Public Policy

  • September 19, 2025

    Trump Asks High Court To Lift Block On Trans Passport Ban

    The Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday to lift a nationwide order requiring the U.S. Department of State to issue passports to transgender and nonbinary individuals that reflect their gender identity, arguing the mandate wrongly compels the government to express speech it disagrees with.

  • September 19, 2025

    Groups Decry Bid To Roll Back Ariz. Monument Protections

    Conservation groups are denouncing congressional legislation that, if approved, would nullify protections on two Indigenous national monuments in Arizona that were put in place to prevent new uranium, copper and gold mining of the sites.

  • September 19, 2025

    ICE Leaders Sued For Calif. Court Arrests, Custody Conditions

    A class action complaint filed Thursday accused Trump administration officials of turning Northern California's immigration courts into "a trap" where masked agents ambush and needlessly arrest immigrants who must then endure squalid conditions in a makeshift San Francisco holding facility.

  • September 19, 2025

    USPTO's Top Solicitors To Leave Amid Continued Shake-Ups

    The legal department at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is facing some shake-ups, with two of its top officials slated to leave the agency in the coming weeks.

  • September 19, 2025

    Mich. Top Court Again Backs Retroactive Auto Reform Limits

    The Michigan Supreme Court on Friday reversed a lower state appellate panel's decision in a dispute over whether no-fault reforms enacted in 2019 apply to policies that "straddled" the reform effective dates, pointing to the top court's earlier finding that such policies are subjected to post-reform increased limits for liability.

  • September 19, 2025

    Rhode Island, Connecticut Fight To Finish Building Wind Farm

    The Rhode Island and Connecticut attorneys general asked a Rhode Island federal judge to allow an energy developer to resume work on an offshore wind farm that is 80% complete, arguing that a delay past Monday could imperil the entire project and thwart states' abilities to meet mandated emissions goals.

  • September 19, 2025

    Maine County Can Use Business Channel For Public Safety

    Maine's northernmost county will be able to draw from a pool of industrial channels to use for internal public safety and first responder communications.

  • September 19, 2025

    UK Gov't Borrowing Hits £18B Ahead Of Autumn Budget

    U.K. government borrowing reached £18 billion ($24.3 billion) in August, according to official figures published Friday, adding to pressure for the government to hike taxes in its coming budget.

  • September 19, 2025

    2nd Circ. Lets Students Facing Removal Stay Free, For Now

    The Second Circuit on Friday declined to revisit its earlier decisions that allowed two foreign students facing deportation, allegedly for their pro-Palestinian advocacy, to stay out of detention, rejecting the Trump administration's bid to find it lacks jurisdiction over their cases.

  • September 19, 2025

    CDC Panel Urges Caution On COVID Vax, Punts On Hep B

    A panel of advisers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday voted unanimously to recommend that people receiving the COVID-19 vaccine this season do so only after discussing it with their health providers.

  • September 18, 2025

    ​​​​​​​BofA Unit To Pay $5.6M To End DOJ Market Manipulation Case

    The U.S. Department of Justice said Thursday that an investment banking arm of Bank of America Corp. will pay roughly $5.6 million to resolve a criminal investigation into market manipulation allegations involving two now-former traders on its U.S. Treasurys desk.

  • September 18, 2025

    Kimmel Controversy Sidetracks Broadband Permitting Hearing

    A U.S. House subcommittee looking into how to expedite broadband permitting struggled to stay on topic Thursday afternoon due to Democrats being hopping mad about late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel being pulled off the air.

  • September 18, 2025

    Ill. Justices Reverse Therapist's Fee Win Against Regulator

    Illinois' financial and professional regulator should not be ordered to pay attorney fees in connection with a therapist's successful bid to shield his notes from a doctor's administrative reinstatement hearing, the state's highest court ruled Thursday.

  • September 18, 2025

    SEC Eases Path For Crypto ETPs With New Listing Rules

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has eased a key part of the listing process for crypto exchange-traded products, and attorneys say the move may create a shorter path to market for years to come.

  • September 18, 2025

    Federal Vaccine Panel Votes To Tweak MMRV Recommendation

    A panel of federal vaccine advisers on Thursday changed its recommendation for a long-used vaccine for children but allowed a key government program to continue paying for the shots.

  • September 18, 2025

    Delaware Judge Calls For Civility After 'Annus Horribilis'

    In a rare postscript to her bench ruling this week, a Delaware vice chancellor lamented what she observed as a breakdown in the state bar's civility and mutual respect over the past "annus horribilis," comments that have since drawn cautious support and resonance with several in the First State's legal community.

  • September 18, 2025

    Arbitration Clauses Won't Protect IPOs From Investor Suits

    With the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission greenlighting the use of mandatory arbitration clauses for newly public companies, securities litigation experts are waiting to see whether any company is willing to risk the almost inevitable legal blowback that will come with taking advantage of the policy.

  • September 18, 2025

    Trump's Georgia Case: Legal Experts On What Happens Next

    The 2020 Georgia election interference case against President Donald Trump and his co-defendants may be both "dead" and costly for taxpayers, legal experts told Law360, citing the expected reluctance of most prosecutors to take over the litigation and a new state law that allows criminal defendants to recover legal fees in certain circumstances.

  • September 18, 2025

    FCC Should Follow Exec Branch Policy, Commissioner Says

    As President Donald Trump continues to get more involved in the operations of independent federal agencies, a member of the Federal Communications Commission said Thursday the FCC needs to remain accountable to the executive branch.

  • September 18, 2025

    Alaska Asks Justices To End Feds' Subsistence Fishing Regs

    The state of Alaska is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to step into its dispute with the federal government and Native American groups over fishing regulations in its navigable waters, challenging a Ninth Circuit ruling that barred the state from opening part of the Kuskokwim River to all fishers.

  • September 18, 2025

    Ex-La. Prosecutor Convicted In Pretrial Program Bribery Case

    A former Lafayette assistant district attorney was convicted Thursday in Louisiana federal court of bribery and other charges for conspiring to solicit kickbacks and accept bribes while overseeing the 15th Judicial District Attorney's Office's pretrial intervention program, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

  • September 18, 2025

    Texas Court Says Citizen Can't Intervene To Uphold Pot Law

    The citizen sponsor of a voter-approved marijuana decriminalization ordinance cannot intervene in the deal struck between the state attorney general and city of Elgin that declared the ordinance void, a Texas appeals court ruled, saying the advocate doesn't have standing.

  • September 18, 2025

    Dems Demand DOJ Explain Binance Plea Deal Compliance

    U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren and two of her Democratic colleagues have asked U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi for information on Binance's compliance with its 2023 plea agreement stemming from anti-money laundering lapses, pointing to President Donald Trump's ties to the crypto exchange.

  • September 18, 2025

    DC Circ. Judge Says PJM Monitor May Have 'Hint Of Paranoia'

    The D.C. Circuit didn't seem so sure Thursday morning that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission was flouting the rules by denying an independent market monitor access to its liaison committee meetings, with one judge saying the monitor seemed to be exhibiting a "hint of paranoia."

  • September 18, 2025

    7th Circ. Judge Wary Of Ex-Firefighter's Free Speech Position

    A Seventh Circuit judge on Thursday said an attorney for a former Chicago firefighter seeking to revive a suit claiming he was unlawfully fired for a series of memes and other statements posted on Facebook seemed to be making a "hyperbolic" argument that public employers cannot regulate speech outside the workplace.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From ATF Director To BigLaw

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    As a two-time boomerang partner, returning to BigLaw after stints as a U.S. attorney and the director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, people ask me how I know when to move on, but there’s no single answer — just clearly set your priorities, says Steven Dettelbach at BakerHostetler.

  • What To Know As SEC Looks To Expand Private Fund Access

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    As the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission considers expanding retail access to private markets, understanding how these funds operate — and the role of financial intermediaries in guiding investors — is increasingly important, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • Fla. Law Is Part Of State Trend On Curbing Foreign Influence

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    A recently effective Florida law that broadly prohibits charities from receiving or soliciting funds from individuals and entities associated with certain foreign countries, the first of its kind in the nation, follows a growing state-level focus on foreign influence regulation, say attorneys at Venable.

  • 4 In-Flux Employment Law Issues Banks Should Note

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    Attorneys at Ogletree provide a midyear update on employment law changes that could significantly affect banks and other financial service institutions — including federal diversity equity and inclusion updates, and new and developing state and local artificial intelligence laws.

  • New DOJ Penalty Policy Could Spell Trouble For Cos.

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    In light of the U.S. Department of Justice’s recently published guidance making victim relief a core condition of coordinated resolution crediting, companies facing parallel investigations must carefully calibrate their negotiation strategies to minimize the risk of duplicative penalties, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • IPR Decisions Clarify Stewart's 'Settled Expectations' Factor

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    Recent discretionary denial decisions from U.S. Patent and Trademark Office acting Director Coke Morgan Stewart have begun to illuminate the contours of her "settled expectations" doctrine, informing when it might be worth petitioning for inter partes review if the patent at issue has been in force for a few years, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Mulling Worker Reclassification In Light Of No Tax On OT

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    The One Big Beautiful Bill Act's no-tax-on-overtime provisions provide tax relief for employees who regularly work overtime and are nonexempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act, but reclassifying employees may lead to higher compliance costs and increased wage and hour litigation for employers, says Steve Bronars at Edgeworth Economics.

  • Clean Energy Tax Changes Cut Timelines, Add Red Tape

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    With its dramatic changes to energy tax credits, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will reshape project financing and investment planning — and wind and solar developers, especially those in the early stages of projects, face stricter timelines and heightened compliance challenges, says Dan Ruth at Balch & Bingham.

  • 5 Consumer Protection Compliance Issues In NY State Budget

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    Companies that engage with New York consumers should promptly familiarize themselves with new state budget provisions that require finance and retail companies to make certain business practices more transparent and easier for customers to execute, say attorneys at Mintz.

  • Balancing The Promises And Perils Of Tokenizing Securities

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    Tokenizing listed securities offers the promise of greater efficiency, accessibility and innovation, but a recent U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission statement makes clear that the federal securities laws continue to apply to tokenized securities, so financial institutions and technology developers must work together to create clear rules, say attorneys at Orrick.

  • How To Increase 3rd-Party Preissuance Patent Submissions

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    Attorneys Marian Underweiser and Marc Ehrlich, who helped draft the America Invents Act, discuss changes that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office could potentially implement to facilitate its hopes for increased participation in front-end patent challenges.

  • How Cos. In China Can Tailor Compliance Amid FCPA Shifts

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    The U.S. Department of Justice’s recently updated Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement guidelines create a fluid business environment for companies operating in China that will require a customized compliance approach to navigate both countries’ corporate and legal systems, say attorneys at Dickinson Wright.

  • 7 Ways Employers Can Avoid Labor Friction Over AI

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    As artificial intelligence use in the workplace emerges as a key labor relations topic in the U.S. and Europe, employers looking to reduce reputational risk and prevent costly disputes should consider proactive strategies to engage with unions, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • Open Banking Is On Ice As CFPB Seeks To Toss Its Own Rule

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    Even as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's efforts to toss its open banking rule play out in Kentucky federal court, it remains statutorily required to effectuate consumer access to data, raising questions about how it would replace the previously finalized standard, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • SEC, FINRA Obligations In Changing AI Regulatory Landscape

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    Despite the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent withdrawal of its proposed artificial intelligence conflict rules, financial regulators remain focused on firms developing the correct AI compliance framework, as well as continuously testing and supervising them to ensure they're fit for purpose, say attorneys at Cahill Gordon.

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