Public Policy

  • August 12, 2026

    Full 5th Circ. Rejects Planned Parenthood's Immunity Appeal

    The full Fifth Circuit Wednesday tossed an appeal over whether Planned Parenthood is entitled to attorney immunity in a whistleblower suit accusing the organization of improper Medicaid billing, reversing a panel's decision that went in favor of Planned Parenthood.

  • August 12, 2026

    Lender Groups 'Wrong' On Interest Opt-Out Law, Ore. Says

    Oregon is pushing back against financial industry groups' request to halt the state's new law aimed at capping interest rates on loans from out-of-state banks, arguing the lender trade groups suing in federal court over this so-called opt-out law are trying to impose limits on it that Congress never intended.

  • August 12, 2026

    Trump Sued Over 'Corrupt' $100K Early Truth Social Access

    Online news outlet The Intercept and the Freedom of the Press Foundation sued President Donald Trump Wednesday in New York federal court, accusing him of violating the Constitution with an "extraordinary, corrupt, and unconstitutional" scheme by allowing paying customers to receive advance access to official presidential announcements through Truth Social.

  • August 12, 2026

    In 'Close' Call, 7th Circ. Backs FDIC In-House Enforcement

    In what the court called a "close and challenging call," the Seventh Circuit on Wednesday ruled the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. could use in-house proceedings to adjudicate claims of unsound banking practices, rejecting a former Illinois community bank chairman's contention that such proceedings violate his right to trial by jury.

  • August 12, 2026

    Wis. Hits Vape Co. With $630K Fine For Banned Products

    The Minnesota-based company behind the Loon vape brand is challenging in federal court a $630,000 fine that Wisconsin imposed after state regulators discovered banned e-cigarettes at two smoke shops, with the company arguing the penalty is unfair because it did not distribute the vapes to these retailers.

  • August 12, 2026

    DHS Can't Shake Suit Over Suspicionless Stops, Atty Access

    A California federal judge has allowed a lawsuit accusing federal immigration agents of stopping people without reasonable suspicion and preventing immigration detainees from speaking with attorneys to proceed.

  • August 12, 2026

    SpaceX On Hunt For More Spectrum

    SpaceX is hungry for more spectrum, telling the Federal Communications Commission it ought to set "aggressive, technology-agnostic" buildout milestones in order to get new wireless satellite services to market just as the company unveils plans to build its own terrestrial network.

  • August 12, 2026

    Texas Medical Board Says AG Can't Get In On Malpractice Suit

    The Texas Medical Board told a state court judge that the Texas Office of the Attorney General could not represent a doctor who tried to treat a COVID-19 patient with ivermectin, saying the office flouted ethics rules by first representing the board and then representing the doctor.

  • August 12, 2026

    11th Circ. Backs EPA, Fertilizer Co. In 'Radioactive' Road Case

    The Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday rejected an environmental group's challenge to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's decision allowing the construction of a private road with a radioactive byproduct from fertilizer production, finding EPA regulations don't categorically bar such use.

  • August 12, 2026

    9th Circ. Backs Extradition For Al Qaeda In Iraq-Linked Killings

    The Ninth Circuit said Wednesday that a U.S. citizen can't escape his extradition to Iraq to be tried for the murders of two Iraqi police officers because the killings constitute international terrorism, meaning he is not protected by a political-offense exception to the relevant extradition treaty.

  • August 12, 2026

    Colo. Gun Group Asks Court To Block Semiauto Law

    Colorado's official branch of the National Rifle Association urged a Colorado federal judge to block the enforcement of a new state law restricting ownership of certain semiautomatic firearms, writing the law "all but eliminates" law-abiding citizens' right to purchase the firearms.

  • August 12, 2026

    10th Circ. Upholds Phone Search In Child Porn Case

    The Tenth Circuit upheld an Oklahoma man's child pornography convictions Wednesday, rejecting his arguments that police unlawfully prolonged a traffic stop and obtained an overly broad warrant to search his cellphone.

  • August 12, 2026

    Colleges Say Wealth Bias Evidence Would Prejudice Jury

    Top-flight universities, preparing to fight class action antitrust claims at trial later this year that they illegally colluded on financial aid formulas, on Wednesday accused the student plaintiffs of trying to "dirty" the universities with allegations that they admit underqualified applicants because of their family wealth.

  • August 12, 2026

    NYC Probes Polymarket, Kalshi Over Ads Targeting Minors

    The New York City Council announced Wednesday that it is investigating Kalshi, Polymarket, Coinbase and Gemini Titan for potentially false, deceptive or abusive advertising tactics for their prediction market platforms, expressing concerns about marketing directed toward young people.

  • August 12, 2026

    UMich Law Professor's Pro Bono Work Not FOIA Fodder

    The University of Michigan doesn't have to turn over the emails a law professor sent as part of her environmental pro bono work in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, after Michigan state court ruled that the emails don't count as public records under the law.

  • August 12, 2026

    Apple Gets Brief Pause In App Store Case From High Court

    The U.S. Supreme Court issued a brief stay Wednesday in a case from Epic Games targeting Apple's App Store policies, after the district court refused to put the case on hold while the justices review a contempt order against Apple.

  • August 12, 2026

    Wash. County Wants Out Of Burial Site Development Suit

    Whatcom County, Washington, has asked a federal court to dismiss the sole claim against it in a lawsuit from the Lummi Nation over broadband construction that allegedly disturbed ancestral remains, arguing that the county cannot be held liable for how it reviewed permits for the projects.

  • August 12, 2026

    Missouri Seeks To Block Minority Contracting Program

    Missouri Attorney General Catherin L. Hanaway pressed a district court judge to block Kansas City's contracting program for minority- and women-owned businesses, saying it violates the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution.

  • August 12, 2026

    Wheelchair Isn't A 'Vehicle' For DUI Test Consent In PA

    A Pennsylvania appeals court on Wednesday rolled out its finding that a man's wheelchair does not constitute a vehicle and that his use of the device to leave the scene of a car crash did not imply consent for a blood test as part of a DUI investigation.

  • August 12, 2026

    Miami Judge Says Rival's Trump Library Attack Defamed Her

    A Miami-Dade County Circuit Court judge has accused an attorney vying for her seat on the bench of defamation, telling a Florida state court the attorney conspired to unlawfully influence the upcoming non-partisan judicial race with a smear campaign claiming she tried to block the Donald Trump Presidential Library.

  • August 12, 2026

    ICE Says Noncitizens Are Targeting 'Unwritten' Philly Policy

    The Trump administration asked a federal judge Wednesday to toss proposed class claims against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement seeking the reinstatement of a Philadelphia policy that the three noncitizens who filed suit say limits the agency's ability to rearrest nondangerous immigrants without justification. 

  • August 12, 2026

    Labor Groups Sue Ed. Dept. Over Student Loan Access Cuts

    The AFL-CIO and several unions have filed a complaint in D.C. federal court challenging new federal student loan caps in a U.S. Department of Education rule that narrows the definition for "professional student," claiming that the rule arbitrarily restricts access to federal student loans.

  • August 12, 2026

    Raskin Asks Ellison To Speak To Congress About Merger

    U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., has asked Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison to appear for a transcribed interview to explain the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger.

  • August 12, 2026

    Trump Tells 11th Circ. Sanctions In IRS Case Must Be Paused

    President Donald Trump urged the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday to halt sanctions imposed by a lower court over an immunity deal that would have given him broad protections from federal tax audits and investigations, arguing he and the government have distinct interests.

  • August 12, 2026

    Squires Tells Fed. Circ. PTAB Made Error In Corteva Decision

    U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires has asked the Federal Circuit to intervene in Inari Agriculture's appeal of a Patent Trial and Appeal Board decision upholding a Corteva patent on insect-repellent corn, saying part of the board's decision was wrong.

Expert Analysis

  • How DOJ Is Approaching Monitorship After Signaling Limits

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    As the U.S. Department of Justice keeps more monitors in place than expected, a look at the matters in which prosecutors are maintaining oversight reveals the sort of companies enforcers might trust to self-remediate, and also those that may receive independent supervision, say attorneys at Kendall Brill.

  • Opinion

    DHS' World Cup Influencer Warning Overreads Visa Law

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    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s reported position that foreign influencers covering the 2026 World Cup need work visas if their content is monetized runs contrary to both legislative intent and long-standing precedent that structure the visa inquiry around labor market substitution, says Jun Li at Reid & Wise.

  • 3 Steps For Banks As Section 1071 Rule Finally Becomes Final

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    Some community banks and other lenders will get some breathing room in the final Section 1071 rule exempting them from small business lending reporting duties, but other reporting institutions should update applications, systems and staff training ahead of the 2028 compliance date, says Memrie Fortenberry at Jones Walker.

  • Why DOE Isn't Phasing Out Appliance Efficiency Regs

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    While the U.S. Department of Energy recently acted on President Donald Trump's 2025 executive order requiring it to consider sunsetting many energy regulations, the DOE has not proposed phasing out efficiency standards for appliances and industrial equipment — but it could pursue other approaches to ease such requirements, say attorneys at HWG.

  • Series

    Power To The Paralegals: Burnout As A Structural Problem

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    Law firm leadership can best retain their paralegals not by encouraging self-care, but by seeking top-down structural solutions for the quiet proliferation of responsibilities and the vicarious exposure to client trauma that particularly drive burnout in this vital role, says Erika Sneeringer at Brockstedt Mandalas.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: June Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy discusses five recent rulings from cases involving allegations of internet data misuse, consumer fraud claims, immigration, insurance and First Amendment violation claims.

  • Justices' FCC Fine Ruling May Weaken Agency Leverage

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Federal Communications Commission v. AT&T upheld the commission's forfeiture framework as consistent with Jarkesy, but it is also likely to reduce the effectiveness of the commission’s forfeiture proceedings as a collection and deterrence tool, say attorneys at Venable.

  • Takeaways From 1st Del. Ruling Applying Moelis Amendments

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    Delaware corporations should carefully review contractual arrangements and governance documents following the Court of Chancery's recent enforcement of a non-Delaware forum selection clause in a CEO's employment agreement under 2024 amendments to the state's General Corporation Law, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Ill. Law Firm MSO Bill Clashes With Court Power, Ethics Rules

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    An Illinois bill prohibiting law firms from certain business arrangements with management service organizations, sent to the governor for signature last week, encroaches upon the courts' constitutional powers and goes beyond the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct in regulating investment in law-related services, says Matthew O’Hara at Smith Gambrell.

  • Google Antitrust Case Puts Spotlight On De Facto Exclusivity

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    Mozilla's recent amicus filing in U.S. v. Google arguing that its agreement to make Google the default search engine did not amount to de facto exclusivity highlights the growing debate over traditional indicators of exclusivity, with implications for any business that uses rebates, preferred contracts or volume incentives, says Chris Gowen at WilmU Farnan School of Law.

  • Justices' Montgomery Ruling Doesn't Expand Shipper Liability

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    Whether negligent hiring liability claims against shippers will increase after the U.S. Supreme Court's decision last month in Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II is anyone's guess, but the ruling itself will have no impact on shippers' actual liability in personal injury claims relating to trucking accidents, says Ronald Leibman at McCarter & English.

  • GHG Rescission Undermines State Climate Suit Preemption

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    As the U.S. Supreme Court considers the fate of state climate litigation in Suncor Energy Inc. v. Boulder County, it must confront the fact that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's rescission of its greenhouse gas endangerment finding has also removed the foundation for federal preemption of state climate suits, says attorney Gregg Goldfarb.

  • Constructing AI Compliance Plans As State Laws Diverge

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    With Colorado, Connecticut and the federal government recently announcing wildly different approaches to artificial intelligence regulation, creating a workable compliance program means addressing overlapping obligations using shared systems rather than separate silos, say attorneys at Ogletree.

  • How McDonnell Still Shapes Bribery Defense Strategy

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    The pending federal bribery allegations against Washington, D.C., Council member Trayon White Sr. highlight for defense counsel the importance of overcoming the “official act” requirement established by the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in McDonnell v. U.S., and juries' critical role in distinguishing between official and unofficial acts, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Assessing Issues The CFTC's Sports Betting Rules May Face

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    The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission recently proposed a rule to consolidate its control of sports bets made on prediction market trading platforms, but problems may arise from possible conflicts between the proposed changes and state laws — and maybe even the Commodity Exchange Act itself, says David Slovick at Kopecky Schumacher.

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