Public Policy

May 20, 2025
FTC Case Against Greystar Stayed For Settlement Talks

A Colorado federal judge has stayed a Federal Trade Commission suit alleging developer and property manager Greystar advertised deceptive rental prices after the parties notified the court that they are in "active settlement negotiations" that could resolve the entire case.
May 20, 2025
Chinese EV Battery Giant Generates $4.6B IPO Amid Tensions

Electric-car battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. began trading in Hong Kong after raising a $4.6 billion initial public offering, completing the year's largest equity offering globally despite tension between Washington and Beijing, guided by four law firms.
May 20, 2025
GSA Official Gives Mea Culpa On 'Non-Core' Federal Property

A top official of the federal government's real estate overseer testified on Tuesday that the administration was a bit rash in publishing a list two months ago with more than 400 "non-core" government properties, including federal courthouses, that it was considering disposing of.
May 20, 2025
Judge Revives Suit Challenging BLM Lease Sales In Utah

A Utah federal judge said she erred when she tossed a lawsuit challenging multiple U.S. Bureau of Land Management oil and gas lease sales in the state, as she failed to recognize that the agency had recently issued drilling permits for some of the transactions.
May 20, 2025
Judge Denies Meta's Mid-Trial Bid To End FTC Monopoly Case

A D.C. federal judge refused Tuesday to cut short the trial in the Federal Trade Commission's monopolization lawsuit against Meta Platforms Inc., not finding the clear evidentiary failure necessary to nix the government's case over the company's purchases of WhatsApp and Instagram.
May 20, 2025
EEOC Annual Worker Data Bid Opens With Diversity Warning

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's annual workplace demographic data collection window opened Tuesday with a warning from the EEOC's acting chair that employers can't act on protected characteristics like race and sex to try to enhance diversity.
May 19, 2025
DC Circ. Ponders Letting Gov't Claw Back $20B In Green Funds

The D.C. Circuit didn't seem convinced Monday morning that the Trump administration can't claw back $20 billion in U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grants that it's trying to cancel and divert elsewhere, hearing arguments over a preliminary injunction blocking the government from doing just that.
May 19, 2025
Senate Advances Stablecoin Bill After Dem Backers Return

The U.S. Senate's proposal to regulate stablecoins is headed to the floor after lawmakers voted to close debate on the bill Monday evening, clearing a procedural hurdle after first stumbling earlier this month when Democrats pulled support to pursue further negotiations.
May 19, 2025
Feds To Use FCA To Go After Antisemitism, DEI Policies

The U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday that it will use the False Claims Act to go after any recipients of federal funds that the agency determines promote diversity, equity and inclusion policies, and allow antisemitism to thrive.
May 19, 2025
Feds Want Full 2nd Circ. To Toss Student Removal Challenges

The U.S. Department of Justice has asked the full Second Circuit to reconsider a pair of decisions siding with students who say they were detained by immigration officials for expressing pro-Palestinian views, doubling down on its argument that courts don't have the jurisdiction to consider the government's removal decisions.
May 19, 2025
House Urged To Ax Proposed 10-Year Ban On State AI Laws

More than 140 civil rights and consumer advocacy groups on Monday became the latest to oppose a sweeping provision in the U.S. House of Representatives' budget proposal that would place a 10-year moratorium on states enacting or enforcing laws to regulate emerging artificial intelligence systems, joining a bipartisan coalition of state enforcers that issued a similar call last week.
May 19, 2025
2 Dozen States Urge Judge To Stop AmeriCorps Cuts

Two dozen states urged a Maryland federal judge on Monday to halt $400 million in cuts to AmeriCorps programs, while the lawyers for the Trump administration insisted that the states' challenge must be brought before the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.
May 19, 2025
Trump Admin Fights Bid To Block OPM From Helping DOGE

A trio of unions can't substantiate their claims that the U.S. Office of Personnel Management is inappropriately disclosing sensitive data to the Department of Government Efficiency, the Trump administration has told a New York federal judge, asking her to toss the unions' injunction request.
May 19, 2025
Interior Dept. Lifts Freeze On Empire Wind Project

The U.S. Department of the Interior has lifted its stop-work order, allowing construction to resume on the Empire Wind offshore wind energy project south of New York's Long Island, according to an announcement made Monday.
May 19, 2025
Protesters Say Fort Lauderdale Cops Can't Claim Immunity

Demonstrators who said the police improperly used were tear gas during a 2020 George Floyd protest urged a Florida federal court to not dismiss their proposed class action suit, arguing that they had presented enough facts to get past the Fort Lauderdale police officers' qualified immunity defense.
May 19, 2025
Feds Denied Stay In 1st Circ. Third Country Removal Suit

The First Circuit rejected the Trump administration's attempt to halt a federal court order directing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to provide due process protections for immigrants facing deportation to third countries where they have no ties.
May 19, 2025
DuPont And Garden State Clash In PFAS Trial Opener

New Jersey and E.I. du Pont de Nemours were at odds on Monday in federal court over the risks and cleanup of "forever chemical" contamination at a Salem County manufacturing facility, with the state claiming it was intentionally misled and DuPont arguing the state is changing the rules.
May 19, 2025
FCC's Carr Claims Victory Versus DEI In Verizon-Frontier OK

Verizon took a leap toward closing its $20 billion bid for Frontier Communications by gaining the Federal Communications Commission's approval after ditching its diversity, equity and inclusion programs at the behest of FCC Chair Brendan Carr.
May 19, 2025
5th Circ. Tosses FCC Workplace Diversity Reporting Rule

The Fifth Circuit on Monday threw out a Federal Communications Commission rule that required TV and radio broadcasters to disclose employment diversity data to the FCC.
May 19, 2025
2nd Circ. Tosses Case Of 30-Year Undocumented Immigrant

The Second Circuit on Monday affirmed the dismissal of a Chinese woman's lawsuit challenging the denial of her adjustment of status, saying the denial triggered a bar on judicial review, even if it wasn't an immigration court that denied her application.
May 19, 2025
Feds Get Early Win In Drugmakers' Suit Over 340B Rebates

A D.C. federal judge awarded an early win to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Friday on claims it illegally blocked drugmakers' efforts to implement rebates instead of discounts in a decades-old drug pricing program, finding the agency has the authority to pre-approve the price reduction models.
May 19, 2025
FCC Examines Revisions To Alaska Broadband Measurements

The Federal Communications Commission is seeking input on a proposal to change how final milestone commitments are evaluated for the so-called Alaska Plan, with a telecom in Alaska suggesting the commission's "Fabric" dataset offers a more accurate representation of where people actually live within census blocks than the current distribution model does.
May 19, 2025
21 AGs Join Fight To Keep DHS Oversight Offices Open

A group of 21 attorneys general joined nonprofits Friday in urging a D.C. federal judge to force the Trump administration to reopen offices that oversee various U.S. Department of Homeland Security programs and investigate related civil rights claims, arguing that the DHS' abrupt closure of the offices could have devastating consequences.
May 19, 2025
Feds Say Unions' Downsizing Suit Should Be Tossed

The Trump administration urged a federal judge in D.C. to toss a lawsuit challenging three federal downsizing initiatives, arguing that the claims brought by labor unions representing federal employees belong before the agency charged with adjudicating such disputes.
May 19, 2025
9th Circ. Weighs 'WallStreetBets' Ownership In Reddit TM Suit

The Ninth Circuit on Monday wrestled with whether the founder of Reddit Inc.'s WallStreetBets forum owns the name or if it belongs to the platform, with a judge at one point wondering whether the parties could find a way to coexist.

Editor's Picks

Trump's Legal Battles

States, federal employee unions, various advocacy groups and several individuals have filed over 220 lawsuits challenging the Trump administration's implementation of executive orders and other initiatives. Law360 has created a database of those lawsuits, separated into categories based on their subject matter.

Expert Analysis

A Breakdown Of Trump's Order On Drug Pricing

The Trump administration may attempt to effectuate through rulemaking a recently issued executive order on lowering drug prices, which would likely have an adverse effect on stakeholders and trigger litigation, say attorneys at Debevoise.
FTC Focus: Interlocking Directorate Enforcement May Persist

Though the Federal Trade Commission under Chair Andrew Ferguson seems likely to adopt a pro-business approach to antitrust enforcement, his endorsement of broader liability for officers or directors who illegally sit on boards of competing corporations signals that businesses should not expect board-level antitrust scrutiny to slacken, says Timothy Burroughs at Proskauer.
Calif. Climate Superfund Bill Faces Legal, Technical Hurdles

California could soon join other states in sending the fossil fuel industry a massive bill for the costs of coping with climate change — but its pending climate Superfund legislation, if enacted, is certain to face legal pushback and daunting implementation challenges, says Donald Sobelman at Farella Braun.
How Cos. Can Navigate Risks Of New Cartel Terrorist Labels

The Trump administration’s recent designation of eight drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations gives rise to new criminal and civil liabilities for companies that are unwittingly exposed to cartel activity, but businesses can mitigate such risks in a few key ways, say attorneys at Steptoe.
Cosmetic Co. Considerations As More States Target PFAS

In the first quarter of the year, seven states introduced or passed legislation focused on banning the sale of cosmetics that contain PFAS, making it necessary for businesses to adjust their product testing and supply chain practices, product formulations, marketing strategies, and more, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.
What We Lost After SEC Eliminated Regional Director Role

Former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Regional Director Marc Fagel discusses the recent wholesale elimination of the regional director position, the responsibilities of the job itself and why discarding this role highlights how the appearance of creating a more efficient agency may limit the SEC's effectiveness.
Mass. Suit Points To New Scrutiny For Home Equity Contracts

The Massachusetts attorney general’s recent charge that a lender sold unregulated reverse mortgages shows more regulators are scrutinizing mortgage alternatives like home equity contracts, but a similar case in the Ninth Circuit suggests more courts need to help develop a consensus on these products' legality, say attorneys at Weiner Brodsky.
Unpacking Copyright Office's AI Report Amid Admin Shakeups

Though recent firings have thrown the U.S. Copyright Office into turmoil, the latest entry in its report on artificial intelligence can serve as a road map for litigants, persuasive authority for courts and input on the legislative process, say attorneys at Epstein Becker.
Del. Bill Reflects Nat'l Tug-Of-War Between Cannabis, Alcohol

As Delaware's bill targeting hemp-derived THC beverages and ingestible products moves through the general assembly, it reads like a local regulatory fix — but in reality, it's a microcosm of a national power struggle playing out state-by-state across the cannabis frontier, says attorney Peter Murphy.
Reading Tea Leaves In High Court's Criminal Law Decisions

The criminal justice decisions the U.S. Supreme Court will announce in the coming weeks will reveal whether last term’s fractured decision-making has continued, an important data point as the justices’ alignment seems to correlate with who benefits from a case’s outcome, says Sharon Fairley at the University of Chicago Law School.
$38M Law Firm Settlement Highlights 'Unworthy Client' Perils

A recent settlement of claims against law firm Eckert Seamans for allegedly abetting a Ponzi scheme underscores the continuing threat of clients who seek to exploit their lawyers in perpetrating fraud, and the critical importance of preemptive measures to avoid these clients, say attorneys at Lockton Companies.
Hints Of Where Enforcement May Grow Under New CFPB

Though the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has significantly scaled back enforcement under the new administration, states remain able to pursue Consumer Financial Protection Act violators and the CFPB seems set to enhance its focus on predatory loans to military members and fraudulent debt collection and credit reporting practices, say attorneys at MoFo.
Only Certainty About FAR Reform Order Is Its Uncertainty

The president’s recent order overhauling the Federal Acquisition Regulation, which both contractors and agencies rely on to ensure predictability and consistency in federal procurement, lacks key details about its implementation, which will likely eliminate many safeguards that ensure contractors are treated fairly and that procurements are awarded in a reasonable manner, say attorneys at Miles & Stockbridge.
Maintaining Legal Compliance For GenAI In Life Sciences

As companies continue to implement generative artificial intelligence to enhance all phases of drug discovery, they must remain mindful of legal, regulatory and practical considerations as best practices in this space emerge and evolve, say attorneys at Sullivan & Cromwell.
Assessing Jurisdictional Issues In 2nd Circ. Bank Audi Case

The Second Circuit's reasoning last month in Raad v. Bank Audi that the exercise of personal jurisdiction must be based on conduct taking place within the jurisdiction reminds foreign financial institutions to continually monitor how plaintiffs are advocating for an expansive view of personal jurisdiction in the U.S., say attorneys at Freshfields.