Analysis

New Fraud Division Flexes Might In Latest Enforcement Policy

By Phillip Bantz

The National Fraud Enforcement Division's new corporate enforcement policy emphasizes the quick pursuit of certain types of fraud through data analysis and staff resources, expands the target list beyond traditional healthcare providers and highlights the division's growing dominance within the U.S. Department of Justice, experts say.

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Feds Bar Microsoft, Adobe, Others From Visa Program

By Britain Eakin

Vice President JD Vance said Thursday that the Trump administration has suspended Microsoft, Adobe and other technology companies from utilizing a program that allows H-1B visa holders to apply for green cards, saying Microsoft in particular has "abused" the system.

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Amex Fined $350M Over Anti-Money Laundering Lapses

By Jon Hill

American Express has been fined $350 million over findings of systemic deficiencies in its banking unit's anti-money laundering program, including for alleged failures to properly detect and report $13 billion in potentially illicit activity over roughly a decade, federal regulators said Thursday.

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Split Congress Could Spur Competing Probes, Cleary Finds

By Courtney Bublé

If the new year brings an era of divided Congress, then "dueling investigations" into the same topics should be expected, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP said in a report it released Thursday.

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High Court Puts 4th Circ. Political Ad Rate Ruling On Ice

By Christopher Cole

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday stayed a Fourth Circuit ruling that directed the Federal Communications Commission to review an agency staff decision requiring broadcasters charge the lowest political ad rates for committees tied to candidates.

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Energy Companies' Win In NYC Greenwashing Suit Affirmed

By Tom Lotshaw

A New York appeals court on Thursday affirmed the dismissal of a New York City suit accusing BP, Exxon and Shell of deceiving consumers about the environmental effects of their gasoline products and alternative energy investments.

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Ex-Coal Exec's Bribe Sentencing Paused Amid Witness Claims

By Phillip Bantz

A Pennsylvania federal judge agreed Wednesday to reschedule an upcoming sentencing hearing for a former coal executive convicted of authorizing bribes to an arm of the Egyptian government, after his attorneys flagged new allegations against a star witness for the prosecution.

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GAO To Investigate CFTC Staffing Cuts After Warren Request

By Sarah Jarvis

The U.S. Government Accountability Office will investigate the impact of staffing cuts at the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, after Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., urged the watchdog agency to probe whether the cuts impacted the CFTC's ability to fulfill its responsibilities and whether they are legally sound.

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NCUA's 2-Week Leadership Gap Draws Senate Dem Scrutiny

By Jon Hill

The Senate Banking Committee's top Democrat is seeking more details on an unusual gap in leadership that took place this summer at the National Credit Union Administration, questioning how the agency continued to function with an empty governing board.

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Dodd-Frank Act Is Focus Of Latest Amici In NJ-Kalshi Case

By Elaine Briseño

Multiple amici, including the drafter of the Dodd-Frank Act, weighed in on New Jersey’s petition for the U.S. Supreme Court to review the regulation of prediction markets and sports betting, saying the statute was not meant to displace state gambling laws.

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Coinbase Tells 2nd Circ. Only CFTC Oversees Event Contracts

By Rae Ann Varona

Event contracts that Coinbase offers, including sports event contracts, are swaps over which the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has "exclusive" jurisdiction, the company has urged the Second Circuit to rule, arguing Connecticut's laws have "no role to play" in regulating prediction markets.

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Feds Say End Of Chevron Deference Justifies ESA 'Harm' Rule

By Gautama Mehta

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service told California and South Carolina federal judges that the Trump administration's redefinition of "harm" under the Endangered Species Act was permissible after the overturning of Chevron deference.

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DC Circ. Won't Rehear Ruling Blocking Fla. Wetlands Permits

By Aneeta Mathur-Ashton

The D.C. Circuit has denied a petition from the federal government for an en banc rehearing of a previous court decision vacating the EPA's authorization for Florida to run a Clean Water Act permitting program for dredging and filling wetlands.

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Duke Energy, Tech Giants Ink Data Center Cost Deal

By Gina Kim

Duke Energy announced on Wednesday that it has reached a deal with North Carolina regulators, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Google and others to beef up existing protections to ensure ratepayers won't be burdened with costs incurred from data centers and other large-load customers in the Tar Heel State. 

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Suit Alleges Compass Sought 'Back Channel' In DOJ Review

By Nate Beck

A shareholder is alleging in New York federal court that Compass sought to evade regulatory review of its $1.6 billion merger with Anywhere Real Estate by hiring an attorney connected to the Trump administration to push the deal through six months ahead of time.

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Analysis

No Sign Of A Final Whistle For NCAA Eligibility Suits

By Chris Villani

New NCAA rules and a looming U.S. Senate bill could lead to a decrease in court fights over athletes' eligibility, but the huge dollars at stake and athletes' desire to extend their careers mean that litigation is not going to disappear anytime soon.

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Trade Court Certifies Broad IEEPA Tariff Refund Class

By Jack McLoone

The U.S. Court of International Trade granted a broad class certification for importers subjected to President Donald Trump's now-invalidated global tariff regime Thursday in a move the judge said he hopes will ensure all such tariffs are refunded.

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FTC's Meador Urges EU To Adopt Case-By-Case Enforcement

By Bryan Koenig

Federal Trade Commission member Mark Meador on Thursday argued digital market rules in the U.K. and the European Union undermine international cooperation with U.S. antitrust and consumer protection enforcers, in the latest Trump administration admonishment of the policies.

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Texas Clinics Settle False COVID-19 Billing Claims For $20M

By Spencer Brewer

Two Texas clinics under the same ownership have agreed to pay the government $20 million to settle False Claims Act allegations that they lied about COVID-19 billing, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

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2 More Sentenced In $11M Amtrak Health Fraud Scheme

By George Woolston

A former Amtrak employee and a New York podiatrist have been sentenced to prison for their roles in a scheme that prosecutors claim defrauded the rail carrier out of $11 million in health benefits, the U.S. attorney's office in New Jersey said.

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Mayne, Ascend Cut $1M Generic Price-Fixing Deal With States

By Gina Kim

Ascend Laboratories, Mayne Pharma and Citron Pharma asked a Connecticut federal judge Thursday to sign off on a settlement with a coalition of states resolving claims the companies were involved in an illegal conspiracy to fix prices and suppress competition for generic drugs in the United States. 

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DOJ Clears Mobile Parking Payment Merger

By Nadia Dreid

The Justice Department is waving through a merger between two mobile parking payment companies after finding that their union wouldn't pose a problem for competition within the United States.

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Senators Say Ticket Brokers Can't Pry Into Their Emails

By Nadia Dreid

Two U.S. senators have told a Maryland federal court that a ticket broker cannot force them and their staff to comb through their communications "in the hope of uncovering stray remarks" to support the company's interpretation of the law the FTC is suing it for violating.

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Pa. Legislators Want More Time To Regulate 'Skill Games'

By Matthew Santoni

Three Pennsylvania lawmakers and a coalition of "skill games" operators want the state Supreme Court to extend a deadline before police start seizing the game terminals, hoping to give the state Legislature more time to pass a law governing the games after the court found them to be illegal slot machines.

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Top Groups Lobbying The FCC

By Christopher Cole

Lobbying efforts at the Federal Communications Commission spiked in September as companies and interest groups looked to sway FCC policies on issues such as modernizing the phone networks, Lifeline reform, environmental rules, satellite spectrum and more.

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FCC Dem Slams 'Dark Money' Plan For Political Robocalls

By Nadia Dreid

The FCC spends a lot of time trying to do something about the billions of illegal robocalls Americans are pelted with every month, but the agency is currently considering a proposal to relax the current rules on political robocalls ahead of the November midterms — to the chagrin of the commission's lone Democrat.

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Series

Mentalism Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Convincing strangers I can read their minds may seem like an unusual second career for a legal practitioner, but both disciplines share several important requirements, including trust and preparation, says Warren Biro at Manatt.

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Cos. Must Prep For Changes To Calif. Battery Recycling Law

With important changes to California's Responsible Battery Recycling Act taking effect in January, manufacturers and retailers should review updated format and product definitions and exclusions, determine their new responsibilities, and be prepared to submit new stewardship plans in advance of the deadline, says Thierry Montoya at FBT Gibbons.

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How States May Enter The Shareholder Proposal Landscape

Rescission of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's shareholder proposal rule doesn't herald the end of shareholder activism, but it allows state legislatures to play a central role in determining the future of shareholder proposals, with that uncertainty creating new opportunities for both issuers and activists, say attorneys at Thompson Coburn.

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How AI Is Reshaping The Structure Of Crypto Venture Deals

As founders at the intersection of crypto and artificial intelligence increasingly face capital-raising quandaries, parties structuring crypto venture deals should weigh how equity, token and hybrid financings allocate value to avoid tricky contractual governance and fiduciary law questions down the line, say attorneys at Cahill Gordon.

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Zillow-Redfin Settlement Spotlights Nontraditional-Deal Risk

The Federal Trade Commission's recent settlement with Zillow and Redfin serves as a reminder that authorities are increasingly interested in challenging nontraditional transaction structures that effectively eliminate a market participant, which includes some exclusivity arrangements, say attorneys at Freshfields.

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Sheppard Mullin Hit With Class Action Over Data Breach

By Jake Maher

A former Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP paralegal launched a proposed class action against the firm in California federal court on Wednesday over a cyberattack it had in August, in which she says at least 1,000 people's names and Social Security numbers were stolen.

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IP Rights Group Urges Against Litigation Funding Disclosure

By Elliot Weld

An inventor rights advocacy group has told a federal courts rules committee that requiring the disclosure of who is funding civil litigation would put independent inventors at a disadvantage when trying to enforce patents against a larger company.

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Cornell Defendant Seeks To Nix James As Special Prosecutor

By Andrea Keckley

One of the seven men accused of drugging and raping a fellow Cornell University student at a fraternity home has asked a New York state court to void Gov. Kathy Hochul's appointment of New York Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor in the case.

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Gov't Attys Could Face Sanctions Over AI Use Omissions

By Madeline Lyskawa

A U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge has ordered four government attorneys to explain why they shouldn't be sanctioned for making factual misrepresentations about the U.S. Army's use of artificial intelligence to evaluate contract proposals.

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Fla. Judge Says Oct. 7 Attack Was 'Inflection Point' For U.S.

By David Minsky

U.S. District Judge Roy K. Altman addressed a small group of attorneys in a Florida law office to speak on his book about the October 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, saying public debate over facts surrounding the event and underlying feud has reached an "inflection point" in America.

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Buzbee Faces $970K Fee Bid In Dismissed Conspiracy Cases

By Lynn LaRowe

A Mississippi lawyer is asking a Texas state court to award her more than $970,000 in fees after defeating claims that she and her law firm conspired with rapper Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter and Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP to retaliate against prominent Houston plaintiffs attorney Tony Buzbee and two of his former clients.

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Dems Says GOP Broke Senate Rules In Jack Smith Hearing

By Courtney Bublé

The Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee have accused Republicans of violating committee rules during a hearing last week with former special counsel Jack Smith.

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