Public Policy

  • October 30, 2024

    Access To 'Dreamer' Info Limited In Suit Over HHS Rule

    A North Dakota magistrate judge has imposed limits on who can see the names and addresses of 130 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients after the court ordered the Biden administration to hand that data over to the state attorney general.

  • October 30, 2024

    North Carolina Attorney General Race: 4 Things To Know

    A defamation lawsuit is just the latest clash in the contentious race to become North Carolina's attorney general, a contest that's already drawn the spotlight on one candidate's TikTok use and his opponent's denial of the results of the 2020 election.

  • October 30, 2024

    NY Construction Exec Avoids Jail For Commercial Bribery

    A construction executive dodged jail time Wednesday after pleading guilty in New York state court to his role in a sprawling bribery scheme involving $100 million in contracts linked to New York high-rise buildings.

  • October 30, 2024

    FTX Witness Who Saw Bankman-Fried's 'Evil' Avoids Prison

    A Manhattan federal judge allowed FTX's former chief engineer to avoid prison Wednesday, crediting his trial testimony against the crypto exchange's founder Sam Bankman-Fried, his ongoing cooperation and his relatively small role in the $11.2 billion fraud.

  • October 30, 2024

    Green Groups Urge EPA To Address 'Big Ag' Nitrate Pollution

    More than 20 environmental and community groups have called on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to use its emergency powers under the Safe Drinking Water Act to address industrial agriculture's nitrate contamination of drinking water in communities across the country.

  • October 30, 2024

    Gibson Dunn Lands Trump Impeachment Prosecutor, 4 Others

    Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP announced Wednesday that it had hired away former President Donald Trump's impeachment prosecutor from Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP to co-chair its global litigation practice group in New York, as well as four other former federal prosecutors from that firm.

  • October 30, 2024

    Connecticut Water Users Amend Utility PFAS Class Action

    A proposed class of Connecticut consumers filed an amended complaint for a suit alleging a water utility knowingly sold water containing unhealthy levels of "forever chemicals" without installing treatment equipment that could have prevented the contamination from reaching people.

  • October 30, 2024

    Trump Campaign Wins Suit Over Pa. County Over Ballots

    A Pennsylvania county judge has granted the Donald Trump campaign's bid to extend mail-in ballot requests in Bucks County, which the campaign accused of turning away voters waiting in long lines for the ballot sign-ups. 

  • October 30, 2024

    NY Telecoms Urge Justices To Keep Pause On Price Cap

    Telecommunications trade groups urged U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor to keep New York's broadband price cap for low-income residents on hold even if the justices ultimately decide to review it, saying in a new brief Wednesday enforcement of the price caps would do irreparable harm to their members.

  • October 30, 2024

    Pa. Panel Says Undated Special Election Votes Should Count

    A split Pennsylvania appellate court ruled Wednesday that throwing out mail-in votes solely for missing or "incorrect" dates on their outer envelopes was a violation of the state's constitution, but insisted the ruling applies only to a September special election in Philadelphia.

  • October 30, 2024

    High Court Says Va. Can Keep Purging 'Noncitizen' Voters

    A divided U.S. Supreme Court wiped out a federal court order Wednesday that prohibited Virginia from removing suspected noncitizens from its voting rolls this close to Election Day, a program the U.S. Department of Justice and advocacy groups claim has erroneously stripped eligible voters of their constitutional rights.

  • October 30, 2024

    Ballot Battles, Musk's Sweepstakes: Election Suits Rage In Pa.

    The political battleground state of Pennsylvania is a hotbed of litigation in the runup to another contentious presidential election, with controversies over where and how citizens cast ballots and a new legal challenge to billionaire Elon Musk's hefty financial incentive for Keystone State voters.

  • October 29, 2024

    Wash. Chief Justice Calls Diversity 'Critical' For Courts

    Washington Supreme Court Chief Justice Steven González reflected Tuesday night on what diversity in cultural perspectives can bring to classrooms and courtrooms alike, remarking that the dynamic on the high court has changed for the better during his 13 years on the bench as he's been joined by more colleagues of color.

  • October 29, 2024

    Monsanto PCBs 'Pervasive' At School, Scientist Tells Jury

    Monsanto-made PCBs were "pervasive" at a Washington school, an industrial hygienist testified Tuesday in the latest trial over illnesses there before being grilled by defense counsel about the integrity of his material samples.

  • October 29, 2024

    Ex-Texas Prosecutor Gets 3 Years For Extortion

    A Texas federal judge sentenced a former elected Starr County, Texas, prosecutor to more than three years behind bars after he pled guilty to accepting tens of thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for dropping charges in criminal cases, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday.

  • October 29, 2024

    DOJ Will Restrict Data Swapping With 'Countries Of Concern'

    The U.S. Department of Justice has proposed new rules that will make it the regulator of any type of transaction that would put certain kinds of sensitive privacy data in the hands of any "covered persons" or "country of concern."

  • October 29, 2024

    Justices Won't Let RFK Jr. Off Mich., Wis. Ballots

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s emergency requests to have his name removed from the presidential ballots in the key battleground states of Wisconsin and Michigan.

  • October 29, 2024

    Sporting Goods Chain Beats Suit By Man Shot With Stolen Gun

    A Missouri appeals court on Tuesday affirmed the dismissal of a suit seeking to hold Academy Sports liable after a man was shot by a gun stolen from the store, saying a federal law shielding firearms dealers from third-party criminal acts did indeed apply.

  • October 29, 2024

    Ex-US Attorney Already Prepping To Be The Next Denver DA

    A former Colorado U.S. attorney and longtime civil litigator said running for the open Denver district attorney seat was a natural next step, as he prepares to lead an office with fewer resources than either of his past positions.

  • October 29, 2024

    Judge Extends Block On Florida's Threats Over Abortion Ad

    A Florida federal judge on Tuesday extended a temporary order blocking the state from threatening television stations with criminal prosecution if they did not pull a campaign ad promoting an abortion rights ballot initiative.

  • October 29, 2024

    Texas AG Says State Rep Tried To Sway 'Shaken Baby' Case

    Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Tuesday called for state Rep. Jeff Leach to resign after he allegedly attempted to sway judgment in capital punishment proceedings in what would have been the nation's first execution for a conviction based on a "shaken baby syndrome" diagnosis.

  • October 29, 2024

    Texas Gov., Oil Groups Urge DC Circ. To Revive LNG Projects

    Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, the American Petroleum Institute, the Lipan Apache Tribe and others are lining up behind liquefied natural gas project backers asking the full D.C. Circuit to review a panel's decision to nix Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approvals for LNG projects on the Texas Gulf Coast.

  • October 29, 2024

    NYC Mayoral Straw Donor Scheme Sees Another Guilty Plea

    A bookkeeper enmeshed in a straw donor scheme to benefit New York City Mayor Eric Adams' 2021 campaign copped to a violation on Tuesday as part of a deal with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, effectively closing out the case.

  • October 29, 2024

    Fla. Banker Agrees To Change Plea In Money Laundering Case

    A Miami banker who is the son of Ecuador's ex-comptroller on Tuesday agreed to change his plea to guilty in a federal case alleging that he helped launder money for his father, who was convicted for his role in a corruption scandal that involved canceling fines for a hydroelectric dam in exchange for millions in bribes.

  • October 29, 2024

    FCC, Calif. Agency To Team Up To Protect Privacy

    The Federal Communications Commission is going to be teaming up with one of California's consumer protection agencies to enforce privacy rights in the Golden State, the pair announced Tuesday.

Expert Analysis

  • Staying Off The CFPB's Financial Services Offender Registry

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's soon-to-launch registry of financial services companies that have faced public enforcement orders is designed to ratchet up long-term scrutiny of entities that could become repeat offenders, so companies should take their new compliance and filing requirements seriously, say Andrea Mitchell and Chris Napier at Mitchell Sandler.

  • New TCPA Rule Faces Uncertain Future Post-Loper Bright

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    The Federal Communications Commission's new rule aiming to eliminate lead generators' use of unlawful robocalls is now in doubt with the U.S. Supreme Court's Loper Bright decision, and the Eleventh Circuit's Insurance Marketing Coalition v. FCC is poised to be a test case of the agency's ability to enforce the Telephone Consumer Protection Act post-Chevron, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • A Look At Calif.'s New AI Law For Health Insurers

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    A newly enacted California law prohibits artificial intelligence tools from making medical necessity determinations for healthcare service plans or disability insurers, addressing core questions that have arisen around AI's role in coverage decisions, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • New HHS Research Misconduct Rules Bring Seismic Changes

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    The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' new rule regarding research misconduct investigations brings significant changes that focus on remediation, appeals and confidentiality, while other changes could result in institutions causing undue harm to scientists accused of such misconduct, say attorneys at Cohen Seglias.

  • To Report Or Not To Report Others' Export Control Violations

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    A recent Bureau of Industry and Security enforcement policy change grants cooperation credit to those that report violations of the Export Administration Regulations committed by others, but the benefits of doing so must be weighed against significant drawbacks, including the costs of preparing and submitting a report, says Megan Lew at Cravath.

  • Earned Wage Access Laws Form A Prickly Policy Patchwork

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    Conflicting earned wage access laws across the country, including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recently issued rule, mean providers must adopt a proactive compliance approach and adjust business models where needed, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • What FDIC Expansion Of Change In Bank Control Could Mean

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    A recent Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. proposal pertaining to the Change in Bank Control Act has the potential to create uncertainty around investments by mutual fund complexes in banking organizations, which represent a stable source of capital for the banking industry, say attorneys at Sullivan & Cromwell.

  • HSR Amendments Intensify Merger Filing Burdens, Data Risk

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    The antitrust agencies' long-awaited changes to premerger notification rules under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act stand to significantly increase the time and cost involved in preparing an initial HSR notification, and will require more proactive attention to data issues, says Andrew Szwez at FTI Technology.

  • Deadline Extension Highlights PFAS Reporting Complexities

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    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recent extension of reporting and recordkeeping timelines for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances under the Toxic Substances Control Act offers relief to the regulated community, but the unprecedented volume of data required means that businesses must remain diligent in their data collection efforts, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Can SEC's Consolidated Audit Trail Survive Post-Chevron?

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is currently in a showdown at the Eleventh Circuit over its authority to maintain a national market system and require that the industry spend billions to maintain its consolidated audit trail, a case that is further complicated by the Loper Bright decision, says Daniel Hawke at Arnold & Porter.

  • What's Inside Feds' Latest Bank Merger Review Proposals

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    Recent bank merger proposals from a trio of federal agencies highlight the need for banks looking to grow through acquisition to consider several key issues much earlier in the planning process than has historically been necessary, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • State Of The States' AI Legal Ethics Landscape

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    Over the past year, several state bar associations, as well as the American Bar Association, have released guidance on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in legal practice, all of which share overarching themes and some nuanced differences, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law Group.

  • Cos. Should Focus On State AI Laws Despite New DOL Site

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    Because a new U.S. Department of Labor-sponsored website about the disability discrimination risks of AI hiring tools mostly echoes old guidance, employers should focus on complying with the state and local AI workplace laws springing up where Congress and federal regulators have yet to act, say attorneys at Littler.

  • How Biden Admin Has Used Antitrust Tools, And What's Next

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    The last four years have been marked by an aggressive whole-of-government approach to antitrust enforcement using a broad range of tools, and may result in lasting change regardless of the upcoming presidential election result, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • Cos. Face Increasing Risk From Environmental Citizen Suits

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    Environmental citizen suits stepping in to fill the regulatory vacuum concerning consumer goods waste may soon become more common, and the evolving procedural landscape and changes to environmental law may contribute to companies' increased exposure, say J. Michael Showalter and Bradley Rochlen at ArentFox Schiff.

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