Public Policy

  • October 29, 2026

    9th Circ. Ruling Dooms Sports Betting Suit, Washington Says

    Prediction market operator Underdog's contention that its sports-based event contracts are not subject to Washington state gambling laws is doomed under a recent Ninth Circuit ruling holding otherwise, the Evergreen State told a Washington federal judge.

  • October 29, 2026

    China Slams US Ban On 3 Biotech Cos. Over Forced Labor

    The Chinese government Thursday condemned the U.S.' recent addition of three new entities in the biotechnology sector to its blacklist of companies from which goods are banned from entering the U.S. due to their presumed use of forced labor.

  • October 29, 2026

    EU Head Affirms Ties With Canada As Member Talks Open

    European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday reaffirmed the European Union's commitment to strengthening its ties with Canada at the opening of a summit to consider whether to adopt Canada as the EU's first-ever associate member.

  • October 29, 2026

    Trump Admin Appeals Block Of DC Golf Course Work

    The Trump administration is appealing a D.C. federal judge's order that stopped further tree removals at East Potomac Golf Course and required advance notice before irreparable changes are made to the facility.

  • October 29, 2026

    5th Circ. Will Review Texas Content-Filtering Law Ruling

    The Fifth Circuit has granted Texas' request for an en banc rehearing of a July panel opinion that partly upheld a block on the state's new law requiring companies to filter content for underage users.

  • October 29, 2026

    Groups Drop Suit Over Trump's DEI Mandate For Contractors

    A coalition of organizations ended their challenge of an executive order from President Donald Trump that requires government contractors to disavow "racially discriminatory DEI activities," stating that while they lost their bid to freeze the order, they gained crucial clarity from the court about the directive's scope.

  • October 29, 2026

    DOL Finalizes Pharmacy Benefit Manager Fee Disclosure Rule

    The U.S. Department of Labor's employee benefits arm unveiled a final rule Thursday that requires pharmacy benefit managers — which act as intermediaries between drugmakers, pharmacies and insurers — to make new disclosures on their fees and compensation to employer-sponsored group health plans.

  • October 28, 2026

    Democracy 'At Stake': Feds Can't Set Aside 20K Calif. Ballots

    A California federal judge on Wednesday rejected the Trump administration's request to require the state to set aside mail-in ballots for some 20,000 voters the federal government contends are "likely" noncitizens, saying it would "wreak havoc" on the midterm elections that are already underway.

  • October 28, 2026

    RNC Files New Suit Over FCC's Campaign Ad Rates

    The Republican National Committee, Republican Party of Texas and several Republican candidates Wednesday filed a fresh suit over the Federal Communications Commission's longtime requirement that broadcasters charge the lowest political ad rates for committees tied to candidates, calling it "a drag on First Amendment freedoms."

  • October 28, 2026

    CFTC's Selig Vows 'Grounded' Oversight Of Agentic Finance

    U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Michael Selig said Wednesday that his agency plans to take a "grounded" approach to agentic finance that's also mindful of the risks it poses and courted industry feedback on how to address the rise of artificial intelligence in derivative markets.

  • October 28, 2026

    Landlord's Suit Over Seattle Tenant Laws Revived On Appeal

    A Washington Court of Appeals panel has reinstated a real estate company's challenge to a string of Seattle landlord-tenant laws, finding the firm has adequately detailed how the contested ordinances stunted its property rights as the owner of a downtown affordable housing development.

  • October 28, 2026

    Product Liability's Regulatory & Legislative Recap So Far

    Over the summer and early fall, lawmakers proposed measures aimed at putting safeguards around the rapidly growing industry of artificial intelligence, as public concerns over its safety climb in tandem. The new nominee to head the U.S. Food and Drug Administration also faced sharp queries over her views on vaccines and birth control.

  • October 28, 2026

    Eagle Hunt Blocked Over NM Tribes' Religious Harm Fears

    A New Mexico federal judge has for now blocked the U.S. government from issuing special permits that would allow the Pueblo of Jemez tribe to kill one bald or golden eagle within the Valles Caldera National Preserve, ruling Wednesday that such a "taking" would burden other pueblos.

  • October 28, 2026

    TB Outbreak In Wash. Prisons Yields $52M Damages Verdict

    Washington jurors returned a $52 million verdict in favor of 23 plaintiffs who accused the state's Department of Corrections of allowing an active tuberculosis outbreak to fester and spread to hundreds of people at its prison facilities over nearly two years.

  • October 28, 2026

    PayPal's Financial Offerings Are Under Fresh FTC Scrutiny

    PayPal has disclosed that it is facing a Federal Trade Commission investigation into its financial products and services, including marketing, fees and purchase protections.

  • October 28, 2026

    CFPB Audit Flags Cybersecurity Gaps Amid Staff Departures

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has failed to promptly fix serious cyber weaknesses and consistently track data in its possession as staffing losses have hampered the agency's ability to safeguard its systems, according to a federal watchdog audit released Wednesday.

  • October 28, 2026

    State Dept. Owes $461M For Work During COVID, Builder Says

    Trump administration officials reneged on the U.S. Department of State's agreement to pay an Alabama-based construction giant for cost overruns while it continued working on a dozen embassy projects during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the company's Wednesday lawsuit that seeks at least $461 million in damages.

  • October 28, 2026

    Missouri, Louisiana Sued By Prediction Market Giants

    Missouri and Louisiana are the latest states to become embroiled in litigation with event contract platforms, after Kalshi and Polymarket sued them, respectively, to prevent pending enforcement action.

  • October 28, 2026

    MSU Trustee Says Ethics Code Violates First Amendment

    A Michigan State University trustee filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the board chair and secretary Wednesday, alleging that recent revisions to the board of trustees code of ethics are unconstitutional and intended to silence trustees who criticize the university or dissent from majority decisions.

  • October 28, 2026

    SC Gov.'s Counsel Still In The Running For Federal Judgeship

    The chief legal counsel for South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster is "being actively considered" for a federal judgeship, according to the White House, but it's not a done deal yet.

  • October 28, 2026

    Patients Tell Colo. Justices Hospital Defied Gender Care Order

    Transgender youth patients of Children's Hospital Colorado are challenging a judge's discharge of their contempt citation against the hospital for not resuming the provision of medical gender-affirming care to them, urging Colorado's justices to decide whether the hospital complied with an injunction prohibiting it from refusing to provide the care.

  • October 28, 2026

    Interior Says Records Order Not Needed For Golf Course Suit

    The U.S. Interior Department told a D.C. federal judge Wednesday there's no need to order it to retain records on East Potomac Golf Course tree removals or makeover plans in a case where its assertions have often conflicted with President Donald Trump's online posts.

  • October 28, 2026

    FTC Probes Delta, Uber, Others Over Data-Driven Pricing

    The Federal Trade Commission is pressing Delta, Uber, Target and a half-dozen other companies to detail how they're using personal data to set individualized pricing for consumers and compensation for workers, marking the latest escalation of the agency's growing scrutiny of the increasingly prominent business practice.

  • October 28, 2026

    4th Circ. Judge Sees 'Big Brother' In Va. Social Media Limits

    A Fourth Circuit judge Wednesday expressed concern with a Virginia law limiting children's access to social media, telling counsel for the commonwealth that the provision has a "Big Brother atmosphere" to it and suggesting he'd back the district court's injunction halting enforcement of the regulation.

  • October 28, 2026

    Wash. Gov. Creates Fraud Post, Backs Broader Medicaid FCA

    As part of a push to expand fraud prevention efforts in Washington, Gov. Bob Ferguson signed an executive order Tuesday to create a new chief fraud prevention officer position and a statewide fraud prevention work group, also announcing forthcoming legislation that would broaden the state's Medicaid False Claims Act.

Expert Analysis

  • Justices' Hikma Reasoning May Extend Well Beyond Pharma

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    The active steps framework announced by the U.S. Supreme Court in its Hikma v. Amarin decision, finding that Amarin failed to plausibly allege inducement of infringement, has the potential to reshape how courts evaluate inducement claims across patent, copyright and other doctrines, say attorneys at BCLP.

  • The State Of Prediction Market Litigation After 9th Circ. Ruling

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    The Ninth Circuit's recent decision in Kalshi v. Assad gives state regulators significant appellate backing to enforce state gaming laws over prediction markets, creating a direct split with the Third Circuit that will likely lead to Supreme Court review of the question, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • CISA Town Halls Signal Key Cyber Rule Changes Ahead

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    The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency recently held a series of town halls to gather additional stakeholder input on the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act, offering potential insights into how the agency may address key issues in a forthcoming final rule, say attorneys at Covington.

  • 11th Circ. FCA Qui Tam Revival Queues Up Next Challenges

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    Though the Eleventh Circuit on Sept. 1 upheld the constitutionality of the False Claims Act's qui tam provision, it will probably face continued litigation since the appellate court declined to rule on other constitutional challenges and the decision will likely be petitioned to the U.S. Supreme Court, say attorneys at Sheppard.

  • Home Equity Products Face Expanding Regulatory Patchwork

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    Home equity investment providers, which have recently come under scrutiny from regulators and industry groups, face meaningful burdens as the U.S. Senate and a growing number of states take divergent regulatory approaches, with no uniform standard likely anytime soon, say attorneys at Bradley.

  • How Orbital Data Centers May Test NEPA's Reach

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    With environmental and scientific groups recently pushing back against the Federal Communications Commission's proposal to exempt massive data center satellite constellations from review under the National Environmental Policy Act, the question of whether NEPA even applies to projects in space turns on three closely related issues, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • How Subchapter V Bill May Change Restructuring Analysis

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    While a recently passed Senate bill would expand the pool of businesses eligible to use the streamlined Subchapter V process, its more significant influence may be on how distressed businesses and their lenders evaluate restructuring alternatives long before a bankruptcy petition is filed, says Robert Charbonneau at Agentis.

  • Series

    Ballet Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    A lifetime of learning and performing ballet taught me that success — whether in dance or practicing law — comes only through hours of thorough preparation, boundless energy and relentless effort, says Sharon Katz-Pearlman at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Illinois BNPL Law Casts Wide Net Over Loan Providers

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    A new Illinois law's broad definition of buy now, pay later providers under its new dedicated licensing and supervisory regime notably imposes conduct standards similar to other consumer credit regimes and aggressively looks through a wide range of business activities and arrangements, say attorneys at Ashurst Perkins.

  • BIA Ruling Calls For Analyzing Advance Parole Travel's Risks

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    The Board of Immigration Appeals’ recent policy reversal, holding that a temporary trip abroad pursuant to advance parole counts as a departure under the Immigration and Nationality Act, means counsel should assess their clients' immigration history and potential risks of travel before they depart, says attorney Richard Herman.

  • What Cos. Should Know About DOE Energy Dominance Loans

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    With the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Dominance Financing set to become a vital resource for funding U.S. energy and critical minerals projects, interested companies must understand the terms of potential loans and take into account the applicable financial, technical, legal and regulatory requirements, say attorneys at Mayer Brown.

  • How Jackson Walker Settlement Will Affect Conflict Checks

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    Jackson Walker's recently filed $15 million settlement with the U.S. Trustee is effectively a contract between one firm and the government that will nevertheless serve as a template of conflict disclosure practices for all firms practicing in the bankruptcy courts, says attorney Ken Rosen.

  • Scope Issues For Cos. To Consider Ahead Of Cyber Rules

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    As the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency finalizes its proposed Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act rules, organizations can take steps to navigate the uncertainty that stems from inconsistent critical infrastructure sector definitions and overlapping sector boundaries, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • DOJ Fraud Declination Highlights Self-Disclosure Tradeoffs

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    As exemplified by the U.S. Department of Justice's declination of charges against Campus Eye Management under its new corporate enforcement policy, self-disclosure can be an attractive option for healthcare companies navigating criminal exposure, but should be weighed against potential costs, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • What Nonbank Lenders Should Watch In 'Open Banking' Redo

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    Nonbank mortgage lenders should prepare for several key changes in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's anticipated open banking rule rewrite that could reshape verification costs, vendor relationships and loan workflows, says Kara Ward at Baker Donelson.

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