Public Policy

  • June 11, 2026

    US Chamber Says ERISA Suit Could Shrink 401(k) Choices

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce urged a California federal judge to toss a suit claiming a car dealership company misused forfeited funds and chose opaque investment options for its $1 billion 401(k) plan, warning the case could hurt retirement savers by leading to fewer investment options.

  • June 11, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Changes Process For Some Full-Panel Reviews

    The Federal Circuit now requires the authoring judge to notify all panel members about nonprocedural motions, including motions for extensions of time and withdrawal of counsel, according to internal documents.

  • June 11, 2026

    Justices Reject Feds' Venue Theory In Twitter Spying Case

    The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a former Twitter employee convicted of spying on behalf of Saudi Arabia must be prosecuted in Washington state, where he sent false documents to federal agents, and not in California, where the agents who investigated him are based.

  • June 11, 2026

    NYC Pol Not Guilty Of Obstructing Elevator In ICE Dustup

    A Manhattan federal judge on Thursday absolved former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander of an elevator-obstruction charge stemming from an incident last year when he was ticketed as he sought to monitor U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for possible violations of migrants' rights at a government building.

  • June 10, 2026

    States Say Trump's DEI Rule For Contractors Is Unclear, Illegal

    Attorneys general from 19 states and Washington, D.C., on Wednesday sued numerous federal officials and agencies in an attempt to block the Trump administration's March 26 executive order prohibiting government contractors — including states — from engaging in "racially discriminatory" activity around diversity, equity and inclusion.

  • June 10, 2026

    Chickasaw Nation Gov. To Retire After 40 Years In Office

    Chickasaw Nation Gov. Bill Anoatubby has announced his plans to retire as the federally recognized tribe's leader, saying that after serving nearly 40 years it's time to pass the torch to the next generation of tribal stewards.

  • June 10, 2026

    Judge Won't Certify Class Of Health Workers In No-Poach Suit

    An Illinois federal judge on Wednesday refused to certify a class of former healthcare employees claiming that their wages were suppressed by alleged no-poach agreements among DaVita, UnitedHealth Group's Surgical Care Affiliates and Tenet Healthcare Corp. unit United Surgical Partners International, ruling that the proposed class is too diverse.

  • June 10, 2026

    GEO Says ICE, Not Contractor, Blocked Wash. Facility Access

    Private prison operator The GEO Group Inc. on Tuesday urged a federal judge to throw out counterclaims from Washington state officials who allege they were wrongfully denied access to an immigration processing center, arguing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, not The GEO Group, controls entry to the facility.

  • June 10, 2026

    Utah Urges Court To Reject Bid To Halt Kratom Ban

    Utah officials are urging a federal judge to reject a bid to halt the enforcement of a state law reining in psychoactive products derived from the kratom leaf, saying that the "void-for-vagueness" argument brought by the kratom interests opposing the law is unfounded.

  • June 10, 2026

    SBA Aims To Replace 8(a) Program's Social Disadvantage Test

    The U.S. Small Business Administration released a proposal on Wednesday that would make it possible for small business owners to qualify for the 8(a) business development program by claiming they've been harmed by a company's DEI policies or a university's affirmative action programs.

  • June 10, 2026

    FDA Rule For Nicotine Pouches Likely Flawed, Judge Says

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration can't stop companies from selling ZEO Universe synthetic nicotine pouches, a Florida federal court has ruled, saying the agency likely acted illegally when it imposed costly new testing requirements without analyzing their economic effect on small businesses.

  • June 10, 2026

    ACLU Demands DHS Info On Filming Feds' Retaliation Policies

    The American Civil Liberties Union and MacArthur Justice Center Wednesday accused the U.S. Department of Homeland Security of unlawfully withholding documents related to the government's practice of targeting and retaliating against people who film federal agents in public, according to a suit filed in California federal court.

  • June 10, 2026

    FCC Grants ISP Biz Waiver On Router Hardware For 1 Year

    The Federal Communications Commission has come through and granted NCTA — The Internet & Television Association members a waiver allowing them to make changes to foreign-made routers after granting similar permission to telecom titan AT&T.

  • June 10, 2026

    FCC Says Chinese Lab Falsified Reports Via Copy-Paste Ploy

    The Federal Communications Commission has started the process of pulling U.S. certification from an equipment testing lab based in China that the agency claims submitted false test reports for devices by copying other reports.

  • June 10, 2026

    DHS Wants Out Of Warrantless Immigration Arrest Suit In NC

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security told a North Carolina federal court that a proposed class action accusing its agents of conducting a violent and warrantless immigration dragnet operation can't proceed, as the residents failed to show future and imminent harm.

  • June 10, 2026

    SpaceX Rocket Base Ruining Wildlife Habitat, Green Groups Say

    Environmental advocacy organizations told a D.C. federal district court Wednesday that Space Exploration Technologies Corp.'s use of formerly protected land near the Texas coast would endanger vulnerable wildlife, saying SpaceX's occasional rocket explosions spew debris directly into protected habitat.

  • June 10, 2026

    Feds Say Species Exemption Suits Belong In Appeals Court

    The "God Squad" that waived Endangered Species Act requirements for oil and gas activities in the Gulf of Mexico urged a Washington, D.C., federal district court to toss conservation groups' legal challenges over the move, arguing they've chosen the wrong forum.

  • June 10, 2026

    Judge Tells DOJ Not To 'Play Possum' On Trump Fund

    A D.C. federal judge on Wednesday declined to block the Trump administration's proposed $1.8 billion "lawfare" fund, crediting statements from Attorney General Todd Blanche and other U.S. Department of Justice lawyers last week that the fund was dead.

  • June 10, 2026

    Athletes Say NCAA Deal Illegally Limited NIL Opportunities

    Two California college football players challenged the NCAA's recent historic settlement related to athlete compensation, alleging the $20.5 million cap unlawfully limits how much athletes can earn and restrains competition.

  • June 10, 2026

    One And Done? Patent Examiner Interviews Now Hard To Get

    In the months since the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office changed how patent examiners are credited for applicant interviews, which can be the difference between prosecution stalemates and progress, attorneys say the interviews are getting harder to come by — and they've changed tactics as a result.

  • June 10, 2026

    Feds Immune From Atty's Suit Over Lake Debris Impalement

    A Washington federal judge has thrown out an attorney's lawsuit blaming the federal government after he was gravely injured when he jumped off a dock at a National Park Service campground and landed on wooden debris in Lake Chelan, concluding Tuesday the stick was natural and unknown to the government.

  • June 10, 2026

    Ariz. Judge Backs Homebuilders, Voids Water Surplus Rule

    An Arizona state judge has rejected a rule from state regulators requiring housing subdivision developers in the Phoenix area to arrange 25% more water than a project actually needs in order to win approvals, in a policy that a trade group argued amounted to a water tax.

  • June 10, 2026

    DOT Scrubs Disparate Impact From Discrimination Regs

    The U.S. Department of Transportation on Wednesday eliminated disparate impact from its regulations governing discrimination, as part of the Trump administration's sweeping rejection of the theory of liability premised on seemingly neutral policies having discriminatory effects.

  • June 10, 2026

    Trump Picks Bank Exec, Ex-BigLaw Partner For CFPB Director

    President Donald Trump on Wednesday tapped former BigLaw partner Brian Johnson for director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a move that comes as White House Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought's time as interim head of the agency approaches its expiration date.

  • June 10, 2026

    NJ High Court Says Nonprofit Hospital Gets Limited Immunity

    The New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously concluded Wednesday that a nonprofit federally qualified health center isn't immune from a patient's negligence suit under a statute shielding nonprofits organized "exclusively" for charitable or educational purposes, reversing a lower court's finding to the contrary.

Expert Analysis

  • Ohio Case Reflects States' Aggressive Criminal Antitrust Turn

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    The Ohio Attorney General's Office’s recent bid-rigging indictment of an online auctioneer is the latest signal that states, through attorneys general pursuing more kickback cases and legislators expanding the reach of antitrust laws, are shedding their historical reluctance to wield their criminal antitrust enforcement powers, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Justices' Geofence Ruling May Test 4th Amendment's Future

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    When the U.S. Supreme Court decides in Chatrie v. U.S. whether law enforcement may use geofence warrants to compel Google to disclose location history data, the ruling is likely to become an important statement about the future of Fourth Amendment law in data-driven investigations, says Duncan Levin at Levin & Associates.

  • Series

    NY Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q1

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    In the first quarter of 2026, New York's banking developments were headlined by initiatives to expand oversight of financial institutions and strengthen consumer protection laws, including a new framework for buy now, pay later lenders, a sweeping debt collection rule and a revised corporate self-disclosure program for financial crimes, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • Seeking A Policy Fix As Merger Reporting Fight Continues

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    A recently announced request by the Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Department of Justice for public comment on the Hart-Scott-Rodino premerger reporting requirements, as litigation challenging the commission's updated requirements continues, suggests the government's willingness to address how best to support modern merger enforcement without unduly burdening filing parties, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

  • What New Fla. Citizens Bill Means For Surplus Lines Insurers

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    A Florida bill recently passed by the Legislature as part of a continued effort to depopulate Citizens Property Insurance, the state's insurer of last resort, creates an additional pathway for commercial policies to be written by surplus lines insurers, but also presents concerns of unnecessary regulation, say attorneys at Troutman.

  • What Voluntary Calif. Carbon Reports Show About Compliance

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    While the enforcement of California's S.B. 261 is currently paused due to a Ninth Circuit injunction, more than 130 companies have nonetheless chosen to voluntarily publish climate-related financial risk disclosures, providing a useful snapshot of how the market is interpreting the law's requirements in practice, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • PTAB Memo Recenters Discretion On US Manufacturing

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    Read alongside recent Federal Circuit decisions, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires' memo on patent denial considerations emphasizes domestic manufacturing in a way that the International Trade Commission does not require, says Brandon Theiss at Volpe Koenig.

  • Why MDLs Slow Down — And How To Speed Them Up

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    Multidistrict litigation has become central to mass tort practice, but as MDLs grow in size and complexity, so do delays and costs — so tools like the new federal rule governing MDLs, targeted use of special masters and strategically deployed Lone Pine orders are more essential than ever, say attorneys at Ice Miller.

  • What A Court Doc Audit Reveals About Erroneous Filings

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    My audit of 1,522 court documents from last month found that over 95% contained at least one verifiable error, with fewer than 1% showing clear indicators of artificial intelligence use — highlighting above all else that lawyers may want to focus most on strengthening their review processes, says Elliott Ash at ETH Zurich.

  • Regulators' Basel Pitch May Bring Banks Capital Relief

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    The prudential banking agencies' new proposals to implement the so-called Basel III endgame rules — which would modify the approach to risk-based capital, among other notable changes — represent a fundamental directional shift in bank capital requirements aimed at increasing lending capacity, says Chen Xu at Debevoise.

  • How SEC And CFTC Are Attempting To End Their 'Turf War'

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    Through coordinated examinations and a shared aim to end duplicative regulation, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's recent memorandum of understanding could represent a significant shift in the regulatory landscape for market participants subject to the jurisdiction of both agencies, say attorneys at Jenner.

  • FTC Focus: Growing Emphasis On Competition In AI

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    The Federal Trade Commission's leadership has continued to highlight that competitive risks in artificial intelligence markets may arise at multiple levels simultaneously, considering not only who controls the resources necessary to build AI systems, but also how those systems function and yield outputs, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • What's Missing From Latest Gov't Claims Against Harvard

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    The most interesting thing about the Trump administration’s recent civil rights enforcement efforts targeting Harvard University is its decision not to assert violations of the False Claims Act when given the opportunity, despite signals that its enforcement efforts will include use of the federal FCA, say attorneys at Bass Berry.

  • How Cos. Can Prepare For 'Made In America' Ad Scrutiny

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    The Trump administration's executive order to combat fraudulent "Made in America" claims in consumer-facing advertising, along with actions by the Federal Trade Commission, suggest a potential increased focus on consumer protection and pricing-related matters, say attorneys at Skadden.

  • Opinion

    FTC Case Risks Redefining Price Discrimination

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    Federal Trade Commission v. Southern Glazer puts a spotlight on the blurry line between illegal price discrimination and ordinary competition, and could potentially set a precedent that puts nearly any manufacturer at risk of Robinson-Patman Act enforcement, says Jeremy Sandford at Econic Partners.

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