Public Policy

  • November 18, 2024

    NLRB Ruling Nixes Conn. Employee Meeting Law, Judge Told

    A business advocacy group said a National Labor Relations Board decision that removed decadeslong protections for employers who share their unionization views during mandatory workplace meetings should spell the end of a broader Connecticut statute that protects employees from being forced to hear political and religious messages.

  • November 18, 2024

    Meta Can Ditch Mike Huckabee's CBD Fake Ad Suit

    Former Arkansas governor and conservative pundit Mike Huckabee can't sue Facebook after an unidentified company posted advertisements implying he endorsed a brand of CBD gummies, a Delaware federal judge ruled Monday, saying he can't prove the social media giant was actually aware the ads were bogus.

  • November 18, 2024

    Dems Probe Treasury On Effects Of Crypto Mixer Sanctions

    A group of House Democrats pressed the U.S. Department of the Treasury on Monday to provide information on how effective its sanctions regime against cryptocurrency mixing services has been at detecting and curbing illicit finance.

  • November 18, 2024

    FCC's Carr Likely To Test Agency's Ability To Rein In Big Tech

    Brendan Carr's selection as the next Federal Communications Commission chair prompted a wave of plaudits from industry and some dismay from liberal groups, but one thing stands out among experts: He will push to counter what he sees as out-of-control conduct by tech platforms.

  • November 18, 2024

    Judge Surprised Circle K Fired Clerk Who Touched Robber

    A Tenth Circuit judge appeared stunned Monday that Circle K dismissed an elderly convenience store clerk after its management concluded the worker violated company policy when she physically confronted an armed robber.

  • November 18, 2024

    Texas Appeals Court Finds Telecom Laws Violate Gift Rules

    A state appellate court handed dozens of Texas cities a clean-sweep victory in their fight against statewide bargains for telecommunications providers, finding Friday a state law dealing with the fees municipalities can charge telecom companies runs counter to the Texas Constitution.

  • November 18, 2024

    Treasury Finalizes Tougher Foreign Investment Law Penalties

    The Treasury Department on Monday finalized a rule sharpening its enforcement authority to stop or demand additional information regarding foreign-investment deals that the U.S. deems potential threats to national security.

  • November 18, 2024

    Mich. Justices Spurn Restaurant Group's COVID Appeal

    The Michigan Supreme Court has turned down an appeal from a bar and restaurant association seeking to recoup its members' lost profits from the state's enforcement of COVID-19 public health measures, after tossing individual restaurants' claims earlier this year. 

  • November 18, 2024

    Justices Urged To Review Landlords' COVID Eviction Ban Suit

    A group of trade associations and a nonprofit urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to grant a review petition filed by landlords claiming they lost $100 million as a result of Los Angeles' COVID-19 eviction moratorium, which ended in January.

  • November 18, 2024

    Asylum-Seekers Say Updated DHS Border Directive Is Still Illegal

    Immigrant rights groups and asylum-seekers challenging the Biden administration's directive curtailing asylum at the southern border told a D.C. federal judge that the superseding rule the administration issued in September is just as illegal as its June predecessor.

  • November 18, 2024

    EPA Has No Choice But To Rethink Smog Rule, DC Circ. Told

    U.S. Steel Corp. told the D.C. Circuit that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was obligated to reconsider its so-called "good neighbor" smog emissions rule after it was partially invalidated by a court, arguing the agency's own brief confirms that its refusal to do so was improper.

  • November 18, 2024

    Colo. Justices Should Plug Damages Cap 'Loophole,' Co. Says

    A construction company has urged Colorado's justices to find that a subcontractor's claim over a workplace fall is subject to a $15,000 damages cap, arguing in a petition that the sole proprietor opted out of workers' compensation benefits and can't make a "loophole" to sue for millions.

  • November 18, 2024

    Medical Group Wants Justices To Review IP Safe Harbor Fight

    A medical device trade group has said the U.S. Supreme Court should take up an appeal of a Federal Circuit decision Edwards Lifesciences said broadened a drug-development safe harbor to avoid patent infringement, saying the circuit court misread the provision.

  • November 18, 2024

    Feds Delay Rule That Hemp Be Tested At DEA-Licensed Labs

    Laboratories certified by the federal government to measure THC concentration in hemp aren't able to meet the demand, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has said, so the agency is allowing growers to once again get their products tested by unregistered labs.

  • November 18, 2024

    Alstom Wants Injunction In Dispute Over 'Buy America' Waiver

    Train manufacturer Alstom has urged a D.C. federal judge to block a pending federal disbursement for a $12 billion high-speed rail project, saying the payment could "irrevocably" allow the project to use trainsets that violate federal "Buy America" requirements.

  • November 18, 2024

    Dispute Over Biden Admin Voting Access Order Paused

    A Texas federal district court judge has paused a dispute over an executive order from the Biden administration that promotes easier access to voting after a conservative think tank said President-elect Donald J. Trump is likely to overturn the directive.

  • November 18, 2024

    Colo. Rugby Coach Cries Foul Over City's Revoked Job Offer

    A man who says he was "poached" for an assistant coaching position with the American Raptors professional rugby team near Denver has filed a breach of contract lawsuit alleging he was fired before he even began, without cause, and cheated out of his early termination payment.

  • November 18, 2024

    Friedman Kaplan Name Partner Larry Robbins Dies At 72

    Larry Robbins, a name partner at Friedman Kaplan Seiler Adelman & Robbins LLP known for counseling high-profile congressional witnesses like Marie Yovanovitch and Christine Blasey Ford through their Senate and House committee appearances, died earlier this month at age 72, the firm announced.

  • November 18, 2024

    5th Circ. Says Texas County Wrong To Close Court Hearings

    A Fifth Circuit panel has upheld a trial court's ruling that a Texas county improperly blocked the press and public from attending criminal pretrial proceedings known as magistrate hearings, finding that the practice violates the First Amendment and harms the two news outlets and an advocacy group that brought the lawsuit.

  • November 18, 2024

    Neb. Officials Urge Court To Void Medical Pot Legalization

    Nebraska officials are urging a state judge to void ballot measures to legalize and regulate medical marijuana after a decisive majority of voters approved them, saying that reformers' signature-verification methods were critically hampered by malfeasance and fraud.

  • November 18, 2024

    Snyder Aide Expands Suit Over Flint Water Crisis Prosecution

    An adviser to former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has been permitted to add new allegations to his lawsuit against the state's attorney general and special prosecutors over their handling of charges brought against him surrounding the Flint water crisis, while the judge delayed ruling on prosecutors' immunity.

  • November 18, 2024

    DC Judges, Council Urge Confirmation Of City's Bench Picks

    District of Columbia council members and chief judges are calling on the Senate to confirm the D.C. judicial nominees pending on the floor by the end of the year as the court system has repeatedly called attention to a vacancy crisis.

  • November 18, 2024

    11th Circ. Shelves Peanut Truck Co.'s Excise Tax Refund

    The Eleventh Circuit has overturned a decision awarding an excise tax refund to a manufacturer for selling wagons that dry and carry peanuts, saying the refund is reserved for vehicles that are specially designed for off-highway transportation — a test the peanut wagons failed.

  • November 18, 2024

    Justices Reject SC Agency's Appeal Of Google Subpoena

    The U.S. Supreme Court refused Monday to take up a South Carolina state agency's appeal of a Fourth Circuit decision requiring its compliance with a Google subpoena in a case accusing the tech giant of monopolizing key digital ad technology.

  • November 17, 2024

    Trump Names FCC's Carr As New Agency Chair

    President-elect Donald Trump has picked Brendan Carr, the senior Republican on the Federal Communications Commission, as the agency's next chair, selecting a former general counsel of the agency and frequent critic of the current administration to lead the telecom regulator.

Expert Analysis

  • Planning For Cyber Incident Reporting Requirements In Sports

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    Attorneys at Wiley discuss the proposed rules under the Cybersecurity Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act that would impose extensive reporting requirements on professional and collegiate athletic organizations, universities and sports venues, including defining a covered entity and analyzing the types of events that would trigger reporting.

  • How 2 Proposed Bills Could Transform Patent Law

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    The Patent Eligibility Restoration Act and the Prevail Act may come up for vote by the Senate Judiciary Committee after the election, and both offer benefits and challenges for inventors and companies seeking to obtain patents, says Philip Nelson at Knobbe Martens.

  • Inside FTC's Decision To Exit Key Merger Review Labor Memo

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    Despite the Federal Trade Commission's recent withdrawal from a multiagency memorandum of understanding to step up enforcement of labor issues in merger investigations, the antitrust agencies aren't likely to give up their labor market focus, say attorneys at Stinson.

  • FDIC Guidance Puts Next-Gen ATMs In Regulatory Spotlight

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    The boring existence of ATMs is changing thanks to the emergence of new-age interactive teller machines, prompting the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to sound off in a potentially influential August letter to branches on which services might need regulatory approval, says Thomas Walker at Jones Walker.

  • Opinion

    Tariffs' Economic Downsides Outweigh Potential Revenue

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    Import tariffs proposed by the campaign of former president Donald Trump would generate revenue like other taxes, but policymakers must consider the net-negative impact of associated consumer and downstream-industry costs, harm to exporters, potential foreign retaliation and reduction in economic output, says Erica York at the Tax Foundation.

  • Comments Show Need For Clarity On SBA Proposed Rule

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    The recent public comments period for the Small Business Administration's proposed rule on recertification and other regulations underscores the need for more precision, particularly on agreements in principle, which the SBA should address as it moves forward with this rulemaking, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Series

    Beekeeping Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The practice of patent law and beekeeping are not typically associated, but taking care of honeybees has enriched my legal practice by highlighting the importance of hands-on experience, continuous learning, mentorship and more, says David Longo at Oblon McClelland.

  • Amazon Holiday Pay Case Underscores Overtime Challenges

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    The recent Hamilton v. Amazon.com Services LLC decision in the Colorado Supreme Court underscores why employers must always consult applicable state law and regulations — in addition to federal law — when determining how to properly pay employees who work more than 40 hours in a workweek, says James Looby at Vedder Price.

  • Understanding New ACH Network Anti-Fraud Rules

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    Many of the National Automated Clearing House Association’s recent amendments to ACH network risk management rules went into effect this month, so financial institutions and corporations must review and update their internal policies as needed, says Aisha Hall at Taft.

  • The OIG Report: Bad Timing For FEC To Be Underresourced

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    With less than two weeks to the election, the Federal Election Commission’s job has never been more urgent, but a report from its Office of the Inspector General earlier this year found that the agency is facing a resource squeeze that will only get worse without corrective action, says Diana Shaw at Wiley.

  • What To Know About New Employment Laws In Fla.

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    Florida employers should familiarize themselves with recent state laws, and also federal legislation, on retirement benefits, teen labor and heat exposure, with special attention to prohibitions against minors performing dangerous tasks, as outlined in the Fair Labor Standards Act, say Katie Molloy and Cayla Page at Greenberg Traurig.

  • The Key To Solving High Drug Costs Is Understanding Causes

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    One-sided views on who or what contributes to the high cost of pharmaceuticals render possible solutions much harder to discover and implement, and a better approach would be to examine history and learn why costs have increased and what legislation has and hasn't helped, says Nancy Linck at NJ Linck Consulting.

  • Election Unlikely To Overhaul Antitrust Enforcers' Labor Focus

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    Although the outcome of the presidential election may alter the course of antitrust enforcement in certain areas of the economy, scrutiny of labor markets by the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice is likely to remain largely unaffected — with one notable exception, say Jared Nagley and Joy Siu at Sheppard Mullin.

  • How Immigration Attys Should Prep For A 2nd Trump Term

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    In light of the possibility of a drastic policy shift under a second Trump administration, immigration lawyers must review what Trump did during his first term, assess who would be most affected if those policies return and develop legal strategies to safeguard their clients' interests, says Adam Moses at Harris Beach.

  • Anticipating Jarkesy's Effect On Bank Agency Enforcement

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    Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy, federal courts may eventually issue decisions on banking law principles and processes that could fundamentally alter the agencies' enforcement action framework, and the relationship between banks and examiners, says Brendan Clegg at Luse Gorman.

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