Public Policy

  • August 15, 2024

    Ariz. GOP Backs RNC's High Court Bid To Stay Voting Order

    The Arizona Republican Party is backing the Republican National Committee and two of the state's top lawmakers in asking U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan to halt an order over a voting law that is pending appeal at the Ninth Circuit, arguing the district court's order has a direct and tangible effect on its ability to promote the party's policies.

  • August 15, 2024

    Feds Say Texas Lacks Standing To Join Asylum-Limits Suit

    The federal government is reiterating its arguments that the state of Texas should not be allowed to join a lawsuit challenging the Biden administration's newest limits on asylum seekers, arguing Thursday that a Texas federal judge's dismissal of the state's challenge to a 2023 asylum rule was instructive.

  • August 15, 2024

    Montana Sen. Tester Says BIA Must Do More To Protect Tribes

    The senior U.S. senator from Montana has asked the Biden administration to authorize an independent review of the Bureau of Indian Affairs' efforts to ensure the public safety of Native American tribes in the state, saying a dire lack of trained law enforcement officers is "unacceptable."

  • August 15, 2024

    Connecticut Watchdog Calls For Action On Utility 'Rate Shock'

    A Connecticut consumer rights watchdog agency has asked the state's utility regulator to reverse rate hikes that it recently approved for major energy companies or to take other actions to prevent future "rate shock" for state residents.

  • August 15, 2024

    Judge Wary Of Paxton's Bid To 'Annihilate' Houston Nonprofit

    A Texas state judge indicated Thursday that he was hesitant to allow Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to file a suit seeking to take away an immigrant-led nonprofit's corporate charter, telling attorneys that Paxton was asking him "to go zero to 100" by seeking "annihilation" of the entity.

  • August 15, 2024

    Fla. Judge Rules Miami Official's Salary Can't Be Garnished

    A Florida federal judge recommended the dissolution of a garnishment levied against the salary of a Miami elected official who a jury said owes $63.5 million for civil rights violations, saying the evidence shows that he qualifies for a head-of-household exemption.

  • August 15, 2024

    Hemp Industry Rallies Against Calif. Bill

    Hemp companies are coming out against a California bill that would impose new THC limits on consumables sold outside of licensed dispensaries, with some industry leaders calling it an "existential threat" to the entire state market.

  • August 15, 2024

    No Harm In SEC Releasing More Info On Breach, Judge Told

    A conservative civil liberties group questioned the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's claims that releasing additional materials related to its handling of an internal firewall breach would harm the public interest Thursday, telling a D.C. federal judge in court that so much was already out, more sunlight couldn't hurt.

  • August 15, 2024

    NJ Court Urged To Toss All Of Ex-Elections Chief's Claims

    New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy has again asked a Garden State trial court judge to dismiss a lawsuit claiming he conspired with top staffers to oust the state's former elections chief, arguing that as government officials, the defendants are all entitled to qualified immunity.

  • August 15, 2024

    Federal Circuit Upholds Duties On Steel Nails From Taiwan

    The Federal Circuit upheld the "dumping margin" duties charged on certain Taiwanese nail imports, finding that the U.S. Department of Commerce had been unable to wring detailed data out of some of the producers and was thus justified in relying on outside facts when calculating the rates.

  • August 15, 2024

    DHS Sets Immigrant Worker Reforms For June 2025 Agenda

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has proposed amending its regulations in three preference classifications, setting possible rulemaking for its semiannual regulatory agenda in June 2025.

  • August 15, 2024

    NY Asks Top Court To Nix Ruling Against Ethics Commission

    The Office of the New York State Attorney General has submitted a brief urging the state's highest court to reverse a finding against an ethics commission that former Gov. Andrew Cuomo convinced a state court was unconstitutional.

  • August 15, 2024

    Illinois Rep. Touts Bill To Train Immigration Court Attys

    U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., said Thursday that a large number of defendants in U.S. immigration courts have no legal representation due to those courts having no policy to provide them with an attorney if they can't afford it and touted a bill she co-sponsored that would create a grant program to train more immigration attorneys.

  • August 15, 2024

    Colorado, Suncor Back EPA In Denver Refinery Permit Fight

    Colorado and Suncor Energy USA Inc. told the Tenth Circuit the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was right to refuse to object to a series of permit changes state regulators approved for the company's Denver-area oil refinery, as fights over the facility's emissions are heating up.

  • August 15, 2024

    Trump Seeks To Delay NY Sentencing Until After Election

    Donald Trump asked to delay sentencing in his New York hush money case until after the 2024 presidential election, arguing he needs time to potentially appeal if he loses an attempt to erase the felony conviction on the basis of presidential immunity.

  • August 15, 2024

    Banking Groups Sue To Thwart New Ill. Swipe Fee Restrictions

    The nation's largest bank trade association and other industry groups sued Thursday to block Illinois from implementing a new state law that prohibits financial intermediaries from charging so-called swipe fees on the sales tax and tip portions of payment card transactions, arguing it conflicts with federal law and risks broader "chaos."

  • August 15, 2024

    Harvard, Grad Students Settle Sexual Harassment Case

    Harvard University and a group of doctoral students in its anthropology program have reached a settlement in a sexual harassment lawsuit alleging the school ignored a now-retired professor's misconduct, according to a Wednesday federal court filing.

  • August 15, 2024

    Mich. Top Court Won't Undo Judicial Candidate's DQ

    The Michigan Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to review the disqualification of a candidate for an open judgeship on the state's intermediate court of appeals.

  • August 14, 2024

    UCLA Ordered To Ensure Jewish Students' Access To Campus

    The University of California, Los Angeles, must ensure that Jewish students have equal access to campus after a group of students alleged they were excluded from parts of the school grounds during a protest over Israel's invasion of the Gaza Strip, a Golden State federal judge ruled.

  • August 14, 2024

    CFPB Faces Call To Treat Housing Rental Leases As 'Credit'

    A major consumer advocacy group has formally petitioned the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to write new rules that would require landlords to provide "adverse action" explanations when rejecting prospective renters who have applied for an apartment or other housing lease.

  • August 14, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Won't Rehear Utah Tribe's Water Dispute

    A Federal Circuit panel refused to rehear a Utah tribe's challenge to the U.S. government that looked to overturn a Federal Claims Court ruling that held it didn't violate a 19th century law by not securing new water and infrastructure rights for the Indigenous community.

  • August 14, 2024

    ICE Faces Trimmed Suit Over Detainee's COVID-19 Death

    A California federal court on Tuesday again allowed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to trim a lawsuit alleging it failed to protect a man who died in detention but kept claims alleging ICE failed to oversee its facilities or protect the man from COVID-19.

  • August 14, 2024

    Amazon's Kuiper Says Satellite Framework Needed Soon

    Amazon's Kuiper Systems is pushing the FCC to "take expeditious action" to wrap up new rules dealing with spectrum sharing among non-geostationary orbit fixed-satellite service operators, comments regarding which have been filing into the docket for years.

  • August 14, 2024

    DOJ Defends Boeing Plea Deal Over Families' Objections

    The U.S. Department of Justice said Wednesday that Boeing's plea agreement is the best possible criminal resolution that holds the company accountable for defrauding regulators about the 737 Max 8's development, rejecting claims from crash victims' families that the "morally reprehensible" deal lets Boeing skirt culpability.

  • August 14, 2024

    4th Circ. Says Credit Card 'Offset' Ban Applies To HELOCs

    Creditors are prohibited from withdrawing funds from a cardholder's deposit account to cover outstanding payments on a home equity line of credit without the borrower's consent, a divided Fourth Circuit panel ruled Wednesday.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    After Chevron: Uniform Tax Law Interpretation Not Guaranteed

    Author Photo

    The loss of Chevron deference will significantly alter the relationship between the IRS, courts and Congress when it comes to tax law, potentially precipitating more transparent rulemaking, but also provoking greater uncertainty due to variability in judicial interpretation, say Michelle Levin and Carneil Wilson at Dentons.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Environmental Law May Face Hurdles

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling overturning Chevron deference could prove to be as influential as the original 1984 decision, with far-reaching implications for U.S. environmental laws, including rendering recently promulgated regulations more vulnerable to challenges, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Texas Ethics Opinion Flags Hazards Of Unauthorized Practice

    Author Photo

    The Texas Professional Ethics Committee's recently issued proposed opinion finding that in-house counsel providing legal services to the company's clients constitutes the unauthorized practice of law is a valuable clarification given that a UPL violation — a misdemeanor in most states — carries high stakes, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.

  • Why High Court Social Media Ruling Will Be Hotly Debated

    Author Photo

    In deciding the NetChoice cases that challenged Florida and Texas content moderation laws, what the U.S. Supreme Court justices said about social media platforms — and the First Amendment — will have implications and raise questions for nearly all online operators, say Jacob Canter and Joanna Rosen Forster at Crowell & Moring.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Good News For Gov't Contractors In Litigation

    Author Photo

    The net result of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision overturning Chevron deference is that individuals, contractors and companies bringing procurement-related cases against the government will have new pathways toward success, say Joseph Berger and Andrés Vera at Thompson Hine.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Scale Tips Favor Away From HHS Agencies

    Author Photo

    The loss of Chevron deference may indirectly aid parties in challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' interpretations of regulations and could immediately influence several pending cases challenging HHS on technical questions and agency authority, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Series

    After Chevron: FDA Regulations In The Crosshairs

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the Chevron doctrine is likely to unleash an array of challenges against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, focusing on areas of potential overreach such as the FDA's authority under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Realtor Settlement May Create New Antitrust Pitfalls

    Author Photo

    Following a recent antitrust settlement between the National Association of Realtors and home sellers, practices are set to change and the increased competition may benefit both brokers and homebuyers, but the loss of the customary method of buyer broker compensation could lead to new antitrust concerns, says Colin Ahler at Snell & Wilmer.

  • Navigating The New Rise Of Greenwashing Litigation

    Author Photo

    As greenwashing lawsuits continue to gain momentum with a shift in focus to carbon-neutrality claims, businesses must exercise caution and ensure transparency in their environmental marketing practices, taking cues from recent legal challenges in the airline industry, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • In Memoriam: The Modern Administrative State

    Author Photo

    On June 28, the modern administrative state, where courts deferred to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes, died when the U.S. Supreme Court overruled its previous decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council — but it is survived by many cases decided under the Chevron framework, say Joseph Schaeffer and Jessica Deyoe at Babst Calland.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Expect Limited Changes In USPTO Rulemaking

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling overturning Chevron deference will have limited consequences for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office given the USPTO's unique statutory features, but it is still an important decision for matters of statutory interpretation, especially those involving provisions of the America Invents Act, say Andrei Iancu and Cooper Godfrey at Sullivan & Cromwell.

  • Preparing For CFPB 'Junk Fee' Push Into Mortgage Industry

    Author Photo

    As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau considers expanding its "junk fee" initiative into mortgage closing costs, mortgage lenders and third parties must develop plans now that anticipate potential rulemaking or enforcement activity in this space, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Opinion

    It's Time For Nationwide Race-Based Hair Protections

    Author Photo

    While 24 states have passed laws that prohibit race-based hair discrimination, this type of bias persists in workplaces and schools, so a robust federal law is necessary to ensure widespread protection, says Samone Ijoma and Erica Roberts at Sanford Heisler.

  • Series

    After Chevron: EEOC Status Quo Will Likely Continue

    Author Photo

    As the legal landscape adjusts to the end of Chevron deference, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s rulemaking authority isn’t likely to shift as much as some other employment-related agencies, says Paige Lyle at FordHarrison.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Impact On Indian Law May Be Muted

    Author Photo

    Agency interpretations of Indian law statutes that previously stood the test of judicial review ​are likely to withstand new challenges even after the end of Chevron deference, but litigation in the area is all but certain, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Public Policy archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!