Public Policy

  • July 16, 2026

    AG Merger Case Gets New Judge After Paramont Recusal Bid

    A new California federal judge has taken over from the one originally assigned the lawsuit from Democratic state attorneys general challenging Paramount Skydance's $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, putting the case in front of the same judge hearing challenges from consumers and the Writers Guild of America.

  • July 16, 2026

    GOP Sen. Tillis Presses Vought On DOGE's 'Amateur' Record

    Retiring Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., on Thursday ripped into White House budget chief Russell Vought over the Trump administration's now-disbanded Department of Government Efficiency, pressing him repeatedly to substantiate its claims of massive taxpayer savings.

  • July 16, 2026

    Whidbey Has To Notify Lummi Nation Before Digging

    A Washington federal judge has ordered Whidbey Telephone to give a tribe notice before resuming ground-disturbing work on a federally funded broadband project that had disturbed remains of the tribe's ancestors.

  • July 16, 2026

    Immigration Board Clarifies Burden To Argue Bad Counsel

    The Board of Immigration Appeals has clarified the requirements to reopen removal proceedings due to ineffective counsel, saying a copy of a bar complaint and proof of its filing is needed, or an explanation as to why one wasn't filed.

  • July 16, 2026

    Diagnostics Co. Labcorp Settles FCA Claims For $14.5M

    Diagnostics testing company Labcorp will pay $14.5 million to settle False Claims Act allegations that it submitted unnecessary Medicare claims for urine drug tests, the Massachusetts U.S. attorney's office announced.

  • July 16, 2026

    Minn. Court Denies Religious Tax Break For Leased Property

    A Minnesota property owned by a church and leased to a nonprofit organization doesn't qualify for a tax break as a house of worship, the state's tax court said, but a break may be allowed for its use as a public charity.

  • July 16, 2026

    US Probes Whether Ethiopian Solar Cells Skip Chinese Duties

    The U.S. Department of Commerce is investigating whether solar cell products completed in Ethiopia using Chinese inputs are circumventing duties against Chinese versions of the products, the department said Thursday.

  • July 15, 2026

    Ex-Fed Adviser Gets 38 Months For Lying To Investigators

    A former senior adviser to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors was sentenced Wednesday to more than three years in federal prison for lying to investigators about sharing confidential information outside the agency, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.

  • July 15, 2026

    Albertsons Slow To Review Wash. Opioid Sales, Judge Told

    Albertsons conducted few reviews of opioid dispensing by its Washington pharmacies for years after establishing a controlled substances compliance team, according to testimony played on Day 3 of a bench trial in the state's lawsuit accusing the company and its Safeway subsidiary of exacerbating Washington's opioid epidemic.

  • July 15, 2026

    ESA 'Harm' Rollback Defies 50-Year Precedent, Groups Say

    The Sierra Club, Center for Biological Diversity, WildEarth Guardians and a half dozen other environmental groups have become the latest to challenge the Trump administration's new definition of "harm" under the Endangered Species Act, initiating a lawsuit Tuesday seeking to restore the meaning that's been the prevailing interpretation for 50 years.

  • July 15, 2026

    Circuit-By-Circuit Guide To The US Supreme Court's Term

    Federal appeals courts had wide-ranging successes and struggles during the U.S. Supreme Court's recently completed term: One had its best showing in years following its worst showing in years; one felt déjà vu after recently starting to find favor with the justices; and one saw its reputation for independence occupy a rare role in the Supreme Court spotlight.

  • July 15, 2026

    Intel, Google Fight 'Free Rein' Given To USPTO Head

    Intel and Google have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to vacate a Federal Circuit ruling upholding the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's precedent allowing Patent Trial and Appeal Board petitions to be denied based on related litigation, saying the ruling essentially gives the patent office director "free rein."

  • July 15, 2026

    Dems Probe Clayton's Independence, 2020 Election Views

    During a Wednesday confirmation hearing for President Donald Trump's pick for national intelligence director, Democratic lawmakers pressed Jay Clayton to explain whether predecessor Tulsi Gabbard should have traveled to Georgia to oversee a search warrant executed at a Fulton County election facility, which she testified the president asked for.

  • July 15, 2026

    Paramount Wants Merger Judge Recused Over Guild Work

    Paramount has asked a district judge to recuse himself from overseeing a challenge led by a dozen states to the company's proposed $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, arguing Wednesday that the judge's former role as labor counsel for a guild that's also challenging the deal risks the appearance of impartiality.

  • July 15, 2026

    X.AI Says Man Misused Grok To Create Child Abuse Material

    Elon Musk's xAI is suing a man who faces criminal charges of sexually exploiting children, saying in a Texas federal lawsuit that he abused and circumvented the safeguards of the company's generative artificial intelligence chatbot Grok to create child sexual abuse material in violation of the terms of service.

  • July 15, 2026

    'Bind Our Agency': Vought Urges House To Curb CFPB Powers

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's acting Director Russell Vought told a U.S. House of Representatives panel Wednesday that the agency shouldn't "exist in its current form," urging lawmakers to further rein in its funding and authority as he prepares to exit as interim chief.

  • July 15, 2026

    White Farmers Win Cert. In Suit Against USDA

    The Texas Farm Bureau won certification of a class of white farmers after the federal government said it had no position on the motion in the suit accusing the government of giving minority farmers preferential treatment under a Biden administration program.

  • July 15, 2026

    Wireless Carriers Want FCC Changes To Space Reg Update

    Wireless trade group CTIA told the Federal Communications Commission it supports the agency's plans to slash satellite licensing regulations, but wants to ensure the rules protecting earth stations in shared bands are not cut in the process.

  • July 15, 2026

    US Backs ICE Agent's Removal Bid In Minnesota Assault Case

    The U.S. Department of Justice defended a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent facing assault charges for brandishing a gun at another motorist, telling a Minnesota federal judge this week that he should be able to fight the case in federal court — where he can seek immunity — because he "performed the job he is paid to do."

  • July 15, 2026

    DOJ Asks DC Circ. To Stay USDA Grant Revival Order

    The Trump administration is asking the D.C. Circuit to pause a district judge's injunction ordering the U.S. Department of Agriculture to reinstate more than $100 million in land access program grants aimed at assisting "underserved" farmers, arguing that the case belongs in the Court of Federal Claims.

  • July 15, 2026

    Judge Finds No Harm In Restarting Immigration Processing

    A Rhode Island federal judge on Wednesday refused to pause his June 5 ruling that vacated the government's indefinite hold on immigration processing for individuals subject to President Donald Trump's travel ban, finding the government would not be harmed.

  • July 15, 2026

    10th Circ. Judge Urges Inmate Sex Consent Precedent Review

    A federal appeals court judge in the Tenth Circuit said that underlying case law in the circuit surrounding sexual relationships between incarcerated people and their jailers should be revisited, and that the circuit should stop assuming these relationships can be consensual.

  • July 15, 2026

    Ex-Utah Land Exec Says Ute Tribe's Bias Suit Fails Again

    The former director of Utah's School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration has asked a federal judge to dismiss a Native American tribe's most recent complaint in a race-based suit claiming state officials conspired to freeze the tribe out of a land sale, saying he didn't discriminate against the tribe.

  • July 15, 2026

    Ex-Ill. Police Chief Gets 3 Years For Taking, Covering Up Bribe

    A former Chicago suburban police chief was sentenced to three years in federal prison Wednesday for accepting a $10,000 cash bribe and splitting the money with a former municipal employee before trying to cover the payment up as a loan years later.

  • July 15, 2026

    Local Gov'ts Seek To Bar HHS Teen Health Program Changes

    A group of local governments and health nonprofits urged a D.C. federal court Wednesday to block recent federal mandates requiring Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program grant recipients to incorporate abstinence education and other changes to their reproductive health programming, arguing the changes are arbitrary and capricious.

Expert Analysis

  • How New FERC Orders Are Prepping Grid For Large Loads

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    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's recent show-cause orders to grid operators to justify how their rates and regulations account for the interconnection of large and colocated loads like data centers may be just the first step in FERC's efforts to address anticipated reliability and affordability challenges in the coming years, say attorneys at Baker Donelson.

  • FDA Moves Leave Peptides In A Legal Gray Zone

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    While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has taken a concrete step forward on reclassifying certain peptides, the practical consequence of their interim status cannot be overstated — these substances are no longer designated as posing a significant safety risk, but they have not been affirmatively authorized for compounding, say attorneys at Sheppard.

  • Series

    Bass Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Landing a trophy striped bass and closing a big deal both require cultivating the patience to finesse — not force — your way to desired outcomes, changing course when your old approach isn’t working and learning from the ones that got away, says Jon Ruiss at Alston & Bird.

  • What Consent Decree Trends Mean For Deal Clearances

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    With merger remedies back on the table under the current administration, an analysis of recent Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Department of Justice consent decrees reveals that prior approval and prior notice provisions are no longer a foregone conclusion, and companies may be able to negotiate narrowly tailored obligations, say attorneys at Weil.

  • Series

    NY Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

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    The year's second quarter brought several notable banking law developments to New York, including a proposal to align state stablecoin rules with the federal Genius Act, fresh fair lending and cybersecurity guidance from state regulators, and a significant Second Circuit holding on preemption, say attorneys at Ashurst Perkins Coie.

  • How Reincorporating In Texas May Alter Earnout Disputes

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    While the DExit debate has focused on shareholder suits, far less attention has been paid to what reincorporating in Texas means for M&A disputes, making it particularly important to understand the nuances between Delaware and Texas earnout jurisprudence, say attorneys at Selendy Gay.

  • What To Know If DOL Raises Overtime Salary Floor

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    With the U.S. Department of Labor recently rescinding a 2024 rule that increased the minimum salary for the Fair Labor Standards Act's overtime exemptions, employers should assess how a future increase would affect their workforce, paying particular attention to job duties requirements and state laws, says James Coleman at Constangy.

  • Roundup

    The Most Talked-About Supreme Court Decisions Of 2026

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    This term, 11 U.S. Supreme Court decisions quickly became hot topics among Law360's guest writers.

  • Structuring Space Nuclear Deals For Regulatory Risk

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    With the White House's recent focus on space nuclear power, a highly important question for companies that want to build orbital reactors, lunar surface systems or critical components is whether the transaction documents can handle foreign investment constraints, export controls and treaty-linked liability, says Kristie Blase at Frazer + Blase.

  • Proof, Not Just Timing, Will Decide Clean Energy Credits

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    For wind and solar projects that sprinted to begin construction before the accelerated placed-in-service deadline of July 4, project owners must now assemble and maintain documentation to qualify the project and defend against a potential clean energy credit audit, says Peter Lowy at Nelson Mullins.

  • Coordinating Life Sciences IP Strategies In The US And EU

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    As postgrant practice for life sciences patents is restructured in the U.S. and European Union simultaneously, patent owners will need to implement transatlantic coordination that treats international proceedings as components of a single intellectual property risk architecture, says Paul Calvo at Sterne Kessler.

  • Texas Business Court Rulings Show Deal Terms Paramount

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    As the courts within the Texas Business Court system have begun reaching the substantive merits of the cases before them, they are persuasively demonstrating they will not only enforce the terms of transactions as written, but will also embrace a holistic approach to complex transaction documentation interpretation, says Christopher Pace at Winston Taylor.

  • Series

    Calif. Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

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    The year's second quarter brought several noteworthy financial services developments to California, including activity around a commercial finance oversight bill, the former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau head's appointment to lead a new consumer agency, and a ruling reinforcing viable bank-fintech partnerships, say attorneys at Manatt.

  • Trademark Law As A Tool To Bolster NIL Rights Against AI

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    The meteoric rise of artificial intelligence-generated deepfakes is prompting high-profile celebrities to protect their name, image and likeness rights using federal trademark law — a powerful yet limited supplement to traditional NIL claims, says Susan Natland at BakerHostetler.

  • What Ex-CFPB Head's Calif. Role May Foretell For Oversight

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    California Gov. Gavin Newsom's selection of former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra to lead a new consumer agency signals tougher state financial services oversight, especially for fintechs, as well as heightened enforcement activity and larger penalties, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

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