Public Policy

  • February 18, 2026

    Nicotine Pouch Co. Says FDA Unfairly Applies Tobacco Regs

    A nicotine oral pouch maker is suing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in D.C. federal court, saying the agency is arbitrarily requiring it to perform the same health studies for premarket authorization as tobacco products, despite acknowledging that its products have fewer health risks than cigarettes or other tobacco products.

  • February 18, 2026

    States, Unions Urge DC Circ. To Block Haiti TPS Termination

    California-led states and a coalition of unions urged the D.C. Circuit to deny the Trump administration's push to end temporary protected status for Haiti during an ongoing legal challenge, arguing it would harm families, communities and the economy.

  • February 18, 2026

    Anti-Abortion Clinics Lose Free Speech Suit Over Mass. Ads

    A Massachusetts federal judge has tossed a lawsuit over a state-funded ad campaign warning consumers about potentially misleading or inaccurate information provided by a group of anti-abortion pregnancy resource centers, finding that the state hadn't prohibited the clinics from operating — and that the public officials have the same free speech rights as the clinics.

  • February 18, 2026

    Mass. Police Union Head, Lobbyist Get Prison For Kickbacks

    A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced the former head of the Massachusetts State Police union and a Boston lobbyist to two years and 15 months in prison, respectively, after the pair were convicted of orchestrating a kickback scheme.

  • February 18, 2026

    US Could Hit Russian Palladium With Triple-Digit Duties

    Russian palladium entering the U.S. is being sold at less than fair value, which could result in triple-digit antidumping duties on the imports, the U.S. Department of Commerce said Wednesday.

  • February 17, 2026

    Democrats Fight Asylum Turn-Back Policy At Supreme Court

    A group of 26 congressional Democrats urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to find that a currently rescinded policy to physically block asylum-seekers at the southern border violates federal immigration law, arguing Congress never intended such a statutory interpretation.

  • February 17, 2026

    Fulton County Slams 'Unjustified' Election Records Raid

    Fulton County on Tuesday again asked a Georgia federal court to order the federal government to return property that it contends was "improperly seized" by the FBI in a raid of its elections operations center last month, arguing that the federal government omitted "numerous material facts" in seeking a search warrant.

  • February 17, 2026

    Md. Judge Bars ICE From Redetaining Kilmar Ábrego García

    A Maryland federal judge Tuesday barred the Trump administration from again taking Kilmar Ábrego García into U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, saying the administration could not "rewrite the history" of the case in pushing for his redetention.

  • February 17, 2026

    Dismissal Of FTC Merger Rule Shows Nothing 'Broken' To 'Fix'

    Some antitrust practitioners see vindication in last week's Texas federal court decision throwing out the Federal Trade Commission's premerger reporting overhaul, saying it gives credence to arguments that U.S. antitrust enforcers were trying to plug holes in merger review where there were none.

  • February 17, 2026

    6th Circ. Refuses To Pause CDC's Puppy Import Requirements

    The Sixth Circuit has refused to block a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rule requiring dogs to be at least six months old and microchipped before they can be imported, holding that a hunting and fishing alliance likely won't be able to show that the CDC lacked the authority to issue the rule.

  • February 17, 2026

    NC Town Files Latest PFAS Suit Against 3M, DuPont

    A Tar Heel State municipality has accused 3M, DuPont, Chemours and more than a dozen other chemical and firefighting‑foam manufacturers of concealing risks and environmental contamination from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS)‑laden foam used at the town's fire training facility in a lawsuit filed in North Carolina state court. 

  • February 17, 2026

    Goldstein Tax Trial Heads To Closing Args As Defense Rests

    Jurors in SCOTUSblog founder Thomas Goldstein's tax fraud trial will hear closing arguments Wednesday, after the final two witnesses in the monthlong proceeding took the stand, and new emails regarding Goldstein's efforts to conceal poker debts came to light Tuesday.

  • February 17, 2026

    States Hit Discovery Roadblocks In HPE Merger Fight With DOJ

    A California federal judge mostly sided with the Justice Department on Tuesday on the latest discovery disputes in state attorneys general's challenge to a DOJ settlement greenlighting Hewlett Packard Enterprise's $14 billion Juniper acquisition, ruling that HPE doesn’t need to reveal who's bidding for divested assets, and refusing to delay deadlines.

  • February 17, 2026

    Okla. Officials Look To Toss Creek Nation's Hunting Suit

    A special prosecutor for Oklahoma's governor and the state's wildlife conservation director have asked a federal court judge to throw out the Muscogee Creek Nation's hunting rights lawsuit, saying the tribe has gone along with state hunting regulations for more than a century.

  • February 17, 2026

    Waste Co. Republic Sued Over Alleged Seattle River Pollution

    Waste management company Republic Services was hit with a Clean Water Act lawsuit in Washington federal court Friday by an environmental watchdog group for allegedly releasing polluted water from an industrial site near Seattle's Duwamish River.

  • February 17, 2026

    AI's Needs Outpace Broadband Infrastructure, Report Says

    The "artificial intelligence boom" is going to mean slower internet speeds for consumers if Congress doesn't do something to make commercial spectrum less scarce, according to a new report from a conservative-leaning policy group.

  • February 17, 2026

    OCC Floats New Appeals Board To Hear Bank Exam Disputes

    The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is moving to overhaul its internal appeals process for banks, pitching a new review board and other changes that could make challenges to examiner findings more common and more likely to succeed.

  • February 17, 2026

    CFTC Backs Prediction Markets In 9th Circ. Fight With Nevada

    U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chair Michael Selig told state gaming regulators Tuesday that he intends to defend his agency's "exclusive jurisdiction" over prediction markets, starting with a brief to the Ninth Circuit backing Crypto.com in an ongoing brawl with Nevada regulators over its sports wagers.

  • February 17, 2026

    Colo. Utility Advocates Dispute Energy Financing Program

    The Colorado Office of the Utility Consumer Advocate, or UCA, claimed in Colorado state court Friday that a recent decision to approve a tariffed on-bill financing program to help customers purchase energy efficiency upgrades violates state law.

  • February 17, 2026

    FCC Investigating Possible Lifeline Fraud In Calif., Beyond

    Lifeline providers in states that were allowed to opt out of the federal verification process might soon find themselves in the hot seat, as the Federal Communications Commission revealed Tuesday it has launched investigations into certain providers from three states.

  • February 17, 2026

    Wash. Governor Demands Changes To Millionaires' Tax Bill

    A proposal for a nearly 10% tax on income above $1 million that has passed the Washington state Senate is a good start, but it needs significant changes before it gets his signature, Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson said Tuesday.

  • February 17, 2026

    No Need To Reopen Asbestos Suit, Insurance Exchange Says

    An insurance exchange for the trucking industry has told a California federal judge he does not need to reopen its case against a group of reinsurers as the parties battle whether to remove a "side-switching" arbitrator, explaining that a New York state court will likely rule soon on the issue.

  • February 17, 2026

    Judge Trims Moderna's Defenses In COVID Patent Suit

    A federal judge sitting in Delaware on Tuesday ruled that Moderna could not use obviousness to defend itself from patent claims brought by a rival vaccine developer since it already used that as a defense in related Patent Trial and Review Board proceedings, saying that Moderna had offered expert opinions to support a defense that the patents don't sufficiently teach about the claimed invention.

  • February 17, 2026

    Harvard Beats Suit By Prof Denied Tenure After Viral Incident

    Harvard University scored a pretrial win Tuesday in a Massachusetts state court suit brought by a professor who said the school wrongly denied him tenure after several incidents, including emails to a Chinese restaurant over a $4 overcharge that went viral.

  • February 17, 2026

    9th Circ. Clears Way For Nev. Gaming Action Against Kalshi

    The Ninth Circuit on Tuesday denied Kalshi's request to keep its sports event contracts safe from Nevada gaming regulators, clearing the way for the state to bring a civil enforcement action against the online trading platform.

Expert Analysis

  • Sports Gambling Scrutiny Expands Risks For Teams, Leagues

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    The Minnesota attorney general recently sent warning letters to 14 website operators for offering what the state considers illegal online gambling, demonstrating why the sports industry, including teams and leagues, should ask critical questions about organizational compliance, internal controls and potential criminal liability, say attorneys at Stinson.

  • The CFTC's Road Ahead Under Newly Confirmed Chair

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    Michael Selig's Dec. 18 confirmation as U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission chair comes at a critical juncture, as the agency is poised to gain oversight over the crypto industry and increase its jurisdictional mandate covering prediction markets, says Elizabeth Lan Davis at Davis Wright.

  • How Fractional GCs Can Manage Risks Of Engagement

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    As more organizations eliminate their in-house legal departments in favor of outsourcing legal work, fractional general counsel roles offer practitioners an engaging and flexible way to practice at a high level, but they can also present legal, ethical and operational risks that must be proactively managed, say attorneys at Boies Schiller.

  • SEC Rulemaking Radar: A Reset, A Shift And A Preview Of '26

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    With major proposals withdrawn and new priorities emerging, forthcoming U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission proposals in 2026 will look to reshape how digital assets are regulated, recalibrate market structure and simplify how small companies go public, says Christopher Grobbel at Goodwin.

  • Changes In Crypto, Cybersecurity Defined NY Banking In 2025

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    The major takeaways from 2025 in New York banking policy involve updated guidance, regulations and requirements primarily affecting innovation and digital banking, in areas such as cybersecurity, virtual currencies, and buy now, pay later programs, say attorneys at Steptoe.

  • Opinion

    Justices Should Clarify Loper Bright Doctrine Via Patent Case

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    The U.S. Supreme Court should use the Lynk Labs v. Samsung patent case to provide urgently needed guidance on how last year’s Loper Bright decision should be applied to real-world questions of agency authority in the post-Chevron world, says Timothy Hsieh at Oklahoma City University School of Law.

  • How OECD Tax Update Tackles Mobile Workforce Complexity

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    The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s recently updated model tax convention — a recalibration of international tax principles in response to an increasingly mobile workforce — should prompt companies to reevaluate cross-border operations, transfer pricing policies and tax controversy strategies, say attorneys at Eversheds.

  • Reviewing 2025's Most Pertinent Wiretap Developments

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    2025 was a remarkable year in the world of web tracking wiretapping litigation, not only for the increased caseload but also because of numerous developing theories of liability, with disputes expected to continue unabated in 2026, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • 2025 Legal Milestones That Will Shape Psychedelics Sector

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    As 2025 draws to a close, psychedelic drug development stands at an inflection point, experiencing unprecedented momentum through recent sweeping regulatory changes and landmark clinical milestones, amid rapidly evolving regulatory expectations, say Odette Hauke at Odette Alina LLC and Kimberly Chew at Husch Blackwell.

  • M&A Midmarket Shows Resilience Amid 2025 Challenges

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    Midmarket mergers and acquisitions showed a slight decline in volume but climbed in value for much of 2025, particularly in the private equity space, indicating that the middle market M&A environment is cautious but steady heading into 2026, say attorneys at Stoel Rives.

  • Del. Dispatch: Key 2025 Corporate Cases And Trends To Know

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    The Delaware corporate legal landscape saw notable changes in 2025, spurred by amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law, ubiquitous artificial intelligence fervor, boardroom discussion around DExit, record shareholder activism activity and an arguably more expansive view of potential Caremark liability, say attorneys at Fried Frank.

  • Series

    Nature Photography Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Nature photography reminds me to focus on what is in front of me and to slow down to achieve success, and, in embracing the value of viewing situations through different lenses, offers skills transferable to the practice of law, says Brian Willett at Saul Ewing.

  • 2025 Brought A New Paradigm For Federal Banking Regulation

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    A series of thematic shifts defined banking regulation in 2025, including a fundamental reform of prudential supervision, a strategic easing of capital constraints, steps to streamline merger reviews, and a new framework for fair access and entrants seeking to offer banking services, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • What 2025 Transpo And Logistics Legal Trends Mean For 2026

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    2025 was challenging for the transportation and logistics sector, with emergent trends including dramatic federal policy shifts, developments in tort risk, and a host of mergers and acquisitions — but a review of these themes offers a useful playbook for where the industry is headed in 2026, says Jonathan Todd at Benesch.

  • How Cos. Can Roll With NY's New Algorithmic Pricing Rules

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    Despite uncertainty from New York’s new ban on artificial intelligence and computer algorithms for setting rents, and efforts to further restrict individualizing prices based on consumers' personal data, property managers, software providers and merchants can take several steps to stay compliant, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.

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