Public Policy

  • March 11, 2025

    Trump Taps Amazon Corporate Counsel As US Atty In Philly

    President Donald Trump has tapped David Metcalf, a former U.S. Department of Justice official, currently at Amazon, to be U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

  • March 11, 2025

    Trump Taps DOJ Vet To Serve As Energy Dept.'s Top Lawyer

    President Donald Trump has nominated a Winston & Strawn LLP partner, who formerly led the U.S. Department of Justice's Environment and Natural Resources Division during Trump's previous term, to serve as the U.S. Department of Energy's general counsel.

  • March 11, 2025

    Groups Say EPA Must Regulate Phosphate Mining Waste

    The Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club and others have called on the D.C. Circuit to order the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to regulate radioactive waste from phosphate mining and fertilizer production, which are currently excluded from federal regulation.

  • March 11, 2025

    12 Govs. Assert States' Sovereignty Against CTA In 5th Circ.

    A dozen Republican governors, led by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, urged the Fifth Circuit to maintain a nationwide block of enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act, arguing the law undermines the traditional authority states have to regulate businesses.

  • March 11, 2025

    Conservationists Sue FWS Over 'Blanket' Species Rule

    Two conservation groups are suing the U.S. Department of the Interior in Montana federal court over an Endangered Species Act rule they say illegally gives the government power to indiscriminately restrict landowners' use of their property.

  • March 11, 2025

    FTC Defends Southern Glazer's Pricing Case

    The Federal Trade Commission is defending its price discrimination case against alcohol distributor Southern Glazer's, telling a California federal judge Monday that the company's move to dismiss the suit "misapprehends applicable case law, ignores key allegations, and overstates the factual detail required of the pleading standard."

  • March 11, 2025

    DOJ's RealPage Antitrust Case Gets New Judge

    The U.S. Department of Justice's price-fixing lawsuit against algorithmic real estate pricing company RealPage is getting a new judge due to a conflict.

  • March 11, 2025

    BigLaw Firms Join To Support Del. Corporate Law Changes

    Twenty-one law firms with Delaware corporate practices have jointly endorsed pending state legislation, S.B. 21, that aims to narrow stockholder avenues for challenging corporate acts and clarify the definition of company controllers.

  • March 11, 2025

    FERC Can't Defend Its Enforcement Powers, Energy Co. Says

    An energy efficiency aggregator insists that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission doesn't have the authority to pursue a market manipulation case against it, telling a North Carolina federal judge that just because it can contest a penalty in court doesn't mean its constitutional rights haven't been violated.

  • March 11, 2025

    Former Immigration Judges Defend Legal Services Programs

    A group of former immigration judges and Board of Immigration Appeals members told a D.C. federal judge that legal services programs for unrepresented detained immigrants that the Trump administration stopped funding help the courts function more efficiently.

  • March 11, 2025

    CMA's Big Tech Enforcement To Focus On UK Impact

    An official for the Competition and Markets Authority said the agency will focus enforcement efforts against technology companies on issues that have a local impact in the United Kingdom and is less likely to act on issues already being addressed by other authorities.

  • March 11, 2025

    NYC Workers Can't Revive Fossil Fuel Divestment Challenge

    A New York state appeals court refused Tuesday to reopen a lawsuit claiming several New York City pension plans unlawfully put politics over municipal employees' financial needs by divesting $3.9 billion from fossil fuels, backing a trial court's determination that the workers hadn't shown their benefits were affected.

  • March 11, 2025

    Split 2nd Circ. Says Court Records Rule Flouts Free Speech

    A split panel of the Second Circuit said Tuesday that Vermont's new rule restricting access to newly filed state court complaints until they can be reviewed by court staff is unconstitutional in its current form, with one judge arguing that the majority's ruling will stifle innovation in judicial procedures.

  • March 11, 2025

    Colo. Justices Uneasy About Reach Of Xcel's Immunity Claim

    Colorado's justices were concerned Tuesday about the potentially far-reaching consequences of Xcel Energy's claim that a regulatory tariff limits its liability from a man's personal injury claim, with one justice asking if it would be a "severe derogation of common law" for regulators to grant the utility such broad immunity.

  • March 11, 2025

    'Victim Of Its Own Success': The Federalist Society's Shift

    The Federalist Society can now boast long-sought victories and point to scores of federal judges appointed from its ranks. But its alliance with President Donald Trump may bring about a reckoning within the conservative legal movement.

  • March 11, 2025

    Eric Adams Case Dying Slow Death In 'Sovereign' District

    Experts say New York City Mayor Eric Adams' criminal corruption case appears on track to be tossed permanently — a looming development that could signal the end of the fierce independence of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York.

  • March 11, 2025

    Threats Against Judges 'Top Priority,' Fed. Judiciary Says

    Protecting federal judges is a "top priority" as violent threats spike against a polarized political backdrop, making congressional funding for additional security measures more important than ever, the U.S. Judicial Conference said Tuesday.

  • March 11, 2025

    NJ Power Broker Fights Civil Suit After Criminal Case Victory

    South Jersey power broker George Norcross and his brother moved this week to dismiss a civil racketeering suit against them arguing that the plaintiff's claims "parroted" a criminal indictment against them that was recently dismissed.

  • March 11, 2025

    California Entities Escape State Judge's Underpayment Suit

    A California state judge threw out some claims in a proposed class action from a judge who alleges she was underpaid the last several years, saying the state's retirement agency and its controller showed they didn't have much authority over judges' pay.

  • March 11, 2025

    Publix's Suit Over Ga. County's Private Attys 'Beyond Reason'

    Publix can't sue a metro Atlanta county to force it to drop its private attorneys who filed an opioid suit against the supermarket chain, the Georgia Court of Appeals has said, ruling that the company "fails to show what right the county has violated by its choice of counsel."

  • March 11, 2025

    Colorado Pot Grower Sues Regulators Over Lax Enforcement

    A Colorado cannabis grower is suing state regulators, alleging that they are failing to crack down on illegal businesses and retaliating against legitimate operations for blowing the whistle on noncompliant actors.

  • March 11, 2025

    Trump Admin Drops Suit Over COVID Nasal Spray Ads Claims

    The U.S. Department of Justice quietly moved Monday to drop a Utah federal court lawsuit filed on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission accusing a sinus nasal spray company of falsely claiming its products could help prevent and treat COVID-19.

  • March 11, 2025

    NJ High Court Approves AG Conflicts Waiver Pilot Program

    The New Jersey Supreme Court has given the go-ahead for a two-year pilot program through which the state attorney general will be allowed to waive conflicts of interest for public clients represented by the Office of the Attorney General.

  • March 11, 2025

    Bipartisan Bill Penalizing Child Labor Violations Reintroduced

    A bill that would heavily penalize companies that have been found in violation of child labor laws and would bar them from securing government contracts has been reintroduced by two senators.

  • March 11, 2025

    1st Circ. Upholds Block On Trump's Birthright Citizenship Order

    The First Circuit on Tuesday refused to disturb a Massachusetts federal judge's ruling that blocked the Trump administration's move to end birthright citizenship, rejecting the government's claim that states suing over the policy lacked standing.

Expert Analysis

  • How Private Securities Suits Complement SEC Enforcement

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    U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement is vital to the healthy functioning of markets, but government enforcement alone is not enough to ensure meaningful monetary recoveries for investor losses due to securities law violations, say attorneys at Bernstein Litowitz.

  • The Case For Compliance During The Trump Administration

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    Given the Trump administration’s shifting white collar enforcement priorities, C-suite executives may have the natural instinct to pare back compliance initiatives, but there are several good reasons for companies to at least stay the course on their compliance programs, if not enhance them, say attorneys at Riley Safer.

  • Opinion

    Despite Noble Intentions, Va. Usury Bill Is Bad For Consumers

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    A Virginia bill purportedly aimed at eradicating predatory online bank lending actually does nothing to achieve that goal, and instead would limit credit opportunities for state residents, says Catherine Brennan at Hudson Cook.

  • Opinion

    Undoing An American Ideal Of Fairness

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    President Donald Trump’s orders attacking birthright citizenship, civil rights education, and diversity, equity and inclusion programs threaten hard-won constitutional civil rights protections and decades of efforts to undo bias in the law — undermining what Chief Justice Earl Warren called "our American ideal of fairness," says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • A Look At HHS' New Opinion On Patient Assistance Programs

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    A recent advisory opinion from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General follows a recent trend of blessing patient assistance program arrangements that implicate the Anti-Kickback Statute, as long as they are structured with appropriate safeguards to minimize the risk of fraud and abuse, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Employer Tips For Wise Use Of Workers' Biometrics And Tech

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Employers that collect employee biometric data and operate bring-your-own-device policies, which respectively offer better corporate security and more flexibility for workers, should prioritize certain best practices to protect the privacy and rights of employees and safeguard sensitive internal information, says Douglas Yang at Sheppard Mullin.

  • How Trump EPA Could Fix Carbon Combustion Residuals Rule

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    The Trump administration is likely targeting the recently adopted carbon combustion residual rule, especially since it imposes very stringent, detailed and expedited requirements on coal power plants — but even if the rule is not vacated entirely, there are measures that could greatly reduce its regulatory burden, says Stephen Jones at Post & Schell.

  • Expect To Feel Aftershocks Of Chopra's CFPB Shake-Up

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    Publications released by Consumer Financial Protection Bureau personnel in the last days of the Biden administration outline former Director Rohit Chopra's long-term vision for aggressive state-level enforcement of federal consumer financial laws, opening the doors for states to launch investigations and pursue actions, say attorneys at Hudson Cook.

  • The Rising Need For The Selective Prosecution Defense

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    In a political climate where criminal and civil prosecution on the basis of political affiliation, constitutionally protected speech or other arbitrary classification is increasingly likely, existing precedent shows why judges should be more open to allowing a selective prosecution defense, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Unprecedented Firings And The EEOC's Shifting Agenda

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    While President Donald Trump's unprecedented firing of Democratic Equal Employment Opportunity Commission members put an end to the party's voting majority, the move raises legal issues, as well as considerations related to the EEOC's lack of a quorum and shifting regulatory priorities, says Ally Coll at the Purple Method.

  • How New SBA Rule May Affect Small Government Contractors

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    By limiting competition from larger entities, the Small Business Administration's recently published final rule may help some small government contractors, but these restrictions on set-aside work following a merger, acquisition or sale may also deter small businesses' long-term growth, say attorneys at Akerman.

  • Nippon Order Tests Gov't Control Over Foreign Investments

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    The U.S. government is primarily interested in restraining foreign transactions involving countries of concern, but former President Joe Biden’s January order blocking the merger of Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel shows that all foreign direct investments are under the federal government’s microscope, say attorneys at Blank Rome.

  • Opinion

    Inconsistent Injury-In-Fact Rules Hinder Federal Practice

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    A recent Third Circuit decision, contradicting a previous ruling about whether consumers of contaminated products have suffered an injury in fact, illustrates the deep confusion this U.S. Supreme Court standard creates among federal judges and practitioners, who deserve a simpler method of determining which cases have federal standing, says Eric Dwoskin at Dwoskin Wasdin.

  • How Trump Orders Roll Back Energy Efficiency Mandates

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    President Donald Trump's first-day executive orders — including a freeze on administrative rules, an order to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement, and a directive to broaden consumers' appliance choices — have shifted federal policy on energy efficiency, and bring new considerations for companies engaging with the U.S. Department of Energy, say attorneys at HWG.

  • What Financial Intermediaries Can Expect From New Admin

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    Understanding the current regulatory landscape of consumer financial services — and anticipating how it might evolve under Trump 2.0 — is essential for brokers, lead generators and digital platforms, and they should consider strategies for managing regulatory uncertainty, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

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