Public Policy

  • January 16, 2026

    Planned Parenthood Can Challenge Heartbeat Act, Court Says

    A Texas appeals court on Friday found that Planned Parenthood has standing to challenge the state law that empowers ordinary citizens to prosecute abortion providers, saying Planned Parenthood has done enough to launch a pre-enforcement challenge to the law.

  • January 16, 2026

    White House Backs State Govs In Push For PJM Changes

    The Trump administration on Friday joined an effort by 13 state governors to force the nation's largest regional grid operator, PJM Interconnection, to fix the issue of escalating power prices amid data center-fueled increases in electricity demand.

  • January 16, 2026

    In First Year, Trump Lost Most Cases But Often Won Appeals

    In the first year of President Donald Trump's second term, his administration lost in court nearly twice as often as it won, but its success rate increased when it appealed, according to a Law360 review of more than 400 lawsuits.

  • January 16, 2026

    Cannabis Cos. Say Mich. Township Blocked Retail Permits

    Two Michigan cannabis companies allege in a new federal lawsuit Friday that a Michigan township prevented them from opening their doors after the locality's voters approved a ballot measure to ban pot stores.

  • January 16, 2026

    Judicial Candidate Nixed From Ballot Over Text To Rival

    A Texas judge ruled a candidate for a state judicial seat in Houston ineligible for the March primary election, finding the candidate violated the state's Election Code by trying to coerce her opponent into withdrawing from the race.

  • January 16, 2026

    Treasury's Rule Pace Unchanged After Loper Bright, Atty Says

    The U.S. Supreme Court's 2024 landmark decision limiting federal agencies' deference in interpreting ambiguous statutes has not significantly altered the pace and volume of the U.S. Department of the Treasury's rulemaking workload, a Treasury attorney said Friday.

  • January 16, 2026

    Squires Ends Chinese Chip Co. IPRs In Informative Order

    U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires has stopped Yangtze Memory Technologies Co.'s challenges to two Micron Technology Inc.-owned patents, saying the Chinese chipmaker did not address concerns over its precise identity.

  • January 16, 2026

    Pension Withdrawal Liability Math Gets High Court Spotlight

    The U.S. Supreme Court will zero in Tuesday on the methodology for assessing the liability of companies that pull out of multiemployer pension plans, hearing arguments in a case attorneys say could have costly implications for employers.

  • January 16, 2026

    Wash. House Bill Seeks Changes To Cannabis Excise Tax

    Washington would make changes to its cannabis excise tax, which is charged in addition to sales and use tax on adult-use cannabis purchases, under a bill introduced in the state House of Representatives.

  • January 16, 2026

    IRS Rightly Withheld Worker Tax Credit FOIA Docs, Court Says

    The Internal Revenue Service properly invoked two Freedom of Information Act exemptions to withhold portions of internal directives about the employee retention tax credit requested by an attorney who represents taxpayers in disputes with the agency, an Alabama federal court said.

  • January 16, 2026

    Localism Requirement Dooms Low-Power Station Requests

    Four proposed low-power FM stations in Texas and one in Nevada can't get building permits from the Federal Communications Commission because their paperwork doesn't indicate they would be run by local organizations under federal rules, the FCC said Friday.

  • January 16, 2026

    CFPB Confirms Its Fed Funding Has Been Replenished

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has received the $145 million in new funding it recently requested from the Federal Reserve after a Washington, D.C., federal judge ruled the Trump administration could not let the consumer agency run out of cash.

  • January 16, 2026

    Pinnacle Ch. 11 Buyer's Repair Pledge Enough For Sale OK

    A New York bankruptcy judge approved the $451 million sale of 93 properties in the Chapter 11 case of real estate entities affiliated with Pinnacle Group, saying the buyer's plan to invest $30 million in repairs and maintenance for the buildings is enough to adequately assure residents it will perform its management obligations.

  • January 16, 2026

    Offshore Wind's Winning Streak Hits 3 With Dominion Restart

    A federal judge on Friday allowed Dominion Energy to resume work on a wind farm off the Virginia coast, handing the Trump administration its third defeat in five days over its efforts to halt offshore wind projects under construction.

  • January 16, 2026

    Dems Balk At FCC Drive For Simpler Broadband Labels

    The Federal Communications Commission wants to move toward broadband "nutrition" labels that it thinks consumers could more easily navigate, even if that means taking out a separate line about early termination fees for high-speed plans, the FCC chair said this week.

  • January 16, 2026

    Washington Pot Co.'s Discrimination Suit Filed Too Late

    A Washington federal judge has dismissed with prejudice a suit by a would-be cannabis dispensary alleging that the state's licensing agency discriminates against minority owners, saying the claims are outside the federal and state statutes of limitations.

  • January 16, 2026

    9th Circ. Upholds County Fines For Illegal Short-Term Rentals

    The Ninth Circuit on Friday refused to stop a Nevada county from enforcing ordinances that don't allow unlicensed short-term rentals to operate, ruling that the lower court rightfully sided against a local company by determining that the related county fines weren't unconstitutionally excessive.

  • January 16, 2026

    Maurene Comey Fights DOJ Bid To Toss Firing Suit

    Former Manhattan federal prosecutor Maurene Comey has urged a New York federal court to reject the U.S. Department of Justice's bid to dismiss her firing suit, arguing her claims belong before the district court and not under the jurisdiction of a non-independent board now controlled by the president.

  • January 16, 2026

    Watchdog Urges Blanche To Exit Trump Records Role

    A watchdog organization is calling on Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche to step aside as President Donald Trump's proxy for records from his first term as they become available next week, saying he has a conflict of interest.

  • January 16, 2026

    Law Grad's Malpractice Claims Are Time-Barred, Atty Says

    A Vanderbilt Law School graduate who said that as a teenager his lawyer bungled his criminal defense by convincing him to plead guilty to a crime he did not commit cannot pursue legal malpractice claims, according to a Connecticut lawyer, who told the federal court the suit was filed too late.

  • January 16, 2026

    State Rules Add Wrinkle To Scholarship Tax Break's Rollout

    The U.S. Treasury Department is grappling with how to balance federal and state rules to implement a new tax credit for contributions to eligible scholarship programs, an official said Friday, describing states as "gatekeepers" in determining eligibility.

  • January 16, 2026

    Justices Will Decide Constitutionality Of Geofence Warrants

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to review the constitutionality of geofence warrants, used by law enforcement to pinpoint suspects' whereabouts using location data handed over by technology firms like Google.

  • January 16, 2026

    La. State Court Greenlights Challenge To Gender Care Ban

    A Louisiana state judge sided with a group of transgender teenagers who argue the state's ban on gender-affirming care for minors is unconstitutional, denying the state's bid to dismiss the case, according to an announcement Friday from the minors' attorneys.

  • January 16, 2026

    Hughes Hubbard, MoloLamken Alumns Open Boutique Firm

    Two former arbitration practice group leaders from Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP have launched an international arbitration and litigation boutique in Washington, D.C. and New York, co-founding the practice with a longtime MoloLamken LLP partner and former associate.

  • January 16, 2026

    EU Spending Less On State Aid Tax Schemes, Report Says

    Spending on state aid slumped last year across the European Union while tax benefits have remained a muted share of the subsidies offered since the COVID-19 pandemic, the bloc's executive branch said.

Expert Analysis

  • Opinion

    A Uniform Federal Rule Would Curb Gen AI Missteps In Court

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    To address the patchwork of courts’ standing orders on generative artificial intelligence, curbing abuses and relieving the burden on judges, the federal judiciary should consider amending its civil procedure rules to require litigants to certify they’ve reviewed legal filings for accuracy, say attorneys at Shook Hardy.

  • Investment Advisers Should Stay Apprised Of New AI Risks

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recently issued annual examination priorities reiterate a host of regulatory implications for investment advisers using artificial intelligence tools, highlighting that meaningful ongoing due diligence can help mitigate both operational and regulatory surprises amid AI's rapid evolution, says Christopher Mills at Sidley.

  • New Rule Shows NRC Willing To Move Fast To Reform Regs

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    The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s decision to forgo public comment and immediately rescind certain rules governing adjudicatory procedures, federal tort claims and disclosure of licensee information signals the agency's intent to accelerate the regulatory streamlining efforts ordered by the president this spring, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • AG Watch: Texas Junk Fee Deal Shows Enforcement Priorities

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    Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's recent $9.5 million settlement with online travel agency website Booking Holdings for so-called junk fee practices follows a larger trend of state attorneys general who have taken similar action and demonstrates the significant penalties that can follow such allegations, say attorneys at Kelley Drye.

  • 10th Circ. Dissent May Light Path For Master Account Access

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    While the Tenth Circuit's majority in Custodia Bank v. Federal Reserve Board recently affirmed Federal Reserve banks' control over master account access, the dissent raised constitutional questions that could support banks seeking master accounts in future litigation, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.

  • Calif. AG's No-Poach Case Reflects Tougher Antitrust Stance

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    This month, California’s attorney general resolved the latest enforcement action barring the use of no-poach agreements, underscoring an aggressive antitrust enforcement trend with significant increases in criminal and civil penalties, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

  • A Look At The Wave Of 2025 Email Marketing Suits In Wash.

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    Since the Washington Supreme Court's ruling in Brown v. Old Navy in April, more than 30 lawsuits have alleged that a broad range of retailers across industries sent emails that violate the Washington Commercial Electronic Mail Act, but retailers are unlikely to find clear answers yet, says Gonzalo Mon at Kelley Drye.

  • 3 Defense Strategies For Sporadically Prosecuted Conduct

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    Not to be confused with selective prosecutions, sporadic prosecutions — charging someone for conduct many others do without consequences — can be challenging to defend, but focusing on materiality, prosecutorial motivations and public opinion can be a winning strategy, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

  • 2025 Noncompete Developments That Led To Inflection Point

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    Employers must reshape their approaches to noncompete agreements following key 2025 developments, including Delaware's rejection of blue-penciling and the proliferation of state wage thresholds, say attorneys at Gunderson Dettmer.

  • Riding The Changing Winds For AI Innovations At The USPTO

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    As recent U.S. Patent and Trademark Office moves reshape how artificial intelligence inventions will be examined and put them on firmer eligibility footing, practitioners need to consider how this shift is both an opportunity and a challenge, say Ryan Phelan at Marshall Gerstein and attorney Mark Campagna.

  • Series

    The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Integrating Practice Groups

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    Enacting unified leadership and consistent client service standards ensures law firm practice groups connect and collaborate around shared goals, turning a law firm merger into a platform for growth rather than a period of disruption, says Brian Catlett at Fennemore Craig.

  • The Tricky Issues Underscoring Prediction Market Regulation

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    Prediction markets are not merely testing the boundaries of commodities law — they are challenging the conventional divisions between gambling regulation and financial market oversight, and in doing so, may reshape both, says Braeden Anderson at Gesmer Updegrove.

  • Nonprofits Face Uncertainty Over Political Activity Rules

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    Two federal court decisions suggesting that the Internal Revenue Service's rules for 501(c)(4) organizations' political activity may be too vague to survive constitutional scrutiny leave nonprofit organizations caught between constitutional limits on government regulation of speech and tax limits on their exempt status, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

  • Opinion

    Supreme Court Term Limits Would Carry Hidden Risk

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    While proposals for limiting the terms of U.S. Supreme Court justices are popular, a steady stream of relatively young, highly marketable ex-justices with unique knowledge and influence entering the marketplace of law and politics could create new problems, say Michael Broyde at Emory University and Hayden Hall at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

  • Navigating A Sea Change In Rent Algorithm Regulation

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's proposed settlement of the RealPage lawsuit represents a pivotal moment in the regulation of algorithmic rent-setting, restraining use of these tools amid a growing trend of regulatory limits on use of algorithmic data and methodologies in establishing housing rental prices. say attorneys at Wilson Elser.

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