Public Policy

  • June 10, 2026

    Debt Co. Says Conn. Can't 'Second Guess' Law Firm Work

    An Illinois servicing company for a debt adjustment law firm has filed a new challenge to the Connecticut Department of Banking's attempts to regulate its conduct, asking a state judge to block an enforcement action seeking $100,000 for each alleged violation of state licensing rules.

  • June 10, 2026

    Mass. Town Sues Over Affordable Housing Plan

    A Boston suburb is challenging the state's designation of 45 acres of land on a college campus as surplus to make way for a 180-unit housing development, saying the 2-year-old law allowing the plan is being misapplied.

  • June 10, 2026

    Warren Asks SEC To Delay SpaceX IPO Over 'Troubling' Risks

    U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren called on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to delay SpaceX's anticipated $75 billion initial public offering until steps are taken to protect investors and market integrity, expressing concerns that the company's books contain "troubling gaps," and the IPO poses "unique and precedent-setting" risk.

  • June 10, 2026

    Pa. Country Clubs' Dues Are Tax-Exempt, Panel Affirms

    A Pennsylvania township's business privilege tax cannot apply to the dues, fees and assessments collected by two country clubs because the tax can apply only to for-profit businesses, a panel for the Commonwealth Court ruled Wednesday.

  • June 10, 2026

    Former Sen. Tim Scott Staffer Joins K&L Gates In DC

    A former committee staff director for U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., has been hired at K&L Gates LLP, the firm announced Wednesday, following her time as a senior vice president with a bipartisan government relations and lobbying firm.

  • June 10, 2026

    DOJ Says Student Borrowers' Suit Is Moot After Rule's Vacatur

    The Trump administration is urging a D.C. federal judge to toss a lawsuit seeking to revive the Biden-era SAVE student loan repayment rule, arguing that the case is moot because there is no rule left to enforce after the Eighth Circuit ordered the plan vacated in March.

  • June 10, 2026

    Family Seeks Full Fed. Circ. Review In Utah Tribal Death

    A Utah tribal member's family is asking the full Federal Circuit to reconsider a decision that the federal government isn't liable for his shooting death, arguing that the U.S. can't prevail on arguments that two previous rulings in the dispute were based on inaccurate Fourth Amendment analysis.

  • June 10, 2026

    2nd Circuit Rejects Nadine Menendez's Bail Bid During Appeal

    A Second Circuit panel rejected Nadine Menendez's request for bail pending an appeal of her conviction in a bribery scheme involving her husband, former U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, concluding the legal questions raised were not substantial enough to delay the start of her four-and-a-half-year prison term.

  • June 10, 2026

    5th Circ. Rejects Gov't Bid To Revisit Home Distilling Ban

    The Fifth Circuit denied the U.S. government's request for the full court to review a three-judge panel's April opinion finding the tax code's ban on distilling whiskey at home unconstitutional after another appeals court's opposite conclusion affirmed the ban.

  • June 10, 2026

    Bistate Agency, NJ Comptroller Agree To Settle Subpoena Rift

    The Delaware River Port Authority and the New Jersey Office of the State Comptroller have reached a deal to resolve the bistate agency's suit claiming that the independent watchdog unlawfully attempted to force it to comply with two investigative subpoenas.

  • June 10, 2026

    RI Adopts Rule Taxing Second Homes Valued Above $1M

    Rhode Island will implement a tax on non-owner-occupied residential properties with assessed values of $1 million or more under a regulation issued by the state Division of Taxation.

  • June 10, 2026

    San Diego Vacancy Tax Ballot Measure Heading For Defeat

    A ballot measure in San Diego to tax vacant homes, with an additional cost for empty homes owned by corporations, appeared headed for defeat with most ballots counted.

  • June 10, 2026

    Tenn. Remittance Tax Is Unconstitutional, Fintech Group Says

    A top fintech industry organization sued Wednesday to block an impending new Tennessee tax on outgoing international money transfers, challenging what the trade group contends is an unconstitutional toll on the billions of dollars sent abroad from the state each year.

  • June 10, 2026

    Feds Say NYC Pol's ICE Views 'Irrelevant' To Obstruction Case

    Former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander's efforts to monitor U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for possible violations of migrants' rights at a federal building are "irrelevant" to an obstruction charge against him, prosecutors told a federal judge Wednesday.

  • June 10, 2026

    Colo. Sober Home Co. Says City Can't Escape Zoning Suit

    A Colorado sober living home operator has urged a federal court to reject a city's bid to dismiss its lawsuit, arguing that the city's zoning code unlawfully singles out people in recovery from addiction for land use approval requirements that other residents are not subjected to.

  • June 09, 2026

    $200B Visa, Mastercard Swipe-Fee Deal Gets Initial Approval

    A New York federal judge Tuesday preliminarily signed off on Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc.'s proposed $200 billion settlement with millions of merchants despite dozens of objections from potential class members, saying it was too soon to tell if the complaints are pervasive or "confined to a vocal minority."

  • June 09, 2026

    Challengers Of Trump's 'Slush Fund' Want Proof Plan Is Dead

    Plaintiffs challenging what they call President Donald Trump's proposed $1.8 billion "slush fund" in Virginia and Washington, D.C., federal court on Tuesday expressed doubt that the administration's plan to pay victims of "lawfare and weaponization" is truly "not moving forward" as the acting attorney general has claimed.

  • June 09, 2026

    Arbitrator Rules USPTO Violated Law By Ending Telework

    An arbitrator ruled Monday that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office "committed a clear and patent breach" of agreements with the union representing some of its employees when the office eliminated telework arrangements last year at the urging of President Donald Trump.

  • June 09, 2026

    Novartis, AbbVie Lose Bid To Halt Wash. 340B Pharmacy Law

    A Washington federal judge declined Tuesday to block a state law passed to protect prescription drug access for low-income and uninsured patients, rejecting arguments from AbbVie and Novartis that the new measure illegally adds to pharmaceutical manufacturers' obligations under the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program.

  • June 09, 2026

    DHS Waives Park Laws For Big Bend Border Wall Build

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has waived multiple environmental laws as it builds border barriers and roads through Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park, saying it must quickly deter illegal crossings in areas of high illegal entry on the Texas-Mexico border.

  • June 09, 2026

    Kalshi To Start Requiring Employer Info For Certain Markets

    Prediction market platform Kalshi Inc. announced on Tuesday that it will start requiring users to verify their employer before they can trade on certain markets, and will further implement features allowing users to directly report suspicious trading activity.

  • June 09, 2026

    Key Freight Broker Negligence Win A 'Relief' For Plaintiffs Atty

    The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that freight brokers might also be liable under state law for selecting unsafe motor carriers involved in catastrophic crashes will ultimately improve highway safety by ensuring that the industry's longtime gatekeepers strengthen their vetting protocols, according to a plaintiffs attorney who helped secure the pivotal win.

  • June 09, 2026

    FCC Looks To Spur Submarine Cables With New Security Reg

    The Federal Communications Commission will start presuming that submarine cable applications that meet certain qualifications don't have to be referred to the executive branch for national security reviews, if the agency votes yes later this month on the order it'll have before it.

  • June 09, 2026

    Philly Violated Cornerstone Of Bankruptcy Law, 3rd Circ. Says

    The Third Circuit on Tuesday revived part of a pro se debtor's long-running bankruptcy fight against Philadelphia holding the city must face civil contempt sanctions for collecting on a lien after his debt was discharged, saying it "violated" one of the "historic cornerstones" of bankruptcy, which is a discharge's finality.

  • June 09, 2026

    Calif. Judge Blocks DOJ's Bid For Trans Patients' Medical Info

    A California federal judge ordered Stanford Medicine hospital not to disclose medical information belonging to trans adolescents who received gender-related care in response to a Texas grand jury subpoena, and blocked the U.S. Department of Justice from taking further steps to obtain their patient records.

Expert Analysis

  • How To Gear Up For Trump's Pharma Tariffs

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    President Donald Trump's proclamation establishing tariffs on certain pharmaceutical products holds a few areas of ambiguity that companies should review and prepare for before the tariffs come into effect later this year, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Mapping Bank Exec Clawback Risk Ahead Of Revived Bill

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    The reintroduction of the Failed Bank Executives Clawback Act would allow recovery of executive compensation after bank failures, making it important for executives and counsel to take steps such as mapping compensation, reviewing employment agreements, documenting decisions, and confirming D&O insurance, says Drew Jones at Diamond McCarthy.

  • AG Watch: Texas Charts A Course On Investigative Authority

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    The Texas Supreme Court's recent decision in Texas v. PFLAG affirmed, and arguably expanded, the Texas attorney general's civil investigative demand authority, providing a road map that other courts evaluating state attorney general CIDs may find instructive, amid a lack of precedent, say attorneys at Kelley Drye.

  • 8 Reasons To Consider Maryland As A 'DExit' Option

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    While Nevada and Texas have garnered the most attention as alternative states of incorporation for companies considering leaving Delaware, Maryland offers considerable benefits too, including a predictable statutory framework, robust anti-takeover protections, sophisticated business courts with decades of experience, and more, say attorneys at Miles & Stockbridge.

  • PFAS OUT Cannot Replace Broad Drinking Water Protections

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    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's PFAS OUT initiative may help water systems deal with two specific per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances before federal compliance deadlines arrive, but it is no substitute for broader protections the EPA is withdrawing — and in PFAS litigation, that distinction could be important, says David Meldofsky at Lawsuit Informer.

  • Mapping Philly US Atty's White Collar Enforcement Push

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    Attorneys at Blank Rome discuss the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania David Metcalf’s commitments and priorities, survey early results from his first year, and suggest practical action items for companies operating under the office's jurisdiction.

  • Opinion

    Exxon's Retail Voting Program Is A Trap For Retail Investors

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved Exxon Mobil's first-of-its-kind proxy voting program last September, but ahead of the company's annual shareholder meeting next month, it's clear that retail shareholders have delegated their voice to the entity their vote exists to check, says Christina Sautter at Southern Methodist University.

  • Opinion

    Proposed Pro Codes Act Raises Constitutional Concerns

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    If passed, the Pro Codes Act being considered in the U.S. House of Representatives would fundamentally alter how technical standards are treated under U.S. law, and potentially conflict with the Fifth Amendment's takings clause, says Paul Taylor at George Mason University.

  • What DOL Proposal Signals For 401(k)s, Alternative Assets

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    The U.S. Department of Labor recently published a highly anticipated proposed rule that could establish more defined pathways for 401(k) plan fiduciaries to consider investment options with greater alternative asset exposure, and help fund sponsors and investment managers develop such options, say attorneys at Cleary.

  • Building A Persecution Case After Justices' Asylum Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Urias-Orellana v. Bondi raises the bar for overturning agency findings in federal court, changing how practitioners handling asylum and removal defense cases need to think about building a factual record and formulating arguments on appeal, say attorneys at Lai & Turner and Farzaneh Law.

  • Opinion

    New Legislation May Be Necessary To Fix Flawed Cox Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's opinion in Cox v. Sony erroneously limited the doctrine of contributory copyright infringement and effectively eliminated such liability for internet service providers, and the most viable option to remedy the damage is to codify the pre-Cox common law of contributory copyright infringement, says Michael Cicero at Mavacy.

  • SEC's Enforcement Slowdown May Raise Oversight Questions

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    After six months of enforcement activity, it's clear that fiscal year 2026 will see an unprecedented decline in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement activity relative to past years, but whether the SEC will be viewed as sufficiently policing the securities markets at the end of the fiscal year is more uncertain, say attorneys at Covington.

  • How Food, Beverage Claims May Preview Cosmetic Litigation

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    Class action litigation targeting cosmetics and personal care products is accelerating, with a playbook that comes from the food and beverage industry — and the defenses that succeeded, and failed, in past class actions offer a critical road map for beauty and personal care brands, say attorneys at Crowell.

  • Steps To Consider As DOJ Launches Fraud Division

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    The establishment this month of the National Fraud Enforcement Division within the U.S. Department of Justice is a significant reorganization that suggests an increase in enforcement activity involving federally funded programs but leaves a number of important questions unanswered, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • Court's HRSA Policy Reversal Leaves 340B Rules Murky

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    A D.C. federal court's recent decision in Premier v. U.S. Department of Health limits the Health Resources and Services Administration's ability to enforce long-standing Section 340B interpretations through subregulatory guidance, leaving open core statutory questions about purchasing models, inventory classification and program oversight, says Martha Cramer at Hooper Lundy.

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