Public Policy

  • March 16, 2026

    Mass. City Accused Of Bias In Mental Health 911 Response

    The city of Worcester, Massachusetts, was hit with a suit Monday claiming that its 911 response is inadequate and discriminatory towards people with mental disabilities because the armed police who usually show up are ill-equipped to deal with those calls and often make matters worse.

  • March 14, 2026

    Va. Lawmakers OK Legal, Taxed Marijuana Retail Sales

    Virginia lawmakers have given final approval to legislation that would tax and regulate the sale of adult-use cannabis, sending the bill to Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger, who is expected to sign it into law and bring to a close a half-decade of legal cannabis limbo for the state.

  • March 13, 2026

    Trump Orders Restart Of Calif. Coast Oil Operations

    The U.S. Department of Energy on Friday invoked the Cold War-era Defense Production Act directing Sable Offshore Corp. to restart a pipeline in Southern California that was shuttered in 2015 following a massive oil spill, drawing the ire of environmental groups that say the "defective" pipeline is too dangerous.

  • March 13, 2026

    CFPB Can't Rely On 'Erroneous' Funding Theory, Court Says

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau must continue to request needed funding from the Federal Reserve, a California federal judge ruled Friday, saying Trump administration budget chief Russell Vought "acted arbitrarily, capriciously and contrary to law" by refusing to replenish the agency's dwindling funds.

  • March 13, 2026

    States To Head Live Nation Antitrust Trial After Feds Settle

    Over two dozen states and the District of Columbia are forging ahead with monopolization claims against Live Nation in Manhattan federal court after the federal government unexpectedly agreed to settle with the live entertainment giant after a week of trial.

  • March 13, 2026

    Amazon Wins Bid To Void €746M Luxembourg Privacy Fine

    A Luxembourg appeals court Friday threw out a €746 million ($854.3 million) fine imposed on Amazon for allegedly violating the European Union's privacy rules through its handling of personal data, finding the country's data protection regulator failed to properly consider two key elements and needed to rethink the penalty.

  • March 13, 2026

    Split 10th Circ. Refuses To Rehear Custodia Account Suit

    The Tenth Circuit on Friday denied a full court reconsideration of an earlier decision granting Federal Reserve banks discretion to reject master bank accounts, but a dissenting judge argued in favor of crypto-focused Custodia Bank's position that the decision would give the Fed too much power over state banks.

  • March 13, 2026

    'Swinging Dicks' Dissent Stirs Uproar Across 9th Circ. Bench

    A raunchy dissent in litigation over transgender spa patrons prompted dozens of Ninth Circuit judges to denounce the "vulgar barroom talk" of a colleague, who returned fire by ridiculing his peers for adopting the "fastidious sensibilities of a Victorian nun."

  • March 13, 2026

    Robinhood Denied A Second Try At Mass. Gaming Shield

    Robinhood on Friday lost a second attempt to convince a Massachusetts federal judge to preemptively rule that sports event contracts are not subject to state gaming regulations.

  • March 13, 2026

    AIG Policy Excludes $150M Pollution Coverage, 7th Circ. Finds

    A Seventh Circuit panel on Friday ruled an AIG unit has no duty to cover $150 million in legal costs for Sterigenics and its former parent company following input from the Illinois Supreme Court on how to apply a pollution exclusion in the relevant policy.

  • March 13, 2026

    6th Circ.: Mich. Island Can Regulate Ferry Fares, Not Parking

    The Sixth Circuit has partly lifted a lower court order blocking a northern Michigan island from enforcing a new ferry ordinance, ruling the city can regulate ferry rates while the case proceeds but likely cannot control parking prices at mainland parking lots.

  • March 13, 2026

    Fla. Land Use Bill Passes With Controversy Quelled In Part

    On the final day of their annual regular session, Florida lawmakers passed a bill that imposes a variety of preemptions on local governments' land use review after they removed parts that threatened Miami's Urban Development Boundary but left in a provision that clears a path for a controversial project in Miami Beach.

  • March 13, 2026

    Texas Univ. To Keep Women's Sports Amid Title IX Case

    Stephen F. Austin State University has agreed to continue all existing women's sports teams, including golf and beach volleyball, while a proposed class action accusing it of discriminating against female athletes by eliminating their sports programs plays out, according to an order signed by a Texas federal judge on Friday.

  • March 13, 2026

    Trump Orders Seek To Spur Home Building, Mortgage Access

    President Donald Trump signed two executive orders Friday that seek to get rid of certain regulations, with the goal of making it easier to build affordable housing and obtain mortgages.

  • March 13, 2026

    9th Circ. Keeps Block On Montana 'Drag Story Hour' Ban

    The Ninth Circuit on Friday upheld a preliminary block on a Montana state law that prohibits drag performers from hosting book-reading events for children at state-funded libraries and schools, saying the law's definition of a "drag king" or "drag queen" broadly covers G-rated movie characters, like Cinderella and Mulan.

  • March 13, 2026

    Colo. Recycling Law Faces Challenge From Lubricant Group

    A trade group for lubricant producers has claimed in Colorado state court that the implementation of a new recycling program led to members being charged "exorbitant" and "illegal" fees by a nonprofit run entirely by its direct competitors and which represents oil and gas giants such as Chevron and Shell.

  • March 13, 2026

    Uvalde Ex-Police Chief Sues CBP Over Officer Testimony

    The former chief of police of Uvalde, Texas, sued U.S. Customs and Border Protection over the agency's refusal to make several of its agents available to testify in criminal proceedings against him tied to the 2022 Robb Elementary shooting that left 19 children and two teachers dead.

  • March 13, 2026

    Pa. City Receiver Challenges Law That Halted Ch. 9 Utility Sale

    A state law that stripped a Pennsylvania city of its ability to appoint all the members of its water authority's board was unconstitutional, the bankrupt city of Chester said in a Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court petition Friday, challenging a law that derailed its Chapter 9 plans to sell the local agency's assets.

  • March 13, 2026

    Wash. Leg. Greenlights Bill To Undo 2025 Estate Tax Hike

    The Washington State Legislature passed a bill that would walk back estate tax rate increases approved by lawmakers last year for estates with taxable value of at least $1 million.

  • March 13, 2026

    AT&T Says Robocall Call ID Fixes Must Focus On IP Networks

    AT&T says it would be a bad idea for the Federal Communications Commission to make new rules requiring companies to deploy caller ID authentication methods that don't rely on internet-based networks, since the industry is working hard to move away from non-IP networks.

  • March 13, 2026

    Texas Justices Overturn $26M Equinor Verdict

    The Texas Supreme Court on Friday overturned a $26 million judgment against Equinor Energy LP, undoing a jury's finding that it violated an exclusivity clause in a contract to supply water for fracking.

  • March 13, 2026

    ROSS Says Anthropic Case Supports 3rd Circ. IP Appeal

    An artificial-intelligence-based legal search engine appealing a finding that its use of Thomson Reuters' Westlaw headnotes did not constitute fair use has pointed to arguments in a separate case it says supports the idea that AI training is connected to national security.

  • March 13, 2026

    EchoStar Must Put Away $40B To Pay Builders, Group Says

    EchoStar should have set aside some of the $40 billion it plans to make from spectrum sales to AT&T and SpaceX to repay the companies who were supposed to be building Dish Network's 5G network, which EchoStar and Dish have now abandoned, a think tank has told the FCC.

  • March 13, 2026

    States Seek To Block Trump's Latest 10% Tariff Order

    President Donald Trump's order imposing 10% tariffs on countries worldwide is unlawful because it conflicts with the international payments authority he immediately invoked to justify it, two dozen states argued Friday while asking the U.S. Court of International Trade to strike down or block the regime.

  • March 13, 2026

    Gun Owners Take Conn. Open Carry Suit To 2nd Circ.

    A nonprofit and two Connecticut gun owners said they will appeal to the Second Circuit the dismissal of their suit challenging the state's open carry ban and its limits on the number of gun sales.

Expert Analysis

  • NY RAISE Act Raises The Bar For Frontier AI Developers

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    For organizations developing or substantially modifying highly capable artificial intelligence models, the New York Responsible AI Safety and Education Act represents a meaningful escalation beyond California's S.B. 53, even though it applies to a narrower group of developers, so companies should expect additional obligations, particularly around accelerated incident reporting, say attorneys at Kilpatrick.

  • Takeaways From CFPB's Retreat On Immigrant Fair Lending

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    Practices discouraged under the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Justice Department's 2023 statement on the treatment of immigration status under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act may now be permissible following its recent withdrawal, making it crucial for lenders to follow unfolding fair lending developments in this area, say attorneys at Steptoe.

  • What DOJ's New Trade Fraud Push Means For Cos.

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's announcement this week that it is elevating trade fraud to an economic and national security imperative sends an unmistakable message to multinational corporations, importers, compliance professionals and supply chain managers that the days of laissez-faire enforcement are over, says Markus Funk at White & Case.

  • How New Texas Law Streamlines Eviction Proceedings

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    A recent legislative change to the Texas Property Code overhauls the state's eviction process and makes it more difficult for nonpaying tenants to challenge evictions, likely yielding a faster and cheaper procedure that will encourage timely rent payment and lease compliance, says Maddison Craig at Munsch Hardt.

  • Bank Action Items For FDIC Digital Display Rule Compliance

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    Recently finalized Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. rules enhance the flexibility of signage requirements for bank websites, digital banking applications and ATMs, but new compliance hurdles will require cross-functional resources to avoid risk ahead of next year's compliance deadline, say attorneys at Winthrop & Weinstine.

  • Opinion

    A TVPRA Safe Harbor Would Boost Antitrafficking Efforts

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    Adding a well-thought-out safe harbor measure to the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, which is currently up for amendment and reauthorization, would motivate proactive cooperation from hotels and other businesses to combat sex trafficking, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.

  • AI-Generated Doc Ruling Guides Attys On Privilege Risks

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    A New York federal court's ruling, in U.S. v. Heppner, that documents created by a defendant using an artificial intelligence tool were not privileged, can serve as a guide to attorneys for retaining attorney-client or work-product privilege over client documents created with AI, say attorneys at Sher Tremonte.

  • How To Turn EU AI Act Disclosures Into Patent Assets

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    As the Aug. 2 deadline approaches to comply with provisions of the EU Artificial Intelligence Act governing high-risk AI systems, intellectual property and AI leaders should consider steps to leverage documentation requirements to surface patentable subject matter, reinforce inventive-step narratives and align regulatory timelines with patent filing strategy, say Lestin Kenton, Roozbeh Gorgin and Ananth Josyula at Sterne Kessler.

  • The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Leadership Strategy After Day 1

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    For law firm leaders, ensuring a newly combined law firm lives up to its promise, both in its first days of operation and well after, includes tough decisions, clear and specific communication, and cheerleading, says Peter Michaud at Ballard Spahr.

  • The Challenges Of Detecting Event Contract Manipulation

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    While concerns about possible manipulation and insider trading in event contracts have increasingly been raised by market observers, distinguishing a speculative position from a hedge and effective surveillance make regulation difficult, particularly as the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission argues for exclusive jurisdiction to do so, say economic consultants at the Brattle Group.

  • How US Liability Law Is Becoming The Primary Regulator Of AI

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    Comprehensive federal AI regulation remains fragmented and uncertain — but U.S. courts, applying long-standing doctrines of liability and responsibility, are actively shaping how AI systems are designed, deployed and governed, and companies are aligning their AI practices because courts may hold them accountable if they do not, says Alexander Lima at Wesco International.

  • How New HSR Thresholds, Fees Could Affect Enforcement

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    While the Federal Trade Commission's new thresholds and filing fees for the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act are not expected to materially affect the number of required HSR filings, or the percentage or focus of second requests, increased filing fees may give agencies dedicated resources to bring enforcement actions, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Methods For Challenging State Civil Investigative Demands

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    Ongoing challenges to enforcement actions underscore the uphill battle businesses face in arguing that a state investigation is prohibited by federal law, but when properly deployed, these arguments present a viable strategy to resist civil investigative demands issued by state attorneys general, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • Monetizing EV Charging Stations For Long-Term Success

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    An electric vehicle charging station's longevity hinges on monetizing operations through diverse revenue streams, contractual documentation of charge point operators' and site hosts' rights and responsibilities, and ensuring reliability and security of facilities, says Levi McAllister at Morgan Lewis.

  • Calif.'s Civility Push Shows Why Professionalism Is Vital

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    The California Bar’s campaign against discourteous behavior by attorneys, including a newly required annual civility oath, reflects a growing concern among states that professionalism in law needs shoring up — and recognizes that maintaining composure even when stressed is key to both succeeding professionally and maintaining faith in the legal system, says Lucy Wang at Hinshaw.

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