Public Policy

  • August 13, 2025

    Business Groups Fail To Halt Calif. Climate Reporting Rules

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups lost a bid to block new California state regulation requiring large companies to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related financial risks that they said violated their First Amendment rights, when a federal judge Wednesday denied them preliminary injunction.

  • August 13, 2025

    Colo. Dispensary Says Weed Regulator Made Invalid Rule

    The owners of a cannabis company told a state judge on Tuesday that an industry bulletin posted about them by Colorado's marijuana regulator was "quasi-legislative" and created new enforcement rules in the industry without approval.

  • August 13, 2025

    High Court's Trans Ruling Doesn't Change Insurer's ACA Loss

    A Washington federal judge has reaffirmed his finding that Premera Blue Cross' coverage policy for gender-affirming chest surgery violates the Affordable Care Act, rejecting the insurer's bid for a redo following the Supreme Court's decision in U.S. v. Skrmetti.

  • August 13, 2025

    Trump Taps Democratic Commissioner As Acting FERC Chair

    President Donald Trump on Wednesday named Democratic Commissioner David Rosner as acting chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, citing his support for expanding the electric grid to better serve data centers and artificial intelligence, which is an administration priority.

  • August 13, 2025

    Trump Admin Bid To Kill SSA Data Suit Ruled Premature

    The Trump administration can't fight an injunction in Maryland federal court and the Fourth Circuit simultaneously, a Maryland federal judge said Wednesday, tabling the administration's dismissal bid while the Fourth Circuit considers whether to lift a ban on the Department of Government Efficiency accessing unredacted Social Security data.

  • August 13, 2025

    8th Circ. Revives Ark. Ban On Youth Gender-Affirming Care

    A split Eighth Circuit en banc panel revived an Arkansas state law banning gender-affirming care for minors, finding that a district court erred in blocking the law because it does not discriminate based on sex but instead classifies based only on age and medical procedure.

  • August 13, 2025

    Trump's Troop Deployment In Calif. Troubles Judge

    A California federal judge overseeing a bench trial over the state's claims that President Donald Trump unlawfully deployed troops there told a U.S. Justice Department lawyer Wednesday that he was troubled by the seeming lack of limits on the use of the soldiers once they're in place.

  • August 13, 2025

    Trump's 'Debanking' Push May Run Up Against Biden-Era Wall

    President Donald Trump wants federal regulators to punish banks that they find have unfairly closed accounts belonging to conservatives, but those plans could collide with a court decision that his administration chose to stop fighting earlier this year.

  • August 13, 2025

    DC Circ. Greenlights Trump's Freeze On Foreign Aid

    A divided D.C. Circuit on Wednesday lifted an injunction requiring the Trump administration to release funding for foreign aid work done before Feb. 13, with a dissenting judge saying the decision lets the administration sidestep judicial review of unconstitutional actions.

  • August 13, 2025

    Gun Rights Orgs. Drop NJ Gov. From Suit Over Age Limits

    Two firearm-ownership advocacy groups and a New Jersey teen seeking to invalidate prohibitions on teens buying and carrying handguns have dropped New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy from their lawsuit, choosing to focus on other state officials and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi.

  • August 13, 2025

    Cannabis' Social Equity Efforts In Doubt After 2nd Circ. Ruling

    A Second Circuit decision Tuesday, finding that the Constitution's dormant commerce clause applies to the federally illegal marijuana industry, further constricts states' ability to implement programs intended to award so-called social equity licenses favoring those harmed by past cannabis prohibition, experts told Law360.

  • August 27, 2025

    Water Law & Real Estate: A Special Report

    What's more summery than a trip to the shore? That's where Law360 Real Estate Authority has headed — not for a break, but for a special section looking at waterfront real estate, from coastal development challenges to big projects and the lawyers keeping them on course.

  • August 13, 2025

    FCC Waives Local Radio Ownership Cap In East Texas

    The Federal Communications Commission will allow an acquisition of several commercial FM radio stations in east Texas to go through by waiving the agency's local ownership cap, the agency said Wednesday.

  • August 13, 2025

    Wash. Agencies Must Give Up Docs In Medicaid Fraud Case

    A Washington federal judge has ordered the state attorney general's office to hand over certain records to a hospital system accused of overbilling Medicaid in connection to a neurosurgeon's fraud scheme, rejecting the argument that the documents at issue belong to other state agencies that must be subpoenaed.

  • August 13, 2025

    5th Circ. Again Reverses Class Cert. In Kids' Medicaid Suit

    The Fifth Circuit again on Tuesday instructed a Louisiana court to narrow the definition of a class of patients who allege that the state's health department has failed to provide mental health services for Medicaid-eligible children.

  • August 13, 2025

    2nd Circ. Upholds Ban On Certain SALT Cap Workarounds

    An Internal Revenue Service rule prohibiting charitable donation workarounds to the federal cap on state and local tax deductions will remain in place, a Second Circuit panel said Wednesday, affirming a district court determination that upheld the agency's ban on the programs.

  • August 13, 2025

    USPTO Caps Briefs At 20 Pages For Discretionary Reviews

    Patent owners and challengers will be limited to 20-page briefs when arguing over whether a Patent Trial and Appeal Board petition should be discretionarily denied, board leaders announced Wednesday in a webinar.

  • August 13, 2025

    Judge Blocks Trump Restrictions For $12B In Federal Grants

    A Washington federal judge temporarily blocked restrictions imposed by the Trump administration, such as an anti-gender ideology restriction, on access to more than $12 billion worth of federal grants, ruling in part that the federal government exceeded its authority.

  • August 13, 2025

    FCC Pushes Back Prison Call Fee Reports After Rule Delay

    The Federal Communications Commission is giving prison phone companies more time to file annual reports and certifications, saying that the companies would not have otherwise had "sufficient time for a fulsome response."

  • August 13, 2025

    Pa. Judge Ends Employers' Expanded Birth Control Exemptions

    A Pennsylvania federal judge on Wednesday struck down rules set by the first Trump administration enabling employers to refuse coverage of employees' contraceptives on moral and religious grounds, holding that the government failed to provide a good reason for the broadening of exemptions.

  • August 13, 2025

    High Court May Take Up Ban On Under-21 Handgun Purchases

    The U.S. Supreme Court has been asked to decide whether Congress is violating the Constitution by banning the sale of handguns to people under 21 years old, and it has given the government extra time to give its thoughts on what the justices should do.

  • August 13, 2025

    Media Matters Judge 'Troubled' By FTC Subpoena Args

    A D.C. federal judge reacted with incredulity Wednesday to Federal Trade Commission arguments that Media Matters can't challenge a subpoena unless the agency itself sues to enforce it, adding during a hearing that the FTC can't ignore its current leadership's recent history of targeting progressives.

  • August 13, 2025

    Settlement Win Protects In-Home Care For 280,000 NYers

    The New York State Health Department has resolved a class action filed by a group of chronically ill Medicaid recipients who accused the state of violating their due process rights by failing to provide enough time to register their home care workers through a new system, attorneys said on Wednesday.

  • August 13, 2025

    Mich. Tribe Can't Get $1.5M In Legal Fees In Recognition Fight

    A D.C. federal court judge on Wednesday denied a Michigan tribe's bid to recoup $1.5 million in legal fees from the U.S. Department of the Interior over the tribe's challenge to a federal recognition status denial, saying the motion is untimely because a decision to remand the dispute is final.

  • August 13, 2025

    Cloud Services Co. Asks FCC To Grant Numbering Access

    OXIO Inc. is seeking to bring its cloud-based telecom services to the U.S. market, but needs the Federal Communications Commission to authorize the mobile numbers its customers would use.

Expert Analysis

  • Kousisis Concurrence Maps FCA Defense To Anti-DEI Suits

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    Justice Clarence Thomas' recent concurrence in Kousisis v. U.S. lays out how federal funding recipients could use the high standard for materiality in government fraud cases to fight the U.S. Justice Department’s threatened False Claims Act suits against payees deviating from the administration’s anti-DEI policies, say attorneys at Miller & Chevalier.

  • Despite Dark Clouds, Outlook For US Solar Has Bright Spots

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    While tariff, tax policy and bankruptcy news seemingly portends unending challenges for the U.S. solar energy industry, signs of continued growth in solar generating capacity and domestic solar manufacturing suggest that there is a path forward, say attorneys at Beveridge & Diamond.

  • Assessing New Changes To Texas Officer Exculpation Law

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    Consistent with Texas' recent modernization of its corporate law, the recently passed S.B. 2411 allows officer exculpation, streamlines certificate of formation amendments, authorizes representatives to act on shareholders' behalf in mergers and makes other changes aimed toward companies seeking a more codified, statutory model of corporate governance, say attorneys at Bracewell.

  • How Ending OFCCP Will Affect Affirmative Action Obligations

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    As President Donald Trump's administration plans to eliminate the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, which enforces federal contractor antidiscrimination compliance and affirmative action program obligations, contractors should consider the best compliance approaches available to them, especially given the False Claims Act implications, say attorneys at Ogletree.

  • Rising Enforcement Stakes For Pharma Telehealth Platforms

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    Two pieces of legislation recently introduced in Congress could transform the structure and promotion of telehealth arrangements as legislators increasingly scrutinize direct-to-consumer advertising platforms, potentially paving the way for a new U.S. Food and Drug Administration policy with bipartisan support, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Communicating With Clients

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    Law school curricula often overlook client communication procedures, and those who actively teach this crucial facet of the practice can create exceptional client satisfaction and success, says Patrick Hanson at Wiggam Law.

  • One Year On, Davidson Holds Lessons On 'Health Halo' Claims

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    A year after the Ninth Circuit's Davidson v. Sprout Foods decision — which raised the bar for so-called health halo claims — food and beverage companies can draw insights from its finding, subsequently expanded on by other courts, that plaintiffs must be specific when alleging fraud in healthfulness marketing, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Justices' NRC Ruling Raises New Regulatory Questions

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    In Nuclear Regulatory Commission v. Texas, the U.S. Supreme Court avoided ruling on the NRC's authority to license private, temporary nuclear waste storage facilities — and this failure to reach the merits question creates new regulatory uncertainty where none had existed for decades, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • 3 Judicial Approaches To Applying Loper Bright, 1 Year Later

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    In the year since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Chevron deference in its Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision, a few patterns have emerged in lower courts’ application of the precedent to determine whether agency actions are lawful, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • Navigating Antitrust Risks When Responding To Tariffs

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    Companies should assess competitive perils, implement compliance safeguards and document independent decision-making as they consider their responses to recent tariff pressures, say attorneys at White & Case.

  • Breaking Down Part 3 Of The Copyright Office's AI Report

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    On May 9, the U.S. Copyright Office published a prepublication version of the third and final part of its three-part report on artificial intelligence, offering key insights on the unauthorized use of copyrighted material by AI systems, says Courtney Sarnow at CM Law.

  • 8 Insurer Takeaways From Sweeping Georgia Tort Reform

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    Insurers should take note of several critical components of Georgia's tort litigation overhaul — including limitations on damages anchoring, procedural rules governing dismissals, and liability standards in negligent security cases — and adapt claims-handling strategies to reduce litigation risk, says Lucy Aquino at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Bill Leaves Renewable Cos. In Dark On Farmland Reporting

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    A U.S. Senate bill to update disclosure requirements for foreign control of U.S. farmland does not provide much-needed guidance on how to report renewable energy development on agricultural property, leaving significant compliance risks for project developers, say attorneys at Hodgson Russ.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From US Rep. To Boutique Firm

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    My transition from serving as a member of Congress to becoming a partner at a boutique firm has been remarkably smooth, in part because I never stopped exercising my legal muscles, maintained relationships with my former colleagues and set the right tone at the outset, says Mondaire Jones at Friedman Kaplan.

  • Opinion

    FCPA Shift Is A Good Start, But There's More DOJ Should Do

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    The U.S. Department of Justice’s new Foreign Corrupt Practices Act guidelines bring a needed course correction amid overexpansive enforcement, but there’s more the DOJ can do to provide additional clarity and predictability for global companies, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

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