Public Policy

  • January 08, 2025

    Pension Plan Official's Estate Excused From Danish Tax Suit

    A New York federal court approved Wednesday an agreement for Denmark's tax authority to settle its claims against the estate of a pension plan official whose plan allegedly defrauded the agency out of $9 million.

  • January 08, 2025

    Warren Urges DOD Chief Nom. To Address 'Serious Concerns'

    Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., urged defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth to answer dozens of questions about his history ahead of his upcoming nomination hearing, citing "serious concerns" regarding issues such as allegations of sexual assault and mismanagement of veterans' organizations.

  • January 08, 2025

    Texas Station Faces $369K Fine For Emergency Alert Failures

    A local Texas television station is under fire from the Federal Communications Commission for failing to run proper nationwide emergency tests in three separate years, according to a new forfeiture notice from the agency.

  • January 08, 2025

    ATF Says Loophole Rule Passes 2nd Amendment Smell Test

    The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has doubled down in its bid to uphold a new rule in a case over the so-called gun-show loophole rule, saying in a Texas federal court that a group of red states hadn't shown how the rule lacks founding-era precedent.

  • January 08, 2025

    Farm Owner Can't Claim $6.5M For Border Wall, 5th Circ. Told

    The federal government argued Wednesday that a Texas woman isn't owed millions of dollars in compensation for a section of the state's border wall built on her land, telling the Fifth Circuit that a principle giving landowners rights to property improvements can't be equitably applied to the federal government.

  • January 08, 2025

    Judge Reverses His Own Ruling In Chicago Hotel Zoning Fight

    An Illinois federal judge ruled against the owners of a historic Chicago hotel Tuesday, dialing back an earlier victory he had granted them last year in a zoning suit against the city.

  • January 08, 2025

    Epic Gets Backing For Google App Store Changes

    Epic Games has received support from federal antitrust enforcers, Microsoft and others at the Ninth Circuit as the game developer fights Google's bid to appeal an order forcing the tech giant to loosen its policies surrounding the distribution of apps on Android devices.

  • January 08, 2025

    Final Treasury Regs Grow Low-Income Bonus Energy Credits

    New hydropower, nuclear, solar, geothermal and other nonpolluting energy facilities developed in areas designated as low-income communities are eligible for bonus investment tax credits under final regulations the U.S. Treasury Department unveiled Wednesday.

  • January 08, 2025

    CFPB Hit With Industry Suit Over Medical Debt Reporting Rule

    A top trade group for the credit reporting industry has moved to challenge the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's new rule that would take billions of dollars in medical debt off credit reports, accusing the agency of overreach in a lawsuit filed in Texas federal court.

  • January 08, 2025

    Madigan Denies Extorting Developers For Law Firm Business

    Ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan testified Wednesday that he never wanted a Chicago alderman to leverage his chairmanship of a powerful city council committee to steer business to Madigan's law firm, saying he merely asked for introductions to developers and felt "surprise and concern" when the alderman referenced a quid pro quo deal.

  • January 08, 2025

    IRS Updates Guidance For Taxes In Employment Disputes

    The Internal Revenue Service updated guidance Wednesday related to disputes over whether individuals are considered employees for employment tax purposes as well as clarified situations in which an employer can remit unpaid taxes at reduced rates in cases where the employer treated an employee as a nonemployee.

  • January 08, 2025

    T-Mobile-UScellular Deal Won't Hurt Wireless Market, FCC Told

    T-Mobile's $4.4 billion plan to buy spectrum and lease cell towers from UScellular appears likely to benefit consumers, a free-market think tank told the Federal Communications Commission as public interest groups continue to fight the deal.

  • January 08, 2025

    Indiana Lawmakers File Medical Pot, Decriminalization Bills

    Indiana lawmakers this week filed bills to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana and to legalize medical marijuana and create a regulatory regime to oversee its cultivation and sale.

  • January 08, 2025

    DOI Reveals No Bids In Alaska Oil, Gas Lease Sale

    The U.S. Department of the Interior revealed Wednesday that it received no bids in response to the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge oil and gas lease sale, just days after Alaska accused the agency of imposing too severe restrictions on development.

  • January 08, 2025

    Feds Fight Bid To Extend Detention Conditions Settlement

    The U.S. government urged a California federal judge to let a settlement governing its custody of detained immigrant children to expire at the end of January and reject human rights groups' bid to extend it.

  • January 08, 2025

    Feds Ask To Release Report On Trump's DC Case, But Not Fla.

    Special counsel Jack Smith asked the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday to deny Donald Trump's request to block the publication of a report on the now-abandoned federal election-meddling case against the president-elect in D.C. federal court, but said the Justice Department will hold off on releasing a report regarding the classified-documents case in Florida, where two co-defendants remain under indictment.

  • January 08, 2025

    Calif. Tribe Has Standing To Block Casino Project, Court Told

    A California tribe says it has constitutional standing to block the Interior Department from taking land into trust for a proposed casino project on its historic homelands, arguing that it suffered actual and concrete harm when the agency determined that no historic resources would be affected by the endeavor.

  • January 08, 2025

    Trump Electors May Have To Face Civil Suit, Mich. Panel Hints

    A Michigan state appeals court seemed hesitant Wednesday to extend a freeze in a civil lawsuit against Republican electors criminally accused of participating in then-President Donald Trump's alleged efforts to change the outcome of the 2020 election, citing deference to the trial judge's decision to press on.

  • January 08, 2025

    Exiting CFTC Chair Warns Crypto Without Rules 'Ends Badly'

    The outgoing chair of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission Rostin Behnam used his final speech on Wednesday to urge lawmakers and regulators to address the "gap" in oversight of cryptocurrency markets.

  • January 08, 2025

    Cops' Suit Over Firing For Pot Use Sent To NJ State Court

    A New Jersey federal judge has kicked back to state court a suit against Jersey City by two police officers who say they were wrongly fired for off-duty cannabis use, finding that the suit does not implicate federal law that would give the federal courts jurisdiction.

  • January 08, 2025

    Feds Ask DC Circ. To Block Guilty Plea Of 9/11 'Mastermind'

    The Biden administration wants the D.C. Circuit to block plea agreements set to be approved Friday for the men accused of plotting the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, including the "alleged mastermind" of the plot, Khalid Shaikh Mohammad.

  • January 08, 2025

    EPA, Navajo To Remove 65 Acres Of Waste From Reservation

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Navajo Nation have finalized a plan to provide a complete cleanup of one of the largest and most high-risk uranium mine sites on the tribe's reservation, the federal agency said.

  • January 08, 2025

    FBI Director's Former Chief Of Staff Joins Fenwick

    Weeks after FBI Director Christopher Wray announced that he'll resign at the end of President Joe Biden's term, Fenwick & West LLP said Wednesday that it has hired the FBI director's chief of staff, who joined the team as a white collar defense and investigations partner.

  • January 08, 2025

    Dems Cry Foul On Trump Nominees' Hearings Process

    Top Democrats claimed Wednesday that Republicans are rushing to hold confirmation hearings for at least two of President-elect Donald Trump's nominees without the full paperwork.

  • January 08, 2025

    Feds Again Deny Leaks In NYC Mayor's Corruption Case

    Federal prosecutors again rejected the claim that they had leaked classified information about New York City Mayor Eric Adams' corruption case to the press, telling a judge that they were not the source that allowed the New York Times to identify a grand jury witness and that Adams hadn't shown how he was prejudiced by the disclosure.

Expert Analysis

  • From Football To Pickleball, Sports Investing Evolved In 2024

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    The NFL's decision to allow private-equity investments in football franchises capped off a transformative year in U.S. sports that also included landmark PE transactions in emerging sports ranging from women's soccer to pickleball, say attorneys at Weil.

  • Implications Of NY Climate Case For Generating Facilities

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    Regardless of how Greenidge Generation LLC v. New York Department of Environmental Conservation develops on remand, this decision has immediate repercussions for generating facilities seeking permit applications and renewals in New York, likely involving Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act considerations, say attorneys at Hodgson Russ.

  • How CFPB Rule Would Affect Data Brokers And Beyond

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently proposed a rule that would not only expand data broker oversight by classifying many as consumer reporting agencies, but would also impose new limitations on companies seeking to obtain information from them, potentially requiring such entities to alter their business models, say attorneys at Orrick.

  • Firms Still Have The Edge In Lateral Hiring, But Buyer Beware

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    Partner mobility data suggests that the third quarter of this year continued to be a buyer’s market, with the average candidate demanding less compensation for a larger book of business — but moving into the fourth quarter, firms should slow down their hiring process to minimize risks, say officers at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.

  • Reviewing 2024's State Consumer Privacy Law Enforcement

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    While we are still in the infancy of state consumer privacy laws, a review of enforcement activity this year suggests substantial overlaps in regulatory priorities across the most active states and gives insight into the likely paths of future enforcement, says Thomas Nolan at Quinn Emanuel.

  • 5th Circ. Crypto Ruling Shows Limits On OFAC Authority

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    The Fifth Circuit's recent decision that immutable smart contracts on the Tornado Cash crypto-transaction software protocol are not "property" subject to Office of Foreign Assets Control jurisdiction may signal that courts can construe OFAC's authority more restrictively after Loper Bright, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Preparing For The New Restrictions On Investment Into China

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    In light of a new regulatory program governing U.S. investments in China-related technology companies of national security concern, investors should keep several considerations in mind, including the rules' effect on existing and new investments, compliance hurdles, and penalties for noncompliance ahead of the rules' January implementation, say attorneys at Gunderson Dettmer.

  • Opinion

    Congress Should Expand Investment Options For 403(b)s

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    Lawmakers should pass pending legislation to give 403(b) plan participants access to collective investment trusts, leveling the playing field for public sector retirement investors by giving them an investment option their private sector counterparts have had for decades, says Jason Levy at Great Gray Trust Company.

  • What 2024 Election Means For Drugs, Medicare And Medicaid

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    With Republicans running the White House, U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, the incoming administration is likely to provide pathways — through new initiatives and others returning from Trump's previous presidency — for a range of potential changes to drug pricing, Medicare and Medicaid, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • AV Compliance Is Still A State-By-State Slog — For Now

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    While the incoming Trump administration has hinted at new federal regulations governing autonomous vehicles, for now, AV manufacturers must take a state-by-state approach to compliance with safety requirements — paying particular attention to states that require express authorization for AV operation, say attorneys at Frost Brown.

  • Opinion

    Antitrust Posturing Against Algorithmic AI Should End

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    President-elect Donald Trump needs to rein in the federal government's antitrust crusade against algorithmic AI, sending the message that antitrust enforcement must be grounded in evidence and real harm, says attorney David Balto, a former Federal Trade Commission assistant director of policy and evaluation.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: 1 Type Of Case Complexity Stands Out

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    In contrast to some cases that appear complex due to voluminous evidence or esoteric subject matter, a different kind of complexity involves tangled legal and factual questions, each with a range of possible outcomes, which require a “sliding scale” approach instead of syllogistic reasoning, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Immigration Atty Tips For Avoiding Prosecution Under Trump

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    Under the incoming Trump administration, immigration attorneys may need to protect themselves from prosecution when advising clients who may not qualify for relief sought by choosing their words carefully and keeping other key factors in mind, says Michele Carney at Carney & Marchi.

  • Back To The Future? Antitrust Enforcement Under Trump 2.0

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    While the transition to the second Trump administration's antitrust policy should be accompanied by less uncertainty, we're unlikely to get a full sense of the true focus and tenor of competition enforcement under Trump 2.0 before late next year, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • A Closer Look At SDNY Bankruptcy Rule Amendments

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    The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York’s recent amendments to its local rules aim to streamline key Chapter 11 processes, resolve misunderstandings about previous iterations of the rules and urge caution about the use of artificial intelligence, say attorneys at Skadden.

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