Public Policy

  • November 08, 2024

    V&E Reinforces DC Energy Team With Ex-Locke Lord Partner

    Vinson & Elkins LLP has hired a longtime Locke Lord LLP partner who represents several natural gas, crude oil and liquids pipeline and storage companies, boosting the firm's energy regulatory practice in Washington, D.C.

  • November 07, 2024

    Texas Judge Blocks Biden Administration's Spousal Parole

    A Texas federal judge on Thursday held that President Joe Biden's administration didn't have the authority to implement a rule allowing noncitizens and stepchildren of U.S. citizens to stay in the country while they apply for green cards and work permits.

  • November 07, 2024

    Feds Accuse Miss. Mayor And Local DA Of Taking Bribes

    An indictment unsealed Thursday in Mississippi federal court charges the Hinds County district attorney, Jackson's mayor and a member of the Jackson City Council with accepting thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for pushing through real estate developers' projects.

  • November 07, 2024

    Wash. Gov.-Elect Outlines Plan To Resist Less 'Sloppy' Trump

    As Washington attorney general, Bob Ferguson said he thwarted policies during a "sloppy" first Trump presidency, including blocking an immigration travel ban. And on Thursday, Ferguson, who becomes governor in January, said he is leaving an office well-equipped for a potential round two of litigation with an emboldened and potentially more disciplined Trump administration.

  • November 07, 2024

    Overstock.com Ex-CEO Looks To Slash Hunter Biden's Claims

    The former CEO of Overstock.com has asked a California federal court to block various damages and all opposing expert testimony in Hunter Biden's upcoming defamation trial against him over alleged false statements that Biden was working with a foreign government.

  • November 07, 2024

    Researcher Sues DEA Over Pot Rescheduling Process

    A psychedelic researcher has asked a Washington federal judge to block the Drug Enforcement Administration from proceeding with its plan to hold administrative hearings on a proposal to reclassify marijuana, alleging various breaches of administrative law.

  • November 07, 2024

    Trump's Immigration Plans Could Threaten Economic Security

    President-elect Donald Trump is expected to end deportation protections and work authorization for broad swaths of immigrants — moves that would drastically reduce the labor force across essential industries, including construction, agriculture and hospitality.

  • November 07, 2024

    Net Neutrality Foes See 6th Circ. Clearing Path To End Rules

    Recent arguments in the Sixth Circuit over the Federal Communications Commission's controversial net neutrality restrictions didn't give a definitive indication of how judges will decide the issue, but the rule's opponents are buoyed by questions that appeared at times to lean in their favor.

  • November 07, 2024

    Fifth Third Takes Cash Advance Suit Verdict To 6th Circ.

    Fifth Third Bank has notified an Ohio federal judge that it plans to appeal to the Sixth Circuit a jury's finding that it breached customer contracts with borrowers who participated in its Early Access loan program and the judge's order denying the bank a new trial.

  • 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.

Expert Analysis

  • Financial Incentives May Alleviate Affordable Housing Crisis

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    There is a wide array of financial incentives and assistance that the government can provide to both real estate developers and individuals to chip away at the housing affordability problem from multiple angles, say Eric DeBear and Madeline Williams at Cozen.

  • How Fund Advisers Can Limit Election Year Pay-To-Play Risks

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    With Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz now the Democratic candidate for vice president, politically active investment advisers should take practical steps to avoid triggering strict pay-to-play rules that can lead to fund managers facing mutli-year timeouts from working with public funds after contributing to sitting officials, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • FTC Focus: What Access To Patent Settlements Would Mean

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    Settling parties should adopt a series of practice tips, including specifying rationales to support specific terms, as the Federal Trade Commission seeks to expand its access to settlements before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, say Shannon McGowan and David Munkittrick at Proskauer.

  • Why Attorneys Should Consider Community Leadership Roles

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    Volunteering and nonprofit board service are complementary to, but distinct from, traditional pro bono work, and taking on these community leadership roles can produce dividends for lawyers, their firms and the nonprofit causes they support, says Katie Beacham at Kilpatrick.

  • How NJ Temp Equal Pay Survived A Constitutional Challenge

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    The Third Circuit recently gave the New Jersey Temporary Workers' Bill of Rights a new lease on life by systematically dismantling multiple theories of the act's unconstitutionality brought by staffing agencies hoping to delay their new equal pay and benefits obligations, say attorneys at Duane Morris.

  • Firms Must Offer A Trifecta Of Services In Post-Chevron World

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    After the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision overturning Chevron deference, law firms will need to integrate litigation, lobbying and communications functions to keep up with the ramifications of the ruling and provide adequate counsel quickly, says Neil Hare at Dentons.

  • Opinion

    CFPB's AI Stance Backslides On Innovation Issues

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recent response to a Treasury Department's request for information about artificial intelligence in the financial services sector uses alarmist rhetoric about the technology's risks, ceding an opportunity to help shape this important discussion, says Mike Silver at Husch Blackwell.

  • Strategies To Defend Against Healthcare Nuclear Verdicts

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    The healthcare industry is increasingly the target of megaclaims, particularly those alleging medical malpractice, but attorneys representing providers can use a few tools to push back on flimsy litigation and reduce the likelihood of a nuclear verdict, says LaMar Jost at Wheeler Trigg.

  • 5 Tips To Succeed In A Master Of Laws Program And Beyond

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    As lawyers and recent law school graduates begin their Master of Laws coursework across the country, they should keep a few pointers in mind to get the most out of their programs and kick-start successful careers in their practice areas, says Kelley Miller at Reed Smith.

  • Opinion

    Portland's Gross Receipts Tax Oversteps City's Authority

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    Recent measures by Portland, Oregon, that expand the voter-approved scope of the Clean Energy Surcharge on certain retail sales eviscerate the common meaning of the word "retail" and exceed the city's chartered authority to levy tax, say Nikki Dobay at Greenberg Traurig and Jeff Newgard at Peak Policy.

  • Series

    After Chevron: SEC Climate And ESG Rules Likely Doomed

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    Under the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Loper Bright, without agency deference, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's climate disclosure and environmental, social and governance rules would likely be found lacking in statutory support and vacated by the courts, says Justin Chretien at Carlton Fields.

  • NYC Wage Info Bill Highlights Rise In Pay Transparency Laws

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    With New York City the latest to mull requiring companies to annually report employee wage data, national employers should consider adapting their compliance practices to comply with increasingly common pay transparency and disclosure obligations at state and local levels, says Kelly Cardin at Littler Mendelson.

  • Assessing Whether Jarkesy May Limit FINRA Prosecutions

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Jarkesy v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, holding that civil securities fraud defendants are entitled to jury trials, may cause unpredictable results when applied to Financial Industry Regulatory Authority prosecutions, say Barry Temkin and Kate DiGeronimo at Mound Cotton.

  • The Bank Preemption Ripple Effects After Cantero, Flagstar

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    The importance of federal preemption for financial institutions will only increase as technology-driven innovations evolve, which is why the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Cantero v. Bank of America and vacatur of Kivett v. Flagstar Bank have real modern-day significance for national banks, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • Examining Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Of AI Inventions

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    In light of U.S. Patent and Trademark Office data showing that patent applications for artificial intelligence inventions are likelier to get rejected based on patent-ineligible subject matter, inventors seeking protection should be aware of the difficulties and challenges pertaining to patent eligibility, say Georgios Effraimidis at NERA and Joel Lehrer at Goodwin.

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