Public Policy

  • January 06, 2026

    5th Circ. Pushes FDA On 'De Facto' Vape Marketing Ban

    A Fifth Circuit panel seemed leery of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's claim that it had no de facto ban in place for flavored refillable e-cigarette products, saying Tuesday that denying hundreds of thousands of applications seemed an awful lot like a ban.

  • January 06, 2026

    Ex-EEOC Officials Decry Harassment Guidance Rollback

    A group of former top officials at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and U.S. Department of Labor on Tuesday issued a statement criticizing the Trump administration's proposed elimination of guidance on workplace harassment, saying it's an attack on the LGBTQ community and strays from U.S. Supreme Court precedent.

  • January 06, 2026

    DHS Blasts ICE Detainees' Lengthy Conditions Complaint

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is urging an Illinois federal judge to toss a class action claiming federal immigration officials subjected detainees to inhumane conditions at a Chicago-area holding facility, saying the complaint is "unnecessarily long" and otherwise fails to plead valid constitutional or procedural claims.

  • January 06, 2026

    Feds Sue Calif. Cities To Extinguish Natural Gas Bans

    The Trump administration is going after two cities in California over building codes that ban natural gas infrastructure in newly constructed buildings, alleging in a lawsuit Monday that these local rules "impose crushing costs" on Californians and run afoul of federal law.

  • January 06, 2026

    US Removal Of Maduro Won't Curb Energy Cos.' Caution

    U.S. oil and gas companies will need significant legal and regulatory assurances that any new investment in Venezuela will be shielded from political instability before heeding President Donald Trump's call to fortify the country's floundering oil and gas industry.

  • January 06, 2026

    Vape Interests Look To 5th Circ. To Halt Miss. E-Cig Law

    A coalition of vaping interests is asking the Fifth Circuit to revive its lawsuit seeking to end a Mississippi law that blocks the sale of synthetic nicotine products, the same parties that are also moving forward with similar efforts at the Sixth Circuit.

  • January 06, 2026

    4th Circ. Revives Black Ex-Baltimore Cop's Race Bias Suit

    A divided Fourth Circuit on Tuesday revived a Black former Baltimore police officer's suit alleging she was treated less favorably than non-Black officers by being pushed out, saying she offered adequate examples of other officers who received more leniency than she did for alleged misconduct for her race discrimination claim to survive.

  • January 06, 2026

    Wash. Atty Impaled By Debris In National Park Can Sue Feds

    A Washington federal judge declined to toss an attorney's lawsuit against the federal government alleging he was impaled by wooden debris in Lake Chelan after jumping from a dock at a National Park Service campground, but said the court needs more information to be sure the case satisfies jurisdictional requirements.

  • January 06, 2026

    'Get Over' Yourself, Ho Says To Judges' Independence Worry

    U.S. Circuit Judge James C. Ho snapped back at colleagues on the bench who have raised the alarm over threats to judicial independence, writing in an article that those complaining judges "need to get over themselves" and stop bowing to the "cultural elites" who oppose the Trump administration.

  • January 06, 2026

    Cigna Accused Of Rigging Market For Life-Saving Drugs

    Patients with chronic health conditions sued Cigna in an Illinois federal court alleging in a proposed class action Tuesday that the company and its pharmacy and pharmacy benefit manager subsidiaries use exclusive agreements to lock users into a network where Byzantine refill processes have been deliberately erected to limit payouts for life-saving drugs.

  • January 06, 2026

    FTC Signals Support Of Miss. Bill For Midwives' Solo Practice

    A Federal Trade Commission official on Monday encouraged a Mississippi lawmaker to keep in mind the possible motives of opponents of proposed legislation that would exempt midwives from having to contract with physicians to provide advanced-level nursing care.

  • January 06, 2026

    FDA To Ease Regulation Of Wearables, Decision Software

    U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary touted new federal guidance on Tuesday that he said would promote innovation by making it easier to bring certain kinds of wearable devices and clinical-decision software to market without a strict regulatory review.

  • January 06, 2026

    Wilcox Asks DC Circ. To Protect NLRB's Independence

    The D.C. Circuit should reverse a decision by two of its judges that would end the National Labor Relations Board's independence if allowed to stand, former board member Gwynne Wilcox argued, seeking to nix a ruling that lets President Donald Trump remove and replace NLRB members at will.

  • January 06, 2026

    Ex-CFTC Chair, Robinhood's Top Atty Join FINRA Board

    Former U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chair Rostin Behnam and the chief legal officer for popular trading app Robinhood Markets are among those whose appointment to the board of Financial Industry Regulatory Authority was announced on Tuesday.

  • January 06, 2026

    BofA Faces Customer Suit Over Post-Jan. 6 'Surveillance'

    Bank of America was hit with a putative class action accusing it of financial privacy violations tied to the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol attack, alleging the bank aggressively mined and illegally shared customer data with authorities looking for leads.

  • January 06, 2026

    Cider-Maker Challenges Federal Ban On Vintage Labeling

    A Washington state maker of alcoholic beverages is challenging a federal government restriction that prevents producers of cider, mead and wines made from any fruit besides grapes from including vintage years on their product labels, arguing that the policy withholds information from consumers and violates the First Amendment.

  • January 06, 2026

    1st Circ. Questions Feds' Mootness Claim In NIH Grant Suits

    The First Circuit appeared to push back Tuesday on assertions by the government that new guidance for terminating medical research grants over supposed links to issues like DEI, gender identity and vaccines — along with a partial settlement last week — moot a pair of lawsuits challenging the directives.

  • January 06, 2026

    7th Circ. Blocks Satanic Temple's Ind. Abortion Law Challenge

    The Seventh Circuit ruled Tuesday the Satanic Temple doesn't have standing to challenge Indiana's abortion ban, saying it has no ties to an in-person abortion clinic in the state and that its argument it could be prosecuted for providing telehealth appointments to those seeking the procedure isn't enough to show injury.

  • January 06, 2026

    RFK Jr. Can't Avoid Medical Groups' Challenge To Vax Policy

    A Boston federal judge on Tuesday rebuffed U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s bid to dismiss a challenge to vaccine policy changes, saying medical associations have plausibly alleged a federal vaccine committee is not fairly balanced.

  • January 06, 2026

    Public Health Atty Talks Botulism, Infants And FDA Staffing

    Three years ago, a bacterial outbreak at a Michigan manufacturing plant sparked a shutdown and a national infant formula shortage. Another episode last year at a formula plant in Iowa should be a red flag for the public and a short-handed FDA, according to Sarah Sorscher of the Center for Science in the Public Interest.

  • January 06, 2026

    Drugmakers Fight Multifront Legal Battles Over GLP-1s

    In the wake of U.S. Food and Drug Administration approvals for GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, surging public demand and massive profits have inspired a broad range of drugmaker litigation against competitors, alleged counterfeits and telehealth providers.

  • January 06, 2026

    Calif. Tribe Rejects Feds' Delay In 40-Acre Land Transfer Fight

    A California tribe is asking a D.C. federal court to deny a bid by the U.S. Department of the Interior for an indefinite stay in responding to a challenge to the agency's decision to approve a 40-acre land transfer for a fellow state tribe's casino project.

  • January 06, 2026

    Calif. Locomotive Emissions Rule Repeal Ends Industry Suit

    A California federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a legal challenge from rail industry groups to a since-repealed regulation that would've required railroads to transition to zero-emission locomotives in the Golden State, closing the book on the dispute after the parties agreed to drop the case.

  • January 06, 2026

    Wyo. High Court Strikes Down 2 Laws Restricting Abortion

    The Wyoming Supreme Court struck down the state's near-total abortion ban and a first-of-its-kind prohibition on abortion pills on Tuesday, saying the laws violated the state constitution.

  • January 06, 2026

    Visa Suit Tossed After DHS Restored Students' Status

    A Washington federal judge agreed Tuesday to dismiss a lawsuit a student brought against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security after it reinstated his visa status, finding the action is moot because the government indicated it has no plans to re-terminate visas based on criminal database searches.

Expert Analysis

  • How Fractional GCs Can Manage Risks Of Engagement

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    As more organizations eliminate their in-house legal departments in favor of outsourcing legal work, fractional general counsel roles offer practitioners an engaging and flexible way to practice at a high level, but they can also present legal, ethical and operational risks that must be proactively managed, say attorneys at Boies Schiller.

  • SEC Rulemaking Radar: A Reset, A Shift And A Preview Of '26

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    With major proposals withdrawn and new priorities emerging, forthcoming U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission proposals in 2026 will look to reshape how digital assets are regulated, recalibrate market structure and simplify how small companies go public, says Christopher Grobbel at Goodwin.

  • Changes In Crypto, Cybersecurity Defined NY Banking In 2025

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    The major takeaways from 2025 in New York banking policy involve updated guidance, regulations and requirements primarily affecting innovation and digital banking, in areas such as cybersecurity, virtual currencies, and buy now, pay later programs, say attorneys at Steptoe.

  • Opinion

    Justices Should Clarify Loper Bright Doctrine Via Patent Case

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    The U.S. Supreme Court should use the Lynk Labs v. Samsung patent case to provide urgently needed guidance on how last year’s Loper Bright decision should be applied to real-world questions of agency authority in the post-Chevron world, says Timothy Hsieh at Oklahoma City University School of Law.

  • How OECD Tax Update Tackles Mobile Workforce Complexity

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    The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s recently updated model tax convention — a recalibration of international tax principles in response to an increasingly mobile workforce — should prompt companies to reevaluate cross-border operations, transfer pricing policies and tax controversy strategies, say attorneys at Eversheds.

  • Reviewing 2025's Most Pertinent Wiretap Developments

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    2025 was a remarkable year in the world of web tracking wiretapping litigation, not only for the increased caseload but also because of numerous developing theories of liability, with disputes expected to continue unabated in 2026, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • 2025 Legal Milestones That Will Shape Psychedelics Sector

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    As 2025 draws to a close, psychedelic drug development stands at an inflection point, experiencing unprecedented momentum through recent sweeping regulatory changes and landmark clinical milestones, amid rapidly evolving regulatory expectations, say Odette Hauke at Odette Alina LLC and Kimberly Chew at Husch Blackwell.

  • M&A Midmarket Shows Resilience Amid 2025 Challenges

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    Midmarket mergers and acquisitions showed a slight decline in volume but climbed in value for much of 2025, particularly in the private equity space, indicating that the middle market M&A environment is cautious but steady heading into 2026, say attorneys at Stoel Rives.

  • Del. Dispatch: Key 2025 Corporate Cases And Trends To Know

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    The Delaware corporate legal landscape saw notable changes in 2025, spurred by amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law, ubiquitous artificial intelligence fervor, boardroom discussion around DExit, record shareholder activism activity and an arguably more expansive view of potential Caremark liability, say attorneys at Fried Frank.

  • Series

    Nature Photography Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Nature photography reminds me to focus on what is in front of me and to slow down to achieve success, and, in embracing the value of viewing situations through different lenses, offers skills transferable to the practice of law, says Brian Willett at Saul Ewing.

  • 2025 Brought A New Paradigm For Federal Banking Regulation

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    A series of thematic shifts defined banking regulation in 2025, including a fundamental reform of prudential supervision, a strategic easing of capital constraints, steps to streamline merger reviews, and a new framework for fair access and entrants seeking to offer banking services, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • What 2025 Transpo And Logistics Legal Trends Mean For 2026

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    2025 was challenging for the transportation and logistics sector, with emergent trends including dramatic federal policy shifts, developments in tort risk, and a host of mergers and acquisitions — but a review of these themes offers a useful playbook for where the industry is headed in 2026, says Jonathan Todd at Benesch.

  • How Cos. Can Roll With NY's New Algorithmic Pricing Rules

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    Despite uncertainty from New York’s new ban on artificial intelligence and computer algorithms for setting rents, and efforts to further restrict individualizing prices based on consumers' personal data, property managers, software providers and merchants can take several steps to stay compliant, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.

  • 2025 State AI Laws Expand Liability, Raise Insurance Risks

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    As 2025 nears its end, claims professionals should be aware of trends in state legislation addressing artificial intelligence use, as insurance claims based on some of these liability-expanding statutes are a certainty, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Practical Problem Solving

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    Issue-spotting skills are well honed in law school, but practicing attorneys must also identify clients’ problems and true goals, and then be able to provide solutions, says Mary Kate Hogan at Quarles & Brady.

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