Public Policy

  • August 06, 2024

    NYC Prof Found Guilty Of Acting As A Secret Chinese Spy

    A Brooklyn federal jury on Tuesday unanimously convicted an academic and author of secretly acting as an agent of the Chinese government by feeding information about Chinese dissidents and pro-democracy activists to China's intel service, following a weeklong jury trial, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York.

  • August 06, 2024

    Fox TV Knocks Media Group's Petition Against Philly License

    Fox TV pressed the Federal Communications Commission to reject an advocacy group's bid for a hearing on its Philadelphia station's license over claims it knowingly aired election falsehoods, arguing the petition still lacks merit despite a year of pressure on the agency.

  • August 06, 2024

    Cable Biz Likely To Oppose Cybersecurity Reporting Rules

    Cable providers bristled at federal agencies' plans to impose new requirements aimed at beefing up network security, arguing that rules for reporting cyberattacks within certain time frames and sharing detailed security plans would be overly burdensome.

  • August 06, 2024

    Conn. AG Says Utility Misconstrued Power Plant Cleanup Deal

    The Connecticut Attorney General's Office has told a state court that The United Illuminating Co., now part of Avangrid Inc., raised inapplicable defenses to an environmental cleanup lawsuit by misconstruing an earlier consent decree as a "contract" the government could breach as the utility remediated an abandoned New Haven power plant.

  • August 06, 2024

    EPA Emergency Bans Pesticide Chem Over Risks To Unborn

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday it's imposing an emergency ban on all pesticide products that contain a chemical used since the 1950s that it says puts fetuses at risk of thyroid problems and a cascade of other health issues.

  • August 06, 2024

    NC Hospital Gets New Shot At Emergency Dept. Plan Approval

    A state appellate panel on Tuesday unraveled a decision overturning approval for a freestanding emergency department in rural North Carolina, ruling that an administrative law judge misapplied precedent when deciding whether a state agency's failure to hold a public hearing prejudiced the decision-making process. 

  • August 06, 2024

    CFPB Pans Bid For 5th Circ. To Reopen Payday Rule Fight

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has urged the Fifth Circuit to deny a rehearing bid for a payday loan industry rule challenge that previously foundered at the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing it's time to put the long-running case to bed.

  • August 06, 2024

    Wind Tower Co. Asks Full Fed. Circ. To Revisit Subsidy Duties

    A Federal Circuit panel wrongly concluded that a 10% depreciation rate for deducting costs related to manufacturing facilities set by Canadian law was an unfair trade subsidy that justified countervailing trade duties, a wind tower manufacturer told the court in seeking a rehearing.

  • August 06, 2024

    Powell, Trump Attys Seek To Halt Mich. Bar Discipline Cases

    Sidney Powell and other attorneys behind a legal challenge to Michigan's 2020 presidential election results want bar discipline proceedings paused while they ask the Michigan Supreme Court to step in and dismiss the professional misconduct complaints.

  • August 06, 2024

    Dem Lawmakers Back FTC's Kroger-Albertsons Challenge

    A group of Democratic lawmakers is supporting the Federal Trade Commission in its suit to block Kroger's $25 billion acquisition of Albertsons, telling an Oregon federal judge in a friend-of-the-court brief that the agency's fears the deal would harm grocery workers and consumers are well-founded.

  • August 06, 2024

    NJ Justices Remove 'Routine' Barrier To Compressor Hub

    The New Jersey state appeals court misinterpreted the word "routine" in a decision that paused a plan for a natural gas compressor station in the Highlands Preservation Area, the state Supreme Court ruled Tuesday.

  • August 06, 2024

    Elon Musk's X Sues CVS, Mars, Ads Group Claiming 'Boycott'

    Elon Musk's X Corp. sued the World Federation of Advertisers, Unilever, Mars Inc., CVS Health and Ørsted in Texas federal court Tuesday, inspired by a House Judiciary Committee Republican staffer report decrying efforts to avoid advertising next to hate speech and other "disfavored" content as an anticompetitive group boycott.

  • August 06, 2024

    SEC Decries Coinbase's 'Sweeping' Discovery Demand

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has urged a New York federal judge to deny crypto exchange Coinbase's "additional, sweeping" request for all documents and communications the regulator may have made surrounding how securities laws apply to digital assets, arguing most of the documents are privileged or irrelevant to the case.

  • August 06, 2024

    SEC Defends Climate Disclosure Rules At 8th Circ.

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday cited the U.S. Supreme Court's decision axing Chevron deference and the agency's 50-plus year history of considering additional environmental-related disclosures in an effort to defend its recently adopted climate disclosure rules.

  • August 06, 2024

    Wash. Appeals Court Reverses On Gas Chain Owing State Tax

    A Pacific Northwest gas station chain that issued fuel cards to customers must pay the Washington state business tax when cardholders purchase gas from other participating gas station chains as well as from nonparticipating chains, a state appeals court panel said Tuesday, reversing an earlier opinion.

  • August 06, 2024

    Alabama Calls Its Gender Care Law A Rational Policy Choice

    Alabama lawmakers acted out of a desire to protect children — not discriminatory intent — when they passed legislation that restricted gender-affirming care for minors, easily clearing the legal standard required to uphold the law, the state has told a federal judge.

  • August 06, 2024

    Ariz. Tribe Seeks To Block Lithium Exploration Project

    An Arizona tribe is asking a federal district court to block the approval of a lithium exploration project that it says threatens the life of a sacred medical spring used for cultural and religious purposes, arguing the Bureau of Land Management failed to consider its actions on the historic property.

  • August 06, 2024

    DC Circ. Axes FERC Reauthorizations For Texas LNG Projects

    The D.C. Circuit on Tuesday vacated reauthorization orders that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued for liquefied natural gas projects on the Texas Gulf Coast over environmental analysis deficiencies.

  • August 06, 2024

    Home Depot Hired Cops To Target Migrants, Suit Says

    A union representing Latino workers sued the city of Chicago and Home Depot in Illinois federal court Tuesday, alleging that city police officers moonlighting as store security subjected migrants seeking day labor work near the home improvement store to excessive force and racist insults in violation of their civil rights.

  • August 06, 2024

    Former Judge's Misconduct May Spark Fights Over Conflicts

    Many of the defendants in criminal cases presided over by disgraced District of Alaska Judge Joshua Kindred could try to have their convictions or sentences overturned due to the judge's allegedly inappropriate relationships with attorneys, with ethics experts saying such attempts could prove successful but also challenging.

  • August 06, 2024

    ABA Tells States To Nix Rape Disclosures For Bar Applicants

    The American Bar Association unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday that calls on state admission authorities to stop asking would-be lawyers to disclose their experiences of sexual violence and harassment during the attorney licensure process.

  • August 06, 2024

    Judge Says Suit Over NJ Cops' Pot Use Belongs In State Court

    A New Jersey federal judge has decided against getting involved in a dispute between Jersey City and police officers it terminated after they tested positive for marijuana use, ruling that any conflict between federal gun control law and the state's cannabis legalization statute should be dealt with on the state level first.

  • August 06, 2024

    Energy Dept. Awards $2.2B For 8 Grid Upgrade Projects

    The U.S. Department of Energy on Tuesday awarded $2.2 billion of congressional funding for an eight-pack of electric grid projects, including $700 million for a transmission line that would create a new link between the western and eastern portions of the U.S. grid.

  • August 05, 2024

    Ex-Trump Atty Ellis To Cooperate In Ariz. Fake Electors Case

    Jenna Ellis, former legal adviser to Donald Trump, has agreed to cooperate with Arizona prosecutors' case alleging allies of the former president made efforts to subvert the results of the 2020 presidential election, the Arizona Attorney General's Office announced Monday.

  • August 05, 2024

    DOJ Wants Google Held Accountable For Deleted Chats

    The U.S. Department of Justice has told the Virginia federal court overseeing the government's case accusing Google of monopolizing key digital advertising technology the company needs to be held accountable for implementing policies that destroyed evidence.

Expert Analysis

  • 1st Gender Care Ban Provides Context For High Court Case

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    The history of Arkansas' ban on gender-affirming medical care — the first such legislation in the U.S. — provides important insight into the far-reaching ramifications that the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in U.S. v. Skrmetti next term will have on transgender healthcare, says Tyler Saenz at Baker Donelson.

  • CFPB's New Registration Rule Will Intensify Nonbank Scrutiny

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recently finalized nonbank registration rule aimed at cracking down on repeat offenders poses significant compliance challenges and enforcement risks for nonbank financial firms, and may be particularly onerous for smaller firms, say Ketan Bhirud and Emily Yu at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Series

    After Chevron: FCC And Industry Must Prepare For Change

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    The Chevron doctrine was especially significant in the communications sector because of the indeterminacy of federal communications statutes, so the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the doctrine could have big implications for those regulated by the Federal Communications Commission, bringing both opportunities and risks for companies, say Thomas Johnson and Michael Showalter at Wiley.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Uniform Tax Law Interpretation Not Guaranteed

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    The loss of Chevron deference will significantly alter the relationship between the IRS, courts and Congress when it comes to tax law, potentially precipitating more transparent rulemaking, but also provoking greater uncertainty due to variability in judicial interpretation, say Michelle Levin and Carneil Wilson at Dentons.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Environmental Law May Face Hurdles

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling overturning Chevron deference could prove to be as influential as the original 1984 decision, with far-reaching implications for U.S. environmental laws, including rendering recently promulgated regulations more vulnerable to challenges, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Texas Ethics Opinion Flags Hazards Of Unauthorized Practice

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    The Texas Professional Ethics Committee's recently issued proposed opinion finding that in-house counsel providing legal services to the company's clients constitutes the unauthorized practice of law is a valuable clarification given that a UPL violation — a misdemeanor in most states — carries high stakes, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.

  • Why High Court Social Media Ruling Will Be Hotly Debated

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    In deciding the NetChoice cases that challenged Florida and Texas content moderation laws, what the U.S. Supreme Court justices said about social media platforms — and the First Amendment — will have implications and raise questions for nearly all online operators, say Jacob Canter and Joanna Rosen Forster at Crowell & Moring.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Good News For Gov't Contractors In Litigation

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    The net result of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision overturning Chevron deference is that individuals, contractors and companies bringing procurement-related cases against the government will have new pathways toward success, say Joseph Berger and Andrés Vera at Thompson Hine.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Scale Tips Favor Away From HHS Agencies

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    The loss of Chevron deference may indirectly aid parties in challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' interpretations of regulations and could immediately influence several pending cases challenging HHS on technical questions and agency authority, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Series

    After Chevron: FDA Regulations In The Crosshairs

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the Chevron doctrine is likely to unleash an array of challenges against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, focusing on areas of potential overreach such as the FDA's authority under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Realtor Settlement May Create New Antitrust Pitfalls

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    Following a recent antitrust settlement between the National Association of Realtors and home sellers, practices are set to change and the increased competition may benefit both brokers and homebuyers, but the loss of the customary method of buyer broker compensation could lead to new antitrust concerns, says Colin Ahler at Snell & Wilmer.

  • Navigating The New Rise Of Greenwashing Litigation

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    As greenwashing lawsuits continue to gain momentum with a shift in focus to carbon-neutrality claims, businesses must exercise caution and ensure transparency in their environmental marketing practices, taking cues from recent legal challenges in the airline industry, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • In Memoriam: The Modern Administrative State

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    On June 28, the modern administrative state, where courts deferred to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes, died when the U.S. Supreme Court overruled its previous decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council — but it is survived by many cases decided under the Chevron framework, say Joseph Schaeffer and Jessica Deyoe at Babst Calland.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Expect Limited Changes In USPTO Rulemaking

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling overturning Chevron deference will have limited consequences for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office given the USPTO's unique statutory features, but it is still an important decision for matters of statutory interpretation, especially those involving provisions of the America Invents Act, say Andrei Iancu and Cooper Godfrey at Sullivan & Cromwell.

  • Preparing For CFPB 'Junk Fee' Push Into Mortgage Industry

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    As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau considers expanding its "junk fee" initiative into mortgage closing costs, mortgage lenders and third parties must develop plans now that anticipate potential rulemaking or enforcement activity in this space, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

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