Public Policy

  • July 24, 2024

    3rd Circ. Says ​NJ Temp Worker Law Is Constitutional

    Staffing industry groups can't halt a New Jersey law strengthening protections for temporary workers because it doesn't discriminate between out-of-state and in-state companies and is therefore constitutional, the Third Circuit ruled Wednesday, affirming a district court's ruling.

  • July 24, 2024

    Where Biden Stands On Judicial Noms Compared To Trump

    With President Joe Biden now set to be a one-term president, it appears he can match President Donald Trump's record on district court nominees, but it's not likely he will on nominees to circuit courts.

  • July 24, 2024

    Parts Of Klehr Harrison Bills Not Privileged, Pa. Panel Finds

    Pennsylvania journalists can view the subject lines of invoice requests sent to the Pennsylvania Office of General Counsel by outside law firms, including Klehr Harrison, with a state appeals court panel determining the information falls under the state's Right-to-Know Law and is not privileged, nor is it protected by a court order.

  • July 24, 2024

    EPA Moving Toward New Regulations For 5 Chemicals

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday kicked off the process to fast-track new health risk evaluations for five chemicals, including vinyl chloride, a substance that raised alarm after the Norfolk Southern train wreck in East Palestine, Ohio, last year.

  • July 24, 2024

    5th Circ. Strikes Down FCC's Universal Service Fund

    The full Fifth Circuit struck down the Federal Communications Commission's system for subsidizing telecommunications service for rural and low-income users as unconstitutional Wednesday, reversing a panel decision and triggering a circuit split with three other appeals courts that upheld the fee regime.

  • July 24, 2024

    USCIS Updates Immigrant Entrepreneur Requirements

    Immigrant entrepreneurs hoping to take advantage of the international entrepreneur parole program will now have to meet higher investment and revenue thresholds, according to an updated U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services regulation.

  • July 24, 2024

    Hemp Cos. Get Stay Of DEA Subpoenas Seeking Records

    A Texas federal judge on Wednesday stayed enforcement of U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration subpoenas seeking financial and other records from a group of hemp and vape sellers, who had argued earlier this week that the subpoenas were overbroad and unlinked to any federal investigation.

  • July 23, 2024

    Knives Out For Another Pro-Agency Landmark After Chevron

    Only weeks after U.S. Supreme Court conservatives took a hatchet to the judicial deference shown to federal agencies, right-leaning lawyers are imploring the justices to rock the administrative law realm again by gutting a New Deal-era precedent at the heart of the modern regulatory system.

  • July 23, 2024

    Kroger And Colo. Talks To Avoid Merger Hearing Stall Out

    Negotiations between Kroger Co. and Colorado enforcers to avoid an injunction hearing in the state's challenge to a $24 billion merger with Albertsons appeared to have stalled, prompting the grocers Tuesday to pitch a state judge on other options to avoid the fast-approaching proceeding.

  • July 23, 2024

    'Not Doing Enough': Banks Grilled Over Zelle Fraud, Scams

    Senate Democrats on Tuesday confronted bank executives over a new staff report that found three of the nation's largest banks have declined to reimburse customers in recent years for close to $900 million in payments reported as fraudulent or scam-related that were sent on Zelle, the largest U.S. peer-to-peer payment platform.

  • July 23, 2024

    Lack Of Quorum Dooms EEOC Pregnancy Regs, Co. Says

    A Texas industrial sales company sued the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on Monday, challenging the constitutionality of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which echoes federal disability law in requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations for pregnant workers on the job.

  • July 23, 2024

    BIA Wraps Up Search For Brothers' Ancestral Records

    Two elderly brothers' dispute with the Bureau of Indian Affairs over allegations the agency failed to turn over ancestral information that could prove the brothers' lineage to an Alaska Native village may be resolved soon. 

  • July 23, 2024

    Schiff's Bill Would Expand FOIA Provisions To Federal Courts

    Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., introduced legislation Tuesday that would extend the rights provided by the federal Freedom of Information Act to the work of the judicial branch.

  • July 23, 2024

    X's Tesla Ties Could Require Judge's Recusal, Watchdog Says

    Elon Musk's X Corp. wants to avoid disclosing its financial links with Tesla in the social media company's defamation lawsuit against Media Matters for America because the Texas federal judge overseeing the case likely holds Tesla stock and would need to recuse himself, the progressive media watchdog said.

  • July 23, 2024

    Kickback Risk Remains For Gene Therapy Fertility Programs

    Federal health officials this week declined to relieve two companies of potential liability under the Anti-Kickback Statute concerning their fertility support programs for patients receiving gene therapies.

  • July 23, 2024

    EPA Must Ban PFAS In Pesticides, Environmental Groups Say

    Farmer advocacy groups and environmentalists urged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to flex its regulatory muscles and prohibit the use of pesticide formulas and containers made with so-called forever chemicals, according to a petition that says the agency is doing little to address the issue.

  • July 23, 2024

    ​​​​​​​Nigeria Fines Meta $220M Over WhatsApp Privacy Policy

    Nigerian regulators have hit Meta with a $220 million fine over alleged privacy and antitrust violations and ordered the company to stop sharing WhatsApp users' data with advertisers without express permission, the culmination of a nearly three-year-long investigative process.

  • July 23, 2024

    NC's $500K Med Mal Damages Cap Faces Fight

    A patient who obtained a $7.5 million jury verdict in her case against a North Carolina doctor over the loss of her unborn baby is challenging the constitutionality of the Tar Heel State's cap on compensatory damages in medical negligence suits.

  • July 23, 2024

    9th Circ. Denies Woman's Derivative US Citizenship Claim

    A Mexican woman facing deportation cannot claim to be a U.S. citizen despite her mother's naturalization, a split Ninth Circuit ruled Tuesday, saying her father's voluntary acknowledgment of paternity thwarted her citizenship claim.

  • July 23, 2024

    Lawmakers Agree On Flexibility To Monitor AI In Finance

    Lawmakers on the House Financial Services Committee agreed Tuesday that the stakes are high when it comes to regulating the use of generative artificial intelligence in financial and housing services, and appeared to agree with industry representatives that any regulation should prioritize flexibility to keep up with the fast-developing technology.

  • July 23, 2024

    Laser Sights Not 'Arms,' Judge Rules, Backing Chicago Ban

    An Illinois federal judge Monday upheld the constitutionality of Chicago's laser sight ban and refused to entertain a resident's "eleventh-hour request" to pursue nominal damages, ending the 14-year-old case.

  • July 23, 2024

    US, UK, EU Antitrust Enforcers Outline AI Principles

    The top antitrust officials from the U.S. Justice Department, the Federal Trade Commission, the European Commission and the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority presented a unified international commitment Tuesday to closely monitor artificial intelligence technology and the companies that they warned could wield AI anticompetitively.

  • July 23, 2024

    Colo. Judges Want Clarity On When Moot Cases Need Rulings

    Colorado appellate judges on Tuesday pushed a popular ski town to define what makes a case of "great public importance," as a major resort company argued its land fight with the town is weighty enough that the judges should rule even if the actual dispute is now moot.

  • July 23, 2024

    Wash. AG Says 'Abortion Reversal' Clinic's Suit Still Deficient

    Washington state's attorney general said Monday an anti-abortion clinic group being investigated for marketing an "abortion reversal pill" cannot blame his two-year-old document demands for a recent insurance rate hike, pushing a Tacoma federal judge to reject the group's legal effort to shield itself from future consumer protection enforcement.

  • July 23, 2024

    US Cos. Say Italian Tube Biz's Duty Must Cover Romanian Co.

    Domestic tube producers have urged the U.S. Court of International Trade to order the U.S. Department of Commerce to redo an Italian manufacturer's duty rate, claiming the department needed to take a Romanian affiliate's production activities into account.

Expert Analysis

  • Opinion

    Del. Needs To Urgently Pass Post-Moelis Corporate Law Bill

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    After the Delaware Chancery Court's decision in West Palm Beach Firefighters' Pension v. Moelis sparked confusion around governance rights, recently proposed amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law would preserve the state's predictable corporate governance system, says Lawrence Hamermesh at Widener University Delaware Law School.

  • Cos. Must Stay On Alert With Joint Employer Rule In Flux

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    While employers may breathe a sigh of relief at recent events blocking the National Labor Relations Board's proposed rule that would make it easier for two entities to be deemed joint employers, the rule is not yet dead, say attorneys at ​​​​​​​Day Pitney.

  • Opinion

    NY Should Pass Litigation Funding Bill To Protect Plaintiffs

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    New York state should embrace the regulatory framework proposed in the Consumer Litigation Funding Act, which would suppress the unregulated predatory lenders that currently prey on vulnerable litigants but preserve a funding option that helps personal injury plaintiffs stand up to deep-pocketed corporate defendants, says Alan Ripka at Alan Ripka & Associates.

  • Series

    Playing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My deep and passionate involvement in playing, writing and producing music equipped me with skills — like creativity, improvisation and problem-solving — that contribute to the success of my legal career, says attorney Kenneth Greene.

  • Contractors Must Prep For FAR Council GHG Emissions Rule

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    With the U.S. Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council expected to finalize its proposed rule on the disclosure of greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related financial risk this year, government contractors should take key steps now to get ready, say Thomas Daley at DLA Piper, Steven Rothstein at the Ceres Accelerator for Sustainable Capital Markets, and John Kostyack at Kostyack Strategies.

  • Proposed Cannabis Reschedule Sidesteps State Law Effects

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's recent proposal to move cannabis to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act provides certain benefits, but its failure to address how the rescheduling would interact with existing state cannabis laws disappointed industry participants hoping for clarity on this crucial question, says Ian Stewart at Wilson Elser.

  • What's New In Kentucky's Financial Services Overhaul

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    Kentucky's H.B. 726 will go into effect in July and brings with it some significant restructuring to the Kentucky Financial Services Code, including changes to mortgage loan license fees and repeals of provisions relating to installment term loans and savings associations, say attorneys at Frost Brown.

  • How Attys Can Avoid Pitfalls When Withdrawing From A Case

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    The Trump campaign's recent scuffle over its bid to replace its counsel in a pregnancy retaliation suit offers a chance to remind attorneys that many troubles inherent in withdrawing from a case can be mitigated or entirely avoided by communicating with clients openly and frequently, says Christopher Konneker at Orsinger Nelson.

  • Opinion

    We Need A Legislative Path To Power Plant Emissions Cuts

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    With the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's newest regulation targeting power plant carbon emissions likely to be overturned by courts or a future administration, it's time for bipartisan legislation to preserve affordable, reliable electricity while substantially decarbonizing the sector by midcentury, say Jeffrey Holmstead at Bracewell and Samuel Thernstrom at the Energy Innovation Reform Project.

  • The Effects Of New 10-Year Limitation On Key Sanctions Laws

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    Recently enacted emergency appropriations legislation, doubling the statute of limitations for civil and criminal economic sanctions violations, has significant implications for internal records retention, corporate transaction due diligence and government investigations, say attorneys at Greenberg Traurig.

  • FEPA Cases Are Natural Fit For DOJ's Fraud Section

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    The U.S. Department of Justice’s recent announcement that its Fraud Section would have exclusive jurisdiction over the Foreign Extortion Prevention Act — a new law that criminalizes “demand side” foreign bribery — makes sense, given its experience navigating the political and diplomatic sensitivities of related statutes, say James Koukios and Rachel Davidson Raycraft at MoFo.

  • Opinion

    DOJ Messaging App Warnings Undermine Trust In Counsel

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    The U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division's increasingly ominous warnings to defense and in-house counsel about the consequences of not preserving ephemeral messaging and messages sent using collaboration tools could erode confidence and cooperation, says Mark Rosman at Proskauer.

  • Using A Children's Book Approach In Firm Marketing Content

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    From “The Giving Tree” to “Where the Wild Things Are,” most children’s books are easy to remember because they use simple words and numbers to tell stories with a human impact — a formula law firms should emulate in their marketing content to stay front of mind for potential clients, says Seema Desai Maglio at The Found Word.

  • A Changing Regulatory Landscape For Weight Loss Drugs

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    As drugs originally approved to treat diabetes become increasingly popular for weight loss purposes, federal and state regulators and payors are increasing their focus on how these drugs are prescribed, and industry participants should pay close attention to rapidly evolving compliance requirements, say attorneys at Goodwin.

  • The State Of Play In DEI And ESG 1 Year After Harvard Ruling

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    Almost a year after the U.S. Supreme Court decided Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, attorney general scrutiny of environmental, social and governance-related efforts indicates a potential path for corporate diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives to be targeted, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

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