Public Policy

  • July 19, 2024

    Atlanta Strikes Deal To End Ex-Worker's Retaliation Suit

    The city of Atlanta has reached a deal with its former immigrant affairs director to resolve her lawsuit alleging she was fired after blowing the whistle on failures in the city's immigrant outreach services, according to a filing in Georgia federal court.

  • July 19, 2024

    Elite Schools' $284M Aid-Fixing Deals Get Final OK

    An Illinois federal judge on Friday granted his final signoff to $284 million worth of settlements inked by 10 schools accused in a sprawling antitrust case of working together to limit the financial aid they provided, deeming it a fair and reasonable outcome for the class of students.

  • July 19, 2024

    FTC Eyes Mid-Nov. Texas Hearing Against Mattress Merger

    The Federal Trade Commission's case against Tempur Sealy's $4 billion planned Mattress Firm purchase is set to kick off in Texas federal court Nov. 14, the parties told an agency in-house judge Friday during a scheduling hearing.

  • July 19, 2024

    Signature Gatherers Must Comply With Mich. Election Law

    A Michigan appellate panel said in a published opinion that petition signature gatherers must strictly comply with state election law, finding that the gatherers' failure to identify their town of residence rendered invalid every signature on petitions seeking to put a referendum question regarding a solar energy ordinance on the ballot.

  • July 19, 2024

    Fla. Man Charged With Selling Fake Tribal Jewelry In Wis.

    A Florida man has been charged with several fraud-related counts after he was allegedly caught selling fake Native American jewelry at arts and crafts shows across the country, according to a grand jury indictment handed down in Wisconsin federal court.

  • July 19, 2024

    NJ Towns Not Liable For Water Contaminants, Panel Rules

    A panel of New Jersey state appeals court judges ruled Friday that municipalities charging for water service aren't in an implied contractual relationship with residents and thus can't be found in breach of contract for elevated contaminant levels in the water.

  • July 19, 2024

    Feds Deny That Advocate Suit Forced Immigration Change

    The Biden administration rebuked immigration advocates' request for $3.7 million for challenging Trump-era orders ending immigration protections for people from conflict zones, arguing they couldn't claim they won the case just because the new administration undid its predecessor's policy.

  • July 19, 2024

    DC Circ. Won't Block EPA Power Plant Emissions Rule

    The D.C. Circuit refused Friday to block the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's rule curbing greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, saying challengers haven't shown they're likely to succeed in overturning the regulations.

  • July 19, 2024

    San Francisco Lawmaker Floats Rent Algorithm Software Ban

    A San Francisco lawmaker proposed a ban that would prohibit selling or using software that can be used for rent price fixing, and took aim at property management software companies such as RealPage and Yardi for their software allegedly being used for such a purpose.

  • July 19, 2024

    DuPont Loses 2nd Bid To Dodge EPA Air Pollution Lawsuit

    A Louisiana federal judge has rejected a DuPont unit's second effort to escape a lawsuit brought by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over property the company leased to a neoprene-maker that's allegedly emitting unsafe amounts of a likely carcinogenic chemical.

  • July 19, 2024

    A Guide To The USPTO's Long List Of Requests For Comment

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has kept attorneys busy this year by seeking input on numerous patent issues and proposed rules. Here's a cheat sheet to the topics where feedback has been collected, from fee hikes to director reviews, and those with upcoming comment deadlines, including artificial intelligence.

  • July 19, 2024

    DOJ Fights Bid For Recording Of Biden's Hur Interview

    An audio recording of President Joe Biden's interview with special counsel Robert Hur is protected by executive privilege, and so is exempt from the Freedom of Information Act, despite what conservative organizations and media outlets have said, the U.S. Department of Justice told a Washington, D.C., federal judge.

  • July 19, 2024

    Civil Rights Groups Ask Judge To Block Georgia Voting Law

    A coalition of civil rights and advocacy groups lodged a renewed complaint asking a Georgia federal judge to block parts of a controversial Peach State election law that's facing a number of challenges, including by the federal government.

  • July 19, 2024

    Draft Constitutional Amendment Would Ax Trump Immunity

    Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, on Friday released a draft of a constitutional amendment that would ensure no one is above the law, following the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that former President Donald Trump has immunity from official acts as president.

  • July 19, 2024

    FCC Looking Into 911 Disruptions From Global IT Outage

    The Federal Communications Commission said Friday it was helping investigate 911 service disruptions that resulted from a global information technology outage that affected numerous industries, including telecommunications.

  • July 18, 2024

    5th Circ. Remands ESG Rule Row Citing Chevron's End

    The Fifth Circuit on Thursday instructed a Texas federal court to reconsider a Biden administration rule allowing retirement plan advisers to consider environmental, social and governance factors when choosing investments, pointing to recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings that have "upended" the legal landscape.

  • July 18, 2024

    8th Circ. Blocks Another Biden Student Debt Relief Plan

    The Eighth Circuit has blocked the Biden administration from implementing another plan for student loan forgiveness while the appellate court considers a Missouri-led state alliance's injunction request, according to an order entered Thursday.

  • July 18, 2024

    6th Circ. Sees 'Fundamental' Shift Post-Chevron In Title X Row

    The toppling of Chevron deference set the tone for a Sixth Circuit hearing on Thursday as the court contemplated Tennessee's arguments that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services went beyond its statutory power when it introduced new requirements for family planning funding.

  • July 18, 2024

    OCC's Hsu Calls For 'More Nuanced' Preemption Approach

    The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's acting chief has signaled plans for a potential shift in his agency's approach to federal preemption following a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, calling for "more nuanced analysis" when evaluating the applicability of state laws to banks it oversees.

  • July 18, 2024

    Epic Says Apple's 'Strategic Delay' Tactics Still Ongoing

    The ongoing fight between Epic Games and Apple over the tech giant's compliance with a court order meant to open up app payment competition showed little sign of abating as Epic continued to blast Apple for slow and incomplete production.

  • July 18, 2024

    Florida Urges 11th Circ. To Allow Gender Law Despite Appeal

    Florida officials have urged the Eleventh Circuit to immediately allow enforcement of a law restricting gender-affirming treatment for transgender minors and adults despite an appeal, saying that a lower court wrongly determined the law was discriminatory and that patients will be harmed if "life-altering" medical procedures are not outlawed.

  • July 18, 2024

    Tribes Move Step Closer To $5B Water Rights Settlement

    Leaders of the Navajo Nation and the Hopi and Southern San Juan Paiute tribes have signed a landmark settlement agreement that proposes to bring reliable, safe and clean drinking water to the tribes as they await final approval of a $5 billion federal bill that backs the same endeavor.

  • July 18, 2024

    DOE Plans $861M Support For PR Solar, Storage Project

    The U.S. Department of Energy on Thursday said it's conditionally committing to a loan guarantee of up to $861.3 million for two battery storage equipped solar farms and two standalone battery energy storage systems in Puerto Rico that will help the island meet its energy goals.

  • July 18, 2024

    9th Circ. Revives Fired Doctor's COVID Vax Religious Bias Suit

    The Ninth Circuit revived a doctor's claims that Washington State University failed to accommodate his religious beliefs when it fired him from his residency for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine, ruling Thursday that U.S. Supreme Court precedent necessitates another look at his case.

  • July 18, 2024

    NTIA Gives FCC Routing Security Plan The Thumbs Up

    The National Telecommunications and Information Administration says it's speaking for the Biden administration in throwing its weight behind the Federal Communications Commission's plan to impose new security rules regarding the crucial routing technology used by the internet.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    After Chevron: Rethinking Agency Deference In IP Cases

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent overturning of Chevron deference could make it simpler to challenge the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s proposed rule on terminal disclaimers and U.S. International Trade Commission interpretations, says William Milliken at Sterne Kessler.

  • Tricky Venue Issues Persist In Fortenberry Prosecution Redo

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    Former Rep. Jeff Fortenberry was recently indicted for a second time after the Ninth Circuit tossed his previous conviction for improper venue, but the case, now pending in the District of Columbia, continues to illustrate the complexities of proper venue in "false statement scheme" prosecutions, says Kevin Coleman at Covington.

  • Series

    Solving Puzzles Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Tackling daily puzzles — like Wordle, KenKen and Connections — has bolstered my intellectual property litigation practice by helping me to exercise different mental skills, acknowledge minor but important details, and build and reinforce good habits, says Roy Wepner at Kaplan Breyer.

  • 1st Gender Care Ban Provides Context For High Court Case

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    The history of Arkansas' ban on gender-affirming medical care — the first such legislation in the U.S. — provides important insight into the far-reaching ramifications that the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in U.S. v. Skrmetti next term will have on transgender healthcare, says Tyler Saenz at Baker Donelson.

  • CFPB's New Registration Rule Will Intensify Nonbank Scrutiny

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recently finalized nonbank registration rule aimed at cracking down on repeat offenders poses significant compliance challenges and enforcement risks for nonbank financial firms, and may be particularly onerous for smaller firms, say Ketan Bhirud and Emily Yu at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Series

    After Chevron: FCC And Industry Must Prepare For Change

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    The Chevron doctrine was especially significant in the communications sector because of the indeterminacy of federal communications statutes, so the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the doctrine could have big implications for those regulated by the Federal Communications Commission, bringing both opportunities and risks for companies, say Thomas Johnson and Michael Showalter at Wiley.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Uniform Tax Law Interpretation Not Guaranteed

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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.

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