Public Policy

  • March 26, 2025

    State AGs, Bars Urge Attys To Speak Up Over Trump Orders

    In a pair of letters released on Wednesday, dozens of bar associations and over 20 state attorneys general urged lawyers to speak out against perceived threats to the rule of law in response to President Donald Trump's recent executive orders against prominent law firms and his call for the impeachment of a federal judge.

  • March 26, 2025

    11th Circ. Appears Dubious Of Ex-Judge's Defamation Claims

    An Eleventh Circuit panel appeared skeptical Wednesday of former Alabama judge Roy Moore's claims that he was defamed by a Democratic PAC's ad referencing allegations that he made sexual advances on underage girls, suggesting the court could strike an $8 million verdict he won after the charges dragged down his 2017 bid for U.S. Senate.

  • March 26, 2025

    DOJ Can't DQ Judge In Perkins Coie Suit Over Trump Order

    A D.C. federal judge on Wednesday shot down a demand from the U.S. Department of Justice that she step aside from Perkins Coie LLP's lawsuit against the federal government over President Donald Trump's executive order targeting the firm.

  • March 26, 2025

    Even With Few Openings, Courts Can Still Shift Under Trump

    There were record low vacancies on the federal bench when Donald Trump took office in January, but the president could still radically alter some courts and swing the judiciary rightward, especially if Congress creates more judgeships during his second tenure.

  • March 26, 2025

    Fla. Appeals Court Upholds Fees For Medical Pot Businesses

    Florida's intermediate appellate court on Wednesday affirmed that the state's Department of Health acted within its authority when it enacted rules requiring medical marijuana dispensaries to pay more than a million dollars in license renewal fees every other year.

  • March 26, 2025

    Need For Individual Analyses Sinks Class Bid In Vax Bias Suit

    A group of former workers claiming they were unlawfully denied medical and religious exemptions from a Pittsburgh public transportation system's COVID-19 vaccination policy cannot proceed as a class, a Pennsylvania federal judge ruled, saying the case involved too many individual issues.

  • March 26, 2025

    Trump Admin Asks Justices To End 'Fiscal Micromanagement'

    The U.S. Department of Education asked the Supreme Court on Wednesday to vacate a Boston federal judge's order reinstating $250 million in teacher training grants that the Trump administration targeted for cuts, saying the case presents an ideal vehicle to put a stop to "district-court fiscal micromanagement" of the executive branch.

  • March 26, 2025

    Governor Quickly Signs Delaware Corporate Law Revision Bill

    Delaware's governor has promptly signed into law closely watched legislation that has been described as an overhaul of the First State's corporation law.

  • March 26, 2025

    Holland & Knight Gains Ex-EPA Regional Leader In Dallas

    Holland & Knight LLP has boosted its ability to serve clients with complex environmental challenges by bringing on a former Environmental Protection Agency regional counsel as a partner in Dallas.

  • March 26, 2025

    House Panel Urges Labor Head To Keep Subminimum Wage

    Republican members of a U.S. House committee urged the head of the U.S. Department of Labor on Wednesday to drop a Biden administration proposal to phase out the ability of employers to pay workers with disabilities below the federal minimum wage.

  • March 26, 2025

    High Court Upholds ATF's Ghost Gun Rule

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday found that a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives rule restricting so-called ghost gun kits was wrongly invalidated by a lower appeals court and said the bureau has authority to regulate weapons parts and unfinished frames.

  • March 25, 2025

    Feds Say They Had To Stop Deportations, Not Fly People Back

    The U.S. Department of Justice is digging its heels in defending the government's deportation of Venezuelans under a 1798 wartime law, telling U.S. District Judge James Boasberg late Tuesday that his injunction blocking the deportations doesn't require the government to undo removal flights that have already taken off.

  • March 25, 2025

    Public-Sector Unions Win Bid To Sue In Fed Court For Firings

    U.S. District Judge William Alsup said Monday he has jurisdiction to hear claims from public-sector unions over the mass firing of probationary employees within the federal government, flipping from his position last month and splitting from federal courts that have held the claims must be processed through governing labor agencies.

  • March 25, 2025

    Trump's DEI Certification Mandate Meets Skeptical Ill. Judge

    An Illinois federal judge weighing recent executive orders restricting federal diversity, equity and inclusion programs appeared highly skeptical of their requirement that organizations certify compliance with anti-discrimination laws, saying the government's silence on what could violate those laws seems to be what imposing a chilling effect "is all about."

  • March 25, 2025

    Virginia Gov. Vetoes AI Bias Bill, Citing Industry Impact

    Virginia's governor has blocked legislation that would have required the developers and deployers of "high-risk" artificial intelligence systems used in employment, healthcare and other areas to implement safeguards against algorithmic discrimination, saying that the "burdensome" proposal would have "stifled" the burgeoning AI industry. 

  • March 25, 2025

    Intelsat Seeks Fast C-Band Relocation Payments

    The Federal Communications Commission should be paying satellite operators to partially clear out of the upper C-band and it should be doing it quickly, according to Intelsat, which told the agency that it has already done its part.

  • March 25, 2025

    Docs Sought By Paper Likely To End Up In Suit, Dallas Says

    The city of Dallas told a Texas appeals court Tuesday that making it turn over records on a federal housing discrimination investigation to The Dallas Morning News would disturb " the equal footing between governmental bodies and individuals" because the records at issue will likely end up in a lawsuit.

  • March 25, 2025

    PTAB Leader Explains Denial Policy After Withdrawn Memo

    The Patent Trial and Appeal Board's chief judge has provided guidance to the board's other members on how to decide whether to use discretion to deny review of patents based on related litigation, after a previous memo on the issue was withdrawn last month.

  • March 25, 2025

    Baltimore Bridge Collapse: One Year Later

    Federal accident investigators' recent determination that Maryland could've done more to protect Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge from a devastating collapse may complicate the sprawling legal battle over liability and damages in the year since a cargo ship struck the bridge and crippled a major East Coast transportation hub.

  • March 25, 2025

    Tariffs, Economic Concerns Bring Record Q1 Deals Lull

    U.S. deal transaction numbers plummeted in the first quarter of 2025 to the lowest levels seen since the financial crisis, driven by volatile trade policies and rising geopolitical tensions, but a March bump provided hope for an upswing, according to a Tuesday report from Mergermarket.  

  • March 25, 2025

    Texas Panel Asks If Guadalupe Diversion Meshes With Law

    A Texas appeals panel questioned the state on Tuesday on why it didn't conduct site-specific assessments before issuing a permit to divert water from the Guadalupe River, saying that the Texas Water Code appeared to conflict with the state's process.

  • March 25, 2025

    9th Circ. OKs Jan. 20 Pause On New Refugee Admissions

    The Ninth Circuit granted in part Tuesday the Trump administration's emergency bid to stay a preliminary injunction barring President Donald Trump from suspending the U.S. refugee program, but clarified that refugees whose requests were processed prior to Trump's Jan. 20 order must be admitted.

  • March 25, 2025

    Boeing, DOJ 737 Max Criminal Conspiracy Trial Set For June

    Boeing Co. will face a June trial in its 737 Max criminal conspiracy case, a Texas federal court said Tuesday, in a dramatic shift in the American aerospace giant's legal saga as the company continues to renegotiate its plea agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice.

  • March 25, 2025

    Philly Beats Curfew Suit By Minority-Owned Liquor Stores

    A Pennsylvania federal judge dismissed, for now, a constitutional challenge by Asian American and Arab American business owners who alleged Philadelphia city officials unfairly targeted their shops with arbitrary late-night curfews and nuisance ordinances, ruling Monday they lacked standing since none of them received fines or were ordered to shut down.

  • March 25, 2025

    Dem State AGs Back Preserving Biden-Era Parole Programs

    More than a dozen Democratic state attorneys general are urging a Massachusetts federal judge to preserve humanitarian parole programs for immigrants from Afghanistan, Ukraine, Cuba and other countries, backing noncitizens from those countries and U.S.-based sponsors in their challenge to the Trump administration's block on the programs.

Expert Analysis

  • How The AI Antitrust Landscape Might Evolve Under Trump

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    The Trump administration's early actions around artificial intelligence and antitrust policy, along with statements from competition regulators, suggest that the AI competition landscape may see reduced scrutiny around acquisitions, but not an entirely hands-off enforcement approach, say attorneys at Hogan Lovells.

  • Series

    Racing Corvettes Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The skills I use when racing Corvettes have enhanced my legal practice in several ways, because driving, like practicing law, requires precision, awareness and a good set of brakes — complete with the wisdom to know how and when to use them, says Kat Mateo at Olshan Frome.

  • A Look At Healthcare Transaction Oversight In Oregon

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    Understanding Oregon's enforcement authority and its impact on proposed transactions last year provides a road map to the state's plans to strengthen its processes this year, though enforcement could be challenged by ongoing litigation, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • The Political Branches Can't Redefine The Citizenship Clause

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s Wong Kim Ark opinion and subsequent decisions, and the 14th Amendment’s legislative history, establish that the citizenship clause precludes the political branches from narrowing the definition of citizen based on how a parent’s U.S. presence is categorized, says federal public defender Geremy Kamens.

  • Questions Remain After Justices' Narrow E-Rate FCA Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Wisconsin Bell, holding that requests for reimbursement from the Federal Communications Commission's E-Rate program are subject to False Claims Act liability, resolves one important question but leaves several others open, says Jason Neal at HWG.

  • Bill Would Bring Welcome Clarity To Del. Corporate Law

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    A recently proposed bill in Delaware that would provide greater predictability for areas including director independence and controlling stockholders reflects prudential adjustments consistent with the state's long history of refining and modernizing its corporate law, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • Opinion

    At 100, Federal Arbitration Act Is Used To Thwart Justice

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    The centennial of the Federal Arbitration Act, a law intended to streamline dispute resolution in commercial agreements, is an opportunity to reflect on its transformation from a tool of fairness into a corporate shield that impedes the right to a fair trial, says Lori Andrus at the American Association for Justice.

  • Opinion

    Attorneys Must Act Now To Protect Judicial Independence

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    Given the Trump administration's recent moves threatening the independence of the judiciary, including efforts to impeach judges who ruled against executive actions, lawyers must protect the rule of law and resist attempts to dilute the judicial branch’s authority, says attorney Bhavleen Sabharwal.

  • Colo. Anti-SLAPP Cases Highlight Dismiss Standard Disparity

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    A pair of recent decisions from the Colorado Court of Appeals highlights two disparate standards for courts evaluating anti-SLAPP motions: one that requires a court to accept the plaintiff's evidence as true and another that allows the court to assess its merits, says Jacob Hollars at Spencer Fane.

  • Short-Term Predictions For The CFPB's Fate Under Trump

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    Though the Trump administration is unlikely to succeed in abolishing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, new leadership will likely moderate enforcement, possibly prompting state attorneys general to step up supervision, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • Ga. Tort Reform Bill May Help Dampen 'Nuclear' Verdicts

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    Many aspects of the tort reform bill just passed by the Georgia Legislature — including prohibitions on suggesting damage amounts to juries, and limits to recovering phantom damages — face opposition from the plaintiffs bar, but are a key first step toward addressing excessive damage awards in the state, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Rethinking 'No Comment' For Clients Facing Public Crises

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    “No comment” is no longer a cost-free or even a viable public communications strategy for companies in crisis, and counsel must tailor their guidance based on a variety of competing factors to help clients emerge successfully, says Robert Bowers at Moore & Van Allen.

  • Reading The Tea Leaves On Mexico, Canada And China Tariffs

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    It's still unclear whether the delay in the imposition of U.S. tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports will result in negotiated resolutions or a full-on trade war, but the outcome may hinge on continuing negotiations and the Trump administration's possible plans for tariff revenues, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.

  • DOJ Memos Likely To Increase Mandatory Minimum Charges

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    In line with previous administrations’ pingpong approach to sentencing policy, new U.S. Department of Justice leadership recently rescinded Biden-era memos on charging decisions, cabining prosecutorial discretion and likely leading to more mandatory minimum sentences, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • A Closer Look At FDX's New Role As Banking Standard-Setter

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    Should the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau let ​​​​​​​stand the decision empowering Financial Data Exchange as an industry standard-setter, it will be a significant step toward broader financial data-sharing, but its success will depend on industry adoption, regulatory oversight and consumer confidence, say attorneys at Clark Hill.

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