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Public Policy
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May 15, 2024
Klobuchar Wants FTC To Make Firms Report Real Estate Buys
It's time for the Federal Trade Commission to require the companies and private equity firms gobbling up residential real estate to report those acquisitions to the agency for antitrust purposes the same way they have to report other big purchases, Sen. Amy Klobuchar said.
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May 15, 2024
Kirkland Guiding Billionaire McCourt On Bid To Buy TikTok
Billionaire Frank McCourt, advised by Kirkland & Ellis, says he's building a consortium to purchase TikTok and redesign the platform to eliminate the collection of users' information, putting "people in control of their [own] digital identities and data."
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May 15, 2024
In Hush Money Case, Jury May Choose To Keep Silent, Too
Though Donald Trump's gag order violations have earned him a threat of jail time, First Amendment experts say jurors in the New York case will likely be free to speak their mind afterward if they want to — a dynamic that in rare instances has led to posttrial controversy.
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May 14, 2024
In Hot Seat, FDIC's Gruenberg Pledges 'Fundamental Change'
Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Martin Gruenberg will tell House lawmakers Wednesday that he is taking "full responsibility" for his agency's workplace misconduct scandal and eyeing "fundamental" structural reforms, striking a humbled but determined tone as he faces the first of two hearings that could be make-or-break for his job.
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May 14, 2024
Effect Of New China Duties Hinges On Allies' Response
The effectiveness of new tariffs, announced Tuesday, on Chinese products including electric vehicles, semiconductors and solar cells to protect domestic industries may be determined more by the international community's response than the trade remedies themselves.
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May 14, 2024
Cohen Says Trump Directed Crimes From The White House
Michael Cohen on Tuesday told a Manhattan jury that he met with Donald Trump at the White House in the early days of the former president's administration to confirm the final component of what prosecutors say was a scheme to bury a sex story in order to swing the 2016 election.
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May 14, 2024
FINRA Official Calls Off-Channel Flags 'Shockingly Common'
A Financial Industry Regulatory Authority official said Tuesday that firms often veer into issues with off-channel business communications thanks to what's on their representatives' business cards and email signatures, and that the biggest red flag of recordkeeping violations are the habits of firms' own leaders and managers.
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May 14, 2024
DOI Urges High Court To Uphold Seminole Gambling Compact
Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to deny a petition by two casino operators seeking to undo a sports gambling compact between the state of Florida and the Seminole Tribe, arguing that such agreements may include provisions that address matters off tribal lands.
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May 14, 2024
Political Giants To Loom Over Sen. Menendez Trial
A bipartisan bunch of political powerhouses may testify or be mentioned in the corruption trial of U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, according to the list a New York federal judge read Tuesday to weed out potential jurors who may have relationships with the public figures.
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May 14, 2024
Dems Dig Into Trump's Alleged Quid Pro Quo With Oil CEOs
Rep. Jamie Raskin on Tuesday sent letters to the executives of ExxonMobil Corp., Chevron and seven other oil and gas companies requesting information about allegations that former President Donald Trump offered to demolish fossil fuel regulations in exchange for $1 billion in campaign donations.
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May 14, 2024
DOJ Says Boeing Violated 737 Max Deferred Prosecution Deal
Boeing breached its deferred prosecution agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice stemming from the deadly 737 Max 8 crashes, but the government hasn't yet decided whether it will criminally prosecute the American aerospace giant for defrauding regulators, the DOJ said in a Texas federal court filing Tuesday.
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May 14, 2024
4th Circ. Says Attempted Child Sex Abuse Warrants Removal
The Fourth Circuit approved the deportation of a man convicted of attempting to sexually abuse a child, ruling Tuesday that the attempted offense qualified as child abuse crime warranting removal.
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May 14, 2024
Calif. Bar To Weigh New Virtual Bar Exam To Cut Costs
The State Bar of California's board of trustees is expected to consider replacing the National Conference of Bar Examiners' exam and new licensing test with its own state bar exam that could be taken remotely in order to cut up to $4.2 million in costs annually, according to a memo posted online in advance of this week's board meeting.
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May 14, 2024
Davis Wright-Led TikTok Creators Challenge Potential Ban
Following TikTok Inc.'s lead, a group of creators on Tuesday lodged their own challenge to a new federal law that would exclude the popular app from the U.S. market unless it cuts ties with its Chinese parent company, telling the D.C. Circuit that the measure undermines the First Amendment.
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May 14, 2024
5 Takeaways From FERC's Grid Planning Policy Overhaul
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's sweeping revision of its regional transmission planning policies will completely transform how U.S. grid projects are planned and paid for, but the agency's muscular approach will invite plenty of compliance and legal challenges. Here are five key takeaways from the rule finalized by FERC on Monday.
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May 14, 2024
9th Circ. Denies Tribes, Enviro Groups' Power Line Stay Bid
The Ninth Circuit has denied an emergency request by two Native American tribes and a couple of conservation groups to stay an Arizona federal judge's order that allows work to continue on a $10 billion power line.
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May 14, 2024
TV Execs Say Draft FCC Foreign Airtime Lease Regs 'Mutated'
Television station executives are asking the Federal Communications Commission not to include political advertisements in a proposed rule that would require disclosure of foreign-sponsored airtime leases, arguing that doing so would be a "distortion" of the industry's previous request for clarification from the commission on previous identification rules.
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May 14, 2024
5th Circ. Expresses Doubt On Nasdaq Board Diversity Rules
Lawyers for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Nasdaq Stock Market LLC faced a barrage of questions from the full Fifth Circuit on Tuesday, with judges wondering whether rules requiring corporations to disclose board diversity information would open the door to investor questions on religious practices, political beliefs or Taylor Swift fandom.
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May 14, 2024
RFK Jr. Fights Uphill To Get Vax Censorship Block At 9th Circ.
A Ninth Circuit panel appeared skeptical Tuesday of granting Robert F. Kennedy Jr. an injunction in his case alleging Google violated his First Amendment rights by removing certain YouTube videos doubting the safety of the COVID-19 vaccines, with two judges saying his arguments lack evidence.
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May 14, 2024
NC State Fights Cancer Patient's Presuit Building Access
North Carolina State University is pressing the state appeals court to find it is insulated from an "unusual" order allowing a former graduate student worker diagnosed with cancer to inspect a campus building that tested high for levels of carcinogens.
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May 14, 2024
Hospitals Liable For Failing To Admit Killer, Pa. Justices Told
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court was reminded Tuesday, during oral arguments over whether someone can be officially treated at a hospital without filling out an application, that the case before them concerned a man who killed his girlfriend after he was turned away despite claiming homicidal and suicidal impulses.
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May 14, 2024
Mich. Biz Attys Back State's Securities Fraud Enforcement Bid
Members of Michigan's state bar association have urged the state's highest court to adopt a U.S. Supreme Court test for determining whether promissory notes are securities, in support of an effort by the state securities regulator to bring an enforcement action against a condominium developer accused of failing to pay back investors.
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May 14, 2024
Ship Had Blackouts Day Before Baltimore Bridge Crash, NTSB Says
A container carrier that slammed into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge and caused its collapse in March experienced two electrical outages during maintenance the day before it even left port, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a preliminary report Tuesday.
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May 14, 2024
Calif. City Sues Dow, Shell Over TCP-Tainted Water
Dow Chemical and Shell USA are facing a negligence suit in California federal court by the city of Pomona, alleging the companies are responsible for manufacturing commercial products containing the toxic 1,2,3-trichloropropane that has migrated into the city's water supply and seeking to recoup costs over response efforts.
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May 14, 2024
RealPage, Landlords Look To Trim Ariz. Price-Fixing Case
Rental algorithm company RealPage and several landlords have urged an Arizona state court to trim fraud claims from the attorney general's case accusing them of using software to illegally raise rents for hundreds of thousands of renters, and they also asked to limit the time frame for enforcers' antitrust claims.
Expert Analysis
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Don't Use The Same Template For Every Client Alert
As the old marketing adage goes, consistency is key, but law firm style guides need consistency that contemplates variety when it comes to client alert formats, allowing attorneys to tailor alerts to best fit the audience and subject matter, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.
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Don't Fall On That Hill: Keys To Testifying Before Congress
Because congressional testimony often comes with political, reputational and financial risks in addition to legal pitfalls, witnesses and their attorneys should take a multifaceted approach to preparation, walking a fine line between legal and business considerations, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.
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Takeaways From FDIC's Spring Supervisory Highlights
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s spring 2024 consumer compliance supervisory report found that relatively few institutions had significant consumer compliance issues last year, but the common thread among those that did were inadequacies or failures in disclosures to consumers, says Matthew Hanaghan at Nutter.
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Online Portal Helps Fortify Feds' Unfair Health Practices Fight
The Federal Trade Commission, U.S. Justice Department and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently launched an online portal where the public can report potentially unfair healthcare practices, effectively maximizing enforcers' abilities to police anti-competitive actions that can drive up healthcare costs and chill innovation, say attorneys at Seyfarth.
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What To Expect From The DOL's Final Overtime Rule
The U.S. Department of Labor's final overtime rule dramatically increases the salary threshold for white collar workers to be exempt from overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act, so employers should prioritize identifying the potentially affected positions and strategically consider next steps, say Leslie Selig Byrd and Deryck Van Alstyne at Bracewell.
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Data Shows H-2B Wages May Be Skewed High By Sample Size
Occupational Wage and Employment Statistics wage data from April illustrates that smaller sample sizes from less populated areas may be skewing prevailing wages for H-2B visas artificially high, potentially harming businesses that rely on the visa program, says Stephen Bronars at Edgeworth Economics.
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10b-5 Litigation Questions Follow Justices' Macquarie Ruling
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Macquarie v. Moab that pure omissions are not actionable under U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 10b–5(b), creating a slightly higher bar for plaintiffs and setting the stage for further litigation over several issues, say Steve Quinlivan and Sean Colligan at Stinson.
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Series
Walking With My Dog Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Thanks to my dog Birdie, I've learned that carving out an activity different from the practice of law — like daily outdoor walks that allow you to interact with new people — can contribute to professional success by boosting creativity and mental acuity, as well as expanding your social network, says Sarah Petrie at the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office.
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Key Issues Raised By Colorado's Brain Data Privacy Bill
Colorado recently became the first state to provide consumer privacy protections for data generated from a person's brain waves, and despite the bill’s ambiguity and open questions introduced, the new law has helped turn the spotlight on neurodata, says Sara Pullen Guercio at Alston & Bird.
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Employer Considerations Before Title IX Rule Goes Into Effect
While the U.S. Department of Education's final rule on Title IX is currently published as an unofficial version, institutions and counsel should take immediate action to ensure they are prepared for the new requirements, including protections for LGBTQ+ and pregnant students and employees, before it takes effect in August, say Jeffrey Weimer and Cori Smith at Reed Smith.
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Expect Tougher Bank Exams 1 Year After Spring 2023 Failures
With federal banking agencies still implementing harsher examinations with swifter escalations a year after the spring 2023 bank failures, banks can gain insight into changing expectations by monitoring how the Federal Reserve Board, Office of the Comptroller of Currency and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. are coordinating and updating their exam policies, say attorneys at Debevoise.
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Could 'General Average' Apply To The Key Bridge Crash?
While the owner and operator of the vessel that struck Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge have sought legal protection under the Limitation of Liability Act, they could choose to invoke the long-standing principle of general average, if supported by the facts of the crash and the terms of their contracts with cargo owners, says Julie Maurer at Husch Blackwell.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Follow The Iron Rule Of Trial Logic
Many diligent and eager attorneys include every good fact, point and rule in their trial narratives — spurred by the gnawing fear they’ll be second-guessed for leaving something out — but this approach ignores a fundamental principle of successful trial lawyering, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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Circuit Split Brews Over Who's A Securities Seller Under Act
A Securities Act section that creates private liability for the sale of an unregistered security is rapidly becoming a favored statute for plaintiffs to wield against participants in both the digital asset and traditional securities markets, but the circuit courts have diverged on who may be held liable for these violations, say Jeffrey L. Steinfeld and Daniel Aronsohn at Winston & Strawn.
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Breaking Down EPA's Rule On PFAS In Drinking Water
Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finalized the first enforceable federal drinking water regulation for PFAS, which, along with reporting and compliance requirements for regulated entities, will have a number of indirect effects, including increased cleanup costs and the possible expansion of existing Superfund sites, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.