Aerospace & Defense

  • October 18, 2024

    Commerce Dept. Eases Spacecraft Export Controls For Allies

    The U.S. Department of Commerce has issued a trio of rules intended to loosen controls on exports of spacecraft technology to U.S. allies, a move the department said was intended to help boost the U.S. commercial space industrial base.

  • October 18, 2024

    Insurer Blames Truckers For $6.7M Jet Engine Loss

    An insurer who paid more than $6.7 million to a commercial airline parts manufacturer it insured after a jet engine was damaged in a truck crash is pursuing several contractors in Connecticut federal court, blaming them for negligently transporting the engine.

  • October 18, 2024

    Blank Rome Attys Want Win In Corporate Client Ex-Atty Suit

    A trio of Blank Rome LLP attorneys have asked a federal judge in Pennsylvania for an early win in a lawsuit from another attorney alleging they improperly helped her former client retaliate against her after she switched to the plaintiffs bar.

  • October 18, 2024

    Redactable Nabs $1.9M Contract Increase With Air Force

    Redactable Inc., whose software tool uses artificial intelligence to detect personally identifiable information in documents and redact it, announced Thursday a $1.9 million contract increase with the U.S. Air Force and its innovation arm AFWERX, two current customers with the New York-based startup.

  • October 17, 2024

    Indian Official Charged In Plot To Assassinate NYC Atty

    New York federal prosecutors on Thursday unveiled murder-for-hire and money laundering charges against an Indian foreign intelligence official they claim orchestrated a plot to assassinate a New York City attorney connected to a Punjab political revolution.

  • October 17, 2024

    US Sanctions Chinese Cos. For Work On Russian Drones

    The U.S. Department of the Treasury on Thursday imposed fresh sanctions on three entities, including two from China, for helping develop long-range Garpiya attack drones used by Russia in its deadly war against Ukraine.

  • October 17, 2024

    Treasury Unit Says Booze Maker Violated N. Korea Sanctions

    The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control said Thursday that it has reached an $860,000 settlement with a Vietnam-based alcoholic beverage company over its alleged role in allowing U.S. financial institutions to process $1.1 million in payments to North Korea, violating sanctions regulations.

  • October 17, 2024

    Air Force Owes Contractor COVID-19 Quarantine Costs

    The U.S. Air Force must bear the costs a contractor incurred complying with a two-week COVID-19 quarantine requirement, the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals has ruled, faulting the government for refusing to establish all the elements of an asserted defense.

  • October 17, 2024

    GAO Finds VA Rightly Canceled Too-High 'Wander System' Bid

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office backed a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs decision rejecting a lone bid that came in at more than double the agency's budget for a wander management system at a medical center in Fresno, California.

  • October 17, 2024

    Army Can't Ignore Inconsistencies On $280M Logistics Orders

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office has backed a trio of protests over roughly $280 million in task orders issued under a massive logistics support contract, saying the U.S. Army improperly ignored inconsistencies in the awardee's approach to small business participation requirements.

  • October 17, 2024

    Contractor Tells Fed. Circ. Navy Improperly Canceled Deal

    A contractor urged the Federal Circuit to abandon a lower court finding that the U.S. Navy reasonably canceled an agreement for it to provide engineering services for a Florida naval air station, saying in a filing Wednesday that a termination memorandum the government submitted to the court appears to be "fraudulent."

  • October 17, 2024

    Unlimited Budget Won't Fix Secret Service Flaws, Panel Says

    If Congress gave the U.S. Secret Service a carte blanche budget, the breakdowns that led to the assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump in July would have likely still occurred, but additional funding could help allay its "do more with less" mindset, an independent panel said in a report published on Thursday.

  • October 16, 2024

    Airline Owner Can't Force Cravath To Give Docs, Court Says

    Cravath Swaine & Moore LLP doesn't have to turn over documents used in the prosecution of an airline owner accused in a scheme to defraud Polar Air Cargo Worldwide of millions of dollars, a New York federal judge ruled Wednesday, saying the defendant hasn't shown the firm was part of the prosecution.

  • October 16, 2024

    Justices Torn On Interpretation Of Veterans Benefits Law

    U.S. Supreme Court justices questioned Wednesday whether two veterans expected more than legally required from a lower court that only granted limited review of the denial of their disability benefits claims, while challenging the government's denial in equal measure.

  • October 16, 2024

    Sudanese Men Charged With Hacking Cedars-Sinai, Microsoft

    California federal prosecutors announced Wednesday that two Sudanese brothers have been charged with operating a prolific hacking group that orchestrated tens of thousands of politically motivated cyberattacks against worldwide government agencies, Los Angeles' Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and companies including Microsoft, PayPal, Google and Netflix.

  • October 16, 2024

    SpaceX Says Calif. Board Taking Disdain Of Musk Out On It

    SpaceX hit the California Coastal Commission with a federal lawsuit claiming its board members are opposing the company's bid to launch more rockets from a military base in Santa Barbara County due to "naked political discrimination" against it and its outspoken billionaire CEO Elon Musk.

  • October 16, 2024

    9th Circ. Won't Rethink Reviving Airline Military Bias Suit

    The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday rejected Alaska Airlines' bid for the court to reconsider its August opinion reinstating a class action accusing the airline of illegally denying accrued vacation and sick time to pilots on military assignments.

  • October 16, 2024

    'Fat Leonard' Faces 11 Years For Navy Bribery Scheme

    Federal prosecutors are seeking more than 11 years in prison for Leonard Francis, the Malaysian defense contractor and ex-fugitive known as "Fat Leonard" who led a sprawling bribery and corruption scheme that allegedly caused over $20 million in losses for the U.S. Navy.

  • October 16, 2024

    2 SDNY Terror Finance Cases Against Binance Stay Separate

    Two suits claiming Binance unlawfully fostered terrorist activity, filed in the wake of the cryptocurrency platform's $4.3 billion settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice, will proceed separately in the Southern District of New York, a Manhattan federal judge said Wednesday.

  • October 16, 2024

    RTX To Pay $1B For Qatari Bribes And Defrauding US Gov't

    RTX Corp. and its Raytheon subsidiary have agreed to pay approximately $1 billion and enter into two separate deferred prosecution agreements in connection with a bribery scheme to secure Qatari military contracts, as well as separate ploys to defraud the U.S. government in deals for Patriot missile and radar systems.

  • October 15, 2024

    Boeing Judge Wants DEI Monitor Pick Info Before Plea Ruling

    The Texas federal judge overseeing prosecutors' criminal case against The Boeing Co. on Tuesday said he needs more information on a provision of the proposed plea deal regarding how the U.S. Department of Justice would select an independent monitor in compliance with the agency's diversity and inclusion policies.

  • October 15, 2024

    New Cybersecurity Rules Threaten Defense Industrial Base

    The Pentagon's stringent new cybersecurity rule for its contractors threatens to drive away companies that may struggle with the added costs of compliance, while exacerbating concerns about an already-shrinking defense industrial base.

  • October 15, 2024

    Kirkland-Led Boeing Seeks Up To $35B Amid Labor Strike

    Boeing notified regulators on Tuesday of plans to raise up to $35 billion through securities offerings and a credit agreement, guided by Kirkland & Ellis LLP, as the aviation giant seeks access to cash amid a prolonged strike and production cuts.

  • October 15, 2024

    DOD Upgrades Vets' Status After 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Review

    More than 800 LGBTQ+ veterans separated administratively from the military under the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy have upgraded to an honorable discharge, the Pentagon announced on Tuesday.

  • October 15, 2024

    US Ups Energy Sanctions On Iran After Israel Missile Attack

    U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has unveiled expanded sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran, including "new and significant measures to more effectively target Iran's energy trade," following its Oct. 1 missile attack on Israel.

Expert Analysis

  • How Increased Sanctions Scrutiny Is Affecting Debt Markets

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    U.S. sanctions and export control regulators have recently taken several steps that broaden financial sector oversight, and banks, lenders and borrowers must adapt their syndication and risk assessment processes in different ways or risk incurring substantial penalties, say Cristina Brayton-Lewis and Kerrick Seay at White & Case.

  • It's No Longer Enough For Firms To Be Trusted Advisers

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    Amid fierce competition for business, the transactional “trusted adviser” paradigm from which most firms operate is no longer sufficient — they should instead aim to become trusted partners with their most valuable clients, says Stuart Maister at Strategic Narrative.

  • An Overview Of New Export Controls On Advanced Tech

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    With a new rule that took effect this month, the U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security continues to expand export controls on advanced technologies, including semiconductor, additive manufacturing and quantum computing, in coordination with international partners, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • 3 Patent Considerations For America's New Quantum Hub

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    Recent developments signal an incredibly bright future for Chicago as the new home of quantum computing, and it is crucial that these innovators — whose technology has the potential to transform many industries — prioritize intellectual property strategy, says Andrew Velzen at McDonnell Boehnen.

  • SBA Proposal Materially Alters Contractor Recertification

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    The Small Business Administration's new proposed rule on recertification affects eligibility for set-aside contracts, significantly alters the landscape for mergers and acquisitions in the government contracts industry, and could have other unintended downstream consequences, says Sam Finnerty at PilieroMazza.

  • A Preview Of AI Priorities Under The Next President

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    For the first time in a presidential election, both of the leading candidates and their parties have been vocal about artificial intelligence policy, offering clues on the future of regulation as AI continues to advance and congressional action continues to stall, say attorneys at Mintz.

  • How Companies Are Approaching Insider Trading Policies

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    An analysis of insider trading policies recently disclosed by 49 S&P 500 companies under a new U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rule reveals that while specific provisions vary from company to company, certain common themes are emerging, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • 11 Patent Cases To Watch At Fed. Circ. And High Court

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    As we head into fall, there are 11 patent cases to monitor, touching on a range of issues that could affect patent strategy, such as biotech innovation, administrative rulemaking and patent eligibility, say Edward Lanquist and Wesley Barbee at Baker Donelson.

  • How Methods Are Evolving In Textualist Interpretations

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    Textualists at the U.S. Supreme Court are increasingly considering new methods such as corpus linguistics and surveys to evaluate what a statute's text communicates to an ordinary reader, while lower courts even mull large language models like ChatGPT as supplements, says Kevin Tobia at Georgetown Law.

  • Bid Protest Spotlight: Rule Of Two, Post Award, Cost Request

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    In this month's bid protest roundup, Alissandra McCann at MoFo examines three recent decisions from the U.S. Government Accountability Office, offering distinct reminders for contractors challenging solicitations while an agency takes corrective action, pursuing post-award bid protests and filing timely cost reimbursement requests.

  • Employers Should Not Neglect Paid Military Leave Compliance

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    An August decision from the Ninth Circuit and the settlement of a long-running class action, both examining paid leave requirements under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, are part of a nationwide trend that should prompt employers to review their military leave policies to avoid potential litigation and reputational damage, says Bradford Kelley at Littler.

  • Increased Scrutiny Raises Int'l Real Estate Transaction Risks

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    Recently proposed regulations expanding the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States' oversight, a White House divestment order and state-level legislative efforts signal increasing scrutiny of real estate transactions that may trigger national security concerns, say Luciano Racco and Aleksis Fernández Caballero at Foley Hoag.

  • Navigating Cybersecurity Rule Changes For Gov't Contractors

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    As federal contractors evaluate the security of their IT systems, they should keep in mind numerous changes to the Federal Acquisition Regulations and the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement recently promulgated to meet new cyber threats, says William Stowe at KBR.

  • Why Attorneys Should Consider Community Leadership Roles

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    Volunteering and nonprofit board service are complementary to, but distinct from, traditional pro bono work, and taking on these community leadership roles can produce dividends for lawyers, their firms and the nonprofit causes they support, says Katie Beacham at Kilpatrick.

  • Opinion

    Agencies Should Reward Corporate Cyber Victim Cooperation

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    The increased regulatory scrutiny on corporate victims of cyberattacks — exemplified by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's case against SolarWinds — should be replaced with a new model that provides adequate incentives for companies to come forward proactively and collaborate with law enforcement, say attorneys at McDermott.

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