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Public Policy
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August 27, 2024
USPTO Sued For Rejecting Blood Pressure Drug Patent
A small drug developer has hit the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office with a second lawsuit in Virginia federal court over the agency's latest rejection of the company's efforts to patent a different dosage of a drug the company markets to treat low blood pressure.
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August 27, 2024
DOJ Says Immigration Group Can't Join Oklahoma Suit
The federal government urged the Tenth Circuit to reject a Tulsa immigration nonprofit's efforts to join its suit against Oklahoma over a state law that would ban unauthorized immigrants from settling in the state.
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August 27, 2024
Alaskan Tribal Health Group Hits Feds With $390M Suit
The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium is asking a federal district court for at least $390 million in a challenge to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that claims the agency refused to pay certain contract support costs to operate its healthcare programs for seven years.
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August 27, 2024
Guo Trustee Says Trump Aide Must Face $353K Clawback Suit
The Chapter 11 trustee for Miles Guo has urged a Connecticut bankruptcy judge to preserve an adversary action seeking to claw back more than $353,000 that he alleged the Chinese exile fraudulently gave to Jason Miller, a senior adviser to Donald Trump and founder of conservative social media platform Gettr, saying Miller's bid to ax the case was flimsy.
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August 27, 2024
Feds Clarify Int'l Students' Eligibility For STEM Visa Program
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services updated its policy manual on Tuesday to clarify when international students graduating from STEM programs may be eligible for a visa allowing them to temporarily work in the U.S.
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August 27, 2024
Leave Support For Alaska Connectivity Intact, FCC Told
An Alaskan utility company told the Federal Communications Commission that rules blocking federal funds for broadband build out when there is already an unsubsidized competitor in the area might work fine on the mainland, but would be very bad for Alaska.
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August 27, 2024
Enbridge, Mich. Battle Over Immunity Order In Pipeline Fight
Enbridge Energy and Michigan are swapping barbs over whether a federal district court should defer a summary judgment ruling in favor of the company over its Line 5 pipeline or wait until the Sixth Circuit has decided the state's bid to overturn a decision that it's not immune from the litigation.
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August 27, 2024
Insurer Off The Hook For $1.8M Praying Coach Settlement
A Washington state school district's insurer doesn't have to cover a nearly $1.8 million legal fee settlement the district reached with a high school football coach whom the U.S. Supreme Court found was wrongly suspended for praying on the 50-yard line after games, a state appeals court ruled.
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August 27, 2024
2nd Circ. Urged To Reject Preemption Defense In BofA Row
The Second Circuit should join fellow federal courts in finding that a New York statute requiring all banks to pay at least 2% interest on mortgage-escrow accounts isn't preempted, a former Bank of America mortgage customer has told the appeals court following the U.S. Supreme Court's remand of the matter.
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August 27, 2024
Tenn. Medicaid Program Illegally Cut Off Health Coverage
Tennessee's Medicaid program violated the Medicaid Act, the Fourteenth Amendment and the Americans With Disabilities Act by depriving residents of healthcare coverage, a federal judge has ruled, saying the agency was "lethargic in its response and attempts" to fix an eligibility system replete with issues.
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August 27, 2024
Judges Upend Alaska Airlines Loss, Blame Jury Instruction
A Washington state appeals court on Tuesday threw out a jury verdict granting an Alaska Airlines flight attendant workers' compensation for catching COVID-19 while away from home for her job, in an opinion that said a jury instruction misstated a legal doctrine covering traveling workers.
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August 27, 2024
Colo. House Advances Further Cuts To Property Tax Rates
The Colorado House advanced legislation Tuesday to limit property tax growth, a move supporters hope will also stave off a pair of ballot initiatives that critics say would devastate schools and other local services.
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August 27, 2024
Tour Bus Merger Claims Can't Save Antitrust Suit Redux
Claiming a partnership between its rivals amounted to an anticompetitive merger wasn't enough Tuesday to save a New York City tour bus operator's second attempt at antitrust allegations that they locked it out of deals with key tourist destinations.
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August 27, 2024
Immigrant Orgs Slam DHS' 'Tired Contentions' In Asylum Suit
Immigrant rights groups and asylum seekers countered the Biden administration's "tired contentions" that new asylum restrictions at the southern border comport with federal immigration law, telling a D.C. federal judge that the policy is an attempted end-run around the law.
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August 27, 2024
Mich. Says Discovery Won't Save Dam Collapse Suits
The state of Michigan has urged a judge to cut off discovery and end litigation over flooding caused by the collapse of the Edenville Dam, arguing that continuing to exchange information would be fruitless because it's already clear that the state didn't cause the disaster.
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August 27, 2024
Rescheduling Pot Unlikely To Fix Banking Issues, Report Says
A pending proposal to loosen federal restrictions on marijuana is unlikely, on its own, to make it easier for state-regulated cannabis businesses to access financial services available to other industries, according to a recent report published by Capitol Hill's policy research arm.
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August 27, 2024
5th Circ. Holds Mandate In Subsidy Suit During FCC Appeal
The Fifth Circuit has agreed to let the current subsidy for telecom services remain in place while the Federal Communications Commission seeks U.S. Supreme Court review of a ruling that upended the subsidy system.
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August 27, 2024
Split 5th Circ. Revives Tesla's Case Over La. Sales Ban
A split Fifth Circuit panel revived Tesla's case accusing Louisiana car dealers and regulators of illegally excluding the direct-sale automaker from the state, finding Tesla had done enough to survive dismissal by alleging a regulatory board that included competitors is biased against it.
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August 27, 2024
CPSC Suit 'Makes A Mockery' Of Standing, SG Tells Justices
The federal government is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to pass on a "highly artificial suit" that seeks to unravel removal protections for commissioners on the Consumer Product Safety Commission, saying the groups behind the suit have no standing to pursue the legal challenge.
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August 27, 2024
Trump-Linked Group Says OPM Delaying Union Comms Bid
The Office of Personnel Management has delayed its response to information bids about agency communications with public sector unions, an organization led by former Trump administration officials alleged in Texas federal court, calling for an order to require the disclosure of requested details.
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August 27, 2024
6th Circ. Affirms HHS' Denial Of Title X Funds To Tenn.
The Sixth Circuit has upheld the Biden administration's authority to end a family-planning grant awarded to Tennessee after the state refused to offer abortion referrals, saying the state knew the rules when it accepted the grant.
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August 27, 2024
Treasury Asked To Scrap Stock Buyback Tax's Funding Rule
Business groups urged the U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday to remove what's known as the funding rule in forthcoming final regulations on the stock buyback tax, saying the provision would go beyond Congress' intentions for the levy, which aims to deter companies from giving outsize rewards to shareholders.
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August 27, 2024
Broadcaster Settles With FCC For $8K Over Stock Transfers
An Arkansas radio broadcaster will pay an $8,000 fine to settle a Federal Communications Commission probe into unauthorized changes in control of the company's stock that occurred over two years.
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August 27, 2024
FCC Urged To Include Streetlight Poles In Deployment Regs
It's time for the Federal Communications Commission to clarify that streetlight poles are utility poles as far as the Communications Act's mandates on pole attachments are concerned, a trade group and the country's biggest mobile companies have teamed up to tell the agency.
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August 27, 2024
Randy Mastro, Gibson Dunn In Arbitration Over Departure
Trial lawyer Randy Mastro is locked in closed-door arbitration with Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP over the terms of his 2022 departure for King & Spalding LLP, the litigator revealed Tuesday as part of his controversial nomination to serve as New York City's top lawyer.
Expert Analysis
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Carbon Offset Case A Win For CFTC Enviro Fraud Task Force
An Illinois federal court's decision in Commodity Futures Trading Commission v. Ikkurty — earning the CFTC a sizeable monetary award that will likely incentivize similar enforcement pursuit — shows the impact of the commission's Environmental Fraud Task Force, say attorneys at Steptoe.
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RealPage Suit Shows Growing Algorithm, AI Pricing Scrutiny
The U.S. Department of Justice's suit against RealPage for helping fix rental rates, filed last week, demonstrates how the use of algorithmic and artificial intelligence tools to assist with pricing decisions is drawing increasing scrutiny and action across government agencies, and specifically at the Federal Trade Commission and the DOJ, say Andre Geverola and Leah Harrell at Arnold & Porter.
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Whistleblowers Must Note 5 Key Differences Of DOJ Program
The U.S. Department of Justice’s recently unveiled whistleblower awards program diverges in key ways from similar programs at other agencies, and individuals must weigh these differences and look first to programs with stronger, proven protections before blowing the whistle, say Stephen Kohn and Geoff Schweller at Kohn Kohn.
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What NFL Draft Picks Have In Common With Lateral Law Hires
Nearly half of law firm lateral hires leave within a few years — a failure rate that is strikingly similar to the performance of NFL quarterbacks drafted in the first round — in part because evaluators focus too heavily on quantifiable metrics and not enough on a prospect's character traits, says Howard Rosenberg at Baretz+Brunelle.
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Calif. Ruling Clarifying Paystub Compliance Is Win For Cos.
In rare good news for California employers, the state Supreme Court recently clarified that workers couldn’t win extra penalties in wage and hour cases by claiming their employer intentionally violated state paystub law if the employer believed it had complied in good faith, say Drei Munar and Kirk Hornbeck at Hunton.
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Considering Noncompete Strategies After Blocked FTC Ban
A Texas district court's recent decision in Ryan v. Federal Trade Commission to set aside the new FTC rule banning noncompetes does away with some immediate compliance obligations, but employers should still review strategies, attend to changes to state laws and monitor ongoing challenges, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.
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Open Questions 3 Years After 2nd Circ.'s Fugitive Ruling
The Second Circuit’s 2021 decision in U.S. v. Bescond, holding that a French resident indicted abroad did not meet the legal definition of a fugitive, deepened a circuit split on the fugitive disentitlement doctrine, and courts continue to grapple with the doctrine’s reach and applicability, say attorneys at Lankler Siffert.
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Replacing The Stigma Of Menopause With Law Firm Support
A large proportion of the workforce is forced to pull the brakes on their career aspirations because of the taboo surrounding menopause and a lack of consistent support, but law firms can initiate the cultural shift needed by formulating thoughtful workplace policies, says Barbara Hamilton-Bruce at Simmons & Simmons.
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Series
After Chevron: The Future Of AI And Copyright Law
In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision to overrule the Chevron doctrine, leaders in the artificial intelligence industry may seek to shift the balance of power to courts to exercise more independent statutory interpretation without constraints from the U.S. Copyright Office, says Greg Derin at Signature Resolution.
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Leveraging Policy Changes To Achieve AI Patent Eligibility
With the latest U.S. Patent and Trademark Office guidance in hand and legislation looming in Congress, innovators should file their artificial intelligence patent applications now — and five strategies can maximize their chances of success, says Nicholas Gallo at Troutman Pepper.
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Crypto Regs Could See A Reset Under The Next President
Donald Trump has taken a permissive policy stance favoring crypto, while Kamala Harris has been silent on the issue, but no matter who wins the presidential election, we may see a more lenient regulatory climate toward the digital currency than from the Biden administration, says Liam Murphy at McKool Smith.
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How DOJ May Change FARA Exemption In Forthcoming Rule
Any day now, the U.S. Department of Justice is expected to issue proposed revisions to the Foreign Agents Registration Act regulations, and signs suggest that it will likely narrow one of FARA's broadest exemptions, which may compound public confusion about the law's requirements, says Murad Hussain at Arnold & Porter.
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Planning Law Firm Content Calendars: What, When, Where
During the slower month of August, law firms should begin working on their 2025 content calendars, planning out a content creation and distribution framework that aligns with the firm’s objectives and maintains audience engagement throughout the year, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.
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Key Concerns To Confront In FDIC Brokered Deposit Proposal
Banks and fintech companies should note several fundamental issues with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s recent proposal to widen how it classifies brokered deposits, an attempt to limit prudential risk that could expose the industry and underbanked consumers who rely on bank-fintech apps to widespread unintended consequences, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.
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3 Presidential Privilege Questions After Trump Ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Trump v. U.S., carving out a new evidentiary privilege for presidents, leaves unanswered several key questions concerning whether this new privilege is waivable or subject to various exceptions, says Jeremy Bates at Frankfurt Kurnit.