Overall
Key cases
Industries
Intellectual Property
Labor & Employment
Corporate
Practice Areas
Midwest
-
July 19, 2011
21 States Back Challenge Of Health Care Law In 8th Circ.
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott announced Tuesday that Texas and 20 other states are supporting the Missouri lieutenant governor in his challenge of the health care reform law, urging the Eighth Circuit to hold that the legislation's individual mandate is unconstitutional.
-
July 12, 2011
8th Circ. Upholds Iowa Nuke Plant’s New License
The Eight Circuit on Tuesday tossed a challenge to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's renewal of a license for an Iowa nuclear plant by petitioners concerned about the environmental impact of the plant’s continued operation, ruling the appeal was filed too late.
-
July 11, 2011
AGs, DOJ Subpoena Sprint Over AT&T, T-Mobile Deal Review
Nine state attorneys general and the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division subpoenaed Sprint Nextel Corp. in late June over its review of AT&T Inc.'s proposed $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile USA Inc.
-
June 29, 2011
8th Circ. Refuses To Block Dodd-Frank Debit Fee Rule
The Eighth Circuit on Wednesday refused TCF National Bank's request to block implementation of a limit on debit card swipe fees set to take effect next month as part of Congress' financial overhaul.
-
June 23, 2011
Ohio House OKs Bill To Allow Major Lake Erie Withdrawals
The Ohio House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a bill to implement the multistate Great Lakes Basin Compact by setting up a permit program for major water withdrawals from Lake Erie.
-
June 23, 2011
Honeywell Faces OSHA Fines After Toxic Vapor Release
Federal workplace safety regulators on Wednesday proposed hitting Honeywell International Inc. with $119,000 in fines for 17 serious safety violations following a release of toxic hydrogen fluoride vapor at its Metropolis, Ill., chemical plant.
-
June 16, 2011
Wis. Can Implement EPA Air Pollution Rules: 7th Circ.
The Seventh Circuit on Thursday rejected a challenge to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's decision to approve a Wisconsin air quality implementation plan submitted under the agency's controversial 2002 revision to the rules for obtaining permits to modify existing facilities.
-
June 13, 2011
Wis. Drug Cos. Face Temporary Shutdown After Raid
A Wisconsin federal judge on Monday approved the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s consent decree with H&P Industries Inc. and the Triad Group Inc., temporarily halting the companies’ operations following the seizure of $6 million worth of their health care products.
-
June 10, 2011
AEP To Close 5 Coal Plants Because Of EPA Rules
American Electric Power Co. Inc. said Thursday that it would close five coal-fired power plants in Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia to comply with proposed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulations, putting pressure on the agency to justify a regulatory timeline critics say is too ambitious.
-
June 9, 2011
Video Cameras Set To Roll In 14 District Courts
The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts announced on Wednesday that 14 federal trial courts across the country will have video cameras installed to record civil court proceedings as part of a three-year pilot project to evaluate the effect of cameras in courtrooms.
-
June 6, 2011
GOP Bill Aims To Block NLRB Power To Sue States
Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, introduced legislation Friday that would restrict the National Labor Relations Board's ability to sue states, in the wake of an agency suit challenging an Arizona law that arguably outlaws the so-called card check method of unionizing.
-
June 1, 2011
6th Circ. Mulls US Authority In Health Care Act Appeal
The Sixth Circuit grappled with the constitutionality of the health care reform act Wednesday, offering mixed opinions on the federal government's authority to enforce the law and questioning whether the plaintiffs still have standing to bring their challenge.
-
May 26, 2011
Ohio House Approves Bill To Allow Drilling In Parks
The Ohio House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday that would open state parks to oil and gas drilling for the first time.
-
May 23, 2011
Nuveen Agrees To $3M FINRA Fine Over Illiquid Bonds
The broker-dealer unit of Nuveen Investments Inc. said Monday that it would pay a $3 million fine for creating misleading marketing materials used in sales of auction rate preferred securities, the market for which collapsed more than three years ago.
-
May 16, 2011
EPA Cites 7 Cattle Feedlots For CWA Violations
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Monday it had issued administrative orders to seven cattle feeding operations in the Midwest that violated the Clean Water Act by allowing manure and other wastes to enter rivers and streams.
-
May 9, 2011
FTC Clears Alliance Data's $356M Aspen Merger
The Federal Trade Commission on Friday cleared Dallas-based Alliance Data Systems Corp. marketing services unit Epsilon's $345 million acquisition of Illinois-based Aspen Marketing Services.
-
May 6, 2011
FTC Clears $338M Baxter-Prism Pharmaceuticals Deal
The Federal Trade Commission on Friday granted an early termination of its antitrust review of Baxter International Inc.'s purchase of Prism Pharmaceuticals Inc. in a deal worth up to $338 million for the private equity groups selling the specialty drugmaker.
-
May 4, 2011
Wolf Delisted Again In Great Lakes, Northern Rockies
The U.S. Department of the Interior said Wednesday that it would strip Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves in the western Great Lakes region and the northern Rocky Mountains, a move that would allow hunting of the animals to resume.
-
May 2, 2011
NHTSA Pulls 288K Honda SUVs Into Safety Probe
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration launched a probe into 288,000 American Honda Motor Co. Inc. SUVs on Friday, just days after kicking off investigations into more than a million SUVs manufactured by Michigan-based General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co.
-
April 29, 2011
Xcel Unit, Others Should Pay For $98M Wis. Cleanup: EPA
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Wednesday that four parties, including an Xcel Energy Inc. subsidiary, should pay for cleanup at a Wisconsin Superfund site that could cost up to $98 million.
Expert Analysis
-
Ramifications Of Greenville Lafayette V. Eligin
The Michigan Court of Appeals decision in Greenville Lafayette LLC v. Elgin State Bank reversed a decision of the Montcalm County Circuit Court on the scope of MCL 600.3204(1)(b), Michigan’s “one action” rule applicable to mortgage foreclosure by advertisement proceedings. The decision has thrown U.S. v. Leslie and its progeny — as well as Michigan foreclosure and collection practices — into a cocked hat, say John Gregg and Patrick Mears of Barnes & Thornburg LLP.
-
Case Study: In Re Crane
The decision by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of Illinois in In re Crane serves as yet another reminder to secured lenders to strictly comply with the statutory requirements under Illinois or other applicable state law. It is imperative that mortgage lenders examine 765 ILCS 5/11 and other applicable law in Illinois when documenting a mortgage loan, say attorneys with Barnes & Thornburg LLP.
-
Fostering Wind Energy Development In The Great Lakes
The Obama administration and five of the eight Great Lakes littoral states have signed a memorandum of understanding intended to streamline the development of offshore wind energy resources in the Great Lakes. The development of even a small portion of the area’s wind potential could create tens of thousands of clean energy jobs and generate revenue for local businesses, says Paul Forrester of Mayer Brown LLP.
-
Promoting Ohio Co-Generation Projects
Two senate bills moving through the Ohio General Assembly would promote co-generation projects by qualifying them for use by the state's investor-owned utilities to meet certain requirements under Ohio's landmark energy law. But as SB 289 and SB 315 move through the legislative process, it is unclear how lawmakers will reconcile the bills, say Terrence O'Donnell and Christopher Montgomery of Bricker & Eckler LLP.
-
Defining Role Of Third Parties In Withdrawal Liability
The Sixth Circuit has held that a collective bargaining agreement provision did not violate public policy under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, an important decision that provides needed clarification on the issue of whether a third party may contractually agree to be held liable for an employer’s withdrawal liability responsibilities, say Jason Rothman and Charles Billington of Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC.
-
Debating Preclusion Of State Law Securities Claims
In addition to setting a low threshold for application of the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act, the Fifth Circuit decision in Roland v. Green highlights the very real possibility that the Supreme Court may weigh in on the proper standard under SLUSA for the “in connection with” or “coincide” requirement and resolve the circuit split on this issue, say Neal Marder and Nicolas Jampol of Winston & Strawn LLP.
-
Docket Diving: Strategic Uses Of Online Docket Info
For today’s practitioner, “litigation research” has to involve more than simply searching case opinions and statutes for the applicable law. Online dockets can be used to investigate opposing counsel, litigants, judges and experts, as well as to uncover templates for drafting motions, and assist in client development efforts, say William Berger of Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP and David Dilenschneider of LexisNexis.
-
The Latest FTC Challenge To A Hospital Merger
The Federal Trade Commission's preliminary injunction against OSF Healthcare System/Rockford Health System is yet another reminder that the FTC has been challenging hospital mergers in what it views to be concentrated markets. This recent victory indicates the FTC will continue to closely examine provider combinations, say attorneys with King & Spalding LLP.
-
Souping Up MISO's Interconnection Queue Procedures
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has conditionally approved a proposal from the Midwest Independent System Operator to change its generator interconnection queue procedures. For developers, the most critical changes are the new cash-at-risk milestone requirements, says Sarah Johnson Phillips of Stoel Rives LLP.
-
Implications Of State Auto V. Flexdar
Ultimately, Indiana law has not changed. The pollution exclusion remains unenforceable because the definition of "pollutant" is ambiguous. The case of State Automobile Mutual Insurance Co. v. Flexdar Inc. is significant, however, because the Indiana Supreme Court alluded to language that it might consider sufficiently specific to be enforceable, say Benjamin Blume and Gary Klinger of Cozen O’Connor.