Public Policy

  • August 19, 2026

    Groups Say NOAA Failed To Vet Samoan Seabed Mining Harm

    Two conservation groups have sued to stop the sale of deep-sea mining rights across 31 million acres of seabed around American Samoa, arguing the National Marine Fisheries Service unlawfully determined the activity would not adversely affect endangered species and their habitat.

  • August 19, 2026

    Paramount Judge Urges Parties To Be 'More Reasonable'

    A California federal judge overseeing the challenge to Paramount Skydance's $110 billion Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition brought by the Writers Guild of America and state attorneys general urged the parties Wednesday to be "much more reasonable" with discovery disputes, warning that if they aren't, "you will find yourself asked to engage a special master."

  • August 19, 2026

    Paramount Viewers Stuck With Bringing Amended Suit

    A California federal judge refused Tuesday to reconsider dismissing a consumer complaint challenging Paramount's completed merger with Skydance and its planned purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery, holding that the filing of an amended complaint mooted the motion.

  • August 19, 2026

    Trade Court Judge Mulls Class Cert. For IEEPA Refunds

    A U.S. Court of International Trade judge on Wednesday didn't commit to certifying a class of importers who paid tariffs under President Donald Trump's struck-down global regime, though the option seemed to intrigue him.

  • August 19, 2026

    Over 120 Ex-Judges Demand Probe Of DHS GC's 'Worst' Posts

    A pair of nonprofits along with a bipartisan group of 128 former state and federal judges have asked the Florida Bar to investigate the general counsel of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for a recent series of social media posts attacking sitting judges.

  • August 19, 2026

    Venable Hires Treasury Legislative Deputy With Tax Experience

    Venable LLP's latest hire in the legislative and public policy group in Washington, D.C., is a U.S. Department of the Treasury official who most recently worked as the deputy undersecretary for legislative affairs.

  • August 19, 2026

    Mining Project Beats Suit, But Species Harm Estimate Flagged

    The federal government won dismissal of most claims from environmental groups challenging a gold mining project, but the presiding federal Idaho judge did order the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to revise a statement estimating harm to wolverine and bull trout.

  • August 19, 2026

    Feds Accuse Comey Of Trying To 'Shortcircuit' '86 47' Case

    Former FBI Director James Comey is seeking to end the case over an allegedly threatening photo of seashells he posted online before the government has had a chance to present the full context for its case, prosecutors argued this week.

  • August 19, 2026

    Ohio Urges 6th Circ. To Allow Hemp Reclassification

    The state of Ohio urged the Sixth Circuit on Wednesday to reverse a lower court's decision halting enforcement of a new state law that reclassified hemp products as marijuana, accusing the hemp companies who sought the injunction of pushing an "aggressive theory" of the case.

  • August 19, 2026

    DC Circ. Won't Block Loan For Mozambique LNG Project

    A D.C. Circuit panel denied an environmental group's push to block $4.7 billion in financing the U.S. Export-Import Bank approved for a TotalEnergies EP liquefied natural gas project in Mozambique, finding the group unlikely to prevail in its challenge.

  • August 19, 2026

    Prison Phone Co. Says Techs Aren't Owed Public Works Pay

    A prison phone service provider told a New York federal judge that three field service technicians who installed and maintained telecommunications systems in hospitals and prisons did not agree to a "public works" contract and aren't guaranteed higher pay under state labor laws.

  • August 19, 2026

    5th Circ. Backs Delay Of FDA's 11-Warning Cigarette Rule

    The Fifth Circuit on Tuesday upheld the delay of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration rule requiring the addition of graphic warning labels to cigarette packages, saying tobacco companies that challenged the rule showed the agency likely overstepped its narrow authority to adjust existing warnings by creating two new ones.

  • August 19, 2026

    Ruling Lets Ethiopia's Protected Status End As Case Proceeds

    A Massachusetts federal court has ruled the Trump administration's termination of Ethiopia's temporary protected status designation can now take effect, though allowing Ethiopian nationals to continue arguing that the administration acted at least partly out of racial animus.

  • August 19, 2026

    Pa. Court Lets Off-Grid Solar Projects Get Energy Credits

    Solar energy projects in Pennsylvania do not have to connect to the electrical grid to qualify for "solar renewable energy credits," allowing gas pipeline operator Williams Companies Inc. to get and sell credits for solar arrays that only power two remote compressor stations, a state appellate court ruled Wednesday.

  • August 19, 2026

    Mass. Top Court Clears Path For $325M Pro Soccer Stadium

    Massachusetts' highest court on Wednesday cleared the way for construction to continue on a $325 million women's professional soccer stadium on a parcel within Boston's historic Franklin Park, finding that the project is not subject to a state law protecting parkland from development.

  • August 19, 2026

    4th Circ. Ends Immigration Judges' Free Speech Suit

    The Fourth Circuit on Wednesday affirmed that a district court lacked authority to hear a suit from an immigration judges' union challenging a policy barring judges from speaking publicly about immigration without prior approval.

  • August 19, 2026

    FCC Seeks Comments On Proposal To End E-Rate Program

    The Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau is seeking public input on a proposal to amend, and possibly curtail, a broadband subsidy for schools and libraries.

  • August 19, 2026

    Feds Urge Wash. Court To Back Axing Dam Workers' CBA

    The Trump administration urged a Washington federal court to deny a labor union's bid to block the government from terminating a collective bargaining agreement covering hydropower dam workers, arguing that appellate courts have rejected similar injunction requests from other unions.

  • August 19, 2026

    Trump Delays Canada Tariffs, Says Deal Imminent

    President Donald Trump delayed for three days 50% tariffs on select Canadian goods scheduled to take effect Wednesday in an effort to strike a deal with the Canadian government, he said late Tuesday evening.

  • August 18, 2026

    Ex-DOJ Atty Says Trump's University Probes Were Political

    Trump administration officials forged ahead with investigations into Harvard, Columbia and other universities despite its own lawyers raising legal concerns and, in some cases, finding "little to no factual predicate justifying opening them," according to a whistleblower disclosure from a former U.S. Department of Justice lawyer made public Tuesday.

  • August 18, 2026

    DC Circ. Backs EPA Forever Chemicals Rules

    The D.C. Circuit Tuesday backed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's designation of the two most common forms of forever chemicals as hazardous substances under federal Superfund law, rejecting arguments from industry that the agency didn't have a legal basis to do so.

  • August 18, 2026

    Feds Bring New Charges Over $3.4B Iran-Backed Cybertheft

    Manhattan federal prosecutors on Tuesday announced new charges against a group of Iranians accused of running a global, state-backed hacking campaign against private companies, government agencies and universities, in a wide-ranging cybertheft conspiracy that stole at least $3.4 billion in academic data and intellectual property.

  • August 18, 2026

    SEC Proposes Long-Awaited Crypto Offering Exemptions

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday unveiled plans to exempt some cryptocurrency offerings from its registration requirements and to create a safe harbor for some projects to eventually shed securities law obligations altogether.

  • August 18, 2026

    DOI, Enviro Groups Trade Punches Over Wildlands Policy

    The U.S. Department of the Interior has received pushback from conservation groups that oppose five comment processes among three federal agencies as the DOI reviews policies affecting wilderness areas on public lands nationwide.

  • August 18, 2026

    Uber Eats To Pay $4.4M To End Seattle Wage Theft Claims

    Uber Eats will again fork out millions of dollars to settle allegations from Seattle officials that the food delivery giant failed to pay its couriers what they're owed under municipal app-based worker laws, the Seattle Office of Labor Standards announced Tuesday.

Expert Analysis

  • CFPB Fair Lending Litigation Reveals Compliance Complexity

    Author Photo

    A recent legal challenge to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's fair lending amendments underscores continuing uncertainty over disparate impact liability, discouragement standards and special purpose credit programs, signaling that financial services providers should avoid hasty compliance changes, say attorneys at Weiner Brodsky.

  • Ensuring Eligibility For Data Center Sales Tax Breaks

    Author Photo

    As states compete to lure data centers, sales tax exemptions are an important component of many incentive packages — but companies must ensure that projects not only qualify for exemptions on paper, but also can preserve and prove their eligibility through the planning, construction and operation phases, says Peter Lowy at Nelson Mullins.

  • Cos. Should Act Now After US Ruling Reopens EU Data Fight

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Trump v. Slaughter may have inadvertently undermined the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, and given the importance of data transfers for U.S. businesses, companies should start preparing for a scenario in which the framework is no longer enforceable, says Fernanda Pires Merouço at Davis Wright.

  • Inside Differing State Approaches To Prediction Market Taxes

    Author Photo

    As states adopt divergent approaches to prediction market platforms through both legislation and litigation, and the landscape is anything but settled, the emerging patchwork of state taxes on prediction markets presents novel questions about characterization, preemption and compliance, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • FDIC Proposals Mark Pullback In Bank Resolution Rules

    Author Photo

    A recent pair of Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. proposals would fundamentally reshape testing of banks' resolution-related capabilities from a mandatory exercise to a voluntary one supported by significant financial incentives, amounting to an overall reduction in reporting requirements, say attorneys at Moore & Van Allen.

  • Series

    Being A Singer Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Before law school, I spent seven years trying to make it as a professional singer in Los Angeles, and nearly everything I learned about preparation, humility, confidence and more has followed me into my legal practice, says Jessica Caterina at Moses & Singer.

  • EEOC Enforcement Plan Signals DEI, Religious Bias Scrutiny

    Author Photo

    In light of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently publishing its national enforcement plan covering through fiscal year 2029, employers should expect increased scrutiny of practices that conflict with the administration's positions on diversity, equity and inclusion, national origin discrimination, and religious accommodations, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Immigration Order Raises Customer ID Stakes For Banks

    Author Photo

    Following a recently issued immigration-related executive order, financial institutions should expect and prepare for increased scrutiny of customer due diligence and identification, suspicious activity monitoring, and consumer lending, as well as accompanying supervisory shifts and rising fair lending risks, says Douglas Weissinger at Butler Snow.

  • Trade Secret Practice Tips From The 1st Half Of 2026

    Author Photo

    Intellectual property attorneys should consider what several significant developments in 2026 thus far mean for how they protect, litigate and value trade secrets, focusing on new state noncompete bans, cases scrutinizing how plaintiffs identify trade secrets and federal rulings on damages doctrines, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

  • High Court Rulings Could Alter Agency Strategy For Cos.

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decisions in Trump v. Slaughter and Trump v. Cook mark major turning points in the law of independent agencies and in how regulated companies should think about federal enforcement, rulemaking and agency-facing strategy, say attorneys at Holtzman Vogel.

  • How CME Suit May Reshape CFTC's Crypto Derivatives Rules

    Author Photo

    CME Group's recent lawsuit over the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's approval of a Kalshi application to offer a bitcoin perpetual contract as a futures product could have cascading consequences for crypto derivatives regulation, highlighting why policy ambitions do not override statutory text or substitute for reasoned decision-making, says attorney Tamara de Silva.

  • Opinion

    Justices' Parole Ruling Degrades Green Card Holders' Rights

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Blanche v. Lau, holding that U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers can parole a returning lawful permanent resident without clear and convincing evidence of a crime, weakens the statutory and practical protections Congress intended, say attorneys at Cyrus D. Mehta & Partners.

  • NEPA Reforms Can Fix Permitting Without Weakening Review

    Author Photo

    Recent National Environmental Policy Act reforms, in tandem with a Senate bill proposing faster permitting reviews and greater agency coordination, mark a long overdue move toward more efficient energy and infrastructure permitting that does not sacrifice environmental assessment, say attorneys at GableGotwals.

  • 2 Microsoft Matters Could Help Shape AI Antitrust Outlook

    Author Photo

    A pending federal court case and investigation focusing on Microsoft's allegedly anticompetitive conduct in the deployment of artificial intelligence tools are testing whether antitrust law can distinguish ordinary competition to supply the AI ecosystem from conduct that distorts how that competition unfolds, says Kylie Kim at Massey & Gail.

  • Preparing For Next Congress With Eye On Investigation Risk

    Author Photo

    Rod Rosenstein, Brian Whisler and Bruce Linskens at Baker McKenzie offer advice for organizations seeking to build a proactive response plan to potential congressional oversight as the election looms.

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.