Public Policy

  • November 08, 2024

    5th Circ. Remands Texas Social Media Law Challenge

    The Fifth Circuit remanded to the district court a challenge to Texas' social media law prohibiting platforms from employing certain content moderation practices, ruling that the record on the case is still too undeveloped to resolve.

  • November 08, 2024

    Connecticut City Settles Health Administrator's Firing Suit

    A Connecticut city has agreed to settle a federal lawsuit brought by a former healthcare administrator who said her immediate termination by hand-delivered letter violated her constitutional rights because she did not receive notice or an opportunity for a hearing.

  • November 08, 2024

    How Trump Could Turn The Government Against Jack Smith

    Special counsel Jack Smith and his team of prosecutors could face politically motivated retribution by President-elect Donald Trump and his allies in the form of a congressional investigation, a U.S. Department of Justice probe and even criminal prosecution, according to experts.

  • November 08, 2024

    Florida Voters Fail To Show Injury From Prosecutor Suspension

    A Florida good-government group's lawsuit challenging Gov. Ron DeSantis' suspension of a local prosecutor was dismissed on Friday, after a federal judge found that voters don't have a constitutional right to see elected officials serve out their full terms.

  • November 08, 2024

    Mass. Auditor Ready For Beacon Hill Oversight Rumble

    The Massachusetts state auditor told Law360 she's ready to scrap with Beacon Hill over expansive new powers that a majority of voters handed her office to scrutinize the legislature, a constitutional clash that seems destined for the state's highest court.

  • November 08, 2024

    FCC Will Investigate Racially Offensive Text Messages

    The Federal Communications Commission will investigate reports of racially offensive text message campaigns across numerous states, the agency's chief said Friday.

  • November 08, 2024

    Conn. AG Building Abortion Rights 'Firewall' With Firms' Help

    Connecticut's Democratic attorney general has joined a multistate partnership with a pro-choice nonprofit and law firms including Silver Golub & Teitell LLP and Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder PC as part of what he described Friday as a "firewall" to protect abortion access during a second Trump administration.

  • November 08, 2024

    Gov't Union Continues Organizing Push For DOJ Attys

    Attorneys in the U.S. Department of Justice's civil rights and environment divisions are stepping up their efforts to organize with the National Treasury Employees Union, the union confirmed Friday, as federal workers brace for coming changes under President-elect Donald Trump's new administration.

  • November 08, 2024

    GOP Reps. Tell Trump Special Counsel To Preserve Records

    On the heels of former President Donald Trump's victory, House Republicans told Special Counsel Jack Smith on Friday to preserve all his records on the Biden administration's "politicized prosecutions" into Trump.

  • November 08, 2024

    Mass. Hay Farm Not Eligible For Ag Tax Break, Court Affirms

    A Massachusetts land parcel that is used for growing and harvesting hay is not eligible for a reduced tax assessment as agricultural land because not enough of the parcel is devoted to the haying operation, the state Court of Appeals affirmed Friday.

  • November 08, 2024

    8 EU Countries Call For Increased Russian Import Duties

    A group of eight European Union member countries called on the bloc's executive body to consider increased import duties on Russian goods in response to the war in Ukraine, Sweden's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Friday.

  • November 08, 2024

    DC Judge Freezes Election Subversion Case Against Trump

    A D.C. federal judge on Friday wiped out the schedule in the case accusing President-elect Donald Trump of plotting to overturn the 2020 election, granting a postelection request from the special counsel's office prosecuting the case.

  • 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.

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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