Public Policy

  • September 26, 2025

    Calif. Fights Biz Groups' Bid To Halt Climate Disclosure Rules

    California on Thursday asked the Ninth Circuit to reject business groups' effort to halt two new state climate regulations requiring large companies to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related financial risks.

  • September 26, 2025

    Texas' Eastern District Tightens Sealed-Document Procedures

    Chief U.S. District Judge Amos L. Mazzant III of the Eastern District of Texas issued new protocols Wednesday for filing sealed documents that will prohibit electronic access effective immediately, a move that comes amid escalating cyberattacks on the federal judiciary's case management system.

  • September 26, 2025

    Mass. Tax Board Cuts $1M Home Value To Sale Price

    A Massachusetts home valued at $1 million by a county assessor should have the value lowered to the price the home sold for, the state Appellate Tax Board ruled. 

  • September 26, 2025

    Cherokee Nation Cos. Appeal Gaming License Suit To 8th Circ.

    Two Cherokee Nation entities are looking to the Eighth Circuit to overturn an Arkansas federal court decision that dismissed their challenge to a voter-approved referendum that revoked a gambling license in the state.

  • September 26, 2025

    Commerce Opens 2 New Section 232 Investigations

    The U.S. Department of Commerce recently self-initiated investigations into imports of medical devices and personal protective equipment as well as robotics to determine whether they pose a national security threat requiring tariff actions under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, according to two notices published Friday.

  • September 26, 2025

    Ex-Perkins Coie, DOJ Enviro Lawyer Joins Greenberg Traurig

    A former assistant section chief in the U.S. Department of Justice's Environmental and Natural Resources Division has joined Greenberg Traurig LLP's Washington, D.C., office after five years with Perkins Coie LLP.

  • September 26, 2025

    Small Cable Firms Say FCC Alert Changes Could Harm Them

    A cable industry group cautioned the Federal Communications Commission that making big revisions to the country's Emergency Alert System could put some small providers out of business if the new rules mean heavy compliance burdens.

  • September 25, 2025

    DOJ Unveils New 'Affirmative Litigation' Civil Division Branch

    The U.S. Department of Justice Thursday announced its newly created "Enforcement & Affirmative Litigation Branch," part of which will be dedicated to going after states, municipalities and private entities that impede federal immigration enforcement or profit from "false and misleading claims" about gender transition.

  • September 25, 2025

    Trump Blesses Deal To Transfer TikTok To $14B US Co.

    President Donald Trump Thursday signed an executive order greenlighting a proposed deal that transfers the majority of TikTok's U.S. operations to a new U.S.-based joint venture, saying that the divestiture adequately addresses national security concerns.

  • September 25, 2025

    Ex-FBI Head Comey Indicted Days After Va. US Atty Replaced

    A federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Virginia on Thursday indicted former FBI Director James B. Comey on making a false statement and obstruction of Congress charges, just days after Donald Trump's former personal attorney took over as interim U.S. attorney in the district.

  • September 25, 2025

    Stanford Daily Can't Sue Over Deportation Fears, DOJ Says

    The Trump administration has moved for a win in The Stanford Daily's lawsuit that seeks to bar the government from deporting noncitizen students who express pro-Palestinian views, telling a California federal court that the student-run newspaper and two students lack standing.

  • September 25, 2025

    Google VP Says Ad Tech Breakup Is 'Possible'

    The Google executive responsible for its advertising placement technology business told a Virginia federal judge Thursday that the company previously determined that a breakup was doable, even as he argued that the U.S. Department of Justice is mischaracterizing recent considerations of what that would look like.

  • September 25, 2025

    Senate Dems Float Bill To Shield Neural Data From Misuse

    A trio of Senate Democrats proposed legislation Wednesday that would establish a federal framework for how companies and the government collect and use data derived from measuring brain activity, arguing that the current lack of protections for such neural data leaves consumers open to manipulation and other serious harms.

  • September 25, 2025

    Standing Questions Loom In Mozambique LNG Loan Dispute

    The requirements for organizational standing dominated much of Thursday's oral argument over the Export-Import Bank of the United States' decision to back a massive liquefied natural gas project in Mozambique, as the challengers sought a preliminary injunction that could hinge on recent standing rulings from the D.C. Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court.

  • September 25, 2025

    Pa. Justices Say Child Arbitration Invalid Despite Parents' OK

    The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled Thursday that parents signing waivers at attractions like trampoline parks cannot bind their children or spouses to arbitration, in twin injury suits seeking to hold Sky Zone liable for two minors' injuries.

  • September 25, 2025

    Fed's Cook Warns Justices Of Fed Independence 'Death Knell'

    Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to reject President Donald Trump's bid to immediately oust her, warning that allowing her dismissal at this juncture would "sound the death knell" for an independent Fed.

  • September 25, 2025

    CashCall Urges Justices To Overturn $134M CFPB Award

    CashCall is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a Ninth Circuit order that left the loan company on the hook for $134 million in restitution to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, despite the firm's insistence that conflicting precedent deprived it of its right to a jury trial.

  • September 25, 2025

    DOJ Fights Colo., Denver Bid To Escape Sanctuary Suit

    Colorado and Denver may not have to help enforce immigration laws, but they can't actively obstruct them, the Trump administration said, urging a federal judge to allow its lawsuit challenging their sanctuary policies to proceed.

  • September 25, 2025

    Judge Seeks More Info Before Splitting Corrections OT Trial

    A Colorado federal judge said she wouldn't make a determination on whether a proposed collective action against the state Department of Corrections, alleging the agency didn't pay its criminal investigators while on call, should be split into different trials until she has more information on each side's expectations for the case.

  • September 25, 2025

    NCAA, Ga. Colleges Win Trim Of Trans Athlete Eligibility Suit

    A federal judge Thursday largely dismissed a lawsuit against the NCAA and several Georgia public universities challenging their eligibility rules for transgender athletes, ruling that the athletic association is not a state actor subject to civil rights claims while recent legislation mooted claims against the state schools.

  • September 25, 2025

    Atkins Hints At Flexible Reporting Deadlines For Public Cos.

    With the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission preparing to seek public feedback on President Donald Trump's proposal that public companies be allowed to report their financial results only twice a year, agency Chair Paul Atkins suggested Thursday that the SEC may not take a "one-size-fits-all" approach. 

  • September 25, 2025

    NJ Justice Hints 'Essential' A Key Term In Benefits Case

    New Jersey Supreme Court Justice Rachel Wainer Apter asked Thursday if a worker can be considered an "essential employee" under an executive order but not under a COVID-19 law governing workers' compensation, as the court considered a school district's bid to deny the designation to a deceased teacher.

  • September 25, 2025

    NJ Municipality, Cannabis Co. Settle Suit Over Retail License

    A cannabis company has agreed to end its federal lawsuit against a New Jersey municipality that passed an ordinance reducing the number of retail licenses available in its borders from two to one, awarding the sole license to a competitor.

  • September 25, 2025

    DOJ Sues Six States For Refusing To Share Private Voter Data

    The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday sued six states for not turning over statewide voter registration lists with voters' driver's license numbers or the last four digits of their Social Security numbers when the federal government asked for them this summer, while state officials have decried the request "not normal" and "unprecedented." 

  • September 25, 2025

    Chicago Man Forged Signatures Of Federal Judges, Feds Say

    A Chicago man has been indicted for forging the signatures of two Illinois federal judges on various court filings in an attempt to get around an order restricting his ability to file new cases, according to an announcement made by the U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Power To The Paralegals: How And Why Training Must Evolve

    Author Photo

    Empowering paralegals through new models of education that emphasize digital fluency, interdisciplinary collaboration and human-centered lawyering could help solve workforce challenges and the justice gap — if firms, educators and policymakers get on board, say Kristine Custodio Suero and Kelli Radnothy.

  • 5 Real Estate Takeaways From Trump's Sweeping Tax Law

    Author Photo

    Changes to the Internal Revenue Code included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will have a range of effects on real estate sponsors, investors and real estate investment trusts — from more compliance flexibility around taxable REIT subsidiary limits to new considerations raised by a key retaliatory tax provision that was left out, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • Evaluating The Current State Of Trump's Tariff Deals

    Author Photo

    As the Trump administration's ambitious tariff effort rolls into its ninth month, and many deals lack the details necessary to provide trade market certainty, attorneys at Adams & Reese examine where things stand.

  • Series

    Playing Softball Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    My time on the softball field has taught me lessons that also apply to success in legal work — on effective preparation, flexibility, communication and teamwork, says Sarah Abrams at Baleen Specialty.

  • 5 Years In, COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Landscape Is Shifting

    Author Photo

    As the government moves pandemic fraud enforcement from small-dollar individual prosecutions to high-value corporate cases, and billions of dollars remain unaccounted for, companies and defense attorneys must take steps now to prepare for the next five years of scrutiny, says attorney David Tarras.

  • How Securities Test Nuances Affect State-Level Enforcement

    Author Photo

    Awareness of how different states use their securities investigation and enforcement powers, particularly their use of the risk capital test over the federal Howey test, is critical to navigating the complicated patchwork of securities laws going forward, especially as states look to fill perceived federal enforcement gaps, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Mastering Time Management

    Author Photo

    Law students typically have weeks or months to prepare for any given deadline, but the unpredictability of practicing in the real world means that lawyers must become time-management pros, ready to adapt to scheduling conflicts and unexpected assignments at any given moment, says David Thomas at Honigman.

  • Calif. Bill May Shake Up Healthcare Investment Landscape

    Author Photo

    If signed by the governor, newly passed California legislation would significantly expand the Office of Health Care Affordability's oversight of private equity and hedge fund investments in healthcare companies and management services organizations, and raise several questions about companies' data confidentiality and filing burdens, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • How Prohibiting Trigger Leads May Affect Mortgage Marketing

    Author Photo

    Recent amendments to the Fair Credit Reporting Act prohibiting the sale of trigger leads mark a significant shift in the regulatory landscape for mortgage lenders, third-party lead generators and their legal counsel, who should reevaluate lead generation strategies and compliance protocols, say Joel Herberman, Rob Robilliard and Leah Dempsey at Brownstein Hyatt.

  • How Hyperlinks Are Changing E-Discovery Responsibilities

    Author Photo

    A recent e-discovery dispute over hyperlinked data in Hubbard v. Crow shows how courts have increasingly broadened the definition of control to account for cloud-based evidence, and why organizations must rethink preservation practices to avoid spoliation risks, says Bree Murphy at Exterro.

  • Pharma Copay Programs Raise Complex Economic Questions

    Author Photo

    The growing prevalence of copay accumulator and maximizer programs in the pharmaceutical industry is drawing increased scrutiny from patients, advocacy groups, lawmakers and courts, bringing complex questions about how financial responsibility for prescription drug purchases is determined and complicating damages assessments in litigation, say analysts at Analysis Group.

  • State False Claims Acts Can Help Curb Opioid Fund Fraud

    Author Photo

    State versions of the federal False Claims Act can play an important role in policing the misuse of opioid settlement funds, taking a cue from the U.S. Department of Justice’s handling of federal fraud cases involving pandemic relief funds, says Kenneth Levine at Stone & Magnanini.

  • Pemex Bribery Charges Provide Glimpse Into FCPA Evolution

    Author Photo

    A recently unsealed indictment against two Mexican nationals for allegedly bribing officials at Pemex, Mexico’s state-owned oil company, reveals that Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement is adapting to new priorities, but still remains active, and compliance programs should continue apace, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • CFPB Proposal Defining Consumer Risk May Add Uncertainty

    Author Photo

    Though a recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposal would codify when risks to consumers justify supervisory intervention against nonbanks, furthering Trump administration plans to curtail CFPB authority, firms may still struggle to identify what could attract supervisory designation under the new rule, say attorneys at Steptoe.

  • Targeting Execs Could Hurt SEC's Probusiness Goals

    Author Photo

    While many enforcement changes under the Trump administration’s U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission have been touted by commission leadership as proinnovation and probusiness, a planned focus on holding individual directors and officers responsible for wrongdoing may have the opposite effect, say attorneys at MoFo.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here