Aerospace & Defense

  • September 25, 2024

    In-House Counsel To Play Central Role At AI Cos., VCs Say

    Venture capital firms expect in-house counsel at artificial intelligence companies to play a bigger role in their businesses due to regulatory uncertainties around AI, while a professor who helped pioneer the technology warned that transparency of commercial AI businesses should be "top of mind," attorneys heard at the seventh annual Berkeley Law AI Institute Wednesday.

  • September 25, 2024

    Defense Contractor Hit With $2.25M Fine For Bribery Scheme

    A California federal judge issued a $2.25 million fine to a defense company for its role in a bribery scheme through which a former executive bribed an ex-Navy contracting official in exchange for lucrative contracts.

  • September 25, 2024

    Navajo Nation Inks $31M Deal With Bitco For Veteran Housing

    The Navajo Nation said it has signed a $31 million contract with tribally owned Bitco Corp. to build 95 homes for Navajo veterans, using funds provided by President Joe Biden's American Rescue Plan Act.

  • September 25, 2024

    Terrorism Victims Sue For Share Of $4.3B Binance Plea

    The U.S. government must put the $4.3 billion it obtained in its money laundering and sanctions violations case against Binance toward a federal fund for victims of state-sponsored terrorism, a new lawsuit in D.C. federal court alleges.

  • September 25, 2024

    Blank Rome Faces DQ Bid Over Alleged Tampering

    An attorney suing three lawyers from Blank Rome LLP wants the firm's other attorneys disqualified from representing their colleagues, accusing them of improperly contacting a plaintiff's expert witness to intimidate him into no longer participating in the case.

  • September 25, 2024

    FCC Closer To Opening Airwaves, But Auctions Still In Limbo

    President Joe Biden's communications regulators are still pushing to get prized spectrum into the hands of private companies, but the window for regaining legal authority to auction the airwaves this year will soon close, and the next White House administration will face challenges too.

  • September 25, 2024

    Veteran Federal Prosecutor Joins King & Spalding In Texas

    King & Spalding LLP has strengthened its government investigations, cybersecurity and special matters offerings with a counsel in Austin, Texas, who led efforts to combat cybercrime and pandemic-era fraud during his more than 15 years as a federal prosecutor.

  • September 24, 2024

    Helicopter Maker Skirted FAA Requirements, Jury Hears

    Fort Worth-based Bell Helicopter Textron Inc. used a former vendor's trade secrets to skirt the need for regulatory approval, a jury heard in Texas state court Tuesday, allegedly avoiding requirements set by the Federal Aviation Administration as the company pulled the rug out from under its old vendor.

  • September 24, 2024

    Ukraine Oil Co. Says Russia Can't Buy Time In $5B Award Suit

    Ukraine's state-owned oil and gas company has asked a D.C. federal court not to pause its lawsuit to enforce a $5 billion arbitral award against Russia while set-aside proceedings in the Netherlands play out, arguing that the Kremlin is just stalling.

  • September 24, 2024

    Neurosurgeon Deems Judge Newman's Brain 'Entirely Normal'

    A third doctor has found that suspended U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman, 97, is not cognitively impaired and that there's no reason to keep her off the bench, according to a report released by her attorneys Tuesday.

  • September 24, 2024

    Amazon Shareholders Try To Save Suit Over Blue Origin Deal

    Stockholders who sued Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and the company's board in Delaware's Court of Chancery for "blindly" approving a multibillion-dollar, Bezos-controlled launch contract for a new satellite-based internet service struggled for enough altitude Tuesday to clear defense dismissal challenges.

  • September 24, 2024

    RTX Denies Securities Fraud In Engine Crack Class Action

    RTX Corp. faced significant challenges and spent billions of dollars after a subsidiary's jet engines developed "microcracks," but it did not commit securities fraud by lying or withholding relevant information from investors, the aerospace giant said in seeking dismissal of a class action from Connecticut federal court.

  • September 24, 2024

    Man In Mueller Report Asks DC Circ. To Revive Privacy Claim

    A Georgian American businessman named in special counsel Robert Mueller's report on 2016 Russian election interference has petitioned the D.C. Circuit for an en banc review of a panel's decision not to revive his Privacy Act damages claim related to supposed inaccuracies, arguing the panel erred in finding he had abandoned damages arguments.

  • September 24, 2024

    Sentencing For Sen. Menendez, 2 Associates Delayed 3 Mos.

    Former U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez and two businessmen will be sentenced in 2025 following the trio's conviction on bribery charges, according to a New York federal court order that pushed the dates back three months.

  • September 23, 2024

    Judge Grants Ex-Admiral, Contractors Separate Bribery Trials

    The Washington, D.C., federal court agreed on Monday to sever a retired Navy admiral's bribery trial from that of the defense contractors he is accused of steering federal contracts toward.

  • September 23, 2024

    Helicopter Co. Used Code Names To Oust Supplier, Jury Hears

    Under the code name "Project Cicada," Fort Worth-based Bell Helicopter Textron Inc. worked for years to replace California-based digital avionics equipment supplier Rogerson Aircraft Corporation with a competitor, a jury heard in a Texas state court Monday, using Rogerson's trade secrets to prep the rival for the eventual shift.

  • September 23, 2024

    Navigation Co. Says Criticisms Of 900 MHz Plan Overblown

    A navigation company that wants to use portions of the lower 900 megahertz band to set up an Earth-based broadband and geolocation network has told the Federal Communications Commission that critics' concerns about interference are overstated.

  • September 23, 2024

    Wash. Agency No Longer Seeking Names In 3M Earplug Case

    The Washington state agency that handles child support claims seems no longer interested in seeking information on service members who are expected to receive payments from the 6 billion settlement from 3M Co. over injuries stemming from its Combat Arms Earplugs.

  • September 23, 2024

    Biden Admin Seeks To Ban Certain Chinese, Russian Car Tech

    The Biden administration proposed a new policy Monday that would ban automakers from importing and selling vehicles in the U.S. with certain connectivity components made in China or Russia that pose national security risks, in an effort to protect U.S. infrastructure and American consumers.

  • September 23, 2024

    Latham-Led Aerospace Giant StandardAero Preps $1B IPO

    Private equity-backed aerospace services provider StandardAero Inc. launched plans on Monday for an estimated $1 billion initial public offering, represented by Latham & Watkins LLP and underwriters' counsel Milbank LLP, potentially marking one of the year's largest IPOs.

  • September 23, 2024

    Hawaii Judge Says Tenants Must Arbitrate Water Pollution Suit

    The named plaintiffs in a proposed class of Hawaii tenants must arbitrate the individual claims in their water contamination case against a landlord while their other claims are paused, an Aloha State federal judge has ruled.

  • September 20, 2024

    Sens. Kaine, Romney Seek To Deter China's 'Maritime Militia'

    Sens. Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Mitt Romney, R-Utah, introduced a bill that would allow sanctions on foreign adversaries' "maritime militias," saying the aim is to end China's use of military vessels disguised as commercial fishing ships to take over disputed territory in the South China Sea.

  • September 20, 2024

    Cards Against Humanity Hits SpaceX With $15M Trespass Suit

    Cards Against Humanity LLC hit Elon Musk's SpaceX with a $15 million lawsuit in Texas state court, alleging SpaceX has trespassed and dumped trash and machinery on its once-pristine Lone Star State property that the party card game-maker bought to impede former President Donald Trump's U.S.-Mexico border wall.

  • September 20, 2024

    GAO Rejects Loper Bright Argument In Army Deal Dispute

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office ruled that the U.S. Army could require bidders to recertify their small business status when bidding on a set-aside task order, saying the recent overturning of Chevron deference didn't make the Army's interpretation of a related rule unreasonable.

  • September 20, 2024

    Army Could Restore Bidder Eligibility For $42M Logistics Deal

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office has rejected a protest over the U.S. Army reinstating the eventual awardee of a $42.3 million logistics support deal after initially finding the company's bid unacceptable, saying the Army's discussions with the awardee were reasonable.

Expert Analysis

  • Global Bribery Probes Are Complicating FCPA Compliance

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    The recent rise in collaboration between the U.S. Department of Justice and foreign authorities in bribery enforcement can not only affect companies' legal exposure as resolution approaches vary by country, but also the decision of when and whether to disclose Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations to the DOJ, say Samantha Badlam and Catherine Conroy at Ropes & Gray.

  • 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.

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