outside groups akin to "modern-day McCarthyism."

  • May 21, 2025

    Pa. Dems Coast to Primary Wins In Judicial, DA Contests

    Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner fought off a challenge from fellow Democrat and former judge Patrick Dugan on Tuesday night, clearing the way for the incumbent's third term as the city's top prosecutor.

  • May 20, 2025

    Trump Admin Rationale For HHS Firings Challenged By Judge

    A Rhode Island federal judge expressed skepticism Tuesday about the Trump administration's assertion that mass firings at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services were lawful and intended to improve national health, saying during a preliminary injunction hearing that nothing in the record demonstrates "thoughtful work" behind these decisions.

  • May 20, 2025

    Subpoena For Alleged Trans Care Must Stand, Texas Says

    A Texas appeals court on Tuesday pressed the state to explain why the principle of sovereign immunity should stop patients who potentially received gender affirming care from trying to block a subpoena, saying during oral arguments a challenge to a subpoena seems to fall outside sovereign immunity.

  • May 20, 2025

    FWS' New 'Harm' Proposal Draws Praise, Concern For Species

    Fossil fuel, construction and other industry groups say they support the Trump administration's plan to weaken regulatory protections under the Endangered Species Act, while blue state attorneys general and environmental groups urged the government to back off its proposal.

  • May 20, 2025

    Judge Questions Bank's Role In Jail Debit Card Fee Dispute

    A federal magistrate judge in Washington state signaled Tuesday she might advance a debit card fee class action against a Missouri bank to trial, suggesting there's still a factual dispute as to whether the prepaid cards were forced on people trying to regain access to their money after being released from correctional facilities. 

  • May 20, 2025

    FDIC Nixes Biden-Era Merger Rules As House Passes OCC Bill

    The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on Tuesday finalized the repeal of stricter bank merger guidelines adopted last year, pulling them back the same day as the U.S. House moved to nullify the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's Biden-era merger policy rewrite.

  • May 20, 2025

    GAO Tells Congress New Court Design Guide Drives Up Costs

    The Government Accountability Office's director of physical infrastructure testified Tuesday that the judiciary is working to address its October report finding that the U.S. Courts' updated design guide will significantly increase the size and cost of future courthouse projects.

  • May 20, 2025

    Venezuelan Nationals' RICO Suit Asserting Defamation Tossed

    A Florida federal judge has dismissed racketeering and other claims against a director of Venezuela's state-owned oil company and others after determining that the suit accusing them of engaging in a defamatory campaign to smear civic leaders is a shotgun pleading.

  • May 20, 2025

    5 Ohio Cities Say Hyundai, Kia Negligence Claims Still In Play

    Five Ohio cities have told a California federal judge that Hyundai and Kia cannot try to circumvent the Ninth Circuit and scuttle negligence claims in consolidated litigation alleging the automakers knowingly sold vehicles with design flaws that spawned a car-theft crime wave.

  • May 20, 2025

    Dem Lawmakers Reintroduce Supreme Court Ethics Bill

    Two Democratic lawmakers on Tuesday reintroduced bills in the House and Senate that would require the U.S. Supreme Court to adopt a binding ethics code and create new recusal and disclosure standards for the nine justices.

  • May 20, 2025

    Tax Credit Repeal Would Deflate US Hydrogen Development

    The Republicans' proposal to eliminate tax credits for producing clean hydrogen in the budget reconciliation bill threatens to kneecap the nascent alternative fuel industry in the U.S. while pushing investments overseas to friendlier markets.

  • May 20, 2025

    High Court Precedent Blocks FTC Commish Firings, Judge Told

    A pair of recently fired Federal Trade Commission members sparred with the administration in D.C. federal court on Tuesday, with the judge raising questions about which Supreme Court precedent really holds in this dispute.

  • May 20, 2025

    Medical Organizations Sue Feds For Removing Health Data

    The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and several constituent agencies are accused of violating the Administrative Procedure Act by illegally purging websites containing critical public health information related to trans and HIV care, vaccines and the prevention of outbreaks of communicable diseases, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Washington federal court.

  • May 20, 2025

    6 Colo. Cities Sue Governor Over Housing Executive Order

    Six Colorado cities with "home rule" charters have hit the state and Gov. Jared Polis with a suit challenging his recent executive order saying state grants won't go to local communities if they don't comply with new housing laws that seek denser real estate development.

  • May 20, 2025

    Nonprofits Seek To Block 'Sweeping' AmeriCorps Cuts

    A number of education, environmental and housing nonprofits have asked a Maryland federal judge to block the firing of thousands of AmeriCorps employees and the cancellation of $400 million to its programs, saying the move violates core constitutional principles regarding separation of powers that have already had severe consequences.

  • May 20, 2025

    FCC Warned To Not Overreach In Undersea Cable Rules

    Network providers cautioned the Federal Communications Commission to stick to its legal authority when crafting new rules to beef up the security of undersea telecom cables, saying the FCC can't regulate beyond cable owners and operators under existing law.

  • May 20, 2025

    State AGs Say No To Nixing Wireless Site NHPA Reviews

    Eight states are calling on the Federal Communications Commission not to listen to a major wireless trade group's petition encouraging it to cut "burdensome ... red tape," which the states say are actually mandates of the National Historic Preservation Act.

  • May 20, 2025

    Tribe Blames DOI For $1.5M In Legal Fees In Recognition Row

    A Michigan tribe that is asking for $1.5 million in fees from the Interior Department over its challenge to a federal recognition status denial says the agency caused the case to drag on for five years due to its failure to remand its rule governing the process.

Expert Analysis

  • Unpacking Trump Admin Plans For Value-Based Care

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    Recent developments from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation suggest the Trump administration intends to put its own stamp on value-based care, emphasizing cost savings assessment in particular, with its recent cancellation of several payment models that had supported primary care, says Miranda Franco at Holland & Knight.

  • Trending At The PTAB: A Pivot On Discretionary Denials

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    Following the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's rescission of the 2022 Vidal memorandum and a reversion to the standards under Apple v. Fintiv, petitioners hoping to avoid discretionary denials should undertake holistic review of all Fintiv factors, rather than relying on certain fail-safe provisions, say attorneys at Finnegan.

  • Key Insurance Issues Likely To Arise From NY Superfund Law

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    The recently enacted New York Climate Change Superfund Act imposes a massive $75 billion in liabilities on energy companies in the fossil fuel industry, which can be expected to look to their insurers for coverage, raising a slew of coverage issues both old and new, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • SDNY Sentencing Ruling Is Boon For White Collar Defendants

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    Defense attorneys should consider how to maximize the impact of a New York federal court’s recent groundbreaking ruling in U.S. v. Tavberidze, which held that a sentencing guidelines provision unconstitutionally penalizes the right to a jury trial, says Sarah Sulkowski at Gelber & Santillo.

  • How Trump Policies Are Affecting The Right To Repair

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    Recent policy changes by the second Trump administration — ranging from deregulatory initiatives to tariff increases — are likely to have both positive and negative effects on the ability of independent repair shops and individual consumers to exercise their right to repair electronic devices, say attorneys at Carter Ledyard.

  • How Attorneys Can Master The Art Of On-Camera Presence

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    As attorneys are increasingly presented with on-camera opportunities, they can adapt their traditional legal skills for video contexts — such as virtual client meetings, marketing content or media interviews — by understanding the medium and making intentional adjustments, says Kerry Barrett.

  • Justices' TikTok Ruling Sets Stage For 1st Amendment Battle

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's landmark ruling upholding a law requiring TikTok's sale sets the stage for an inevitable clash between free speech and government interests and signals that future cases will turn on whether a regulation poses a substantial burden on speech, say attorneys at Dykema.

  • What Del. Corporate Law Rework Means For Founder-Led Cos.

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    Although the amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law have proven somewhat divisive, they will provide greater clarity and predictability in the rules that apply to founder-led companies navigating transactions concerning controlling stockholders and responding to books-and-records requests, say attorneys at Munger Tolles.

  • Border Cash Transaction Rule Heralds Wider AML Crackdown

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    The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s new order for money services providers near the Mexican border to report cash transactions over $200 should warn financial institutions to prepare for the new administration's heightened scrutiny of cross-border transactions and anti-money laundering compliance, says Daniel Silva at Buchalter.

  • Opinion

    Congress Must Reform The PTAB To Protect Small Innovators

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    Lawmakers must reintroduce the Promoting and Respecting Economically Vital American Innovation Leadership Act or similar legislation to prevent larger companies from leveraging the Patent Trial and Appeal Board to target smaller patent holders, says Schwegman Lundberg's Russell Slifer, former deputy director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

  • Series

    Baseball Fantasy Camp Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    With six baseball fantasy experiences under my belt, I've learned time and again that I didn't make the wrong career choice, but I've also learned that baseball lessons are life lessons, and I'm a better lawyer for my time at St. Louis Cardinals fantasy camp, says Scott Felder at Wiley.

  • DOJ Immigration Playbook May Take Cues From A 2017 Case

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    A record criminal resolution with a tree trimming company accused of knowingly employing unauthorized workers in 2017 may provide clues as to how the U.S. Department of Justice’s immigration crackdown will touch American companies, which should prepare now for potential enforcement actions, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

  • Paul Atkins' Past Speeches Offer A Glimpse Into SEC's Future

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    Following Paul Atkins' Thursday Senate confirmation hearing, a look at his public remarks while serving as a commissioner at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission between 2002 and 2008 reveals eight possible structural and procedural changes the SEC may see once he likely takes over as chair, say attorneys at Covington.

  • McKernan-Led CFPB May Lead To Decentralized Enforcement

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    Though Jonathan McKernan’s confirmation as director would likely mean a less active Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the decreased federal oversight could lead to more state-led investigations, multistate regulatory actions and private lawsuits under consumer protection laws, says Jonathan Pompan at Venable.

  • How Fla. Is Floating A Raft Of Bills To Stem Insurance Woes

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    Proposed reforms that follow a report skewering Florida's insurance industry offer a step in the right direction in providing relief for property owners, despite some limitations, say attorneys at Farah & Farah.

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