Public Policy

  • September 18, 2024

    Mich. Justices Continue To Fight Over Minimum Wage Ruling

    Michigan's minimum wage will rise to $12.48 an hour in February, the state Supreme Court confirmed Wednesday in an order that settled a debate over how to calculate the new wage floor, but rehashed internal disagreements over the court's July decision to increase the minimum wage.

  • September 18, 2024

    Colo. Urges 10th Circ. To Restore Interest Rate Opt-Out Law

    Colorado has urged the Tenth Circuit to accept its "straightforward interpretation" of an interest rate opt-out law, arguing federal lawmakers would have used other language if they didn't want the state to place more restrictive caps on loans made by banks located outside the state. 

  • September 18, 2024

    SEC Must Clarify Murky Crypto Rules, Ex-Officials Tell House

    Two former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission officials who now represent crypto businesses told House lawmakers Wednesday that the agency's insistence on analyzing the economic realities of every crypto transaction in lieu of clear rulemaking has put the sector and its attorneys in unworkable situations.

  • September 18, 2024

    Native, Black Groups Ask To Intervene In Voter Rights Suit

    Several nonprofit groups supporting Native American and Black voters have joined to intervene in a conservative think tank's lawsuit in Texas federal court that looks to stop a Biden administration executive order promoting easier access to voting.

  • September 18, 2024

    Loper Bright Undercuts SEC Climate Rule, Fracking Cos. Say

    Two fracking companies suing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over its climate disclosure rules have again urged the Eighth Circuit to vacate the measures, offering a diverging interpretation of how the U.S. Supreme Court's decision axing Chevron deference should apply.

  • September 18, 2024

    Rescheduling Pot Would Not Hasten Research, Report Says

    A recently enacted law will continue to make it difficult for medical researchers to conduct studies on marijuana, even if federal restrictions are loosened on the drug, according to a new report published Monday by the Congressional Research Service.

  • September 18, 2024

    9th Circ. Won't Revive Gas Price-Fixing Suit Over Trump Pact

    The Ninth Circuit upheld the dismissal of a proposed class action alleging price fixing between major oil producers as part of the Trump Administration's 2020 deal with Russia and Saudi Arabia to cut production, saying that subjecting the pact to judicial review would be inappropriately "second-guessing" executive branch foreign policy.

  • September 18, 2024

    Feds Say Afghan Allies Can't Sue Over Kids' Visa Denials

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security urged a Virginia federal judge to toss a suit from Afghan allies who claim their children's visa applications were arbitrarily denied, saying the suit has no legal leg to stand on.

  • September 18, 2024

    5th Circ. Axes Bargaining Order Against Legal Support Firm

    The Fifth Circuit reversed a National Labor Relations Board bargaining order Wednesday against a legal support consulting firm, determining certain workers within the unit are supervisors who can't unionize under federal labor law.

  • September 18, 2024

    Fed's Powell Sees Final Basel Rule Less Than 1 Year Away

    Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that a revamped version of the Basel III endgame capital rules for big banks could be finalized before next summer, adding that the federal banking agencies will be "moving together" as the controversial rulemaking project enters its next phase.

  • September 18, 2024

    Removal Risk Rises With State Line Crossings, ACLU Says

    Unauthorized immigrants in Texas who seek out-of-state medical care because of the state's near-total abortion ban are at risk of getting deported every time they pass through checkpoints where they could get arrested, the American Civil Liberties Union said Wednesday.

  • September 18, 2024

    USPTO Makes Patent Amendment Program Permanent

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Wednesday made permanent a pilot program that assists patent owners seeking to amend patent claims in America Invents Act reviews by providing preliminary feedback about proposed changes.

  • September 18, 2024

    House Seeks To Increase Judgeships After Senate OKs Bill

    The chairman of the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts has introduced new judicial staffing legislation, a month after the Senate passed its own version of a bipartisan bill that seeks to create 66 new and temporary judgeships over the next decade in an effort to ease pressure on the overburdened federal judiciary.

  • September 18, 2024

    House Rejects 6-Month Federal Funding Bill

    The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday rejected a continuing resolution funding the federal government for six months, after a veto threat from President Joe Biden over the bill's funding levels and a contentious clause requiring citizenship checks for voter registration.

  • September 18, 2024

    Teamsters Won't Endorse Candidate In 2024 Election

    The International Brotherhood of Teamsters announced Wednesday it will not endorse a candidate in the upcoming presidential election, citing its polling of members and a lack of commitment from major party candidates on issues key to the union. 

  • September 18, 2024

    Colo. SG Urges Lawyers Not To Lose Sight Of Human Harm

    Colorado Solicitor General Shannon Stevenson on Wednesday urged appellate lawyers to use their cases to keep judges "in touch with real people," lamenting that the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision on true threats ignored the profound impact a man's Facebook messages had on a stalking victim.

  • September 18, 2024

    Feds Oppose Bid To Block EPA Mercury Rule At High Court

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, several blue states and a coalition of green groups on Monday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reject an effort to reverse the D.C. Circuit's decision allowing the EPA to implement a mercury air pollution rule.

  • September 18, 2024

    BIPA Doesn't Conflict With Kids Safety Law, Judge Rules

    An Illinois federal judge on Tuesday rejected Meta's bid to dismiss a biometric privacy class action alleging it improperly stored Messenger and Messenger Kids users' facial geometries to apply bunny-ear and other filters, finding a federal child privacy law does not preempt the suit.

  • September 18, 2024

    NJ Steel Co. Says OSHA Review Agency Is Unconstitutional

    A New Jersey steel fabrication company has told a New Jersey federal court that an independent federal commission shouldn't decide whether it has to pay nearly $350,000 in proposed penalties from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, arguing the commission's structure violates the separation of powers clause of the U.S. Constitution.

  • September 18, 2024

    Toss Atty Input Overboard, Says Org. In Blackbeard Image Spat

    A marine research organization and a state cultural resources agency have urged the North Carolina Business Court to scrap testimony from attorneys from trial evidence in a contract battle over the use of images and video of Blackbeard's shipwreck.

  • September 18, 2024

    NC Panel Won't Undo Energy Rates In Solar Incentives Row

    The North Carolina state appeals court has declined to unravel the state's revised energy rates for residents with rooftop solar power, saying that while the North Carolina Utilities Commission erred by concluding it was not required to conduct a cost-benefit investigation, it de facto carried out such an inquiry anyway.

  • September 18, 2024

    Bipartisan Bill Would Boost Acquisition Council's Authority

    A bipartisan group of House lawmakers has introduced a bill to boost a federal advisory council that makes recommendations for mitigating risks within federal supply chains, giving the council more funding and the ability to issue binding removal orders for risky technologies.

  • September 18, 2024

    Senate Panel Backs Bill Easing Pot Rules For Federal Hires

    A Democrat-backed bill that would curb federal agencies' ability to use past medical or recreational cannabis use as a factor in hiring and security clearance decisions was advanced out of a Senate committee Wednesday, paving the way for a vote before the whole chamber.

  • September 18, 2024

    Fla. Judge Keeps Tribe's CWA Permitting Power Row On Hold

    A Florida federal judge on Wednesday further extended his pause of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians' lawsuit claiming the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency improperly granted Florida authority over a Clean Water Act permitting program, while the D.C. Circuit considers an appeal in a similar case.

  • September 18, 2024

    House Panel Easily Passes Mandate For AM Radio In Cars

    Congress has inched closer to passing a mandate on the auto industry to keep putting AM radio devices in cars, with a key House committee overwhelmingly approving the bipartisan bill Wednesday and brushing past some lawmakers' concerns about over-regulation.

Expert Analysis

  • FTC Focus: What Access To Patent Settlements Would Mean

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    Settling parties should adopt a series of practice tips, including specifying rationales to support specific terms, as the Federal Trade Commission seeks to expand its access to settlements before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, say Shannon McGowan and David Munkittrick at Proskauer.

  • Why Attorneys Should Consider Community Leadership Roles

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    Volunteering and nonprofit board service are complementary to, but distinct from, traditional pro bono work, and taking on these community leadership roles can produce dividends for lawyers, their firms and the nonprofit causes they support, says Katie Beacham at Kilpatrick.

  • How NJ Temp Equal Pay Survived A Constitutional Challenge

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    The Third Circuit recently gave the New Jersey Temporary Workers' Bill of Rights a new lease on life by systematically dismantling multiple theories of the act's unconstitutionality brought by staffing agencies hoping to delay their new equal pay and benefits obligations, say attorneys at Duane Morris.

  • Firms Must Offer A Trifecta Of Services In Post-Chevron World

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    After the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision overturning Chevron deference, law firms will need to integrate litigation, lobbying and communications functions to keep up with the ramifications of the ruling and provide adequate counsel quickly, says Neil Hare at Dentons.

  • Opinion

    CFPB's AI Stance Backslides On Innovation Issues

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recent response to a Treasury Department's request for information about artificial intelligence in the financial services sector uses alarmist rhetoric about the technology's risks, ceding an opportunity to help shape this important discussion, says Mike Silver at Husch Blackwell.

  • Strategies To Defend Against Healthcare Nuclear Verdicts

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    The healthcare industry is increasingly the target of megaclaims, particularly those alleging medical malpractice, but attorneys representing providers can use a few tools to push back on flimsy litigation and reduce the likelihood of a nuclear verdict, says LaMar Jost at Wheeler Trigg.

  • 5 Tips To Succeed In A Master Of Laws Program And Beyond

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    As lawyers and recent law school graduates begin their Master of Laws coursework across the country, they should keep a few pointers in mind to get the most out of their programs and kick-start successful careers in their practice areas, says Kelley Miller at Reed Smith.

  • Opinion

    Portland's Gross Receipts Tax Oversteps City's Authority

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    Recent measures by Portland, Oregon, that expand the voter-approved scope of the Clean Energy Surcharge on certain retail sales eviscerate the common meaning of the word "retail" and exceed the city's chartered authority to levy tax, say Nikki Dobay at Greenberg Traurig and Jeff Newgard at Peak Policy.

  • Series

    After Chevron: SEC Climate And ESG Rules Likely Doomed

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    Under the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Loper Bright, without agency deference, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's climate disclosure and environmental, social and governance rules would likely be found lacking in statutory support and vacated by the courts, says Justin Chretien at Carlton Fields.

  • NYC Wage Info Bill Highlights Rise In Pay Transparency Laws

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    With New York City the latest to mull requiring companies to annually report employee wage data, national employers should consider adapting their compliance practices to comply with increasingly common pay transparency and disclosure obligations at state and local levels, says Kelly Cardin at Littler Mendelson.

  • Assessing Whether Jarkesy May Limit FINRA Prosecutions

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Jarkesy v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, holding that civil securities fraud defendants are entitled to jury trials, may cause unpredictable results when applied to Financial Industry Regulatory Authority prosecutions, say Barry Temkin and Kate DiGeronimo at Mound Cotton.

  • The Bank Preemption Ripple Effects After Cantero, Flagstar

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    The importance of federal preemption for financial institutions will only increase as technology-driven innovations evolve, which is why the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Cantero v. Bank of America and vacatur of Kivett v. Flagstar Bank have real modern-day significance for national banks, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • Examining Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Of AI Inventions

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    In light of U.S. Patent and Trademark Office data showing that patent applications for artificial intelligence inventions are likelier to get rejected based on patent-ineligible subject matter, inventors seeking protection should be aware of the difficulties and challenges pertaining to patent eligibility, say Georgios Effraimidis at NERA and Joel Lehrer at Goodwin.

  • Series

    Being An Opera Singer Made Me A Better Lawyer

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    My journey from the stage to the courtroom has shown that the skills I honed as an opera singer – punctuality, memorization, creativity and more – have all played a vital role in my success as an attorney, says Gerard D'Emilio at GableGotwals.

  • What Cos. Need to Know About Battery Labeling Law

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    With new labeling requirements for button cell battery packaging taking effect in September, manufacturers and importers must review compliance, testing procedures, and necessary paperwork as the consequences of noncompliance can lead to costly penalties and supply chain woes, says Aasheesh Shravah at CM Law.

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