Public Policy

  • March 12, 2026

    4th Circ. Backs $42M Abu Ghraib Verdict, Likens CACI To Pirates

    A $42 million judgment against defense contractor CACI Premier Technology Inc. for conspiring with the U.S. military to torture Abu Ghraib prison detainees was upheld by a split Fourth Circuit panel Thursday, with the majority holding that the military prison was effectively within U.S. territorial jurisdiction during the war in Iraq.

  • March 12, 2026

    Mass. Co. Fights Debarment Over Prevailing Wages Dispute

    A Massachusetts water tank inspection company should not have to face a one-year debarment for prevailing wage violations, the company told a state court, arguing that it already paid the citations and being prevented from entering into contracts would be "fatal" to its business.

  • March 12, 2026

    CFTC Takes 1st Steps Toward Prediction Market Regulations

    The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission opened the door Thursday to promised prediction market regulation, calling for public feedback on what such rules might look like while laying out the staff's view on the current rules that the platforms should follow in order to offer betting on sports and other events.

  • March 12, 2026

    Feds Sue To Stop California's 'Illegal' EV Regulations

    The Trump administration sued California on Thursday, alleging the Golden State over a decade ago adopted "illegal" requirements for automakers to sell more low- or zero-emission cars and trucks, saying the mandates trample on the federal government's authority to regulate vehicle fuel economy.

  • March 11, 2026

    4th Circ. Expands Online Data Privacy For Child Sex Material

    The Fourth Circuit has ruled that law enforcement officers are barred under the Fourth Amendment from opening and viewing private files stored on an online cloud database without a warrant, applying existing case law from physical files to electronically stored documents.

  • March 11, 2026

    Judge Eyes Halkbank's No-Fine Deal To Nix Sanctions Case

    A Manhattan federal judge Wednesday let prosecutors and Turkey's Halkbank move forward with a no-fine deal that will likely resolve criminal charges alleging the state-backed lender conspired to launder billions of dollars in sanctioned Iranian oil proceeds.

  • March 11, 2026

    FDIC Plans No Pass-Through Stablecoin Insurance, Hill Says

    Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Travis Hill said Wednesday that his agency will propose expressly excluding payment stablecoins from pass-through insurance coverage, outlining the move as part of a wide-ranging update on his to-do list of regulatory initiatives.

  • March 11, 2026

    Md. Gov't Agencies Oppose Talkie's FCC Preemption Bid

    A Maryland-based internet service provider was not up front with the Federal Communications Commission about the details surrounding a permitting dispute when it came to the agency to ask it to preempt local regulations and allow it to move forward with a new utility pole and attachments without them, an Old Line State county says.

  • March 11, 2026

    Interior Dept. Sued Over Alaska Federal Land Revocation

    The U.S. Department of the Interior was hit with a lawsuit from environmental organizations accusing it of failing to consult stakeholders and meaningfully justify its decision to revoke federal protections from 2 million acres of land in northern Alaska where mining and development have been prohibited since the 1970s.

  • March 11, 2026

    Conn. Murder Exoneree Sues City After Retrial, Acquittal

    A Connecticut man has filed a lawsuit against the city of Hartford and a forensic expert he claims withheld evidence in a murder investigation that led to him being tried twice before the state Supreme Court overturned his conviction and a third jury acquitted him of all charges.

  • March 11, 2026

    Verizon Told It Can't Reopen Pa. Utility Pole Dispute At FCC

    Verizon will not be allowed to reopen an old beef with FirstEnergy Pennsylvania Electric Co. over pole attachment rates at the Federal Communications Commission, which just denied the telecom behemoth's request to return to the matter.

  • March 11, 2026

    Dem Lawmakers Dispute Economics Of Arctic Oil Leasing

    Democratic lawmakers in the U.S. Senate and House have condemned the Trump administration's plans to auction off lands within the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas companies, saying there is no economic interest to be gained from drilling.

  • March 11, 2026

    9th Circ. Reviews Stay Policy Amid Trump Appointees' Attack

    The Ninth Circuit's chief judge said the court is reviewing how to manage its "enormous immigration docket" after several judges appointed by President Donald Trump "unilaterally disrupted" the court's policymaking with a ruling questioning the legality of the court's practice to automatically stay deportations pending a review of the merits.

  • March 11, 2026

    Wisconsin Bell, Feds Settle 17-Year-Old FCA Suit For $55M

    Wisconsin Bell will pay $55 million to end long-running False Claims Act whistleblower claims accusing the company of overcharging public schools and libraries for internet services paid for by the government under the federal E-rate program, bringing almost 18 years of litigation to an end.

  • March 11, 2026

    2nd Circ. Spurns DOT Bid To Re-Freeze Hudson Tunnel Funds

    The Second Circuit on Wednesday rejected the Trump administration's bid to again freeze federal payments to New York and New Jersey for the ongoing $16 billion rehabilitation of aging commuter train tunnels under the Hudson River.

  • March 11, 2026

    New Wyoming Abortion Law Faces Familiar Legal Challenge

    Just a day after it was signed into law, Wyoming's new anti-abortion law triggered a legal challenge from the same health clinic that successfully sued over the state's previous abortion limits.

  • March 11, 2026

    La. Fights Dismissal Bid In Abortion Regulation Dispute

    The state of Louisiana urged a federal court to deny motions by GenBioPro Inc. and Danco Laboratories seeking dismissal of its suit challenging federal regulation on mail-order abortion drugs, arguing it has established harms stemming from the regulations.

  • March 11, 2026

    Dems Float Bill To Ban Death-Tied Event Contracts

    Two Democrats from California are proposing to outlaw event contracts that reference or relate to terrorism, war or an individual's death amid the rise of certain prediction markets involving political shake-ups.

  • March 11, 2026

    Wash. Says ICE Contractor Cannot Defend Barring Inspection

    The Washington State Department of Health said a contractor's attempts to escape an evidentiary hearing demonstrated that the company could not defend its jurisdictional claims in a lawsuit accusing it of illegally restricting access to an immigration facility.

  • March 11, 2026

    Ariz. Tribes' Water Rights Act Faces Funding Hurdles, DOI Says

    A U.S. Department of the Interior official told federal lawmakers Wednesday there is a significant funding shortfall for Native water rights agreements, including a $5 billion settlement that will make safe drinking water available to tens of thousands of tribal members in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.

  • March 11, 2026

    Squires Adds Domestic Industry, Biz Size To Denial Analysis

    U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires will take into account the domestic impact of invalidating a patent and how big the patent owner is when deciding whether to discretionarily deny Patent Trial and Appeal Board petitions, according to a memorandum issued Wednesday.

  • March 11, 2026

    Feds Ask Justices To Let Haiti TPS Termination Move Forward

    The Trump administration urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to again block courts from postponing its revocation of foreign nationals' temporary protected status, this time for 350,000 Haitians, saying its prior Venezuelan TPS decisions aren't holding sway.

  • March 11, 2026

    Microsoft Backs Anthropic In DOD Security Risk Label Row

    Microsoft has thrown its support behind Anthropic's bid to block the Trump administration from enforcing an order designating the artificial intelligence company a supply chain risk to national security, saying an injunction would avoid disrupting the military's use of advanced AI.

  • March 11, 2026

    Calif. Wants Truck Cos., Feds' Clean Truck Pact Claims Nixed

    California officials again asked a federal judge to gut key claims from heavy-duty truck manufacturers and the federal government challenging the 2023 deal in which the manufacturers agreed to stringent state emissions standards and stiff penalties for noncompliance in the coming years.

  • March 11, 2026

    ITC Finds Mexican Strawberry Imports Harming US Industry

    There is a reasonable indication that fresh winter strawberries imported into the U.S. from Mexico and being sold at allegedly unfair prices are harming domestic industry, the U.S. International Trade Commission has said in a preliminary finding.

Expert Analysis

  • What's Changed In Army Corps' Reissued Nationwide Permits

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    The final rule recently issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, renewing and revising nationwide permits for projects covered by Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, makes measured adjustments rather than sweeping revisions, addressing key operational and compliance concerns while maintaining the existing framework, say attorneys at Spencer Fane.

  • What Kalshi Cases Reveal About State Authority, Regulation

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    Prediction markets like Kalshi have ignited complex legal battles that get to the heart of how novel financial products intersect with traditional state enforcement authority, and courts are already beginning to divide over whether federal law preempts state enforcement authority restricting these offerings, say attorneys at Holtzman Vogel.

  • Parsing Clarifications On Foreign Entity Rules For Tax Credits

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    Recent U.S. Internal Revenue Service and Treasury Department guidance answers taxpayer questions on several key foreign entity rules under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, but questions remain over transactions with companies that have ties to covered nations such as Iran, say attorneys at Cleary.

  • What US Arms Sales Reforms Mean For Defense Industry

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    A recent executive order with the goal of increasing U.S. arms sales transparency, speed and government-industry collaboration carries both promise and risk for the defense industry as the government seeks to leverage the private sector and use commercial products for defense purposes, say attorneys at Fluet.

  • Prepping For The Future Of No Surprises Act Enforcement

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    This year is expected to be a transition point for the No Surprises Act framework from regulatory delay to operational enforcement, so stakeholders should use this time to stress-test systems, clean up processes and prepare for enforcement, say attorneys at Akerman.

  • A Tale Of 2 Self-Disclosure Policies: How SDNY, DOJ Differ

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    Though the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York’s recently announced corporate enforcement and voluntary self-disclosure policy shares many similarities with that of the U.S. Department of Justice, the two programs differ in meaningful ways, including subject matter scope and timeline to declination, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Aligning Microsoft Tools With NYC Bar AI Recording Guidance

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    The New York City Bar Association’s recently issued formal opinion, providing ethical guidance on artificial intelligence-assisted recording, transcription and summarization, raises immediate questions about data governance and e-discovery for companies that use Microsoft 365 and Copilot, say Staci Kaliner, Martin Tully and John Collins at Redgrave.

  • What Employers Should Know About Calif. PAGA Proposal

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    Recently proposed regulations concerning the Private Attorneys General Act evidence an intent by California's Labor and Workforce Development Agency to play a greater role in the prosecution of PAGA actions, including more oversight over the exhaustion notices and settlement process, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.

  • FTC Focus: Antitrust Spotlight On 'Acqui-Hires,' Noncompetes

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    A recent Federal Trade Commission focus on labor issues, like 'acqui-hire' deals, in which only a company's workforce is acquired, and noncompetes, shows that the agency is scrutinizing these issues on a case-by-case basis, necessitating a meaningful look at these transactions, particularly in the technology and artificial intelligence industries, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • FDA's Biosimilarity Guidance Holds Uncertain Implications

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    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's new draft guidance aimed at simplifying the biosimilarity demonstration process may not be enough to overcome the barriers that have historically constrained biosimilar competition, and could affect biosimilar access in unexpected ways, say analysts at Analysis Group.

  • Unpacking Key Themes From NY's New Healthcare Strategy

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    New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's 2026 State of the State agenda, read together with the state's fiscal year 2027 executive budget, reflect a clear framework to utilize Medicaid as the state's operating platform for healthcare reform, say attorneys at Sheppard.

  • A Single DOJ Corporate Enforcement Policy Raises Questions

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's soon-to-be-released uniform corporate criminal enforcement policy could address the challenges raised by the current decentralized approach, but it will need to answer a number of potential questions amid scant details, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

  • WTO Most‑Favored‑Nation Reform May Hold Promise

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    When the World Trade Organization meets this month, it is expected to debate changing the most-favored-nation rule, a carefully calibrated loosening of which may be justified if it enables deeper liberalization and regulatory cooperation, says Alan Yanovich at Akin.

  • Navigating Exclusion Decisions After SEC's No-Action Change

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    Following the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's November changes to the Rule 14a-8 no-action letter process, shareholder proponents have turned to litigation if companies excluded their proposals under the new framework, with three recent cases offering useful lessons for companies navigating exclusion decisions this proxy season, say attorneys at Cleary.

  • 5 Different AI Systems Raise Distinct Privilege Issues

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    A New York federal court’s recent U.S. v. Heppner decision, holding that a defendant’s use of Claude was not privileged, only addressed one narrow artificial intelligence system, but lawyers must recognize that the spectrum of AI tools raises different confidentiality and privilege questions, says Heidi Nadel at HP.

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