Public Policy

  • March 26, 2024

    WTO Calls On Australia To Amend Steel Duties On China

    A World Trade Organization panel on Tuesday ruled that Australia flouted certain measures of the intergovernmental organization's so-called Anti-Dumping Agreement when calculating duties on wind towers, stainless steel sinks and railway wheels from China.

  • March 26, 2024

    'Landmark' Trans Women Prison Housing Deal Gets Final OK

    A Colorado state judge on Tuesday approved a consent decree between the state and a class of transgender women who sued over dangerous housing conditions in state prisons and now hope the plan to accommodate their needs will spread to other states.

  • March 26, 2024

    Trailblazing SEC Commissioner Roberta Karmel Dies At 86

    Roberta Karmel, a well-regarded legal scholar who pushed back against early-career sexism to become the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's first female commissioner, died over the weekend at the age of 86, according to the law school where she taught for decades.

  • March 26, 2024

    Web Designer To Get Atty Fees After High Court Win

    A federal judge on Tuesday said a Christian website designer and her company are entitled to attorney fees and costs after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that Colorado can't force her to create wedding websites for same-sex couples.

  • March 26, 2024

    GOP Bill Would Fund FCC 'Rip And Replace' Program

    A pair of Republican senators is hoping to secure funding for the Federal Communications Commission's cash-strapped "rip and replace" program, introducing a bill that would fully fund the replacement of Chinese telecommunications equipment for small network providers.

  • March 26, 2024

    Enviro Orgs Sue To Block Expansion Of NY's Biggest Landfill

    Environmental groups, businesses and residents are asking a New York state judge to order regulators to address noxious odors coming from a landfill near Seneca Falls and prevent regulators from approving a proposed expansion that would allow the state's largest landfill to operate beyond 2025.

  • March 26, 2024

    Baltimore Bridge Collapse: What We Know So Far

    The overnight collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge, after being struck by a container carrier Tuesday, will trigger multiple inquiries into maritime and vessel safety, as well as bridge design and engineering standards, that experts say will have significant implications for future lawsuits, regulatory actions and infrastructure rebuilding efforts.

  • March 26, 2024

    FTC Urges Court To Pause Novant's NC Hospital Deal

    The Federal Trade Commission is urging a North Carolina federal court to pause Novant Health's $320 million deal for a pair of hospitals, contending the move would give Novant an "eye-popping" share of the hospital market in a Charlotte suburb.

  • March 26, 2024

    GOP Lawmakers Lose Pennsylvania Voter Registration Fight

    A group of Republican state legislators in Pennsylvania lack standing to challenge state and federal voter registration programs because they didn't sue on behalf of the whole legislature, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday.

  • March 26, 2024

    Feds Say Ruling Doesn't Back Court Review Of EB-5 Visa Denial

    The Biden administration has countered an argument from Chinese investors that courts can review the denial of their EB-5 visas, telling the D.C. Circuit that the unrelated case that the investors are relying on involves different facts and issues.

  • March 26, 2024

    Stakes High As Pa. Justices To Mull Gov't Suit Damages Cap

    The Pennsylvania Supreme Court's recent decision to review the constitutionality of the $250,000 damages cap for personal injury suits against state agencies sets the stage for two extremes: absolute immunity or limitless liability, experts say.

  • March 26, 2024

    GOP Lawmakers Push Gensler To Clarify SEC Stance On Ether

    Nearly 50 House Republicans called on U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler to explain his agency's views on the ethereum network's token after a firm apparently only cleared to safeguard digital asset securities announced its intention to support ETH.

  • March 26, 2024

    Pilot HOA Tells Justices Rail Easement Clouds Airstrip Access

    An Alaska homeowners association made up largely of pilots has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Ninth Circuit ruling granting a railroad full control of an easement jutting into an airstrip used by residents of a surrounding subdivision.

  • March 26, 2024

    Ski Resort Corp. Says Sheep Used As Pretext To Ruin Project

    Ski resort corporation The Vail Corp. told the Colorado Court of Appeals Monday to revive its workforce housing project after the town of Vail allegedly gave into local opposition against the project and used a local bighorn sheep herd as pretext to condemn the 23.3 acres of land that the ski resort corporation planned to use for the project.

  • March 26, 2024

    Tenn. Biz Seeks Duties On 4 Countries' Plastics Chemical

    A Tennessee-based chemical producer called on U.S. trade agencies to enact antidumping duties on four countries' shipments of a plastics compound, alleging that rising imports of low-priced chemicals have eaten away at its profits and share of the U.S. market.

  • March 26, 2024

    NY Urges 2nd Circ. To Deny Tribe's Eel Fishing Challenge

    The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation called on the Second Circuit to uphold a lower court's rejection of the Unkechaug Indian Nation's challenge to the agency's regulations on eel harvests, saying contrary to the tribe's arguments, they're not preempted by any federal treaty or statute.

  • March 26, 2024

    BP, Chevron And Others Hit With Climate Change Suit In Pa.

    Bucks County in Pennsylvania has sued BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil and other major oil companies for allegedly deceiving the public about the dangers of fossil fuel pollution, claiming that climate change has caused increasingly severe weather leading to property damage in the county.

  • March 26, 2024

    Biden Admin Greenlights 2nd Orsted NY Offshore Wind Farm

    The U.S. Department of the Interior on Tuesday approved the construction of Orsted-Eversource's Sunrise Wind project off the New York coast, the seventh offshore wind project given the go-ahead by the Biden administration.

  • March 26, 2024

    Greens Sue NRC Over Delayed Diablo Canyon Inspections

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission violated federal law when it rejected community and environmental groups' request for a public hearing over allegedly outdated inspections at Diablo Canyon, California's last remaining nuclear power plant, the groups told the Ninth Circuit on Monday.

  • March 26, 2024

    Air Force Says Flight Training Isn't Affecting Enviros' Mission

    The U.S. Air Force told an Oregon federal court that environmental groups' challenge to expanded warfighter training is based on how the plan would impact local noise levels and animal habitats, and not how the plan was affecting them personally.

  • March 26, 2024

    Trump Hit With Gag Order In NY Criminal Trial After Threats

    The New York judge overseeing Donald Trump's hush money case on Tuesday imposed a limited gag order on the former president, barring him from speaking publicly about jurors or witnesses and limiting what he can say about any attorneys in the case, prosecutors, court staff or their families.

  • March 26, 2024

    FCC Partners With Agencies On Privacy Enforcement

    The Federal Communications Commission said Tuesday it will ramp up enforcement with other federal and state agencies to protect sensitive data from hackers and foreign adversaries.

  • March 26, 2024

    In Abortion Case, Gorsuch Frets 'Rash' Of National Injunctions

    U.S. Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch renewed his criticisms of nationwide injunctions Tuesday, saying a Texas judge's universal order limiting access to popular abortion medication mifepristone turned a potentially small legal challenge into a national debate.

  • March 26, 2024

    Menendez Says Corruption Case Still Wrongly Placed In NY

    U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez has told a Manhattan federal judge that prosecutors' latest iteration of his corruption indictment doesn't resolve legal deficiencies that plagued previous ones, including a flimsy connection to the Southern District of New York.

  • March 26, 2024

    Legal Aid Union Fights Subpoena Over Palestine Resolution

    The New York Civil Liberties Union on Monday backed the Association of Legal Aid Attorneys in its fight against a subpoena from the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce following the union's adoption of a resolution in support of the Palestinian cause.

Expert Analysis

  • Ala. Frozen Embryo Ruling Creates Risks for Managed Care Orgs

    Author Photo

    The Alabama Supreme Court's decision in LePage v. Center for Reproductive Medicine last month, declaring that frozen embryos count as children, has not only upended the abortion debate but also raised questions for managed care organizations and healthcare providers that provide, offer or facilitate fertility treatment nationwide, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

  • Tips For Healthcare M&A Amid Heightened Antitrust Scrutiny

    Author Photo

    As the Biden administration maintains its aggressive approach to antitrust merger enforcement, prudent healthcare M&A counsel will consider practical advice when contemplating their next transaction, including carefully selecting a merger partner and preparing for a potentially long waiting period prior to closing, say attorneys at Davis Wright.

  • New Eagle Take Permit Rule Should Help Wind Projects Soar

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's recently issued final rule revising the eagle take permit process should help wind energy developers obtain incidental take permits through a more transparent and expedited process, and mitigate the risk of improper take penalties faced by wind projects, says Jon Micah Goeller at Husch Blackwell.

  • Compliance Steps After ABA White Collar Crime Conference

    Author Photo

    Senior law enforcement officials’ statements this month at the American Bar Association's white collar crime conference suggest government enforcement efforts this year will increasingly focus on whistleblower incentives, artificial intelligence and data protection, and companies will need to update their compliance programs accordingly, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • Opinion

    Justices' Trump Ballot Ruling May Spark Constitutional Crisis

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling that former President Donald Trump must be reinstated to Colorado’s primary ballot endorses an unnecessarily broad legal theory of disqualification from federal office, raising constitutional questions that will only become more urgent as the next presidential election nears, says Devon Ombres at the Center for American Progress.

  • Investment Advisers Should Prep For Money Laundering Regs

    Author Photo

    Investment advisers should prepare for a Financial Crimes Enforcement Network proposed rule that would significantly expand anti-money laundering and counter-financing of terrorism obligations by assessing illicit financing risks, and expect examiners to scrutinize unregistered advisers and those with certain foreign clients, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

  • Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents

    Author Photo

    Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.

  • EU Inquiry Offers First Insight Into Foreign Subsidy Law

    Author Photo

    The European Commission's first in-depth investigation under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation into a public procurement process, and subsequent brief on regulatory trends, sheds light on the commission's approach to such cases, as well as jurisdictional, procedural and substantive issues under the regulation, says Matthew Hall at McGuireWoods.

  • What The NIL Negotiation Rules Injunction Means For NCAA

    Author Photo

    A Tennessee federal court's recent preliminary injunction reverses several prominent and well-established NCAA rules on negotiations with student-athletes over name, image and likeness compensation and shows that collegiate athletics is a profoundly unsettled legal environment, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

  • Md. May See Vigorous Resale Price Maintenance Enforcement

    Author Photo

    In Maryland, indications of a new focus on resale price maintenance agreements are significant because state prosecution in this area has been rare, particularly outside California, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • What 2 Years Of Ukraine-Russia Conflict Can Teach Cos.

    Author Photo

    A few key legal lessons for the global business community since Russia's invasion of Ukraine could help protect global commerce in times of future conflict, including how to respond to disparate trade restrictions and sanctions, navigate war-related contract disputes, and protect against heightened cybersecurity risks, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Takeaways From EPA's New Methane Emission Rules

    Author Photo

    Attorneys at V&E examine two new Clean Air Act rules for the oil and gas industry, explaining how they expand methane and volatile organic compound emission reduction requirements and amplify U.S. Environmental Protection Agency enforcement risks.

  • Uncertainty Surrounds Patent Eligibility Restoration Bill

    Author Photo

    A recent U.S. Senate hearing regarding the Patent Eligibility Restoration Act, a bill that aims to overhaul patent eligibility law and establish clearer statutory exclusions, marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing patent eligibility debate, but the law’s fate remains uncertain as discussions continue, say attorneys at Marshall Gerstein.

  • CSA Case Could Shift Intrastate Commercial Cannabis

    Author Photo

    In Canna Provisions v. Merrick Garland, cannabis companies argue that the Controlled Substances Act is unconstitutional as applied to intrastate commercial cannabis activity; the Massachusetts federal court's eventual decision will be important to the cannabis industry for several reasons, including that the threat of federal enforcement would disappear overnight, says Hilary Bricken at Husch Blackwell.

  • How AI May Be Used In Fintech Fraud — And Fraud Detection

    Author Photo

    Recent enforcement actions in the fintech and finance industries show that the government is increasingly pursuing fraud enabled by artificial intelligence — at the same time it’s using AI innovations to enforce regulations and investigate fraud, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Public Policy archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!