Public Policy

  • July 09, 2024

    Ex-NRA Finance Chief Agrees To 10-Year NY Nonprofit Ban

    A former chief financial officer of the National Rifle Association has agreed not to serve as a fiduciary of a New York nonprofit for 10 years as part of a settlement in the state attorney general's suit in state court alleging he and other executives misused donor money, according to deal terms disclosed Tuesday.

  • July 09, 2024

    5th Circ. Skeptical Of Nixing ESG Rule Despite Chevron's End

    A Fifth Circuit panel appeared unlikely Tuesday to knock out a Biden administration rule allowing retirement plan advisers to consider environmental, social and governance factors when choosing investments, although one judge seemed to support vacating a lower court's decision upholding the regulation in light of the Chevron doctrine's demise.

  • July 09, 2024

    'ComEd Four' To Renew Acquittal Bid After Bribery Ruling

    An Illinois federal judge effectively pushed the next ruling in the criminal case against former Commonwealth Edison CEO Anne Pramaggiore and her three co-defendants to at least winter, as the defendants vowed to renew their acquittal bid in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling finding that federal bribery law doesn't criminalize rewards given after an official act.

  • July 09, 2024

    Fla. Agrees To Stronger CWA Protections For Piney Point Site

    Conservation groups said they've reached an agreement with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to settle litigation over a phosphogypsum facility in Manatee County, with state regulators agreeing to a draft Clean Water Act permit for the site.

  • July 09, 2024

    Fed's Powell Backs Do-Over For Basel Bank Capital Plan

    Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell told senators on Tuesday that he supports a reproposal of federal regulators' Basel III endgame overhaul to big-bank capital requirements, suggesting the package is being rethought significantly enough to merit a whole new draft before it can be finalized.

  • July 09, 2024

    Newman Loses Suit Against Fed. Circ. Over Suspension

    A District of Columbia federal judge on Tuesday dismissed the lawsuit Federal Circuit Judge Pauline Newman filed against her colleagues over her suspension for refusing to undergo medical tests, saying she failed to prove the judicial conduct law at issue is unconstitutional.

  • July 09, 2024

    Ark. Group Gets 100K Signatures For Medical Pot Expansion

    An Arkansas cannabis advocacy group has collected more than 100,000 signatures in favor of expanding the state's medical marijuana program, more than enough needed to get an initiative on the state's ballot this November, the state announced Friday.

  • July 08, 2024

    Resigning US Judge Had 'Sexualized Relationship' With Clerk

    U.S. District Judge Joshua Kindred of the District of Alaska, who abruptly announced his resignation last week, had a "sexualized relationship" with his clerk, including sexual encounters with her shortly after she left her clerkship and joined the U.S. Attorney's Office, according to an order issued Monday by the Judicial Council of the Ninth Circuit.

  • July 08, 2024

    Giuliani's Creditors Call Ch. 7 Conversion Bid A 'Delay Game'

    Rudy Giuliani's unsecured creditors in his Chapter 11 case on Monday slammed the former New York City mayor's bid in New York bankruptcy court to convert the proceedings to a liquidation, saying the move is just another part of his "delay game" to avoid discovery and "responsibility for his malfeasance."

  • July 08, 2024

    Migrants Want Another Try In Martha's Vineyard Flight Suit

    Several migrants who claim they were tricked into boarding flights to Martha's Vineyard have asked a Massachusetts federal judge to let them file an amended suit in an effort to cure the jurisdictional issues that doomed the initial complaint in March.

  • July 08, 2024

    Maple Leaf Must Go The Way Of Chevron, Solar Cos. Say

    Last month's U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning 40 years of judicial deference to federal agencies' read of statutes puts the Federal Circuit's own brand of executive branch acquiescence squarely on the chopping block, a solar industry group said Monday.

  • July 08, 2024

    Orgs Worry FCC Could Overreach On Network Security

    The Federal Communications Commission should rein in its plans to impose new security rules regarding the crucial routing technology used by the internet, lest it prompt other countries to devise their own and start a domino effect, two internet security advocates have told the agency.

  • July 08, 2024

    Baseless Lawsuit Rule A 'Catch-22' For Texans, 5th Circ. Told

    Those that are labeled vexatious litigants under a Texas statute meant to restrict baseless lawsuits are stuck in a "catch-22" if they seek to file legitimate litigation, a group of Texans told the Fifth Circuit on Monday.

  • July 08, 2024

    FDIC Downgrades Green-Focused Bank On CRA Exam

    The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has dinged Forbright Bank, a sustainability minded bank started by former Democratic presidential candidate John Delaney, over an allegedly "illegal credit practice" tied to a since-discontinued third-party partnership, lowering its latest community lending exam grade.

  • July 08, 2024

    Senate Confirms 7th Circ. Judge GOP Slammed For Backlog

    The Senate voted 47-43 on Monday evening to confirm U.S. District Judge Nancy L. Maldonado to the Seventh Circuit.

  • July 08, 2024

    Federal Circuit Doubts Impropriety Of $4K H-1B Fraud Fee

    A Federal Circuit panel seemed unpersuaded Monday by an argument from software companies that a $4,000 fraud fee for H-1B visa petitions does not apply to noncitizens in the U.S. seeking to change their nonimmigrant visa status to H-1B.

  • July 08, 2024

    Texas Anesthesia Co. Can't Pause Or Appeal Suit, FTC Says

    The Federal Trade Commission urged a Texas federal court not to pause its suit accusing U.S. Anesthesia Partners Inc. of a monopolistic "roll-up" of Lone Star State anesthesia practices, arguing the company can't appeal an order refusing to toss the case against it.

  • July 08, 2024

    Ways And Means To Vote On Section 529 Tax Bills

    The House Ways and Means Committee is scheduled to vote Tuesday on several education-related tax bills, including legislation that would make additional elementary and secondary school expenses eligible for tax-advantaged education savings accounts.

  • July 08, 2024

    Suit Alleging NY Pot Kickbacks Moved To Federal Court

    An Illinois security company is suing New York's cannabis authority for $300 million claiming that one of its board members convinced the business to do free surveillance camera work by promising it a state contract that never came, according to a lawsuit removed to federal court.

  • July 08, 2024

    Menendez 'Put Power Up For Sale,' Feds Say In Closing

    Sen. Robert Menendez "put his power up for sale" in a slew of bribes often brokered by his wife but for which the New Jersey lawmaker was always "calling the shots," a Manhattan federal prosecutor said during closing arguments in the high-profile trial Monday.

  • July 08, 2024

    NC Tax On Premiums Lowered For Some Insurance Cos.

    North Carolina will reduce its tax on premiums paid in the state to some out-of-state liability insurance groups under a bill signed by Gov. Roy Cooper. 

  • July 08, 2024

    Nasdaq Seeks Tighter Listing Rules On Reverse Stock Splits

    Nasdaq wants to tighten its rules so companies that raise their share prices through reverse stock splits to avoid being delisted don't obtain more time to regain compliance if the reverse split triggers another violation.

  • July 08, 2024

    Philly Charter School Exec Sentenced To 1½ Years In Prison

    Shahied Dawan, a former nonprofit executive for a Philadelphia charter school and low-income housing nonprofit founded by R&B producer Kenny Gamble, was sentenced to 18 months in prison Monday for conspiring to conceal embezzlement from the organization.

  • July 08, 2024

    Pro-Trade Policies Outpace Barriers Amid Strains, WTO Says

    Countries are moving to open themselves up to increased trade, even as armed conflicts, tense geopolitics and the effects of climate change continue to destabilize supply chains, the World Trade Organization said in a report released Monday.

  • July 08, 2024

    BLM Faces Challenges To Alaska Oil Reserve Protections

    The state of Alaska and a nonprofit group are seeking to vacate a federal rule ensuring maximum environmental protections for more than 13.1 million acres in the state's National Petroleum Reserve and banning new oil and gas leasing on another 10.6 million acres, arguing the new law turns the land into a "de facto" wilderness.

Expert Analysis

  • Opinion

    It's Time For Nationwide Race-Based Hair Protections

    Author Photo

    While 24 states have passed laws that prohibit race-based hair discrimination, this type of bias persists in workplaces and schools, so a robust federal law is necessary to ensure widespread protection, says Samone Ijoma and Erica Roberts at Sanford Heisler.

  • Series

    After Chevron: EEOC Status Quo Will Likely Continue

    Author Photo

    As the legal landscape adjusts to the end of Chevron deference, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s rulemaking authority isn’t likely to shift as much as some other employment-related agencies, says Paige Lyle at FordHarrison.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Impact On Indian Law May Be Muted

    Author Photo

    Agency interpretations of Indian law statutes that previously stood the test of judicial review ​are likely to withstand new challenges even after the end of Chevron deference, but litigation in the area is all but certain, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • Opinion

    Trump Immunity Ruling Upends Our Constitutional Scheme

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court’s Trump v. U.S. decision elevates the president to imperial status and paves the way for nearly absolute presidential immunity from potential criminal prosecutions — with no constitutional textual support, says Paul Berman at the George Washington University Law School.

  • 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.

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!