Public Policy

  • June 26, 2024

    FCC Urged To Prevent Abuse Through High-Tech Cars

    Privacy and abuse survivor advocates have outlined ways the Federal Communications Commission could safeguard connected car technology to mitigate domestic and sexual abuse, urging the agency to expand and adapt existing rules to limit abusers from using joint cellphone plans to stalk or harass people to apply to data in vehicles with advanced wireless connectivity.

  • June 26, 2024

    Justices Chide 5th Circ. In Biden Social Media Case

    The Fifth Circuit relied on "clearly erroneous" facts and an overgeneralized view of standing when it ordered the Biden administration to stop working with social media platforms to combat COVID-19 and election misinformation, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Wednesday as it threw out a challenge to the government's actions.

  • June 26, 2024

    Calif. Sanctioned $111M In 30-Year Prison Staffing Case

    A California federal judge has ordered state officials to hand over more than $111 million for failing to bring prison mental health staffing up to levels set by the court in 2009 in a 30-year-old case, saying Tuesday that "given defendants' contumacy, it is for the court to effect compliance."

  • June 26, 2024

    State Data Privacy Law Patchwork: Midyear Report

    States jumped on the consumer data privacy law bandwagon at a brisk clip in the first half of 2024, although it remains unclear if this push will be enough to encourage Congress to finally enact a nationwide framework this year. 

  • June 26, 2024

    Chamber Backs 9th Circ. Call To Nix SEC's 'Gag Rule'

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is among those calling on the Ninth Circuit to overturn a long-standing U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission policy that settling parties not be allowed to deny the allegations against them, saying that the so-called gag rule threatens the free speech rights of the accused.

  • June 26, 2024

    VA Can't 'Short-Circuit' Racial Bias Suit With Appeal, Vet Says

    The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs should not be allowed to challenge a Connecticut federal judge's decision to let a Black Marine Corps veteran proceed with his systemic-discrimination suit against the department because it has not met the standards for lodging an interlocutory appeal, the plaintiffs have argued.

  • June 26, 2024

    States Say Revised EPA Water Rule Worse Than Original

    Two dozen states are seeking a quick win against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and several Native American tribes in their suit challenging a revised rule defining the Clean Water Act's reach, saying it doesn't solve many problems found in the original rule.

  • June 26, 2024

    FBI Beats Epstein FOIA Case Due To Ghislaine Maxwell Appeal

    A New York federal judge handed the FBI a win Tuesday in gossip site Radar Online's Freedom of Information Act lawsuit seeking the government's sex-trafficking investigation records into the late billionaire sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, finding that the documents could affect the ongoing appeal of Epstein's convicted co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell.

  • June 26, 2024

    Artists Drum Up Support For Bill To Pay Music Royalties

    Congress needs to protect musical artists' intellectual property rights by requiring radio broadcasters to pay royalties for airing their sound performances, as most other countries do, the recording industry told lawmakers Wednesday.

  • June 26, 2024

    Bribery Ruling Could Disrupt ComEd Verdict, Madigan Trial

    The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling Wednesday narrowing the federal bribery law long relied upon to curb local corruption is expected to make waves in two prominent Chicago cases, attorneys say, with one likening it to a "nuclear bomb" exploding prosecutors' convictions of a former ComEd executive and lobbyists.

  • June 26, 2024

    FCC Threatens To Yank Texas AM Station License Over Fees

    A Spanish-language Christian radio station is about to have its license snatched away by the Federal Communications Commission if it doesn't do something about its delinquent regulatory fees, according to new proceedings initiated by the agency.

  • June 26, 2024

    'Tragic History' Can't Rewrite Law In Burial Row, Army Says

    The U.S. Army says the nation's "tragic history" of injustices done to children through the Indian Boarding School system does not give a federal district court license to rewrite a law aimed at protecting Indigenous burial sites, arguing that a Nebraska tribe's challenge over the repatriation of two children should be dismissed.

  • June 26, 2024

    SpaceX Beach Closure Challenge Is 'Illogical,' Texas Says

    Texas is asking its high court to review a decision that forces several government entities to face an environmental group's challenge to the closure of a beach for SpaceX activities, writing that the appellate court's adoption of the group's theory of open beach access "clashes" with state law and court precedent.

  • June 26, 2024

    Texas Moves To Bar DOJ Witness In Rio Grande Barrier Fight

    Texas has moved to disqualify one of the Biden administration's witnesses in litigation over the Lone Star state's 1,000-foot barrier in the Rio Grande to keep out migrants, arguing the witness has no relevant or reliable opinions to offer.

  • June 26, 2024

    FCC To Finalize Funding For School Wi-Fi Hot Spots

    The Federal Communications Commission plans to vote in July on final rules to help schools pay for Wi-Fi hot spots, part of a Democratic effort to address off-campus connectivity gaps through federal aid.

  • June 26, 2024

    Ex-Worker Says NC Justices Needn't Review Carcinogen Test

    A former graduate student worker for North Carolina State University has told the Tar Heel State's highest court that the school is trying to delay a potential lawsuit by continuing its fight to keep the ex-employee and cancer patient from investigating a campus building for carcinogens.

  • June 26, 2024

    NHTSA Declines Calls For 'More Robust' Truck Safety Guards

    Roadway safety advocates are chiding the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration after it rejected requests for stricter requirements on rear impact guards on semitruck trailers, used to protect passenger vehicles that crash into the back of trailers, calling the decision "indefensible."

  • June 26, 2024

    Unfinished Glycine Factory Supports Evasion, Says US Co.

    A U.S. glycine producer urged the U.S. Court of International Trade on Wednesday to affirm the government's renewed finding that importers dodged tariffs, pointing to photographs of an Indonesian factory still under construction while it was allegedly producing exports for the suppliers.

  • June 26, 2024

    Supreme Court Bribery Ruling Limits Government's 'Arsenal'

    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision Wednesday limiting the reach of a federal bribery law has removed a "novel" tool that prosecutors employed in a wide range of public corruption cases and could result in fewer prosecutions of state and local officials, experts say.

  • June 26, 2024

    Texas Uses Justices' Gun Ruling To Defend Deportation Law

    Texas has told the Fifth Circuit that a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision maintaining a ban on firearm ownership for domestic abusers supports its state law authorizing the arrest and deportation of migrants.

  • June 26, 2024

    Red Roof Trafficking Case Settled In Middle Of Trial

    The corporate owners of two Red Roof Inn locations in Atlanta and 11 women who claim they were trafficked there for years without intervention have reached a midtrial settlement ending the case.

  • June 26, 2024

    NJ Shore Town Asks Court To End Bar's Teen Night

    A Garden State beach town asked a New Jersey federal judge to put an end to a popular bar's Teen Night after the establishment said it will continue to hold the twice-weekly events despite a borough ordinance banning them, claiming the events lead to raucous and illegal behavior.

  • June 26, 2024

    Ex-Seattle Cancer Center Worker Settles Suit Over 'Woke' DEI

    A former clinical social worker for Seattle's Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center has agreed to drop her lawsuit accusing management of firing her for protesting diversity programming as laden with "woke" identity politics, according to a recent stipulation filed in Washington federal court.

  • June 26, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Says No Fees For HID Global In Patent Suit

    The Federal Circuit has backed a U.S. Court of Federal Claims finding that HID Global Corp. can't have attorney fees after being let out of patent litigation brought by Giesecke & Devrient, but it affirmed on different grounds.

  • June 26, 2024

    Big Banks Cleared Fed's Stress Tests, Despite 'Higher Losses'

    The Federal Reserve said Wednesday that the nation's big banks have enough capital on hand to ride out a simulated recession, giving them passing marks in the latest round of stress tests as regulators debate tougher rules that could raise capital requirements further.

Expert Analysis

  • Live Nation May Shake It Off In A Long Game With The DOJ

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    Don't expect a swift resolution in the U.S. Department of Justice's case against Live Nation, but a long litigation, with the company likely to represent itself as the creator of a competitive ecosystem, and the government faced with explaining how the ticketing giant formed under its watch, say Thomas Kliebhan and Taylor Hixon at GRSM50.

  • How Act 126 Will Jump-Start Lithium Production In Louisiana

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    Louisiana's recent passage of Act 126, which helps create a legal and regulatory framework for lithium brine production and direct lithium extraction in the state, should help bolster the U.S. supply of this key mineral, and contribute to increased energy independence for the nation, say Marjorie McKeithen and Justin Marocco at Jones Walker.

  • 5 Steps For Gov't Contractor Affirmative Action Verification

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    As the federal contractor affirmative action program certification deadline approaches, government contractors and subcontractors should take steps to determine their program obligations, and ensure any required plans are properly implemented and timely registered, say Christopher Wilkinson at Perkins Coie and Joanna Colosimo at DCI Consulting.

  • Boeing Saga Underscores Need For Ethical Corporate Culture

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    In the wake of recent allegations about Boeing’s safety culture, and amid the U.S. Department of Justice’s new whistleblower incentives, business leaders should reinvigorate their emphasis on compliance by making clear that long-term profitability requires ethical business practices, says Maxwell Carr-Howard at Dentons.

  • A Closer Look At Feds' Proposed Banker Compensation Rule

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    A recently proposed rule to limit financial institutions' ability to award incentive-based compensation for risk-taking may progress through the rulemaking process slowly due to the sheer number of regulators collaborating on the rule and the number of issues under consideration, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • 2 Regulatory Approaches To Psychedelic Clinical Trials

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    Comparing the U.S. and Canada's regulatory frameworks for clinical trials of psychedelic drugs can be useful for designing trial protocols that meet both countries' requirements, which can in turn help diversify patient populations, bolster data robustness and expedite market access, say Kimberly Chew at Husch Blackwell and Sabrina Ramkellawan at AxialBridge.

  • Why Jurors Balk At 'I Don't Recall' — And How To Respond

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    Jurors often react negatively to a witness who responds “I don’t remember” because they tend to hold erroneous beliefs about the nature of human memory, but attorneys can adopt a few strategies to mitigate the impact of these biases, say Steve Wood and Ava Hernández at Courtroom Sciences.

  • How Federal And State Microfiber Pollution Policy Is Evolving

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    Growing efforts to address synthetic microfiber pollution may create compliance and litigation issues for businesses in the textile and apparel industries, so companies should track developing federal and state legislation and regulation in this space, and should consider associated greenwashing risks, says Arie Feltman-Frank at Jenner & Block.

  • Series

    Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Atop the list of ways fishing makes me a better lawyer is the relief it offers from the chronic stress of a demanding caseload, but it has also improved my listening skills and patience, and has served as an exceptional setting for building earnest relationships, says Steven DeGeorge​​​​​​​ at Robinson Bradshaw.

  • Best Practices For Responding To CBP's Solar Questionnaire

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    U.S. Customs and Border Protection's recently introduced questionnaire to solar importers imposes significant burdens, with the potential for supply chain disruptions and market consolidation, but taking certain steps can assist companies in navigating the new requirements, say Carl Valenstein and Katelyn Hilferty at Morgan Lewis.

  • Exploring Alternatives To Noncompetes Ahead Of FTC Ban

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    Ahead of the Sept. 4 effective date for the Federal Trade Commission's noncompete ban, employers should seek new ways to protect their proprietary and other sensitive information, including by revising existing confidentiality and nondisclosure agreements, says Harvey Linder at Culhane.

  • Parsing Controversial Del. General Corporation Law Proposals

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    In response to issues raised in three recent high-profile Delaware Court of Chancery decisions, many amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law were quickly proposed that, if enacted, would bring significant changes likely to be hotly debated — and litigated — for the foreseeable future, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • A Look At US-EU Consumer Finance Talks' Slow First Steps

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    The unhurried and informal nature of planned discussions between the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the European commissioner for justice and consumer protection suggests any coordinated regulatory action on issues like AI and "buy now, pay later" services is still a ways off, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • Opinion

    It's Time To Defuse The Ticking Time Bomb Of US Landfills

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    After recent fires at landfills in Alabama and California sent toxic fumes into surrounding communities, it is clear that existing penalties for landfill mismanagement are insufficient — so policymakers must enact major changes to the way we dispose of solid waste, says Vineet Dubey at Custodio & Dubey.

  • 5th Circ. Venue-Transfer Cases Highlight Mandamus Limits

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    Three ongoing cases filed within the Fifth Circuit highlight an odd procedural wrinkle that may let district courts defy an appellate writ: orders granting transfer to out-of-circuit districts, but parties opposing intercircuit transfer can work around this hurdle to effective appellate review, says Charles Fowler at McKool Smith.

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