Public Policy

  • September 03, 2026

    Kavanaugh Stays Out Of Mich. Voter ID Referendum Row

    U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh declined Thursday to wade into a dispute over Michigan election officials' refusal to put on ballots this November a proposed amendment to the state's constitution that would require voters to show proof of U.S. citizenship to participate in state and local elections.

  • September 03, 2026

    8 Patent Reviews Instituted By Squires, Only 1 Denied

    In his latest round of decisions, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires instituted eight patent reviews Wednesday and rejected only one challenge.

  • September 03, 2026

    Connecticut Has 'No Ability' To Regulate ICE, Judge Told

    The state of Connecticut cannot impose its own masking, identification or use-of-force standards on federal officers like U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, the U.S. Department of Justice told a federal judge Thursday in seeking to kneecap a new state law.

  • September 03, 2026

    Judge Tosses NY License Rule Over Pot Shop Proximity

    New York cannabis regulators cannot decide at the eleventh hour whether they will grant waivers permitting certain kinds of dispensary applicants to open within 1,000 feet of a rival, a state court has ruled after finding that officials arbitrarily denied an entrepreneur's request to open a Niagara Falls shop near a competitor.

  • September 03, 2026

    Ga. School District Wants Early Win In Nixed Job Offer Suit

    A Georgia school district asked a federal judge to grant it an early win in a high school Spanish teacher candidate's lawsuit alleging her job offer was rescinded after school officials discovered online comments alleging the administration of former President Joe Biden unfairly targeted her spouse's firearm business.

  • September 03, 2026

    Mich. Court Keeps Ann Arbor Public Power Measure On Ballot

    A Michigan appellate panel has kept a proposal to create a municipal electric utility in Ann Arbor on the November ballot, ruling that the city clerk was not clearly required to reject supplemental petition signatures submitted after the proposal's initial filing. 

  • September 03, 2026

    Pa. Opens Home Care Wage Probes Covering 100K Workers

    Pennsylvania is planning to step up enforcement of wage laws for home care employees, the state's labor secretary has announced, saying these workers are particularly vulnerable to wage theft.

  • September 03, 2026

    Ga. City, Ex-Court Admin To Mediate Retaliation Dispute

    A federal judge has stayed a former court administrator's suit alleging the city of East Point, Georgia, fired her for complaining about a city council member's attempt to have a relative's court fine withdrawn, saying the parties intend to mediate.

  • September 03, 2026

    Phil Berger Jr. Won't Seek Reelection To NC High Court

    North Carolina Supreme Court Associate Justice Phil Berger Jr. said Thursday that he will not seek another term in 2028, meaning the Republican justice will leave the state's highest court after completing his current term.

  • September 03, 2026

    Doctor Supervision Regs Unconstitutional In NC, Nurse Says

    North Carolina must do away with regulations requiring nurse practitioners to enter practice agreements with supervising physicians, an owner of several clinics providing menopause-related care argued in a state court complaint, alleging the regulations are arbitrary, costly and violate the state's constitution.

  • September 03, 2026

    Federal Judge Warns Threats Imperil Judicial Independence

    U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom of the Southern District of Florida told Law360 that judges and members of the bar need to educate the public on the judiciary's important role in American democracy to combat increasing threats, speaking following the release of two reports this week that warn of safety concerns for judges and that defiance of court orders is undermining the federal judiciary's independence.

  • September 03, 2026

    Pirro Urges House Ethics Panel To Refer Crime Claims To DOJ

    U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro has told the House Ethics Committee that as cases involving criminal misconduct come before it, her office should be involved too.

  • September 03, 2026

    Ex-IRL App CEO Says Prosecutors Ignored Ethics Breaches

    The co-founder of defunct social app IRL is fighting fraud charges by claiming that the U.S. attorney's office prosecuting him is conflicted because an attorney who formerly defended IRL in an SEC investigation and is now with the office pushed for him to be charged — and he is disputing prosecutors' denial of impropriety. 

  • September 03, 2026

    Judge Suggests Mail Ballot Rule Too Late For Midterms

    A Massachusetts federal judge appeared poised Thursday to extend her block on the U.S. Postal Service implementing new requirements that would allow the agency to refuse to deliver potentially thousands of mailed ballots this November, suggesting the midterm elections are too close to make such a sweeping change.

  • September 03, 2026

    EU Council OKs Bloc Customs Modernization Program

    A suite of changes aimed at modernizing the European Union's customs administration to help it handle the e-commerce boom is on the precipice of implementation after the Council of the EU approved them Thursday, teeing up a final vote in the European Parliament.

  • September 03, 2026

    SEC Sues LSU Over Efforts To Put Ex-NFL Players On Roster

    The Southeastern Conference sued Louisiana State University in Alabama federal court Thursday, asking a judge to affirm the conference's right to impose penalties against the school if it decides to place players who had previously appeared in NFL preseason games on its roster.

  • September 03, 2026

    11th Circ. Won't Toss Grouper Catch Limit Over Council Defect

    An Eleventh Circuit panel Thursday agreed the structure of a regional fishery management council runs afoul of the U.S. Constitution's appointments clause, but refused to throw out a challenged rule that reduced catch limits for gag grouper in the Gulf of Mexico.

  • September 03, 2026

    Baltimore Says Kratom Sellers Hid Addictive Qualities

    The city of Baltimore is suing three kratom product distributors, alleging they violate city law by advertising kratom as having therapeutic qualities it doesn't possess, while downplaying or hiding its addictive nature.

  • September 03, 2026

    Wireless Tower Group Urges FCC To Back GPS Alternatives

    Wireless tower builders have asked the Federal Communications Commission to consider new rules that will promote the development of new positioning, navigation and timing technologies that can complement GPS technology.

  • September 03, 2026

    EU Moves To Ease Armenia Tariffs After Russian Restrictions

    The European Parliament's International Trade Committee on Thursday advanced a measure that would remove ad valorem duties on a swath of Armenian products to provide aid to the country in the wake of Russian trade restrictions.

  • September 03, 2026

    IRS Moves To Strip Schools' Tax Exemptions Over DEI Policies

    As many as 18,000 private schools that enact racially based diversity and inclusion policies could lose their federal tax exemptions under a proposed rule released by the Internal Revenue Service on Thursday.

  • September 02, 2026

    Split 9th Circ. Curbs Foreign Asset Forfeiture Without Control

    A split Ninth Circuit panel Wednesday held that courts must determine that they have, at the very least, constructive control over a foreign defendant's property to establish jurisdiction in a forfeiture case, pointing to the Fifth Amendment's due process clause.

  • September 02, 2026

    Tribal Students Achieve A Win In Financial Aid Policy Suit

    A New York federal judge has ruled in favor of two Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe students in their suit against the U.S. Department of Education over its policy requiring documentation from Indigenous students of permanent residency in the United States to be eligible for financial aid.

  • September 02, 2026

    Trump's Latest Birthright Order Flouts High Court, Judge Says

    A Maryland federal judge ruled Wednesday that President Donald Trump's latest attempt to curtail birthright citizenship cannot be applied to a certified class of children, saying the U.S. Supreme Court already decided that the children were citizens once born.

  • September 02, 2026

    USPTO Policies Spur Reps To Float Conditions On Fee Power

    Several lawmakers expressed concern at a hearing Wednesday about recent U.S. Patent and Trademark Office policies, including increased denials of patent reviews, and questioned if Congress should respond by putting conditions on the office's power to set its own fees.

Expert Analysis

  • Justices' FTC Ruling Weakens Qui Tam's Constitutional Base

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in Trump v. Slaughter, expanding presidential control over those exercising executive power, suggests that courts may be receptive to arguments challenging the constitutional foundations of the False Claims Act’s qui tam mechanism, says Daniel Passeser at Wiggin.

  • 9th Circ. Rule Block Unlikely To Deter FinCEN Cartel Focus

    Author Photo

    The Ninth Circuit recently blocked the Financial Crimes Enforcement Unit's border cash reporting rule, interpreting it as an impermissible use of an emergency anti-money laundering tool, but regulators are more likely to see the opinion as a road map for building a more defensible rule, say attorneys at Bradley Arant.

  • What Cos. Must Know About EPA Water Monitoring Proposal

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's newly proposed rule that would require public water systems to monitor for 30 unregulated drinking water contaminants does not impose new obligations on companies, but the data collected could affect future policy, investigations and litigation, says Ayodeji Ayolola at Gordon Rees.

  • Series

    Being A Sommelier Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Being a sommelier has quietly shaped how I practice law by changing the way I think, communicate and connect with people, and offers a constant reminder that expertise is about making your knowledge useful and accessible to others, says Kara Du at Sheppard.

  • House Truck Weight Bill Could Raise Stakes In Crash Suits

    Author Photo

    A bill pending in the U.S. House of Representatives could allow participating states to run six-axle trucks at 91,000 pounds instead of 80,000, likely resulting in more catastrophic injury claims with higher damages and further taxing an already strained insurance coverage system, says attorney Angel Reyes.

  • Trump Debarment Threat Calls For Targeted Defense Plan

    Author Photo

    President Donald Trump's recent Truth Social directive ordering federal suspension and debarment officials to investigate the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine over climate science work could have existential consequences, highlighting the importance of winning the framing battle by building a clear timeline and record, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • Fed Report Underscores Focus On Nonbank, CRE Risks

    Author Photo

    The Federal Reserve Board's latest supervision and regulation report highlights that broad systemic stability will not insulate individual institutions from rigorous supervisory challenges regarding concentrated commercial real estate portfolios and nonbank partnerships, says Daniel Meade at Hogan Lovells.

  • 3 Upcoming Deadlines That EB-5 Investors Should Consider

    Author Photo

    Potential EB-5 regional center investors should weigh three approaching deadlines, the most immediate of which is Sept. 30, that may affect their filing strategy, required capital commitment and ability to participate even if Congress fails to reauthorize the program, says Michael Ashoori at Ashoori Law.

  • CIPA Tech Tracking Suits Highlight Uncertain Legal Ground

    Author Photo

    Alexandra Samofalova at Spencer Fane discusses the state of California Invasion of Privacy Act website tracking litigation, why credible defendants choose to settle and how the businesses best positioned to face this uncertain legal landscape are the ones treating data practices as a legal compliance matter to address today.

  • AI, Prediction Markets Lead Securities Developments In 2026

    Author Photo

    Securities class actions tied to artificial intelligence and the battle over prediction market regulation both raise novel questions that courts are only beginning to address and that will continue to resonate throughout the second half of the year, say attorneys at Skadden.

  • Why A Class Was Certified In Financial Aid Info-Sharing Case

    Author Photo

    The recent Illinois federal court decision in Corzo v. Brown University offers key guidance for defendants confronting class certification in antitrust matters, highlighting how typicality can be satisfied despite class members attending different universities, receiving different aid awards and being affected across different time periods, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • Key Compliance Insights From Calif.'s Volvo Diesel Deal

    Author Photo

    While the future of California's vehicle emissions standards under the Clean Air Act is uncertain, the state's recent settlement with Volvo over diesel emissions hinges on the truthfulness of manufacturer representations to state regulators, and offers important lessons for companies on compliance and recordkeeping, says Thierry Montoya at FBT Gibbons.

  • Community Bank Order Signals Fintech Partnership Scrutiny

    Author Photo

    The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's recent consent order against Community Federal Savings Bank for deficiencies in its Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering compliance programs offers clear and urgent lessons for community banks pursuing revenue growth through fintech partnerships and payments services, say attorneys at Bradley.

  • House-Passed KIDS Act Spurs Child Data Practices Audit

    Author Photo

    Graham Dean, Brian Roper-Nelson and Will Quick at Brooks Pierce discuss the noteworthy sections of the U.S. House of Representatives' recently passed Kids Internet and Digital Safety Act, the potential revisions as the law moves through the U.S. Senate and the significant business changes that the House law would require.

  • Calif. Recycle Label Order Imperils Product Responsibility Law

    Author Photo

    A California federal court's injunction blocking enforcement of the state's truth-in-recycling law gives companies racing to remove chasing arrows and other recyclability labels from their packaging a reprieve — and the court's action may also hobble implementation of the state's extended producer responsibility law, say attorneys at Davis Wright.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Public Policy archive.