Aerospace & Defense

  • June 26, 2024

    FCC Allows Foreign Stake In Montana Telecom After Review

    The Federal Communications Commission is allowing a pair of foreign nationals to move forward with their acquisition of Montana telecommunications company iSmart and its multinational parent, saying the federal government concluded a national security review of the transfer and that iSmart's parent company, Truphone, satisfied requirements from a 2022 consent decree it entered with the FCC.

  • June 26, 2024

    Biden Pardons Veterans Convicted For LGBTQI+ Status

    President Joe Biden on Wednesday pardoned thousands of LGBTQI+ military veterans who were convicted of crimes and forced out of the military across more than 60 years based solely on their sexual orientation or gender identity.

  • June 25, 2024

    Dems Seek 'Honest Evaluation' Of New ICBM Program

    Thirteen Democrats, including the co-chairs of the Congressional Nuclear Weapons and Arms Control Working Group, are calling for an "honest evaluation" of the U.S. Air Force's new intercontinental ballistic missile program due to cost overruns.

  • June 25, 2024

    DOD Watchdog Says Calif. Bases Must Prep Climate Plans

    The U.S. Department of Defense's Office of the Inspector General revealed in a report that the leaders of four California defense facilities have failed to incorporate mandatory climate-related environmental risks, infrastructure vulnerabilities and risk-reduction measures into their master plans.

  • June 25, 2024

    Rocket Co. Shareholders Sue For Info On Take-Private Deal

    Two Astra Space Inc. shareholders sued the satellite launch company seeking records concerning a take-private deal that has valued company stock at a discount, voicing suspicions that the merger was approved to squeeze out minority shareholders.

  • June 25, 2024

    Trump Atty Argues Feds Lied To Get Mar-A-Lago Warrant

    An attorney representing Donald Trump in his criminal case over retaining classified documents after leaving the White House urged a Florida federal judge Tuesday to toss evidence seized during the raid on Mar-a-Lago, arguing the government put false information on the warrant application to search the former president's estate.

  • June 25, 2024

    GAO Won't Hear Protest Over Canceled DOD Sole-Source Deal

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office has rejected a protest over the Defense Health Agency canceling a company's contract to instead seek competitive bids, saying the company ultimately sought the award of a sole-source deal, a position the watchdog won't support.

  • June 25, 2024

    Assange Plea Deal Vindicates 'Fight To The End' Strategy

    Julian Assange's plea deal with U.S. authorities has validated his legal team's decision to throw the kitchen sink opposing extradition, a strategy that may have cooled prosecutors' appetite for seeing the Wikileaks founder spend more time behind bars, lawyers say.

  • June 24, 2024

    Julian Assange To Plead Guilty To US Charge, Feds Say

    Julian Assange will plead guilty to a single count of conspiring to disclose national security information, the U.S. Department of Justice told a federal court in the Northern Mariana Islands on Monday, likely ending the WikiLeaks founder's long-running battle to avoid a U.S. prison sentence.

  • June 24, 2024

    Menendez Was 'Weird' While Planning Egypt Trip, Jury Hears

    A New York federal jury weighing charges that U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez took bribes for official acts related to Egypt heard Monday from a congressional staffer that the senator acted "weird" while planning an official trip there and was "making up lies."

  • June 24, 2024

    Justices Undo Terror Victims' Win, Citing Twitter Decision

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday swept aside a D.C. Circuit ruling that threatened to expose major pharmaceutical companies to liability for terrorist attacks that injured or killed hundreds of U.S. soldiers and civilians in Iraq.

  • June 24, 2024

    DC Circ. Backs Gov't Contractor Win In Fight With Ex-Worker

    The D.C. Circuit has backed a ruling that a former senior technical manager for government contractor Apprio Inc. breached a proprietary information agreement giving the rights of certain software he created over to the company.

  • June 24, 2024

    Defense Contractor Gresham Inks $83M SPAC Merger

    Defense contractor Gresham Worldwide Inc. and special-purpose acquisition company Ault Disruptive Technologies Corp. agreed Monday to merge in a deal that values Gresham at $83 million and enlarges the company's profile, steered by two law firms.

  • June 24, 2024

    Trump Mar-A-Lago Case Is Unlawfully Funded, Fla. Judge Told

    An attorney defending Donald Trump against the federal government's accusation that he illegally retained classified documents at Mar-a-Lago after leaving the White House in 2021 told a Florida judge Monday the criminal indictment should be dismissed against the former president, saying that the case isn't lawfully funded.

  • June 24, 2024

    Justices Will Hear Reservist's Case Over Denied Top-Up Pay

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday said it will hear a federal employee's case over whether he was owed differential pay after being called to active duty in his role as a military reservist, but not directly into a contingency operation.

  • June 21, 2024

    Kaspersky Hit With Sanctions In Wake Of US Software Ban

    The U.S. Department of the Treasury on Friday sanctioned a dozen AO Kaspersky Lab executives, just a day after the U.S. Department of Commerce prohibited the sale of the Russia-based company's antivirus software and cybersecurity products in the United States.

  • June 21, 2024

    Lockheed Units To Pay $70M To End FCA Cost Inflation Suit

    Sikorsky Support Services Inc. and Derco Aerospace Inc. have agreed to pay $70 million to settle a federal lawsuit alleging that they overcharged the U.S. Navy for spare parts and materials for training aircraft through an illegal subcontracting arrangement, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Friday.

  • June 21, 2024

    Watchdog Backs NASA's Move To Cut Bid For $2B Deal

    A federal watchdog rejected a Science Applications International Corp.'s efforts to rejoin competition for a $2 billion National Aeronautics and Space Administration deal, saying in a decision released Friday that NASA sufficiently explained why it found SAIC's bid noncompetitive.

  • June 21, 2024

    Treasury Unveils Rules Curtailing Outbound Tech Investments

    The U.S. Department of the Treasury on Friday proposed rules to implement President Joe Biden's executive order aimed at restricting American investments in certain technologies that China is developing, including artificial intelligence systems, that are deemed threats to national security.

  • June 21, 2024

    Boeing, Spirit AeroSystems Say Blowout Suit Not Fit For Calif.

    The Boeing Co. and Spirit AeroSystems Inc. are asking a California federal judge to throw out a suit from a group of passengers from Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, which experienced a midair door plug blowout in January, saying the California courts don't have jurisdiction over their claims.

  • June 21, 2024

    Tube Co. Blames Denied Duty Refund Claim On CBP Error

    A steel importer told the U.S. Court of International Trade on Friday that customs officials refused to honor a waiver for $241,000 worth of national security tariffs based on an import classification issue that they allegedly created.

  • June 21, 2024

    Rip And Replace 'Ruinous' Without Fed Funds, Carriers Say

    A rural telecoms trade group is warning the Federal Communications Commission of potentially "ruinous" financial predicaments for small carriers if the "rip and replace" program targeting Chinese-made telecommunications equipment isn't fully funded soon, saying in a new filing that carriers are considering reducing service because of the lack of funding.

  • June 21, 2024

    9/11 Firm Consultant Acted Alone In Depo Leak, 2nd Circ. Told

    A New York law firm representing victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in a multidistrict litigation told the Second Circuit that a consultant who leaked a deposition transcript to the press acted by himself, asking an appellate panel to reverse millions of dollars in sanctions.

  • June 21, 2024

    DOD Can't Escape LGBTQ Veterans' Discharge Bias Suit

    A California federal judge denied the U.S. Department of Defense's bid to toss a suit alleging veterans discharged under the military's former "don't ask, don't tell" ban on LGBTQ service members continue to face discrimination, finding they put forward enough proof of bias for their claims to survive dismissal.

  • June 21, 2024

    Sens. Introduce 'Complementary' Bill To TikTok Ban

    A bipartisan bill introduced Thursday would require websites and apps to disclose to their users if they are owned wholly or partially by China, North Korea, Russia or Iran or if data collected through those sites or apps is accessible to those countries.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Teaching Yoga Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Being a yoga instructor has helped me develop my confidence and authenticity, as well as stress management and people skills — all of which have crossed over into my career as an attorney, says Laura Gongaware at Clyde & Co.

  • A Vision For Economic Clerkships In The Legal System

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    As courts handle increasingly complex damages analyses involving vast amounts of data, an economic clerkship program — integrating early-career economists into the judicial system — could improve legal outcomes and provide essential training to clerks, say Mona Birjandi at Data for Decisions and Matt Farber at Secretariat.

  • Action Steps To Address New Restrictions On Outbound Data

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    Companies should immediately assess all their data-based operations so they can consider strategies to effectively mitigate new compliance risks brought on by recently implemented transaction restrictions, including a Justice Department proposal and landmark data legislation, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On Text Message Data

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    Electronically stored information on cellphones, and in particular text messages, can present unique litigation challenges, and recent court decisions demonstrate that counsel must carefully balance what data should be preserved, collected, reviewed and produced, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • 'Fat Leonard' Case Shows High Bar For Rescinding Guilty Plea

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    Prosecutors’ recent move in the “Fat Leonard” bribery case, supporting several defendants’ motions to withdraw their guilty pleas, is extremely unusual – and its contrast with other prosecutions demonstrates that the procedural safeguards at plea hearings are far from enough, says Sara Kropf at Kropf Moseley.

  • How New Rule Would Change CFIUS Enforcement Powers

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    Before the May 15 comment deadline, companies may want to weigh in on proposed regulatory changes to enforcement and mitigation tools at the disposal of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, including broadened subpoena powers, difficult new mitigation timelines and higher maximum penalties, say attorneys at Venable.

  • 8 Questions To Ask Before Final CISA Breach Reporting Rule

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    The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s recently proposed cyber incident reporting requirements for critical infrastructure entities represent the overall approach CISA will take in its final rule, so companies should be asking key compliance questions now and preparing for a more complicated reporting regime, say Arianna Evers and Shannon Mercer at WilmerHale.

  • Series

    Swimming Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Years of participation in swimming events, especially in the open water, have proven to be ideal preparation for appellate arguments in court — just as you must put your trust in the ocean when competing in a swim event, you must do the same with the judicial process, says John Kulewicz at Vorys.

  • Best Practices For Space Security In Our Connected World

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    NASA's recently published space security guide is another indication that cyber-resilience has become a global theme for the space and satellite sector, as well as a useful reference for companies and organizations reviewing their cybersecurity frameworks or looking to partner with the U.S. agency, says Hayley Blyth at Bird & Bird.

  • Manufacturers Should Pay Attention To 'Right-To-Repair' Laws

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    Oregon’s recently passed "right-to-repair" statute highlights that the R2R movement is not going away, and that manufacturers of all kinds need to be paying attention to the evolving list of R2R statutes in various states and consider participating in the process, says Courtney Sarnow at Culhane.

  • Don't Use The Same Template For Every Client Alert

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    As the old marketing adage goes, consistency is key, but law firm style guides need consistency that contemplates variety when it comes to client alert formats, allowing attorneys to tailor alerts to best fit the audience and subject matter, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.

  • Series

    Walking With My Dog Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Thanks to my dog Birdie, I've learned that carving out an activity different from the practice of law — like daily outdoor walks that allow you to interact with new people — can contribute to professional success by boosting creativity and mental acuity, as well as expanding your social network, says Sarah Petrie at the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Follow The Iron Rule Of Trial Logic

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    Many diligent and eager attorneys include every good fact, point and rule in their trial narratives — spurred by the gnawing fear they’ll be second-guessed for leaving something out — but this approach ignores a fundamental principle of successful trial lawyering, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Breaking Down EPA's Rule On PFAS In Drinking Water

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    Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finalized the first enforceable federal drinking water regulation for PFAS, which, along with reporting and compliance requirements for regulated entities, will have a number of indirect effects, including increased cleanup costs and the possible expansion of existing Superfund sites, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Unpacking The Interim Vet-Owned Small Biz Verification Rule

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    Government contractors that intend to bid for service-disabled veteran-owned small business set-aside contracts should immediately consider the potential impacts of a recently issued rule that specifies how contracting officers will verify that they have certified their status, say Derek Mullins and Beth Gotthelf at Butzel.

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