Public Policy

  • October 31, 2024

    Masimo Sues Ex-CEO Over 'Unprecedented' $450M Demand

    Masimo Corp. has sued its founder in Delaware Chancery Court, seeking a declaration that a $450 million payout triggered in part by the founder's loss of control or his ouster as CEO and chairman is unenforceable, saying the amount is "unprecedented" and shouldn't be paid by shareholders who were simply exercising their voting rights.

  • October 31, 2024

    Ex-Conn. Utility Execs Must Report To Prison, Judge Orders

    The former CEO of the Connecticut Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative and two ex-board members must report to prison by Dec. 4, a federal judge has ordered, after the Second Circuit upheld their convictions over their roles in the theft of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

  • October 31, 2024

    Madigan Ally Set Up Work For Speaker's Fired Aide, Jury Told

    An ex-lobbyist on trial alongside former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan made arrangements for a political operative that Madigan fired to receive monthly payments while he was unemployed, suggesting he enter into contracts with loyal lobbyists and write up reports on legislators "in case the IRS checks this out," a federal jury heard Thursday.

  • October 31, 2024

    Beverly Hills Agrees To Abortion-Rights Training In Settlement

    The city of Beverly Hills will develop training materials and take other steps to comply with California's reproductive health laws, as part of a stipulated judgment resolving the state's allegations that it illegally pressured an abortion clinic to stay out of the city, the parties announced Thursday.

  • October 31, 2024

    Judge Says White Worker's Seattle DEI Suit Lacks 'Specifics'

    A Washington federal judge hinted Thursday a former municipal employee's suit claiming Seattle's workplace diversity training discriminated against him as a white man might not have enough detail to survive, as the city's attorneys accused the plaintiff of trying to dismantle its racial justice initiative.

  • October 31, 2024

    Erie County Grappling With Missing, Mismatched Mail Ballots

    Election officials in Erie County, Pennsylvania, may open satellite offices and offer extended hours in the final days before the election to deal with an anticipated influx of voters who never got the mail-in ballots they requested or got someone else's ballot, a problem the county blamed on an Ohio-based vendor and the vendor pinned on the post office.

  • October 31, 2024

    Chicago Cubs To Boost Wheelchair Access To End DOJ Probe

    The Chicago Cubs and the U.S. government told an Illinois federal judge Thursday they have entered into a consent decree that will bring more accessible seating to Wrigley Field, ending litigation over claims that the ball field's $575 million renovation gave the worst seats to wheelchair users.

  • October 31, 2024

    Valero To Pay 'Historic' $82M Fine For Bay Area Air Pollution

    Valero Refining Co. will pay a record $82 million penalty to settle claims that it failed to report cancer-causing emissions from its Northern California petroleum refinery for nearly two decades, state and Bay Area air pollution regulators announced Thursday, saying nearly all of the fine will fund local community projects.

  • October 31, 2024

    Copyright Office Says Rest Of AI Report To Come By Year End

    The U.S. Copyright Office plans to submit the remainder of a report on the intersection of artificial intelligence and copyright law by the end of the year, the office told House lawmakers who expressed concern over what they said were late submissions.

  • October 31, 2024

    FCC's Senior Republican Blasts Bulk-Billing Restrictions

    One-half of the Federal Communicatiions Commission's Republican minority is coming out strong against the majority's plans to restrict bulk billing for broadband services, saying that the commission was under pressure by the Biden administration to "raise the price of Internet service for Americans living in apartments by as much as 50%."

  • October 31, 2024

    Enviros Call On EPA To Address Petcoke Plant Water Pollution

    A dozen environmental groups filed a petition Thursday demanding the EPA implement national water pollution standards for petroleum coke processing plants, which they said have slipped through the Clean Water Act's protections.

  • October 31, 2024

    Judge Trims Retaliation Suit Against Miami After Settlement

    A Florida federal judge on Thursday trimmed a suit brought by two businessmen accusing top-level Miami officials of weaponizing city resources against them after the city agreed to settle related claims in a similar lawsuit.

  • October 31, 2024

    Texas Says It Has Right To Stop Drivers Transporting Migrants

    The state of Texas told an El Paso federal judge that an executive order allowing officers to pull over drivers suspected of transporting unauthorized migrants is within the state's authority and doesn't conflict with federal law.  

  • October 31, 2024

    Exxon Entitled To Interest Deduction On Qatar Deal

    Exxon Mobil is entitled to an interest expense deduction on payments to Qatar under a natural gas deal, a Texas federal judge ruled, rejecting the U.S. government's classification of an underlying transaction as a royalty rather than a loan.

  • October 31, 2024

    Philly DA's Suit Over Musk's $1M Voter 'Lottery' Goes Federal

    A Pennsylvania federal judge is set to decide whether Elon Musk's $1 million daily giveaway to battleground state voters who sign a pledge from his PAC is an illegal lottery, as Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner claimed in a suit transferred to federal court on Thursday.

  • October 31, 2024

    Oversight GOP Reps. Take Big Swing At FTC Chair

    House Republicans on Thursday accused Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan of becoming a "political tool" of the Biden administration, which they say has undermined the independent nature of the agency.

  • October 31, 2024

    FERC Unlawfully Rewrote Grid Hookup Policy, DC Circ. Told

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's revised policy on hooking up new power projects to the grid unlawfully imposes a punitive, one-size-fits-all system on transmission owners, regional grid operators and transmission companies told the D.C. Circuit Wednesday.

  • October 31, 2024

    Airbnb Insurance Providers Sued Over Undisclosed Fees

    A proposed class of Airbnb users sued two insurers for the rental platform in Washington federal court, alleging the providers violate state law by charging consumers who buy their travel insurance with an unavoidable "assistance fee."

  • October 31, 2024

    Ga. Election Worker Ties Firing To Accessible Voting Concerns

    White County, Georgia, was sued Thursday in federal court by a former elections supervisor, who alleged he was fired for repeatedly raising concerns that local polling locations weren't compliant with state and federal disability accessibility laws and regulations.

  • October 31, 2024

    Suit Against Indicted NJ Power Broker Sent To Biz Court 

    A New Jersey state court on Wednesday granted indicted Garden State power broker George E. Norcross III's request to transfer the civil racketeering suit brought against him and his attorney brother by a Philadelphia developer to the state's complex business litigation program.

  • October 31, 2024

    Pro Services Contract Nixes NJ Public Defender's Pension

    A New Jersey appellate court backed the Public Employees' Retirement System board's finding that a former municipal public defender is ineligible to receive pension benefits from 2008 onward, ruling that there was enough evidence to show the attorney's services were procured through a professional services contract.

  • October 31, 2024

    EU Expected To Close Final Digital VAT Deal Next Week

    The European Union is close to a final deal on its plan to bring the bloc's value-added tax rules more in line with the digital economy after representatives reached an agreement in principle, the Hungarian presidency of the Council of the EU confirmed Thursday.

  • October 31, 2024

    SBA Cries Foul On Globetrotters' $10M COVID Grant Suit

    The U.S. Small Business Administration has defended its denial of a $10 million COVID-19 relief grant to the Harlem Globetrotters, telling a D.C. federal judge that it had no legal obligation to hand over the money to the basketball entertainment organization.

  • October 31, 2024

    The 2024 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard

    Check out the Law360 Pulse Leaderboard to see which firms made the list of leaders in all-around excellence this year.

  • October 31, 2024

    Firms' Hiring Strategies Are Evolving In Fight For Top Spot

    Competition for top talent among elite law firms shows no signs of slowing down, even amid economic uncertainty, with financially strong firms deploying aggressive strategies to attract and retain skilled professionals to solidify their market position.

Expert Analysis

  • Key Healthcare Issues That Hinge On The Election Outcome

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    The 2024 presidential race, while not heavily dominated by healthcare issues compared to past elections, holds significant implications for the direction of healthcare policy in a potential Harris or Trump administration, encompassing issues ranging from Medicare to artificial intelligence, says Miranda Franco at Holland & Knight.

  • Ex-Chicago Politician's Case May Further Curb Fraud Theories

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    The U.S. Supreme Court recently agreed to hear Thompson v. U.S. to determine whether a statement that is misleading but not false still violates federal law, potentially heralding the court’s largest check yet on prosecutors’ expansive fraud theories, with significant implications for sentencing, say attorneys at the Law Offices of Alan Ellis.

  • Lawyers With Disabilities Are Seeking Equity, Not Pity

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    Attorneys living with disabilities face extra challenges — including the need for special accommodations, the fear of stigmatization and the risk of being tokenized — but if given equitable opportunities, they can still rise to the top of their field, says Kate Reder Sheikh, a former attorney and legal recruiter at Major Lindsey & Africa.

  • Crypto.com's Suit Against SEC Could Hold Major Implications

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    Crypto.com's recent lawsuit against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission could affect the operation and regulation of crypto markets in the U.S., potentially raising more questions about the SEC's authority to regulate the industry when it's unclear whether another agency is ready to assume it, say attorneys at McGuireWoods.

  • Lessons For Municipalities Facing Cyberattacks

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    With municipal IT teams facing the daunting task of keeping agencies operational while safeguarding sensitive government data, including residents' and employees' personally identifiable information, there are steps a municipality can take to guard against a major cyberattack, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

  • Testing The Waters As New Texas Biz Court Ends 2nd Month

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    Despite an uptick in filings in the Texas Business Court's initial months of operation, the docket remains fairly light amid an apparent wait-and-see approach from some potential litigants, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • Biden Green Card Program Unlikely To Advance Post-Election

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    Even if Vice President Kamala Harris wins the election and continues a Biden administration policy that would allow certain foreign relatives of American citizens to apply for green cards without leaving the U.S., a challenge in Texas federal court is likely to delay implementation for a long time, says Brad Brigante at Brigante Law.

  • New Export Control Guidance Raises The Stakes For Banks

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    Recent guidance from the Bureau of Industry and Security alerts banks that they could be liable for facilitating export control violations, the latest example of regulators articulating the expectation that both financial institutions and corporations serve as gatekeepers to mitigate crime and aid enforcement efforts, say attorneys at Freshfields.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Committee Best Venue For Litigation Funding Rules

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    The Advisory Committee on Civil Rules' recent decision to consider developing a rule for litigation funding disclosure is a welcome development, ensuring that the result will be the product of a thorough, inclusive and deliberative process that appropriately balances all interests, says Stewart Ackerly at Statera Capital.

  • Fluoride Ruling Charts Path To Bypass EPA Risk Evaluations

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    A California federal court's recent ruling in Food and Water Watch v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, ordering the agency to address the public health risks of fluoridated drinking water, establishes a road map for other citizen petitioners to bypass the EPA's formal risk evaluation process, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • The Strategic Advantages Of Appointing A Law Firm CEO

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    The impact on law firms of the recent CrowdStrike outage underscores that the business of law is no longer merely about providing supplemental support for legal practice — and helps explain why some law firms are appointing dedicated, full-time CEOs to navigate the challenges of the modern legal landscape, says Jennifer Johnson at Calibrate Strategies.

  • Planning For Cyber Incident Reporting Requirements In Sports

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    Attorneys at Wiley discuss the proposed rules under the Cybersecurity Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act that would impose extensive reporting requirements on professional and collegiate athletic organizations, universities and sports venues, including defining a covered entity and analyzing the types of events that would trigger reporting.

  • How 2 Proposed Bills Could Transform Patent Law

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    The Patent Eligibility Restoration Act and the Prevail Act may come up for vote by the Senate Judiciary Committee after the election, and both offer benefits and challenges for inventors and companies seeking to obtain patents, says Philip Nelson at Knobbe Martens.

  • Inside FTC's Decision To Exit Key Merger Review Labor Memo

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    Despite the Federal Trade Commission's recent withdrawal from a multiagency memorandum of understanding to step up enforcement of labor issues in merger investigations, the antitrust agencies aren't likely to give up their labor market focus, say attorneys at Stinson.

  • FDIC Guidance Puts Next-Gen ATMs In Regulatory Spotlight

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    The boring existence of ATMs is changing thanks to the emergence of new-age interactive teller machines, prompting the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to sound off in a potentially influential August letter to branches on which services might need regulatory approval, says Thomas Walker at Jones Walker.

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