Public Policy

  • May 05, 2026

    Exelon Shareholders Fight Objectors' Fee Bid On Bribery Deal

    Exelon shareholders seeking an Illinois federal judge's approval on a derivative settlement addressing subsidiary Commonwealth Edison's legislative bribery scheme argued Tuesday that shareholders who've opposed the deal should not receive attorney fees because their three-year fight against approval has not substantially benefited the litigation.

  • May 05, 2026

    Meta Should Have Warning Label, NM Witness Says

    New Mexico unveiled further details of safeguards it says a court should impose on Meta in a $3.7 billion bench trial, calling an expert witness Tuesday who said displaying a warning pop-up to minors is an idea that's backed by the former surgeon general and desperately needed.

  • May 05, 2026

    Feds Urge DC Circ. To Undo Iraqi, Afghan Visa Class Cert.

    The Trump administration has asked the D.C. Circuit to undo class certification for thousands of Afghan and Iraqi citizens seeking special immigrant visas after aiding U.S. forces overseas, as well as a revised plan to tackle a backlog of their delayed applications.

  • May 05, 2026

    Worker Fights 2nd Circ.'s Toss Of Teamsters Fund ERISA Suit

    The U.S. Supreme Court should revive claims that the New York State Teamsters Conference Pension and Retirement Fund was mismanaged, a Teamsters-represented worker argued, asking the justices to breathe new life into his twice-dismissed Employee Retirement Income Security Act lawsuit.

  • May 05, 2026

    Judge Blocks Arizona From Policing Prediction Markets

    A Phoenix federal judge on Tuesday barred Arizona officials from enforcing state gambling laws against federally regulated prediction market platforms in an order finding that the federal government is likely to succeed on claims that the event contracts at issue are swaps beyond the reach of state regulators.

  • May 05, 2026

    Wash. Panel Revives GLP-1 Health Plan Coverage Fight

    A Washington state appeals court revived a proposed class action by state employees alleging their benefit plan discriminatorily barred health coverage for GLP-1 medications treating obesity, finding a lower court should have allowed the case to proceed to discovery.

  • May 05, 2026

    Demand Boom May Deepen FERC's Power-Market Scrutiny

    Recent Federal Energy Regulatory Commission enforcement orders highlight the agency's focus on whether electricity market participants are delivering the power and services they've promised, and attorneys say data center-fueled increases in U.S. power demand may further intensify FERC's scrutiny.

  • May 05, 2026

    Bittrex Seeks To Undo $24M Judgment After SEC Crypto Pivot

    Bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex urged a Seattle federal judge to toss a $24 million judgment entered as part of a 2023 settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, arguing that the agency has since done an "about-face" on crypto and abandoned its position that digital tokens are securities.

  • May 05, 2026

    Connecticut Mother Says State Owes $5M For Death Of Infant

    The state of Connecticut is liable for the wrongful death of a 7-month-old boy thrown by his father from a Middletown bridge into the Connecticut River, the infant's estate and mother argued at a bench trial on Tuesday in Waterbury Superior Court after seeking at least $5 million in damages last year.

  • May 05, 2026

    Mylan Strikes $4.5M Deal With Maryland Over EpiPen Pricing

    Mylan Pharmaceuticals will pay $4.5 million to resolve allegations by the state of Maryland that Mylan acted anticompetitively when it ratcheted up costs of its portable auto-injectable EpiPen device that's used during life-threatening allergic reaction episodes, according to a recent announcement.

  • May 05, 2026

    Ocean Carrier Says FMC's In-House Court, $45M Award Illegal

    An ocean carrier asked a Texas federal judge Tuesday to freeze Federal Maritime Commission cases against it and vacate a $45 million initial decision issued in one of them, arguing that the agency's in-house adjudication process is unconstitutional.

  • May 05, 2026

    9th Circ. Renews Biz Nuisance Claim Over Seattle BLM Protest

    A Ninth Circuit panel partly revived a Korean restaurant and apartment complex owner's lawsuit accusing Seattle of abandoning several city blocks during the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, ruling Tuesday that the businesses can potentially advance nuisance claims by arguing for the suspension of the statute of limitations.

  • May 05, 2026

    FCC Asks DC Circ. To End Nexstar-Tegna Merger Challenges

    The Federal Communications Commission is calling on the D.C. Circuit to dismiss challenges to its approval of the Nexstar-Tegna deal outright, arguing that the appeals court lacks jurisdiction because approval came from its Media Bureau staff rather than the full commission, and thus wasn't a final agency action.

  • May 05, 2026

    Permits Will Lead To Red Snapper 'Overfishing,' Groups Say

    Federal permits exempting recreational anglers in Florida and three other southeastern states from annual red snapper catch limits will lead to "overfishing" in the South Atlantic, commercial fishing groups and businesses alleged in a lawsuit filed on Tuesday in D.C. federal court.

  • May 05, 2026

    1st Circ. Sees Role As Limited In Trans Passport Fight

    A First Circuit panel on Tuesday told attorneys for both the government and a class of transgender and nonbinary people that because the class has asked to vacate a preliminary order blocking a Trump administration policy requiring that passports bear a person's sex assigned at birth, the court no longer has authority to issue an opinion.

  • May 05, 2026

    Judges' Orders Force ICE Plane To Turn Family Around Midflight

    Attorneys for the ex-wife and children of an Egyptian man accused of attacking pro-Israel demonstrators in Boulder, Colorado, said Tuesday the Trump administration tried to deport them in violation of a court order, but turned the removal flight back following fresh court intervention.

  • May 05, 2026

    Ligado Satellite Plans Spur New Challenge To FCC Order

    A coalition opposed to the Federal Communications Commission approval six years ago of Ligado's plans for a terrestrial network is calling on the White House and Congress to block the network company's new plan to launch a 96-satellite constellation.

  • May 05, 2026

    Democrat Calls Squires' Board Of Peace Answers 'Incoherent'

    The ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday had more probing questions for U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires about his decision to file trademark applications for U.S. President Donald Trump's "Board of Peace," telling Squires that his answers under oath at a March oversight hearing were "incoherent."

  • May 05, 2026

    Ex-Miami Official Accused Of Misusing Funds Settles Suit

    Two former Miami city employees have settled their whistleblower suit accusing former City Commissioner Joe Carollo of ousting them for exposing misuse of public funds meant to manage parks that were instead used to pay for his political ventures and personal expenses, according to a notice filed in Florida federal court on Tuesday.

  • May 05, 2026

    Utah Judge Won't Block Kratom-Kava Product Sales Ban

    A Utah federal judge on Tuesday refused to block a new state law banning sales of psychoactive products derived from the kratom leaf the day before the law takes effect, finding that the new restrictions aren't barred by federal law.

  • May 05, 2026

    2nd Circ. Says NY Escrow Interest Law Is Preempted, Again

    The Second Circuit ruled Tuesday that national banks are exempt from a New York law that requires interest to be paid on mortgage escrow accounts, handing a key victory to Bank of America NA in closely watched litigation testing the limits of states' banking regulatory authority.

  • May 05, 2026

    Unions Say High Court Backs Standing In AI Surveillance Suit

    Three labor unions cited a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling in their lawsuit alleging a government surveillance program scours online activity for viewpoints the Trump administration dislikes and leverages the threat of immigration enforcement to suppress speech, arguing that the high court's decision supports their standing in the case.

  • May 05, 2026

    Whistleblower Says SEC Rule Shift Cost Him Bounty

    A D.C. Circuit panel appeared split on its interpretation of the statute governing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's whistleblower rewards in a case involving an anonymous tipster claiming he was due compensation even though he failed to take the information directly to the agency.

  • May 05, 2026

    4th Circ. Says USPTO Doesn't Have To Cough Up PTAB Docs

    The Fourth Circuit on Tuesday said it won't force the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to hand over certain information requested by a nonprofit volunteer about drafts of a decision in a Patent Trial and Appeal Board hearing involving a cybersecurity patent.

  • May 05, 2026

    BlackRock, State Street Push To Trim Red State AGs' Suit

    BlackRock and State Street have further urged a Texas federal judge to trim down antitrust claims from Republican state attorneys general accusing the asset managers of driving up coal prices, arguing that the chain from their investment activity to retail electricity prices "stretches through multiple intervening markets and countless nonparties."

Expert Analysis

  • How Oregon Ruling Affects Federal Gender Care Crackdown

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    In a favorable development for healthcare providers, an Oregon federal court recently vacated certain U.S. Department of Health and Human Services restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors, but the government's broader campaign against this care, including proposed rulemaking and agency investigations, leaves significant uncertainty, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • AI Data Center Boom May Spur Wave Of Toxic Tort Suits

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    Nascent litigation matters against data center operators, set against limited government regulation and a growing body of public health research, suggests we may be on the cusp of an era of mass toxic tort claims, with a liability framework firmly rooted in precedent from other industries, says Benjamin Heller at RFZ Law.

  • A Core Weakness In The Challenge To Birthright Citizenship

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    The government’s recent oral arguments against birthright citizenship in Trump v. Barbara would have the Supreme Court use modern immigration classifications as markers for a constitutional boundary that is not expressed in the Fourteenth Amendment, making the theory easier to administer but weaker as a matter of text and history, says attorney Tara Kennedy.

  • Bet On Prediction Market Regulation To Accelerate

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    Watershed developments concerning prediction markets — such as the first insider trading charges, major speeches from U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission leadership, and the introduction of rulemaking and legislation — dominated the first quarter of 2026, a trend that will likely continue throughout the rest of the year, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • Opinion

    Financial Meltdown Fears Don't Warrant Private Credit Regs

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    Recent withdrawals from business development companies have resurfaced theories that private credit growth poses a crisis-level risk to the financial system, but arguments that more regulation is needed should be viewed with beady and careful eyes, says James Deeken at Akin.

  • New Risks Emerge As States Push Proxy Voting Legislation

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    Recent state proxy voting laws have increasingly emphasized financial returns while intensifying scrutiny of proxy advisory firms and stewardship practices, creating new compliance challenges and risks, according to attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Suit's Dismissal Would Not Settle Gold Card Visa's Legality

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    The government’s recent assertion that the plaintiffs in American Association of University Professors v. Department of Homeland Security lack standing to challenge the Trump administration’s pay-to-play immigration program does not address whether an agency can deem a million-dollar gift evidence of eligibility for immigration benefits carefully defined by Congress, says Jun Li at Reid & Wise.

  • Enviro Ruling And A New Law Signal Shift In La. Legacy Cases

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    Together, a Louisiana state court decision in WMH Farms v. Apache Corp. and an incoming statutory regime signal a sea change for legacy litigation in Louisiana, as courts make it harder to establish proof of contamination, and lawmakers narrow available remedies once contamination is proven, says Philip Wood at Jones Walker.

  • DOJ's Stance On Antitrust And Patent Law Reflects Balance

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    Recent statements of interest in patent litigation and a speech from a key U.S. Department of Justice official communicate the view that strong patent rights and competition policy are complementary, and offer important guidance for intellectual property practitioners and businesses navigating patent enforcement, standard‑setting and licensing, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Ruling Shows How Texas Law Altered Derivative Suit Outlook

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    In the first test of S.B. 29's new ownership threshold requirement for shareholder actions, a Texas federal court recently dismissed Gusinsky v. Reynolds, a derivative action brought by a minority Southwest Airlines shareholder, offering key guidance for navigating the new Texas corporate litigation landscape, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • 2 AI Snafus Show Why Attys Can't Outsource Judgment

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    The recent incident involving Sullivan & Cromwell where citations in a filed motion were fabricated by artificial intelligence, as well as a punitive ruling from the Sixth Circuit in U.S. v. Farris, demonstrate that the obligation to supervise AI has belonged and always will belong to lawyers, says John Powell at the Kentucky School Boards Association.

  • NY Opioid Antagonist Mandate Leaves Employers Guessing

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    A recently enacted New York law will require employers that are federally mandated to maintain first-aid supplies to now include an opioid antagonist, but being that it is subject to a complicated Occupational Safety and Health Administration analysis, employers face several unanswered compliance questions, say attorneys at Conn Maciel.

  • Opinion

    Congress Must Repair USPTO's Inter Partes Review Process

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    To challenge recent changes to the inter partes review process issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Congress must establish clear statutory guardrails, transparency and meaningful judicial review so that questionable patents receive proper scrutiny, say Sean Tu at the University of Alabama, Arti Rai at Duke University and Aaron Kesselheim at Harvard.

  • Calif. Case Raises Questions For Medical Practice Investors

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    The California attorney general's amicus brief in Art Center v. WCE and the California Medical Association's response highlight how the California appeals court's ruling could significantly affect the structure and enforceability of succession arrangements in medical practice ownership, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Previewing FDA Preapproval Access In Psychedelics EO

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    The second of two pathways for psychedelic drug access outlined in President Donald Trump's recent executive order constitutes an unprecedented expansion of the Right to Try Act, which could fundamentally alter the psychedelic access landscape while presenting significant regulatory, operational and legal challenges, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

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