Public Policy

  • November 07, 2024

    Feds Escape Some Of Iranian 'Pseudo-Travel Ban' Suit

    A San Francisco federal judge said she would not review the government's discretion in requiring some Iranian visa applicants to fill out an extra vetting form, dismissing a claim of what a migrant group called a "pseudo-travel ban."

  • November 07, 2024

    Wash. High Court Picks Stephens As Next Chief Justice

    Washington State Supreme Court justices voted Wednesday to elevate Debra L. Stephens as the court's next chief justice, with the change set to take effect in January.

  • November 07, 2024

    Fla. Counties Say Notice Was Insufficient In $5B Bond Deal

    A group of Florida counties and tax collectors asked the Florida Supreme Court Thursday to reverse a decision that found they could not reopen a bond validation judgment issuing $5 billion in bonds for renewable energy and hurricane mitigation projects, arguing they were not given proper notice of the bond validation hearing.

  • November 07, 2024

    Transgender Athlete Case Can Advance, Conn. Judge Rules

    A Connecticut federal judge has declined a high school athletic association's bid to dismiss challenges by cisgender students to a transgender athlete inclusion policy, ruling that the most recent complaint alleges a "plausible" Title IX disparate treatment claim.

  • November 07, 2024

    White House Adviser Violated The Hatch Act, Watchdog Says

    White House Domestic Policy Adviser Neera Tanden has been hit with a complaint accusing her of violating limits on federal employees' political activity due to her social media activity in the run-up to the 2024 election.

  • November 07, 2024

    Fed Chair Powell Says He Won't Step Down If Trump Asks

    Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Thursday that he would not step down from his role if President-elect Donald Trump asked him to, doubling down on his commitment to serving out the remaining two years of his appointment leading the central bank.

  • November 07, 2024

    Pencils Down On Controversial Regs, GOP Rep Tells FCC

    The House Commerce Committee's Republican chair called on the Federal Communications Commission to halt any plans for new rules that could pass only along partisan lines, which she says is in keeping with past presidential transitions.

  • November 07, 2024

    Colo. Says Man Sold $3M In Unregistered Securities

    Colorado securities regulators filed a lawsuit in state court alleging a man sold more than $3 million of unregistered securities to investors, many of them friends, students or women he met through dating apps, while withholding important information or misrepresenting the investments.

  • November 07, 2024

    Navy Federal Inks $95M Settlement Of CFPB Overdraft Claims

    Navy Federal Credit Union on Thursday agreed to refund more than $80 million to its members and pay a $15 million civil penalty to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to settle allegations that it charged illegal "surprise" overdraft fees.

  • November 07, 2024

    Wash. COVID Tuition Class Contract Claim Cleared For Trial

    A Washington state judge has narrowed a student class action against the University of Washington seeking tuition reimbursement from the COVID-19 campus shutdown, nixing some claims while saying a jury should decide whether the school's "marketing materials, course descriptions and historical practice" amounted to an implied contract for in-person learning.

  • November 07, 2024

    Tribes Make New Push For Voter Access And Representation

    Facing long-standing barriers to voting access and a spate of close races, Native Americans ramped up efforts this election cycle to encourage voter turnout, elect Indigenous candidates and highlight the absence of issues affecting Indian Country on the national stage — with mixed results.

  • November 07, 2024

    Apache Say 'Stakes Are Clear' In Oak Flat Land Dispute

    The federal government is trying to manufacture problems by claiming that a law aimed at protecting the religious rights of minorities can't apply to later-enacted statutes, an Apache nonprofit has told the U.S. Supreme Court in its bid to save a sacred worship site in Arizona from mining destruction.

  • November 07, 2024

    Ariz. OKs Property Tax Credits For Unattended Nuisances

    Arizona property owners affected by public nuisances that local governments fail to address could qualify for tax refunds under Proposition 312, a ballot measure approved by state voters.

  • November 07, 2024

    Mass. Court Affirms Nix Of Property Tax Appeal Citing Blight

    A Massachusetts homeowner's request for a property tax abatement because of local blight was properly rejected by a state tax board because the owner did not pay the tax at issue as required, the state appeals court ruled Tuesday.

  • November 07, 2024

    Bakery Union Local To Hold New Officer Election In DOL Deal

    An Illinois-based Bakery Confectionery Tobacco Workers & Grain Millers local will conduct a new election for three officers and four trustees under the U.S. Department of Labor's supervision, according to a settlement resolving claims that the union didn't properly update members' addresses before sending out ballots.

  • November 07, 2024

    Ga. Man Avoids Prison For Threats To Kill Rep. Greene

    A Georgia man who threatened that he was "gonna kill" U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene was able to avoid prison time Thursday as a federal judge sentenced him to time served along with three years of probation.

  • November 07, 2024

    Same PBM Conduct Means Same Insulin Price Trial, FTC Says

    Federal Trade Commission staffers want Caremark Rx, Express Scripts and OptumRx kept together in a single in-house case accusing the pharmacy benefit managers of artificially inflating insulin prices through unfair rebate schemes, arguing they are all "accused of violating the same laws by engaging in the same type of conduct."

  • November 07, 2024

    Ex-Cop, Brother Admit Energy Contract Kickback Scheme

    A former Massachusetts police officer and his electrician brother pled guilty Wednesday to paying off employees of a utility ratepayer-funded energy savings program administrator who steered $36 million in contracts their way, federal prosecutors said Thursday.

  • November 07, 2024

    Sirius XM Flags Evidence Of Disruption From FCC Plan

    Sirius XM Radio is telling the Federal Communications Commission that Apple, Broadcom, Google and Meta have been too dismissive of its concerns about allowing outdoor use of virtual reality headsets and other very low power devices on the low-7 gigahertz band, urging the commission to protect its service from interference.

  • November 07, 2024

    Transparency Act Should Exclude Housing Co-Ops, Court Told

    A group of housing cooperatives asked a Michigan federal judge to grant them an exemption from the "dragnet" Corporate Transparency Act, claiming the disclosure requirements will deter members from serving on boards that govern affordable housing developments.

  • November 07, 2024

    Canada's Competition Bureau Seeks Dye & Durham Docs

    Canada's Competition Bureau announced Thursday that it obtained a court order to gather information and advance an ongoing investigation into alleged anti-competitive conduct by legal technology company Dye & Durham Ltd., which has been scrutinized over the past year by activist investors and other national regulatory bodies.

  • November 07, 2024

    Feds Say Fla. Atty Can't Shake COVID Relief Fraud Conviction

    In a case involving a Florida lawyer serving a 75-month sentence for a COVID-19 loan fraud scheme, federal prosecutors are arguing that the trial judge was correct to allow a witness to testify that the defendant had talked about having another co-conspirator killed.

  • November 07, 2024

    Calif. Gov. Lays Groundwork To Fight Trump Policies In Court

    California Gov. Gavin Newsom called a special legislative session on Thursday to fund litigation against President-elect Donald Trump's potential erosion of abortion rights, immigration protections and environmental progress, saying lawyers for the blue state have already begun preparing "to challenge in court unconstitutional and unlawful federal policies."

  • November 07, 2024

    Indicted Power Broker Says Civil Suit Repeats Earlier Claims

    Indicted Garden State power broker George E. Norcross III and his attorney brother have urged a New Jersey state judge to toss the civil racketeering suit brought against them by a Philadelphia developer, arguing that the developer's claims are time-barred and should have been filed in previously litigated and resolved actions.

  • November 07, 2024

    Louisiana Says EPA Usurped State Power In Pollution Row

    The state of Louisiana told the Fifth Circuit that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has no authority to invalidate a two-year compliance deadline extension the state granted to a neoprene manufacturer, which is being sued by the agency. 

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Being An Artist Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My work as an artist has highlighted how using creativity and precision together — qualities that are equally essential in both art and law — not only improves outcomes, but also leads to more innovative and thoughtful work, says Sarah La Pearl at Segal McCambridge.

  • Election Outcome Could Reshape Financial Industry

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    The policies of the next presidential administration and Congress will shape the landscape of financial services in the U.S. — including banking, mortgage, investment and credit services — for years to come, affecting Wall Street investors and aspiring homeowners alike, say Alexander Hecht and Frank Guinta at Mintz.

  • How Judiciary Can Minimize AI Risks In Secondary Sources

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    Because courts’ standing orders on generative artificial intelligence and other safeguards do not address the risk of hallucinations in secondary source materials, the judiciary should consider enlisting legal publishers and database hosts to protect against AI-generated inaccuracies, say attorneys at Lankler Siffert & Wohl.

  • 3 Steps For Companies To Combat Task Scams

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    On the rise in the U.S., the task scam — when scammers offer a victim a fake work-from-home job — hurts impersonated businesses by tarnishing their name and brand, but companies have a few ways to fight back against these cons, says Chris Wlach at Huge.

  • NY Tax Talk: Questions In Corporate Franchise Tax Regs Case

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    In the first challenge to New York's Corporate Franchise Tax regulations — Paychex v. Department of Taxation and Finance — the court has an important opportunity to provide clarity on a major retroactive application issue, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.

  • Bitnomial Suit Highlights Crypto Turf War Between SEC, CFTC

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    An outcome favoring Bitnomial in its recent lawsuit against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission could reinforce the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's authority and limit the SEC's reach in the crypto arena, illustrating the need for Congress to delineate boundaries between the agencies, says Tonya Evans at Penn State Dickinson Law.

  • False Patent Marking Claims Find New Home In Lanham Act

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    While the Patent Act may have closed the courthouse doors for many false patent marking claims, the Federal Circuit, in its recent decision in Crocs v. Effervescent, may be opening a window to these types of claims under the Lanham Act, says John Cordani at Robinson & Cole.

  • Jarkesy May Short-Circuit FERC Enforcement Cases

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    As a result of the U.S. Supreme Court's June decision in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recently suspended an enforcement proceeding under the Natural Gas Act — and the commission's customary use of administrative hearings in such proceedings could face major changes, say attorneys at Willkie.

  • Digging Into CFPB's Overdraft Fee Consent Guidance

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    Although a recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau circular may seem unassuming, a closer read reveals the bureau is escalating its clampdown on nonconsensual debit card overdraft fees by expanding financial institutions' record-retention obligations beyond a two-year statutory requirement, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • Justices Face Tough Question On HHS Hospital Pay Formula

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    In Advocate Christ Medical Center v. Becerra, the U.S. Supreme Court will determine whether the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services properly applied certain Medicare reimbursement adjustments to hospitals — a decision that could significantly affect hospitals' ability to seek higher Medicare reimbursement for low-income patients, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • How Attorneys Can Break Free From Career Enmeshment

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    Ambitious attorneys can sometimes experience career enmeshment — when your sense of self-worth becomes unhealthily tangled up in your legal vocation — but taking the time to discover and realign with your core personal values can help you recover your identity, says Janna Koretz at Azimuth Psychological.

  • A Look At Insurance Coverage For Government Investigations

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    Attorneys at Jenner & Block discuss the quirks and potential pitfalls of insurance coverage for government claims and investigations, including those likely to arise from the U.S. Department of Justice's recently announced whistleblower program.

  • Key Healthcare Issues That Hinge On The Election Outcome

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    The 2024 presidential race, while not heavily dominated by healthcare issues compared to past elections, holds significant implications for the direction of healthcare policy in a potential Harris or Trump administration, encompassing issues ranging from Medicare to artificial intelligence, says Miranda Franco at Holland & Knight.

  • Ex-Chicago Politician's Case May Further Curb Fraud Theories

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    The U.S. Supreme Court recently agreed to hear Thompson v. U.S. to determine whether a statement that is misleading but not false still violates federal law, potentially heralding the court’s largest check yet on prosecutors’ expansive fraud theories, with significant implications for sentencing, say attorneys at the Law Offices of Alan Ellis.

  • Lawyers With Disabilities Are Seeking Equity, Not Pity

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    Attorneys living with disabilities face extra challenges — including the need for special accommodations, the fear of stigmatization and the risk of being tokenized — but if given equitable opportunities, they can still rise to the top of their field, says Kate Reder Sheikh, a former attorney and legal recruiter at Major Lindsey & Africa.

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