Public Policy

  • August 16, 2024

    TCJA's Estate Tax Treatment Shouldn't Change, Panel Told

    If the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act's estate tax exemption increase is allowed to lapse in 2025, many family farms in the Midwest would face tough choices, including whether to sell to large corporations, panelists told the House of Representatives' Ways and Means Committee on Friday.

  • August 16, 2024

    Off The Bench: WNBA Suit, Olympic Fallout, Swimming Ban

    In this week's Off The Bench, a WNBA star accuses her former team of discrimination for trading her once she became pregnant, questions swirl around the revocation of a U.S. gymnast's Olympic medal, and a BigLaw investigation prompts the University of Notre Dame to suspend its men's swimming program.

  • August 16, 2024

    Atty Gets 32 Months In Prison For Bribing Chicago Alderman

    An Illinois federal judge on Friday sentenced an immigration attorney and real estate developer convicted of bribing former Chicago Alderman Ed Burke to two years and eight months in prison, maintaining prison time is warranted because the lawyer initiated the bribe and tried to hide it from federal agents and the grand jury.

  • August 16, 2024

    5th Circ. Nixes Injunction Denial In Texas Electioneering Suit

    The Fifth Circuit blocked a Texas county's new electioneering rules Thursday, reversing a district court's ruling rejecting a preliminary injunction motion from local conservative groups and holding that the regulations on signage near county-owned voting locations and other provisions likely violate the First Amendment.

  • August 16, 2024

    DC Circ. Rolls Back Pipeline Safety Rules

    The D.C. Circuit on Friday threw out a handful of new safety standards for gas transmission pipelines set by the U.S. Department of Transportation, ruling that federal regulators failed to explain why their benefits outweighed their costs.

  • August 16, 2024

    Public Interest Orgs. Press For FCC's AI Ad Disclosure Rule

    As the fall elections loom, more than 40 public interest groups are advocating for the Federal Communications Commission to require radio and TV broadcasters to disclose the use of artificial intelligence in political ads.

  • August 16, 2024

    5th Circ. Tosses Appeal In FTC's Anesthesia Antitrust Case

    The Fifth Circuit has agreed with the Federal Trade Commission and tossed an early appeal from U.S. Anesthesia Partners in the agency's case accusing the group of monopolizing the Texas anesthesiology market through a "roll-up" strategy.

  • August 16, 2024

    1st Circ. Smooths Path For Title VII Retaliation Claims

    The First Circuit affirmed a lower court's grant of summary judgment for Bentley University in an employment discrimination lawsuit brought by a former program coordinator, but also took the opportunity to lower the bar for retaliation claims.

  • August 16, 2024

    Ch. 7 Trustee Can't Recover Tax Payment, States Tell Justices

    A group of roughly two dozen states threw their support behind the federal government in asking the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a ruling that forced the IRS to return a tax payment after a bankruptcy trustee argued it was a fraudulent transfer and recoverable under state law.

  • August 16, 2024

    NC AG Readies Appeal In Fight Over Smithfield Foods Funds

    North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein is taking a fight over millions of dollars in environmental grants to the state appeals court, after a trial judge found the funds should be exclusively set aside for use in public schools.

  • August 16, 2024

    ICE Arresting More Detained Noncitizens, Report Shows

    U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been making more arrests while Customs and Border Protection has been making fewer in fiscal year 2024, corresponding to the Biden administration's efforts to limit asylum access at the U.S.-Mexico border, a new report shows.

  • August 16, 2024

    Ga. AG Taps Prosecutor To Head Organized Retail Crime Unit

    Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr said Friday that he's hired Timothy Ruffini to lead a new organized retail crime unit focused on prosecuting criminal networks behind thefts and violence against Peach State businesses.

  • August 16, 2024

    Colo. Judge Orders Attys To Leave Assumptions At The Door

    A Colorado trial judge is one of the first in the country to require parties to use gender-neutral terms until a person has identified their pronouns. Drawing on his experiences putting on a straight "costume" as a young, gay attorney, he says the aim is to make the courtroom a welcoming space for all involved.

  • August 16, 2024

    Psilocybin Right-To-Try Petition To Get 9th Circ. Hearing

    A Ninth Circuit panel will hear oral arguments Monday in an appeal brought by a Seattle doctor seeking to administer psilocybin to terminal cancer patients under state and federal right-to-try laws.

  • August 16, 2024

    Meet 3 Michigan Supreme Court Hopefuls

    An appellate judge known for writing forceful opinions about "government overreach" is facing off against a legislator who has practiced in front of the state's highest court, hoping to secure the Republican nomination this month for an open seat on the Michigan Supreme Court. The eventual nominee will run against the director of the University of Michigan's Juvenile Justice Clinic, the lone Democratic candidate.

  • August 16, 2024

    Harris Economic Plan Targets Food Mergers, Price-Gouging

    Vice President Kamala Harris unveiled an economic plan Friday that said her administration would "crack down" on large corporate food mergers and introduce the first-ever ban on price-gouging, a promise that comes just days after the announcement of one of the largest ever food industry tie-ups.

  • August 16, 2024

    Connecticut Legislation Passed In 2024: A Midyear Report

    While Connecticut workers may rejoice over a major expansion of paid sick leave that will begin to roll out next year, businesses will need to spend some time and effort getting ready to implement the new law, attorneys told Law360.

  • August 16, 2024

    NC Legislation To Watch In 2024: A Midyear Report

    College "prop bets" are on the line, and a public face mask requirement could be torpedoed — at least in some situations — under two proposals being considered by the North Carolina General Assembly.

  • August 16, 2024

    NC Litigation Highlights Of 2024: A Midyear Report

    Several-high profile cases in North Carolina came to a close in the first half of the year, from a second bribery conviction against an insurance magnate beset by legal woes, to the anticlimactic withdrawal of a state Supreme Court justice's much-watched free speech suit. Here, Law360 looks at those and other notable rulings so far in North Carolina.

  • August 16, 2024

    New Jersey Litigation Highlights Of 2024: A Midyear Report

    A court's upheaval of New Jersey's longstanding "county line" ballot layout for the Democratic primary fueled both sides of the lively political aisle this year, while the same federal judge also riled the state's pharmaceutical hotbed by ending two challenges to Medicare's ability to negotiate drug prices. Here, Law360 looks at some of the notable cases so far in New Jersey.

  • August 19, 2024

    New Jersey Legislation To Watch: A Midyear Report

    New Jersey proposals for a corporate transit tax and mandatory business showdowns during sweltering weather have generated concerns from industry sectors fatigued by rising costs, while the rise of artifical intelligence and corresponding legislation appears to have united those fearing the digital-age hazard of "deepfakes."

  • August 15, 2024

    San Francisco Unveils Landmark Suit Over 'Deepfake' Porn

    The San Francisco city attorney on Thursday launched a suit against the operators of 16 websites that he claims create and distribute nonconsensual, artificial intelligence-generated pornography, also known as "deepfake pornography" or "deepnudes."

  • August 15, 2024

    Amicus Beef: Judiciary Kicks Off Heated Transparency Debate

    The federal judiciary's main policy panel Thursday floated a major overhaul of mandatory financial disclosures in appellate amicus briefs, a move that's being fueled by perceptions of shadowy "judicial lobbying" and already coming under siege by big business.

  • August 15, 2024

    Green Group Backs Feds' Denial Of Water Co.'s Right-Of-Way

    Save Our Forest Association urged a D.C. federal judge on Thursday to reject the company behind Arrowhead Mountain Spring Water's attempt to block the federal government from requiring it cease operation of its 23,000-foot-long water pipeline in Berkeley, California's Strawberry Canyon.

  • August 15, 2024

    Telecom Orgs Ask Justices To Take Up NY Internet Rate Cap

    The U.S. Supreme Court must step in and unravel a split Second Circuit ruling upholding New York's right to put a $15 cap on the amount broadband companies can charge low-income households, say several trade groups that lost their challenge to the law.

Expert Analysis

  • How Congress Is Tackling The US Healthcare Shortage

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    With healthcare shortages continuing across the U.S. despite industry efforts to improve patient access to care, increased Medicare support for graduate medical education could be a crucial component of the solution, say Sarah Crossan and Miranda Franco at Holland & Knight.

  • How Justices' Chevron Ruling May Influence Wind Projects

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    Parties both for and against the development of East Coast offshore wind development are watching the U.S. Supreme Court closely for its anticipated ruling challenging long-standing principles of agency deference that may subject decision making based on that precedent to upheaval, say attorneys at Robinson & Cole.

  • Gov't Contractors Shouldn't Skip Steps In Rush To Adopt AI

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    Government contractors that may be tempted to deploy artificial intelligence in day-to-day operations like billing and data protection should first take time to consider and address the specific risks that come with using AI tools, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • 6 Tips For Maximizing After-Tax Returns In Private M&A Deals

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    With potential tax legislation likely to spur a surge in private business sales, sellers can make the most of after-tax proceeds with strategies that include price allocation and qualified investment options, say Isaac Grossman and Daniel Studin at Morrison Cohen.

  • Opinion

    Why The Patent Eligibility Restoration Act Can Spur Progress

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    Patent practitioners have long wrestled with the effects of U.S. Supreme Court decisions that have muddied the waters of what can be patented, but the Patent Eligibility Restoration Act can change that, and those not involved with patents on a day-to-day basis can help get this act passed, says John White at Harness IP.

  • Lower Courts May Finally Be Getting The Memo After Ciminelli

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    A year after the U.S. Supreme Court again limited prosecutors' overbroad theories of fraud in Ciminelli v. U.S., early returns suggest that the message has at least partially landed with the lower courts, spotlighting lessons for defense counsel moving forward, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.

  • After A Brief Hiccup, The 'Rocket Docket' Soars Back To No. 1

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    The Eastern District of Virginia’s precipitous 2022 fall from its storied rocket docket status appears to have been a temporary aberration, as recent statistics reveal that the court is once again back on top as the fastest federal civil trial court in the nation, says Robert Tata at Hunton.

  • Protecting Trade Secrets In US, EU Gov't Agency Submissions

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    Attorneys at Mintz compare U.S. and European Union trade secret laws, and how proprietary information in confidential submissions to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency is protected in the face of third-party information requests under government transparency laws.

  • Big Banks Face Potential Broader Recovery Plan Rules

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    The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's recent call for potentially subjecting more banks to recovery planning standards would represent a significant expansion of the scope of the recovery guidelines, and banks that would be affected should assess whether they’re prepared, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • New Laws, Regs Mean More Scrutiny Of Airline Carbon Claims

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    Recent climate disclosure laws and regulations in the U.S. and Europe mean that scrutiny of airlines' green claims will likely continue to intensify — so carriers must make sure their efforts to reduce carbon emissions through use of sustainable aviation fuel, hydrogen and carbon offsets measure up to their marketing, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Recruitment Trends In Emerging Law Firm Frontiers

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    BigLaw firms are facing local recruitment challenges as they increasingly establish offices in cities outside of the major legal hubs, requiring them to weigh various strategies for attracting talent that present different risks and benefits, says Tom Hanlon at Buchanan Law.

  • How Uyghur Forced Labor Law Affects Importing Companies

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    Amid a growing focus on forced labor in supply chains and a likely increase in enforcement under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, companies may face costly import delays unless they develop and implement compliance best practices, say Thad McBride and Lauren Gammer at Bass Berry.

  • Series

    Glassblowing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    I never expected that glassblowing would strongly influence my work as an attorney, but it has taught me the importance of building a solid foundation for your work, learning from others and committing to a lifetime of practice, says Margaret House at Kalijarvi Chuzi.

  • What Employers Need To Know About Colorado's New AI Law

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    The Colorado AI Act, enacted in May and intended to regulate the use of high-risk artificial intelligence systems to prevent algorithmic discrimination, is broad in scope and will apply to businesses using AI for certain employment purposes, imposing numerous compliance obligations and potential liability, say Laura Malugade and Owen Davis at Husch Blackwell.

  • What DOL Fiduciary Rule Means For Private Fund Managers

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    Attorneys at Ropes & Gray discuss how the U.S. Department of Labor's recently released final fiduciary rule, which revises the agency's 1975 regulation, could potentially cause private fund managers' current marketing practices and communications to be considered fiduciary advice, and therefore subject them to strict prohibitions.

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