Public Policy

  • December 17, 2024

    DHS Unveils H-1B Overhaul As Biden Admin Winds Down

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday unveiled its highly anticipated overhaul of the H-1B visa program for foreign specialty workers, codifying deference to prior approvals and tightening eligibility standards for the kinds of occupations that qualify.

  • December 17, 2024

    3M Fights Michigan's Mootness Claims In PFAS Rule Suit

    Michigan is wrong to allege that 3M's challenge to rules on PFAS in tap water is moot, the company has told the state Supreme Court, claiming it will still be affected by the challenged regulations despite the state's arguments that new regulations supersede them.

  • December 17, 2024

    Ariz. Families Seek Class Cert. Over Sober Home Living Scam

    A group of Arizona families is seeking class certification in an effort to hold the state and its healthcare agencies accountable for the so-called sober living crisis, arguing that despite knowing the magnitude of fraud that was occurring, it continued to enable the multibillion-dollar scam.

  • December 17, 2024

    Biden Admin Finalizes Revamp Of Seasonal Visa Programs

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday finalized changes to the program for foreign seasonal workers that will bolster worker protections, penalize employers who impose prohibited fees and make it easier for workers to change employers.

  • December 17, 2024

    US Seeks Foreclosure To Pay 'Survivor' Winner's $3.3M Taxes

    A federal magistrate judge should have recommended allowing the U.S. government to foreclose on two properties it claims are controlled by a winner of the "Survivor" TV series who owes $3.3 million in taxes, the government told a Rhode Island federal court.

  • December 17, 2024

    Seattle, Solar Group Sue To Block Natural Gas Ballot Initiative

    The city of Seattle and solar industry and environmental groups have sued the state of Washington to preserve municipalities' ability to curb natural gas use in new buildings, arguing a voter-approved measure blocking that power had unrelated provisions that made it unconstitutional.

  • December 17, 2024

    Tulsa Tribal Jurisdiction Fight Is Paused For Settlement Talks

    An Oklahoma federal judge has hit pause on a dispute between the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and the city of Tulsa over jurisdictional rights after the parties asked for time to participate in settlement discussions.

  • December 17, 2024

    Senate Dem's Bill Would Mandate New FCC Outage Reports

    Networks that receive funding to help them rebound from climate-related disasters would need to file new reports of outages to the Federal Communications Commission under a Democratic bill filed in the U.S. Senate.

  • December 17, 2024

    Nevada Defeats DOJ Military Bias Suit Over Pension Credits

    A Nevada federal judge tossed the U.S. Department of Justice's suit claiming Nevada and its public employees' retirement system overcharged service members for pension credits, ruling that a law protecting troops' reemployment rights doesn't let service members beef up their retirement benefits at a discounted rate.

  • December 17, 2024

    Split Pa. High Court Revives Kleinbard Fee Row Over DA Work

    The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Tuesday revived Kleinbard LLC's bid to get Lancaster County to pay for legal work on behalf of a former district attorney, reasoning that a lower court hastily rejected the firm's factual assertions. 

  • December 17, 2024

    PG&E Secures $15B Energy Dept. Loan To Upgrade Grid

    The U.S. Department of Energy said on Tuesday that it has conditionally committed to lending Pacific Gas & Electric Co. up to $15 billion for projects aimed at expanding hydropower generation and clean energy infrastructure in California.

  • December 17, 2024

    NYC Mayor Must Face Bribery Charge For Turkish Travel Perks

    A Manhattan federal judge on Tuesday rejected New York City Mayor Eric Adams' request to dismiss the bribery charge from his indictment, finding that prosecutors clearly alleged a corrupt bargain with Turkish government agents to receive lavish travel perks.

  • December 17, 2024

    NC Legal Advice Law Challenge Meets Early Demise

    A lawsuit by two paralegals and a nonprofit challenging North Carolina's ban on the unauthorized practice of law restricting who can offer legal advice has been cut short after a federal judge found the statute falls within a substantial state interest to protect its citizens.

  • December 17, 2024

    4 Recent Policy Developments Benefits Attys Should Know

    A trio of federal agencies finalized new disclosure requirements for how health plans cover mental health treatments, states took steps to regulate pharmacy benefit managers, the U.S. Department of Labor's investment advice regulations failed in court, and Congress passed legislation to make compliance with the Affordable Care Act easier. Here, Law360 looks back at four policy-related developments in the employee benefits field from the latter half of 2024.

  • December 17, 2024

    Pa. Supreme Court Says Judge's Side Job Sinks Tax Rulings

    A Pennsylvania state judge who held a side job on a Philadelphia tax appeals board had nullified rulings he made on a local hospital's tax cases, the state's Supreme Court said Tuesday, reasoning that holding both jobs was a "constitutionally impermissible conflict of duties."

  • December 17, 2024

    IRS Corrects Proposed Admin Requirements For Direct Pay

    The Internal Revenue Service issued a correction Tuesday to proposed regulations laying out administrative requirements for tax-exempt entities to elect out of their partnership status in order to take advantage of new rules enabling direct cash payment of clean energy tax credits.

  • December 17, 2024

    Possible 6th Circ. Picks Now That Biden's Nominee Is Done

    A district judge, state Supreme Court justice and a former Federal Energy Regulatory Commission member are among the contenders for a seat on the Sixth Circuit when the outgoing judge retires, a pending vacancy that had been a matter of contention between Tennessee's senators and the Biden administration.

  • December 17, 2024

    Ex-Pol Can't Shake Fraud Rap Over Jury's Racial Makeup

    A Massachusetts federal judge denied a Vietnamese-American former state senator's bid to undo his conviction for unlawfully accepting unemployment assistance and filing a false tax return, rejecting claims that jury selection was tainted by "racial animus" on the part of prosecutors.

  • December 17, 2024

    Colo. Atty Accused Of Poaching Seeks State Justices' Take

    It's time for Colorado's Supreme Court to weigh whether law firms may prohibit attorneys from soliciting co-workers to depart their firm together, a lawyer accused of soliciting BigLaw firms to poach her department from a Denver personal injury firm argued Monday, asserting the case is a matter of first impression.

  • December 17, 2024

    Canadian Cabinet Official Takes Over Finance Minster Role

    Canada's intergovernmental affairs minister is now also the country's finance minister following the sudden resignation of the previous official to hold the post, who cited conflicting views with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about how to respond to U.S. tariff threats.

  • December 17, 2024

    Groups Want Win In Partially Blocked Prevailing Wage Rule

    The U.S. Department of Labor's final rule updating how prevailing wages are calculated under the Davis-Bacon Act should sink because it is arbitrary and capricious, a group of construction groups said, urging a Texas court to ax the rule after it partially blocked it.

  • December 17, 2024

    Former Massachusetts AG Frank Bellotti Dies At 101

    Former Massachusetts Attorney General Francis Bellotti, who spent more than a decade as the state's top prosecutor, died Tuesday at 101, his family said.

  • December 17, 2024

    IRS Finalizes Expanded 'Coverage Month' For Premium Credit

    The Internal Revenue Service finalized rules Tuesday that will expand the definition of a coverage month for purposes of computing the health insurance premium tax credit.

  • December 16, 2024

    Circuit-By-Circuit Guide To 2024's Most Memorable Moments

    One judge said a litigant's position would cause "an effing nightmare," and another decried the legal community's silence amid "illegitimate aspersions." Public officials literally trashed one court's opinion, and fateful rulings dealt with controversial politicians, social media and decades of environmental policy. Those were just a few appellate highlights in 2024, a year teeming with memorable moments both substantive and sensational.

  • December 16, 2024

    Split SEC Will Require Certain Filings Be Made Electronically

    A split U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday adopted rule amendments that require certain filings be made electronically, with Chair Gary Gensler saying the changes will streamline the commission's filing process.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • How Litigation, Supply Chains Buffeted Offshore Wind In 2024

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    U.S. offshore wind developers continue to face a range of challenges — including litigation brought by local communities and interest groups, ongoing supply chain issues, and a lack of interconnection and transmission infrastructure — in addition to uncertainty surrounding federal energy policy under the second Trump administration, say attorneys at Liskow & Lewis.

  • FTX Exec's Sentencing Shows Pros And Cons Of Cooperation

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    The sentencing of former FTX tech deputy Gary Wang, whose cooperation netted him a rare outcome of no prison time, offers critical takeaways for attorneys and clients navigating the burgeoning world of crypto-related prosecutions, says Andrew Meck at Whiteford.

  • What Bisphenol S Prop 65 Listing Will Mean For Industry

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    The imminent addition of bisphenol S — a chemical used in millions of products — to California's Proposition 65 list will have sweeping compliance and litigation implications for companies in the retail, food and beverage, paper, manufacturing and personal care product industries, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Note 3 Simple Types Of Legal Complexity

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    Cases can appear complex for several reasons — due to the number of issues, the volume of factual and evidentiary sources, and the sophistication of those sources — but the same basic technique can help lawyers tame their arguments into a simple and persuasive message, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Justices Mull Sex-Based Classification In Trans Law Case

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    After the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in U.S. v. Skrmetti this week, it appears that the fate of the Tennessee law at the center of the case — a law banning gender-affirming healthcare for transgender adolescents — will hinge on whether the majority read the statute as imposing a sex-based classification, says Alexandra Crandall at Dickinson Wright.

  • Permitting, Offtake Among Offshore Wind Challenges In 2024

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    Although federal offshore wind development started to pick up this year, many challenges to the industry became apparent as well — including slow federal permitting, the pitfalls of restarting permits after changes in project status, and the difficulties of negotiating economically viable offtake agreements, say attorneys at Liskow & Lewis.

  • Corporate Liability Issues To Watch In High Court TM Case

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    The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a trademark dispute between Dewberry Group and Dewberry Engineers next week, presenting an opportunity for the court to drastically alter the fundamental approach to piercing the corporate veil, or adopt a more limited approach and preserve existing norms, say attorneys at Bracewell.

  • Every Dog Has Its Sick Day: Inside NYC's Pet Leave Bill

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    In what would be a first-of-its-kind law for a major metropolitan area, a recent proposal would amend New York City's Earned Safe and Sick Time Act to include animal care as an accepted use of sick leave — and employers may not think it's the cat's meow, say attorneys at Morrison Cohen.

  • Plugging Gov't Leaks Is Challenging, But Not A Pipe Dream

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    As shown by ongoing legal battles involving New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Sean “Diddy” Combs, it’s challenging for defendants to obtain relief when they believe the government leaked sensitive information to the media, but defense counsel can take certain steps to mitigate the harm, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.

  • Antitrust in Retail: Handbag Ruling Won't Go Out Of Fashion

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    Although a New York federal court’s recent decision to enjoin a proposed $8.5 billion merger between the owners of Michael Kors and Coach applied noncontroversial antitrust interpretations, several notable aspects of the opinion stand out as likely candidates for further discussion in future merger litigation, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Series

    Gardening Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Beyond its practical and therapeutic benefits, gardening has bolstered important attributes that also apply to my litigation practice, including persistence, patience, grit and authenticity, says Christopher Viceconte at Gibbons.

  • Federal Embrace Of Crypto Regs Won't Lower State Hurdles

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    Even if the incoming presidential administration and next Congress focus on creating clearer federal regulatory frameworks for the cryptocurrency sector, companies bringing digital asset products and services to the market will still face significant state-level barriers, say attorneys at Mayer Brown.

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