Public Policy

  • July 03, 2025

    Residents Urge Judge To Redo Ruling Backing Alaska Casino

    A group of Anchorage, Alaska, residents opposed to a plan to build a casino urged a federal judge to reconsider a ruling finding the Native Village of Eklutna has sovereign immunity and can't face a lawsuit seeking to block the development plan.

  • July 03, 2025

    Breaking Down The Vote: The High Court Term In Review

    The U.S. Supreme Court once again waited until the term's closing weeks — and even hours — to issue some of its most anticipated and divided decisions.

  • July 03, 2025

    Judge Pauses DOJ's Sanctuary City Suit Against Rochester

    A New York federal judge on Thursday agreed to halt the U.S. Department of Justice's lawsuit against the city of Rochester over its sanctuary city policies until the court rules on a request by religious groups to intervene in the case. 

  • July 03, 2025

    Capital Markets Upturn Sets Stage For Second-Half Rebound

    Deals attorneys are approaching the second half of 2025 increasingly confident that capital markets' activity will accelerate despite potential headwinds stemming from higher tariffs, interest rate uncertainties and geopolitical turmoil.

  • July 03, 2025

    The Biggest Rulings From Mass. High Court So Far In 2025

    Massachusetts' top court has tackled a controversial housing initiative, the thorny issue of qualified immunity for public employees and even a high-profile murder case in the first six months of 2025.

  • July 03, 2025

    Mid-Year M&A Deal Flow Suffers Amid Global Instability

    More than six months into a new Donald Trump administration, the mergers and acquisitions boom that many market observers anticipated has failed to materialize. In part one of this two-part M&A review, industry attorneys discussed market activity so far this year, how geopolitical factors are impacting the dealmaking environment, and their outlook for the remainder of 2025.

  • July 03, 2025

    Justices To Probe NJ Transit Cases Over Sovereign Immunity

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to consider whether New Jersey Transit Corp. is entitled to sovereign immunity from private lawsuits, taking an opportunity to smooth out conflicting state court rulings concerning the scope of the public transportation operator's liability for accidents.

  • July 03, 2025

    Justices Clarify Question Underlying Withdrawal Liability Case

    The U.S. Supreme Court clarified the question presented in a case it recently agreed to take up over the methodology for calculating businesses' liability for pulling out of multiemployer pension plans.

  • July 03, 2025

    Supreme Court Takes Up Transgender Sports Bans

    The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Thursday to hear challenges to West Virginia and Idaho laws barring transgender athletes from competing on sports teams consistent with their gender identity, putting yet more anti-trans legislation to the test after upholding Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for minors this term. 

  • July 02, 2025

    Amid DEI Uncertainty, Cos. Face Pressure From All Sides

    Attorneys have been analyzing the Trump administration's many pronouncements against diversity, equity and inclusion programs over the past several months, only to be left with questions as to what exactly "illegal DEI" is and what the government will do to police it.

  • July 02, 2025

    NCAA, NASCAR Antitrust Challenges Permeate 2025's 1st Half

    The first half of 2025 saw the dispute between NASCAR and two of its teams become supercharged and a judge give final approval to the disputed settlement for the NCAA name, image and likeness antitrust litigation.

  • July 02, 2025

    Retailers Want New NY Algorithmic Pricing Law Blocked

    The National Retail Federation on Wednesday asked a New York federal court to block a new state law that requires retailers to disclose the use of so-called "algorithmic pricing," claiming that the practice helps save customers money and the law would force retailers to use a "misleading and ominous warning."

  • July 02, 2025

    DHS Accused Of Targeting 'Individuals With Brown Skin' In LA

    Immigration rights groups and individuals who were arrested or stopped during recent federal immigration operations in Los Angeles filed a putative class action on Wednesday, accusing the federal government of targeting brown-skinned people and day laborers without warrants and keeping detainees in "dungeon-like" facilities.

  • July 02, 2025

    States Say DHS' Softer Stance On Grants Doesn't Moot Suit

    A collective of 20 states said Wednesday that only Congress can change the terms of federal grants, telling a Rhode Island federal judge that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's softening of its stance on withholding funds to states that don't cooperate with immigration enforcement cannot moot their suit against the government.

  • July 02, 2025

    Judge Says Trump Can't Curtail Asylum At The Border

    A D.C. federal judge ruled Wednesday that President Donald Trump lacks the authority to sharply curtail entry at the southern border under on the basis of a purported migrant invasion, saying the president can't override the federal statutory immigration scheme.

  • July 02, 2025

    Trump Asks Justices To Pause CPSC Members' Reinstatement

    The Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday to stay a Maryland federal court's ruling that the president's removal of three U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission members was unlawful, while the commissioners argue they should be allowed to continue serving through the government's appeal.

  • July 02, 2025

    Avangrid Units Win Extra Time To Depose Conn. Utilities Chair

    Two Avangrid Inc. subsidiaries now have extra time to depose the chair of Connecticut's Public Utilities Regulatory Authority in a $62 million revenue request case because of records purportedly discovered less than a week after the agency claimed the chairperson's phone deleted text messages.

  • July 02, 2025

    Miami Faces Lawsuit Over Postponed Municipal Elections

    A Miami resident has sued the city over an ordinance that postponed municipal elections by one year, alleging the law is unconstitutional and was passed despite warnings from the Florida attorney general not to do so.

  • July 02, 2025

    ACA Changes Will Result In Mass Coverage Loss, Suit Claims

    Doctors for America, the Main Street Alliance and a trio of cities urged a Maryland federal court to vacate recently finalized changes to Affordable Care Act regulations, arguing they will cause at least 1.8 million people to lose their healthcare coverage.

  • July 02, 2025

    Amazon Judge Presses FTC On Bid For 'Bad Faith' Finding

    As the Federal Trade Commission insisted Wednesday that Amazon should be punished with a bad faith finding for mislabeling documents as privileged in a case over the company's Prime subscription practices, a Washington federal judge questioned why the agency wasn't "made whole" when the court granted its sanctions bid.

  • July 02, 2025

    Fla. Man Gets $1.7M For 34-Yr Wrongful Incarceration

    Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill Tuesday that will provide $1.7 million in compensation to a man wrongfully convicted of armed robbery who served 34 years in prison before his release in 2023.

  • July 02, 2025

    FCC Floats Pole Attachment Reform In 'Build' Agenda Kickoff

    Changes to utility pole attachment rules to expedite broadband deployment could be among the first actions under a much wider "Build America" agenda unveiled Wednesday by the Federal Communications Commission chief.

  • July 02, 2025

    Bankers Worry TCPA Rule Causes Fraud Alert Blocking

    The financial services industry says it is gaining allies in its fight against a 2024 Federal Communications Commission rule making it easier for consumers to opt out of robotexts and calls, telling the agency that groups from a wide range of industries have concerns about the potential for negative impacts from the rule.

  • July 02, 2025

    Veterans Sue Air Force For Disability Review Failures

    Three former service members hit the U.S. Air Force with a proposed class action challenging the lawfulness of a screening process used to determine if people should be retained or referred to a formal disability evaluation process.

  • July 02, 2025

    Solar Farm Halt Can't Rest On Federal Tax Credits, Judge Says

    A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit seeking to block a NextEra Energy solar farm in Kansas, saying arguments that the project can't receive federal clean energy tax credits until it undergoes an environmental review aren't supported by law.

Expert Analysis

  • Explicit Pic Takedown Law Casts A Wide Net

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    With a surprisingly broad range of online platforms potentially subject to the new Take It Down Act’s process for removing revenge porn or explicit deepfakes, all services that allow user interaction or content hosting should proactively evaluate their legal obligations and demonstrate compliance, say attorneys at Goodwin, say attorneys at Goodwin.

  • How AI May Reshape The Future Of Adjudication

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    As discussed at a recent panel at Texas A&M, artificial intelligence will not erase the human element of adjudication in the next 10 to 20 years, but it will drive efficiencies that spur private arbiters to experiment, lead public courts to evolve and force attorneys to adapt, says Christopher Seck at Squire Patton.

  • What Money Transmitters Need To Know About New Colo. Law

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    Colorado's new Money Transmission Modernization Act updates standards for the licensing, supervision and regulation of money transmitters while codifying an agent-to-payee exemption, and represents another step toward standardizing these rules across state governments, say Sarah Auchterlonie and Joel Herberman at Brownstein Hyatt.

  • How States Are Taking The Lead On Data Center Regulation

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    While support for data center growth is a declared priority for the current administration, federal data center policy has been slow to develop — so states continue to lead in attracting and regulating data center growth, say attorneys at Steptoe.

  • Justices' Charter School Tie Delays Church-State Reckoning

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent deadlock in Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board v. Drummond, blocking the creation of the nation’s first religious charter school, preserved the separation of church and state for now, but offered little reassurance about its continued viability, says Jeffrey Sultanik at Fox Rothschild.

  • When Legal Advocacy Crosses The Line Into Incivility

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    As judges issue sanctions for courtroom incivility, and state bars advance formal discipline rules, trial lawyers must understand that the difference between zealous advocacy and unprofessionalism is not just a matter of tone; it's a marker of skill, credibility and potentially disciplinary exposure, says Nate Sabri at Perkins Coie.

  • Opinion

    It's Time To Expand The WARN Act Liability Exception

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    With layoffs surging across several industries, Congress should amend the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act to address an exception-based disparity that prevents directors and officers from taking all reasonable steps to save a company before being required to provide workers with a mass-layoff notice, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Texas Bill Could Still Boost Property Rights In Gov't Disputes

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    The passage of a bill in Texas that would provide litigants with access to a greater swath of judicial remedies in immunity disputes with government entities and officials would be an invaluable boon for property rights, says Nathan Vrazel at Munsch Hardt.

  • Two Bills Promise A Crypto Revamp, But Not A Done Deal Yet

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    Recent efforts in Congress toward an updated regulatory framework for digital assets have led to two bills — the GENIUS Act and the CLARITY Act — that represent the most consequential legislative developments yet in the push for coherent, pro-innovation, reliable regulation for the industry, but both face multiple hurdles, says Mike Katz at Manatt.

  • Opinion

    NJ Should Align With Federal Rule On Expert Testimony

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    The time is right to amend Rule 702 of the New Jersey Rules of Evidence to align it with the recently amended Rule 702 of the Federal Rules of Evidence and clarify the standard for admissibility of expert testimony, says Timothy Freeman at Tanenbaum Keale.

  • Recent Reports Shed Light On Section 340B's Effectiveness

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    Recent analyses of the Section 340B program's effectiveness in helping patients afford drugs in Minnesota reinforce concerns about the program's lack of transparency and underscore the need for further evaluation of whether legislative reform should be enacted, say William A. Sarraille at the University of Maryland, and Andrée-Anne Fournier and Molly Frean at Analysis Group.

  • Opinion

    Congress Should Pass IP Reform, Starting With 3 Patent Bills

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    Congress is considering a trio of bipartisan bills to fix patent law problems that have cropped up over the past two decades, and it shouldn't stop there — addressing two other intellectual property issues is critical for America's economy, says retired Judge Kathleen O'Malley at the Council for Innovation Promotion.

  • Perspectives

    The Reforms Needed To Fight Sexual Abuse By Prison Staff

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    Prisoners sexually assaulted by corrections staff, such as the California women who recently won a consent decree against FCI Dublin, often delay reporting out of fear of retaliation by their abusers, but several practical reforms could empower prisoners to disclose abuse while the evidence necessary to indict perpetrators is still available, says Jaehyun Oh at Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law.

  • Colo. Antitrust Law Signals Growing Scrutiny Among States

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    Colorado's recently enacted Uniform Antitrust Pre-Merger Notification Act makes it the second state to add such a requirement, reflecting a growing trend and underscoring the need for merging parties to plan for a more complex and multilayered notification landscape for deals, say Puja Patel and Noa Gur-Arie at Cleary.

  • FCPA Enforcement Is Here To Stay, But It May Look Different

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    After a monthslong enforcement pause, the U.S. Department of Justice’s new Foreign Corrupt Practices Act guidelines fundamentally shift prosecutorial discretion and potentially reduce investigatory burdens for organizations, but open questions remain, so companies should continue to exercise caution, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

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