Public Policy

  • June 05, 2025

    Calif. Assembly OKs Exemption For Returned Tribal Land

    California land that is transferred to a federally recognized Native American tribe would be exempt from state real estate transfer tax under a bill passed in the state Assembly. 

  • June 05, 2025

    Justices Nix Mexico's Cartel Violence Suit In Win For Gun Cos.

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday threw out a suit by the government of Mexico against Smith & Wesson and other major gun companies, finding in a unanimous opinion that the alleged ties between the firearms makers and cartel violence south of the border are too speculative to stand up in court.

  • June 05, 2025

    Justices Fault Wis. For Denying Tax Break To Charities

    Wisconsin discriminated against a group of Catholic charities when it denied them an unemployment tax exemption, the U.S. Supreme Court said Thursday, rejecting the state's argument that the charities were not operated primarily for religious purposes.

  • June 05, 2025

    Justices Nix Higher Hurdle For Heterosexual Bias Claims

    A unanimous U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday vacated the Sixth Circuit's ruling that plaintiffs claiming anti-heterosexual workplace discrimination need to provide extra "background circumstances" evidence, opining that it improperly imposed special standards on majority-group plaintiffs.

  • June 04, 2025

    Trump Issues Travel Ban On 12 Countries, Limits 7 Others

    President Donald Trump on Wednesday issued a proclamation banning travelers from a dozen countries, including several he targeted during his first administration, and placed travel limitations on travelers from seven other countries, citing national security concerns.

  • June 04, 2025

    Trump Takes New Tack To Ban Harvard's Foreign Students

    President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he will restrict Harvard University's international students from entering the country based on supposed national security concerns, less than a week after a Massachusetts federal judge indicated she will block the administration from banning the university's foreign students.

  • June 04, 2025

    Texas Unauthorized Student Tuition Law Axed Hours After Suit

    A Texas federal judge on Wednesday scrapped a decades-old Texas law that allowed college students without legal residency to pay in-state tuition, hours after the Trump administration filed suit to challenge the law as unconstitutional and after the state agreed the law conflicted with federal immigration law.

  • June 04, 2025

    Dems Say Robocalls Can't Be Stopped With Less Money, Staff

    Combating the scourge of robocalls is normally a more bipartisan issue, but at a House subcommittee hearing Wednesday, Democrats used the opportunity to take aim at the Trump administration for cutting funding and jobs from agencies tasked with fixing the problem.

  • June 04, 2025

    Ex-CFTC Chair Warns Crypto Bill's Loopholes Still Too Wide

    Former leaders of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Wednesday told U.S. House lawmakers mulling a bill to regulate cryptocurrency markets that the legislation needs to close potential regulatory loopholes and that Congress must expand the agency's resources if they expect it to police the bulk of the digital asset space.

  • June 04, 2025

    1st Circ. Upholds Block On Trump's Education Dept. Job Cuts

    The First Circuit on Wednesday rejected a bid by President Donald Trump to greenlight massive job cuts at the U.S. Department of Education, finding that the administration had not provided enough evidence to overturn a block put in place by a Massachusetts federal judge.

  • June 04, 2025

    Yogis' Legal Warrior Pose Gets Beach Ban Lifted At 9th Circ.

    The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday ordered a lower court to grant a preliminary injunction to yoga instructors who challenged San Diego's prohibition on free yoga classes at shoreline parks, finding the activity to be speech protected by the First Amendment since it imparts a skill derived from special knowledge.

  • June 04, 2025

    GAO Tells Congress DOD Must Take Fraud Risk Seriously

    The Government Accountability Office's director of forensic audits and investigative services testified Wednesday that words and actions by U.S. Department of Defense leadership have called into question the DOD's commitment to combating fraud.

  • June 04, 2025

    DC Judge Won't Halt Education Data Collection Rollback

    A D.C. federal judge refused to halt the Department of Education's cancellation of $900 million in data maintenance and collection contracts, saying it's not the court's place to "breathe life back into" large swaths of canceled programs and monitor day-to-day statutory compliance.

  • June 04, 2025

    Feds Say 'No Viable Path' Forward For Calif. High-Speed Rail

    The U.S. Department of Transportation said Wednesday that the California high-speed rail's overblown budget and ongoing mismanagement indicate that there's "no viable path" to completing the project on schedule, so the federal government is preparing to pull nearly $4 billion in funding.

  • June 04, 2025

    What To Know About Trump's Shake-Up At Copyright Office

    The firing of Shira Perlmutter by President Donald Trump as the head of the U.S. Copyright Office has introduced uncertainty into the agency's operations, including whether a previously unannounced report on artificial intelligence will ever be released, and set up a fight regarding the president's power to remove and replace whoever he wants without congressional input.

  • June 04, 2025

    Scalia Invoked Against Trump's Citizenship Stance At 9th Circ.

    A panel of Ninth Circuit judges scrutinized the Trump administration's take on the citizenship clause as the government argued Wednesday to preserve the president's push to curb birthright citizenship, with one judge suggesting the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia would've rejected the attempt to read "beyond the mere words" of the 14th Amendment.

  • June 04, 2025

    Bowman Confirmed As Trump's Top Banking Regulator At Fed

    Senators on Wednesday confirmed Federal Reserve Gov. Michelle Bowman to become the central bank's next vice chair for supervision, elevating the former Kansas community banker to a powerful perch overseeing many of the biggest Wall Street financial institutions.

  • June 04, 2025

    NC Governor Launches Council To Advise On Cannabis Policy

    North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein on Wednesday announced the creation of a state advisory council on cannabis to develop a comprehensive policy with respect to the regulation of hemp and marijuana.

  • June 04, 2025

    Judge Ponders If Netflix's Tax Theory Is 'Too Philosophical'

    A Colorado appellate judge on Wednesday wondered if Netflix's argument for why its subscriptions are not subject to state sales tax is "too philosophical" and doesn't reflect its actual transactions with customers, at a hearing in the state's appeal.

  • June 04, 2025

    3 Ways DOL Benefits Chief Nominee May Affect ERISA Cases

    A key committee will decide Thursday whether to send President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the U.S. Department of Labor’s employee benefits arm ahead for a full Senate vote, setting the stage for what attorneys expect will be an employer-friendly shift in policies. Here are three ways Daniel Aronowitz could change benefits litigation if confirmed.

  • June 04, 2025

    Judge Halts Fla. Law Over Medicaid Ballot Initiative Concerns

    A Florida federal judge on Wednesday blocked state officials from enforcing part of a new law that opponents say threatens to criminalize those collecting signatures for a 2026 ballot initiative to expand Medicaid access.

  • June 04, 2025

    FTC Fights Attys Who Want State Bar Input On Ethics Worries

    The Federal Trade Commission doesn't want staff attorneys to be able to seek state bar association guidance if they dispute the legality of an instruction, arguing in a fight with the FTC's union that seeking such guidance would gum up the gears of commission work.

  • June 04, 2025

    SEC Seeks Input On Tightening Perks For Foreign Issuers

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission agreed Wednesday to seek public input on whether foreign companies should continue to be granted accommodations to list in the U.S., noting that global markets have changed significantly since such rules were adopted.

  • June 04, 2025

    FCC Says C-Band Payment Clearinghouse Can Wind Down

    The C-Band Relocation Payment Clearinghouse has received the go-ahead from the Federal Communications Commission to wind down its operations by the end of the month, after the agency agreed it had done what it was intended to do.

  • June 04, 2025

    Justices Won't Intervene To Let Jan. 6 Cops Stay Incognito

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to grant an emergency stay that would have allowed current and former Seattle police officers who attended the Jan. 6, 2021, "Stop the Steal" insurrection to shield their identities from the public.

Expert Analysis

  • Tariff Strategies For The US Renewable Energy Sector

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    The Trump administration's tariff actions over the last few months are challenging for the renewable energy industry — but there are strategies for contending with the uncertainty, including diversifying supply chains, seeking certification about equipment origins, and adding tariff-related language to supply contracts and offtake agreements, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Series

    Playing Poker Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Poker is a master class in psychology, risk management and strategic thinking, and I’m a better attorney because it has taught me to read my opponents, adapt when I’m dealt the unexpected and stay patient until I'm ready to reveal my hand, says Casey Kingsley at McCreadyLaw.

  • Opinion

    Why It's Time To Retire The Efficient Market Hypothesis

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    As agentic artificial intelligence systems increasingly affect financial markets, the efficient market hypothesis no longer offers a viable foundation for legal and regulatory engagement, and a new theoretical foundation is needed, say Zachary Brenner, a student at California Western School of Law, and attorney Gary Brenner.

  • Avoiding The Risk Of Continued AI-Washing Enforcement

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    A recent action brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Department of Justice, alleging a software developer defrauded investors by lying about his app’s artificial intelligence capabilities, suggests this administration will continue to target AI washing, so companies should adopt practices to mitigate enforcement risk, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • 4 Ways Slater Is Priming DOJ For Continued Antitrust Success

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    Just as Jonathan Kanter did during his recent tenure leading the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division, Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater is following the effective blueprint set by Thurman Arnold when he modernized the division more than 80 years ago, says Perry Apelbaum at Kressin Powers.

  • 3 Tax Issues Manufacturers Should Watch In 2025 Budget Bill

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    As Congress works toward a budget reconciliation bill, manufacturing companies should keep a keen eye on proposals to change bonus depreciation, the qualified business income deduction and energy tax credits, which could have a significant impact on capital-intensive industries, say attorneys at Frost Brown Todd.

  • Key Aspects Of FDIC's Resolution Planning FAQ

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    The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s recent FAQ on changes to its resolution plan rule ease burdensome requirements for some large institutions and exempt others from discussion of franchise components, making it easier for banks to finalize submissions before the July 1 deadline, say attorneys at Moore & Van Allen.

  • Why Texas Should Slow Down On Healthcare Merger Bills

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    More time is needed to study three Texas bills aimed at considering the effects of healthcare consolidation to increase affordability and access to healthcare, which could have the opposite effect, say John Saran and Harshita Rathore at Holland & Knight and Robbie Allen at U.S. Heart and Vascular.

  • As Tariffs Hit The Radar, PE Counsel Should Review Strategies

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    As tariffs compound existing challenges in the private equity sector, counsel should consider existing headwinds such as interest rates and industry-specific impacts like supply chains and pricing power, which may help mitigate risks and capture opportunity, says Nathan Viehl at Thompson Coburn.

  • Trump Rule Would Upend Endangered Species Status Quo

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    The Trump administration's recent proposal to rescind the regulatory definition of "harm" in the Endangered Species Act would be a tectonic shift away from years of established regulatory practice, with major implications for both species protection and larger-scale conservation efforts, says David Smith at Manatt.

  • DOJ Memo Raises Bar For Imposition Of Corporate Monitors

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    A recently released U.S. Department of Justice memo, outlining guidance on the imposition of compliance monitors in corporate criminal cases, reflects DOJ leadership’s concerns about scope creep and business costs, but the strategies for companies to avoid a monitorship haven't changed much compared to the Biden era, says James Koukios at MoFo.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Becoming A Firmwide MVP

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    Though lawyers don't have a neat metric like baseball players for measuring the value they contribute to their organizations, the sooner new attorneys learn skills frequently skipped in law school — like networking, marketing, client development and case evaluation — the more valuable, and less replaceable, they will be, says Alex Barnett at DiCello Levitt.

  • How NY's FAIR Act Mirrors CFPB State Recommendations

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    New York's proposed FAIR Business Practices Act, which targets predatory lending and junk fees, reflects the Rohit Chopra-era Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recommendations to states in a number of ways, including by defining "abusive" conduct and adding a new right to file class actions, says Christian Hancock at Bradley Arant.

  • Expect Eyes On Electronic Devices At US Entry Points

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    Electronic device searches are becoming common at U.S. border inspections, making it imperative for companies to familiarize themselves with what's allowed, and mandate specific precautions for employees to protect their privacy and sensitive information during international travel, say attorneys at Seyfarth.

  • Big Tech M&A Risk Under Trump May Resemble Biden Era

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    Merger review under the Trump administration may not differ substantially from merger review under the Biden administration, particularly in the Big Tech arena, in which case dealmakers and investors should shift the antitrust discount on M&A deals upward, says Jonathan Barnett at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law.

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