Public Policy

  • July 26, 2024

    Georgia Judge Won't Block Prosecutor Oversight Commission

    A Georgia judge has rejected an attempt to temporarily block a new state commission created to investigate and discipline state prosecutors, finding it doesn't violate Georgia's constitution.

  • July 26, 2024

    Short-Term Rental Group Defends Colo. City Ordinance Suit

    A group of short-term rental owners in Colorado urged a federal court on Thursday to reject a city's bid to dismiss their suit, which claims a 2023 ordinance that regulates where short-term rentals can operate "effectively bans most existing short-term rentals."

  • July 26, 2024

    DC Circ. Vacates FERC Oil Pipeline Index Revision

    The D.C. Circuit on Friday vacated a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission order that lowered the five-year index level governing oil pipeline transportation rates, ruling that the agency ran afoul of federal law when it failed to gather public input on the revision.

  • July 26, 2024

    Calif. Community Org Opposes FCC Bulk Billing Clampdown

    A technology-focused community group in California has joined a chorus of advocates calling for the Federal Communications Commission to hit the brakes on a proposal to tighten rules for bulk billing in multitenant environments.

  • July 26, 2024

    FCC Kicks Off Rapid Response Team To Zap Pole Disputes

    The Federal Communications Commission has launched a rapid response team to clear up disputes between utility pole owners and internet service providers over the cost of upgrading or replacing poles to allow for new broadband equipment.

  • July 26, 2024

    Smartmatic Asks Court To Order Fox Exec To Answer Subpoena

    A new front in the war between Smartmatic and Fox News has opened up in Florida, as the voting technology company is asking a Miami court to force a Fox News board member to respond to a subpoena issued in its $2.7 billion defamation suit in New York.

  • July 26, 2024

    DC Circ. Vacates EPA's Biofuel Exemptions Denial

    The D.C. Circuit on Friday largely sided with dozens of small petroleum refiners challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's denial of their exemptions to federal renewable fuel blending requirements while keeping its reasoning for doing so under seal.

  • July 26, 2024

    White House Offers Removal Relief For Lebanese

    The Biden administration on Friday offered deportation relief to certain Lebanese nationals in the U.S. as conditions in South Lebanon break down amid hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel.

  • July 26, 2024

    Feds Tell 9th Circ. Wash. ICE Inspection Law Rightly Blocked

    The federal government has inserted itself into the battle over a Washington state law allowing surprise inspections of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement immigration detention center, telling the Ninth Circuit it was rightly blocked under the intergovernmental immunity doctrine.

  • July 26, 2024

    Biz Groups Call Corp. Transparency Act Unconstitutional

    The U.S. government has failed to show how the Corporate Transparency Act meets narrow exceptions to the Fourth Amendment's search warrant requirements, a group of small businesses told a Michigan federal court Friday in contending that the statute is unconstitutional.  

  • July 26, 2024

    Assa Abloy Resolves DOJ Merger Monitor Dispute

    Assa Abloy told a D.C. federal judge that it's agreed "in principle" on how a monitoring trustee will review its compliance with a U.S. Department of Justice merger lawsuit settlement, resolving a simmering dispute over its complaints of an open-ended multimillion-dollar investigation.

  • July 26, 2024

    WTO E-Commerce Deal Launches Without US Support

    World Trade Organization members announced a historic agreement on digital trade on Friday, but the U.S. said the deal "falls short" of its expectations.

  • July 26, 2024

    2 Calif. Tribal Gaming Talks Advance, 1 Awaits DOI Assist

    Negotiations between two California tribes and the state over sports gaming compacts are winding down after nearly a year, while another tribe awaits intervention from the U.S. Department of the Interior to assist in talks after the Golden State failed to consent to a third agreement.

  • July 26, 2024

    EU Calls For Dispute Talks Over Taiwan's Wind Farm Policy

    The European Union challenged Taiwan's domestic sourcing requirements for offshore wind energy projects in the World Trade Organization, saying Friday that Taiwan was violating its duty not to discriminate against imported goods.

  • July 26, 2024

    Colo. County Will Pay $1.75M To End Political-Payback Claims

    A Colorado county has agreed to pay $1.75 million to settle claims against its sheriff's office that a former undersheriff was fired over political disagreements with the former sheriff, the plaintiff's attorneys said Friday.

  • July 26, 2024

    Feds Want Mogul To Forfeit $1.5M In NC Bribery Case

    Convicted insurance mogul Greg Lindberg should forfeit nearly $1.5 million he allegedly used to bribe North Carolina's insurance regulation chief in exchange for more friendly oversight of his companies, the U.S. government told a North Carolina federal court Friday.

  • July 26, 2024

    EV Group Seeks To Defend Fuel Economy Rule In 6th Circ.

    A coalition of electric vehicle manufacturers and suppliers want in on a consolidated challenge in the Sixth Circuit to the U.S. Department of Transportation's new fuel economy standards for passenger cars and light trucks, saying the EV industry's future viability banks on the stringent new standards.

  • July 26, 2024

    Ind. Tax Court Says Tax Cap Acre Limitation Unconstitutional

    The Indiana Constitution doesn't permit a fixed 1-acre limitation on land eligible for the state's 1% property tax cap, the state tax court said, siding with a couple who argued their entire property qualified for the cap.

  • July 26, 2024

    Feds Invest $240M In Pacific Tribal Fish Hatchery Efforts

    Hatcheries that produce Pacific salmon and steelhead will get $240 million in federal funding as the U.S. Department of the Interior and the Commerce Department look to restore fish in the Columbia River Basin and mitigate the impacts of dams on tribes, the U.S. government said.

  • July 26, 2024

    Power Groups Join Bid To Stay EPA Plant Rule At High Court

    Utility and coal industry groups have joined dozens of red states in urging the U.S. Supreme Court to block implementation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's rule curbing greenhouse gas emissions from power plants.

  • July 26, 2024

    Cuomo Harassment Document Fight Heads To NY Appeals Court

    A Manhattan judge on Friday allowed both the New York attorney general and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo to appeal parts of a decision requiring the state to produce unredacted transcripts of some witness interviews in the sexual harassment investigation that led to Cuomo's resignation.

  • July 26, 2024

    Texas Justices Announce Fees For Statewide Business Court

    The Texas Supreme Court said Friday that actions filed in and removed to the business court will cost $2,500, unveiling the fee schedule for the state's latest venue.

  • July 26, 2024

    Fed Closes Loop On Now-Shuttered Crypto Bank Silvergate

    The Federal Reserve said Friday that it has concluded an enforcement action requiring Silvergate Bank to close out its operations safely and smoothly, tying up a loose thread from the California-based crypto bank's move to shut itself down after tanking last year.

  • July 26, 2024

    NFL Leads Sports & Betting Cases To Watch For Rest Of 2024

    Significant cases involving major American pro sports organizations have earned extra attention as the second half of 2024 begins, as have cases involving young professional athletes, college recruits and youth sports participants. Still, the NFL remains king with its footprint all over the list of must-follow cases for the rest of the year.

  • July 26, 2024

    How Being A Female Litigator May Aid Harris' Presidential Bid

    Female litigators regularly confront implicit biases and double standards when it comes to "their appearance, voice, attire, demeanor and their advocacy," according to the author of an American Bar Foundation research report on first chair trial lawyers.

Expert Analysis

  • High Court Paves Middle Ground For Proceedings Obstruction

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Fischer sensibly leaves the door open for prosecutors to make more nuanced assessments as to whether defendants' actions directly or tangentially impair the availability or integrity of anything used in an official proceeding, without criminalizing acts such as peaceful demonstrations, say attorneys at Perry Law.

  • How High Court Approached Time Limit On Reg Challenges

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Corner Post v. Federal Reserve Board effectively gives new entities their own personal statute of limitations to challenge rules and regulations, and Justice Brett Kavanaugh's concurrence may portend the court's view that those entities do not need to be directly regulated, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.

  • Series

    Florida Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

    Author Photo

    The second quarter of 2024 brought two notable bills that will affect Florida's banking and finance community across many issues, including virtual currency abandonment, cancellation of financial services on the basis of political opinions, and the exemption amount of motor vehicles, say Joshua Prever and Andrew Balthazor at Holland & Knight.

  • Series

    After Chevron: FTC's 'Unfair Competition' Actions In Jeopardy

    Author Photo

    While the U.S. Supreme Court's decision ending Chevron deference will have limited effect on the Federal Trade Commission's merger guidelines, administrative enforcement actions and commission decisions on appeal, it could restrict the agency's expansive take on its rulemaking authority and threaten the noncompete ban, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

  • How To Clean Up Your Generative AI-Produced Legal Drafts

    Author Photo

    As law firms increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence tools to produce legal text, attorneys should be on guard for the overuse of cohesive devices in initial drafts, and consider a few editing pointers to clean up AI’s repetitive and choppy outputs, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Opportunities For Change In FHFA Practices

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the Chevron doctrine should lead to better cooperation between the Federal Housing Finance Agency and Congress, and may give the FHFA a chance to embrace transparency and innovation and promote sustainable housing practices, says Mehdi Sinaki at Michelman & Robinson.

  • Constitutional Protections For Cannabis Companies Are Hazy

    Author Photo

    Cannabis businesses are subject to federal enforcement and tax, but often without the benefit of constitutional protections — and the entanglement of state and federal law and conflicting judicial opinions are creating confusion in the space, says Amber Lengacher at Purple Circle.

  • Supreme Court's ALJ Ruling Carries Implications Beyond SEC

    Author Photo

    In its recent Jarkesy opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court limited the types of cases that can be tried before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's in-house administrative law judges, setting the stage for challenges to the constitutionality of ALJs across other agencies, say Robert Robertson and Kimberley Church at Dechert.

  • Opinion

    A Tale Of 2 Trump Cases: The Rule Of Law Is A Live Issue

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision this week in Trump v. U.S., holding that former President Donald Trump has broad immunity from prosecution, undercuts the rule of law, while the former president’s New York hush money conviction vindicates it in eight key ways, says David Postel at Henein Hutchison.

  • USPTO Disclaimer Rule Would Complicate Patent Prosecution

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's proposed changes to terminal disclaimer practice could lead to a patent owner being unable to enforce a valid patent simply because it is indirectly tied to a patent in which a single claim is found anticipated or obvious in view of the prior art, say attorneys at Sterne Kessler.

  • 2nd Circ. ERISA Ruling May Help Fight Unfair Arb. Clauses

    Author Photo

    The Second Circuit recently held that a plaintiff seeking planwide relief under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act cannot be compelled to individual arbitration, a decision that opens the door to new applications of the effective vindication doctrine to defeat onerous and one-sided arbitration clauses, say Raphael Janove and Liana Vitale at Janove.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Various Paths For Labor And Employment Law

    Author Photo

    Labor and employment law leans heavily on federal agency guidance, so the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to toss out Chevron deference will ripple through this area, with future workplace policies possibly taking shape through strategic litigation, informal guidance, state-level regulation and more, says Alexander MacDonald at Littler.

  • Series

    Boxing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Boxing has influenced my legal work by enabling me to confidently hone the skills I've learned from the sport, like the ability to remain calm under pressure, evaluate an opponent's weaknesses and recognize when to seize an important opportunity, says Kirsten Soto at Clyde & Co.

  • What NYC's Green Fast Track Means For Affordable Housing

    Author Photo

    New York City's Green Fast Track for Housing initiative, which went into effect last month, aims to speed up the environmental review process for modest residential developments and could potentially pave the way for similar initiatives in other cities, say Vivien Krieger and Rachel Scall at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Series

    After Chevron: No Deference, No Difference For SEC Or CFTC

    Author Photo

    The Chevron doctrine did not fundamentally alter the interplay between the courts and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission in the development of the securities and commodities laws — and its demise will not do so either, says Dan Berkovitz at Millennium Management.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Public Policy archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!