Public Policy

  • June 04, 2026

    NTIA Chief Presses To Close 'Gap' In Gov't Spectrum Fund

    The head of the U.S. Department of Commerce agency that manages federal spectrum pushed Thursday to change a legal provision that could delay the transfer of government-held airwaves to the private sector.

  • June 04, 2026

    NC Justices Launch Commission To Tackle Legal Deserts

    Forty-eight of North Carolina's 100 counties are classified as legal deserts, and a commission established by the state's supreme court will aim to address this dearth of attorneys at a meeting Friday, the North Carolina Judicial Branch said.

  • June 04, 2026

    5th Circ. Prods Feds On Controversy In Texas Dream Act Suit

    A Fifth Circuit panel pressed Texas and the federal government to explain where the controversy existed in a suit seeking to end a state law allowing in-state tuition for unauthorized immigrants, saying Thursday the parties "desired the same result."

  • June 04, 2026

    Compass Under Antitrust Probe After $1.6B Anywhere Deal

    New York state has launched an antitrust investigation into Compass Inc. after the country's biggest real estate brokerage announced last year that it would acquire Anywhere Real Estate, the second-largest brokerage, in a $1.6 billion deal.

  • June 04, 2026

    Ex-Newark Deputy Mayor Gets Prison In Bribery Scheme

    A former Newark deputy mayor was sentenced to just over a year in prison in New Jersey federal court for accepting cash and luxury gifts from two real estate developers involved in redevelopment projects for city-owned properties.

  • June 04, 2026

    Calif. And Santa Barbara Beat Land Use Challenge, For Now

    A California federal judge dismissed, for now, a lawsuit by a developer seeking to build a multifamily housing project near Santa Barbara's Old Mission over a new state law that allegedly singled out the project for additional environmental review, while acknowledging Tuesday there are "serious constitutional questions raised here."

  • June 04, 2026

    Cities, Doctors' Group Seek Bar On ACA Marketplace Reforms

    Several cities and groups representing doctors and small businesses urged a Maryland federal court to strike down recently finalized Affordable Care Act marketplace reforms, arguing they will strain community resources by increasing the population of underinsured and uninsured Americans.

  • June 04, 2026

    Colorado Enacts PPE, Meat Plant Worker Protections

    Colorado workers will no longer have to foot the bill for their own personal protective equipment under a new state law that also guarantees restroom breaks for meat processing workers.

  • June 04, 2026

    Feds Appeal Trade Court's Emergency Tariff Refund Order

    The federal government has appealed the U.S. Court of International Trade's order requiring refunds on all duties paid under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act after the U.S. Supreme Court struck them down earlier this year, according to filings in the trade court and Federal Circuit.

  • June 04, 2026

    Pot Business Tells 6th Circ. Mich. City Defied Court Order

    The clerk of a Michigan city intentionally sabotaged a plan to revitalize a deserted shopping center to prevent cannabis businesses from operating there, a real estate company told a Sixth Circuit panel Thursday in hopes of reviving its suit over the delays and setbacks.

  • June 04, 2026

    DHS Wants Some Migrants To Show Need For Work Permits

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Thursday proposed rolling back work authorization for noncitizens paroled into the country, along with recipients of deferred action and those with final removal orders released on orders of supervision.

  • June 04, 2026

    Texas AG Says ActBlue 'Fraud' Outweighs Free-Speech Concern

    Counsel for Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton urged a skeptical Massachusetts federal judge on Thursday not to block an enforcement action against Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue, arguing any "incidental" infringement of the group's First Amendment rights is outweighed by alleged evidence that it violated a Texas consumer protection law.

  • June 04, 2026

    Yurok Tribe Sues California City Over Sacred Land Authority

    The Yurok Tribe is asking a California district court to block the City of Trinidad from asserting jurisdiction over matters affecting an Indigenous village site, arguing that the city exceeded its authority in appointing another tribe to oversee its protection.

  • June 04, 2026

    Georgia Fed. Judge Facing Impeachment Threat, New DQ Bid

    A Georgia federal judge reportedly disciplined for having sexual intercourse in her chambers and attending a political event is facing renewed pressure, as a former UPS employee seeks her disqualification from his dismissed racial discrimination lawsuit and a Georgia congressman drafts articles of impeachment to remove her from the bench.

  • June 04, 2026

    Fed. Circ. Homes In On 'Adherence' In Canvas Duty Appeal

    A Federal Circuit panel considered conflicting interpretations of an antidumping order on artist canvases Thursday as it reviewed whether the U.S. Department of Commerce properly found a company's products to be in scope, focusing questions on what it means for canvases to promote "adherence" of paint.

  • June 04, 2026

    Live Nation Remedies Discovery To Wait On New Trial Motions

    A New York federal judge said that state attorneys general will have to wait on discovery to bolster their bid for a Live Nation Entertainment Inc. breakup, preferring to first tackle the live music giant's bid to upend jury findings faulting the company for monopolizing the industry.

  • June 04, 2026

    Judge Pans Feds' Fee Fight In 'Anemic' Detention Defense

    A Washington federal judge has ordered the U.S. government to pay $41,000 in attorney fees in a habeas case and blasted its contention that a lesser amount was warranted after it failed to meaningfully defend the unlawful detention of an asylum-seeker from Afghanistan.

  • June 04, 2026

    New Conn. Pollution Laws Focus On Releases, Not Transfers

    Under new release-based cleanup regulations that took effect March 1, Connecticut now requires pollution to be reported and remediated when it is found, not when property changes hands, a shift lawyers say expands reporting requirements and accelerates cleanup timelines.

  • June 04, 2026

    Blanche's AG Bid Could Face Rocky Path In Senate

    Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche will be tapped for the permanent role, but he might not have a smooth path to confirmation.

  • June 04, 2026

    Feds Seek To Vacate Endangered-Lizard Listing To Settle Suit

    Texas and the U.S. Interior Department asked a federal judge to approve a settlement vacating the Biden-era designation of a lizard species as endangered, after Texas argued that the move was unfounded and imperiled energy development around the Permian Basin.

  • June 04, 2026

    Conn. Looks To Wipe Out CFTC's Contract Crackdown Suit

    Connecticut has taken aim at the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, blasting the agency's federal lawsuit to halt the state's efforts to police event contract trading as "wrongheaded."

  • June 04, 2026

    House GOP Bill Would Cut DOL Funding, Eliminate OFCCP

    The House Appropriations Committee introduced a funding bill Thursday that would cut the U.S. Department of Labor's budget by nearly $4 billion, including a decrease in the Wage and Hour Division's budget and the elimination of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs.

  • June 04, 2026

    House Speaker's Ex-Chief Of Staff Will Join K&L Gates In DC

    The former chief of staff for House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., will join K&L Gates LLP's Washington, D.C., office on June 15 as a government affairs counselor, the firm announced Thursday.

  • June 04, 2026

    EPA Unlawfully Delayed Methane Rule, Groups Tell DC Circ.

    Environmental groups told the D.C. Circuit that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency violated the Clean Air Act by extending without justification compliance deadlines for initiating requirements aimed at reducing methane pollution from the oil and gas sector.

  • June 04, 2026

    Floor Importers Failed To Fight Fight Duty Rate, Fed. Circ. Told

    Importers appealing a U.S. Court of International Trade ruling sustaining revised antidumping duties on Chinese wood flooring missed their opportunity to challenge the rate reached by the government, a U.S. Department of Justice attorney told the Federal Circuit on Thursday.

Expert Analysis

  • 7 Ways Va. Employers Can Prep For New Noncompete Limits

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    As of July 1, Virginia noncompete agreements with employees fired without "cause" must provide "severance benefits" — but with those key terms undefined, employers should implement several flexible but defensible compliance strategies to limit their exposure once the rule is rolled out, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • Data Collection Push Signals New Era For Bank Compliance

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    An executive order pushing for broad bank collection of beneficiary data and a Financial Crimes Enforcement Network geographic targeting order in Minnesota should prompt financial institutions to run checks on customer diligence and privacy controls, as these directives may be part of a wider compliance shift, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

  • Federal Officer Removal After Justices' La. Pollution Ruling

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    In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Chevron USA v. Plaquemines Parish, companies seeking to use federal officer removal to move litigation out of state court should ask three questions, focusing on government contract language, federally directed activity and related conduct, say attorneys at Hollingsworth.

  • Series

    Competing At Poker Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing poker in male-dominated rooms taught me to treat skepticism as background noise when my opponents seem to underestimate me, to apply pressure when it matters and to adapt without losing strategic discipline — skills that are all indispensable in restructuring and insolvency matters, says Alexis Gambale at Pashman Stein.

  • FTC Sweep Signals Increased 'Made In USA' Claim Scrutiny

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    After the Federal Trade Commission's recent enforcement sweep targeting allegedly deceptive "Made in USA" claims, companies should expect continued scrutiny of both traditional and digital marketing channels, coupled with sustained focus on supply chain transparency and claim substantiation, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • 5 Things Associates Must Ask About Their Firm's Merger Plan

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    The associates who navigate law firm mergers best ask the right questions early, such as inquiring about partners' plans, to assess how the merger could affect their workflow and career path, says Jackie Bokser-LeFebvre at Major Lindsey.

  • CFTC Trading Rule Can't Police Prediction Markets Yet

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    The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s recent efforts to police insider trading in prediction markets through a post-Dodd-Frank anti-fraud rule exposes doctrinal gaps around misappropriation theory, leaving platforms to fill the void with win-rate-based surveillance, says attorney Tamara de Silva.

  • FinCEN World Cup Warning Raises Trafficking Risks For Cos.

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    The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's recent warning of human trafficking risks during the World Cup games signals heightened scrutiny ahead of the upcoming tournament, and suggests regulators increasingly expect businesses beyond financial institutions to maintain effective trafficking-risk controls, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Opinion

    Immigration Appeals Rule Would Prevent Meaningful Review

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    Justice Stephen Breyer’s book “Making Our Democracy Work” offers a useful lens through which to consider what is at stake for the Executive Office for Immigration Review's legitimacy as the government asks the D.C. Circuit to revive an interim final rule that would have fast-tracked decisions by Board of Immigration Appeals, says Tara Kennedy at Kennedy Law.

  • 2 'Rocket Dockets' And The Rules That Propel Them

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    The fastest civil trial courts in the country are currently in the Eastern District of Virginia and the Southern District of Florida, and their chief judges provide insights into the court rules that keep them ahead, says Robert Tata at Hunton.

  • Why Nuclear Licensees Must Watch 2nd Circ.'s Holtec Review

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    In reviewing a New York federal court's preemption ruling concerning disposal of nuclear materials, the Second Circuit must confront the lower court's recognition of a purpose-based path to field preemption, which could be game-changing for nuclear material licensees, says Andrew Averbach at Womble Bond.

  • Operational AI Washing: Dismantling Claims Before Discovery

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    Operational AI washing claims can be rebuffed before discovery extracts their true costs by turning the documentary record established in earnings calls and public disclosures into a layered defense, which can exploit the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act’s heightened pleading standards, say attorneys at Akerman.

  • Opinion

    SEC Must Clarify Crypto Guidance For Investment Advisers

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    Until the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission clarifies a conundrum created by recently issued guidance that classifies crypto tokens as digital commodities rather than securities, every registered investment adviser managing a digital commodity portfolio will be simultaneously compliant and exposed, says Nicole Trudeau at Wave Digital Assets.

  • Law School Antitrust Dismissal Leaves Room For Review

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    A Pennsylvania federal court's recent dismissal of Risner v. Law School Admission Council, a class action that argued a centralized law school application platform violated antitrust law, reflects judicial reluctance to assume that higher education joint efforts are automatically anticompetitive, but also sets out a road map for future pleadings, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • Employer Tips To Prepare For Va. Family And Medical Leave

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    With Virginia's paid family and medical leave insurance program taking effect in two years, employers should develop processes for monitoring head count, coordinating with existing federal and state leave programs, and tracking intermittent leave, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

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