Public Policy

  • December 11, 2025

    Grants Can Be Axed For Political Reasons, DOJ Atty Says

    A Trump administration lawyer said Thursday that the president had blanket authority to cancel every discretionary grant slated for states that broke against him in the general election, and it wouldn't amount to a violation of the Fifth Amendment's equal protection guarantee.

  • December 11, 2025

    House Weighs CFTC's Future As Admin Looks To Fill Positions

    The White House said Thursday that it will soon fill some of the open leadership positions at the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, as industry experts and former CFTC insiders told Congress that the agency will need more funding and additional personnel if it's to properly police the cryptocurrency and prediction markets.

  • December 11, 2025

    Feds Reportedly Fail To Reindict NY AG Letitia James, Again

    New York Attorney General Letitia James' attorney Thursday celebrated reports that another Virginia federal grand jury declined to reindict her on charges of mortgage fraud, the second jury in a week to reject a case President Donald Trump had pushed prosecutors to pursue against a political opponent he's called "guilty as hell."

  • December 11, 2025

    NY Gov. Signs Landmark AI Bill On 'Synthetic' Ad Performers

    New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Thursday signed into law landmark legislation requiring disclosure of the use of any artificial intelligence-generated "synthetic" performers in advertisements and also requiring the consent of heirs or executors to use the name, image or likeness of a person who has died.

  • December 11, 2025

    6th Circ. Hesitant To Call CDC Puppy Import Rule A 'Ban'

    Sixth Circuit judges Thursday appeared skeptical that updated U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rules for bringing in dogs from other countries amounted to a ban that exceeded the agency's authority, but still challenged the agency on why age and microchip requirements are needed to prevent the spread of rabies.

  • December 11, 2025

    Fla. Lawmaker Proposes Medical Marijuana Home Cultivation

    Florida is considering a bill that would allow qualified medical marijuana patients to grow up to six flowering cannabis plants at home for personal use and purchase seeds from licensed centers.

  • December 11, 2025

    Kratom, Kava Sellers Drop Suit Over Utah Product Ban

    A company that marketed psychoactive products derived from the kratom leaf and kava root has permanently dropped its federal lawsuit against Utah regulators challenging the constitutionality of rules blocking the sale of their wares in the state.

  • December 11, 2025

    NJ Judge Won't Lift Bid Deadline On Tunnel Rail Project

    A New Jersey federal judge said Thursday she won't lift a deadline to bid on a railway-construction project associated with building a new tunnel to New York City, saying a New Jersey construction company isn't likely to win its challenge to a project labor agreement tied to the venture.

  • December 11, 2025

    Colo. Appeals Court Backs New Reasonable Doubt Instruction

    A split Colorado appeals court Thursday upheld the use of a new model jury instruction on a reasonable doubt standard that a man convicted of possessing child sexual abuse material said lowered the burden for prosecutors to prove that a defendant is guilty.

  • December 11, 2025

    'Totally Unacceptable': Alsup Rips Feds In Student Loan Deal

    U.S. District Judge William Alsup on Thursday denied the U.S. Department of Education's request for an 18-month extension to process over 200,000 loan cancellation applications for students claiming they were defrauded by colleges they attended, calling it "totally unacceptable" and setting an April deadline to get the job done.

  • December 11, 2025

    Court Orders Redesign Of Calif. Cannabis Tracking System

    California's Department of Cannabis Control must overhaul its tracking system, a state court judge has ruled, saying it fails to highlight suspicious transactions or notify the department of regulatory violations, as required by state law.

  • December 11, 2025

    Democrats Say DOD Diverts $2B To Immigration Enforcement

    The Pentagon has diverted at least $2 billion in obligated funds to support immigration enforcement efforts across the country instead of the agency's core national security functions, according to a report released by Democratic lawmakers on Thursday. 

  • December 11, 2025

    Trial Record Backs Gender-Affirming Care, Ohio Justices Told

    A group of transgender youths and their families urged Ohio's highest court to affirm their win overturning state restrictions on gender-affirming care, arguing undisputed evidence at trial backed their arguments on the safety and effectiveness of the treatment.

  • December 11, 2025

    FTC Challenges $725M Construction Adhesives Deal

    The Federal Trade Commission filed suit Thursday in New York federal court to challenge a $725 million merger combining Loctite with Liquid Nails, arguing that joining "the clear top two brands of construction adhesives" would drive up costs for home building and improvement.

  • December 11, 2025

    Localities Worried Over FCC Preemption On Rights Of Way

    Cities are protesting a legal effort underway at the Federal Communications Commission to potentially override local decision-making when it comes to the use of publicly owned rights of way for high-speed internet deployment projects.

  • December 11, 2025

    Tracking Challenges To USPTO's Discretion Policy

    Leaders at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office have significantly altered the Patent Trial and Appeal Board playing field since March, making changes to institution reviews that have led to unprecedented levels of petition denials. A steady stream of companies has challenged those changes through mandamus petitions to the Federal Circuit, and here Law360 tracks where those petitions stand.

  • December 11, 2025

    SEC Gives DTCC Nod To Offer Tokenization Service

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday issued a no-action letter clearing the way for The Depository Trust & Clearing Corp. to launch a service tokenizing certain securities.

  • December 11, 2025

    Ill. State Sen. Fends Off Bribery Retrial With Government Deal

    A sitting Illinois state senator who was set for a criminal bribery retrial has agreed instead to enter a deferred prosecution agreement that will see his federal case dismissed next year as long as he follows certain conditions without issue and pays the U.S. government $6,800.

  • December 11, 2025

    Texas Business Group CEO Resigns After Sexual Assault Suit

    The CEO of Texas' largest business association has stepped down after a woman who founded a business advocacy group said he attempted to coerce her into a sexual relationship and then assaulted her when she rejected his advances. 

  • December 11, 2025

    Navajo President Reinstates Controller Amid Legal Dispute

    Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren has agreed to formally recognize that Sean McCabe is the tribe's controller, ending a dispute over the first-in-command's efforts to terminate his employment.

  • December 11, 2025

    NextNav Gears Up Geolocation System Test In Bay Area

    Navigation technology developer NextNav said Thursday it would conduct a test run in San Jose, California, of its proposed network to backstop the Global Positioning System.

  • December 11, 2025

    FEMA's Freeze On Disaster Mitigation Funds Ruled Unlawful

    The Trump administration unlawfully terminated Federal Emergency Management Agency funds intended to pay for disaster mitigating projects, a Massachusetts federal judge ruled Thursday, describing the case as an "unlawful executive encroachment on the prerogative of Congress to appropriate funds" for specific purposes.

  • December 11, 2025

    NJ Sens. Urge Cooperation On Next NJ US Attorney Nom

    The New Jersey senators are looking to collaborate with the White House to find a new nominee for U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey after the president's initial pick failed.

  • December 11, 2025

    5th Circ. Weighs Constitutionality Of Gun Dealer Licensing Law

    A Fifth Circuit panel seemed dubious Thursday of a gun dealer's claim that licensing requirements imposed on firearm merchants run afoul of the Second Amendment, asking if the dealer was arguing that the federal government cannot regulate gun sellers.

  • December 11, 2025

    Failed ACA Credit Extension Votes Leave Costs In Limbo

    The Senate failed Thursday to pass procedural votes on two healthcare proposals to address the upcoming lapse in the Affordable Care Act's enhanced premium tax credits, including a proposal by Democrats to extend the subsidies for three years.

Expert Analysis

  • How Nasdaq, SEC Proposals May Transform Listing Standards

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    Both Nasdaq and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission have increasingly focused their recent regulatory efforts on small and foreign issuers, particularly those from China, reflecting an intention to strengthen the overall quality of companies accessing U.S. markets, but also potentially introducing a chilling effect on certain issuers, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • New NCAA Betting Policy Fits Trend Of Eased Restrictions

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    Allowing NCAA student-athletes to bet on professional sports fits into a decade-long trend of treating college athletes more like adults in a commercial system, but decreasing player restrictions translates to increased compliance burdens for schools, say attorneys at Robins Kaplan.

  • Series

    Building With Lego Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Building with Lego has taught me to follow directions and adapt to unexpected challenges, and in pairing discipline with imagination, allows me to stay grounded while finding new ways to make complex deals come together, says Paul Levin at Venable.

  • How Banks Can Safely Handle Payments For Gambling Biz

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    As the betting market continues to expand, it's crucial for banks and fintechs to track historical developments in wagering and ongoing prediction markets litigation that can factor into a risk analysis for payment processing with respect to gambling operators, says Laura D'Angelo at Jones Walker.

  • Wading Into NY Wetland Regs' 2025 Changes And Challenges

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    Solar developers in New York should keep a weather eye on litigation challenging the New York Department of Environmental Conservation’s recently expanded authority to regulate wetlands and waterways, which could erode the impact of a new permitting process meant to streamline solar development on protected wetlands, say attorneys at Foley Hoag.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Networking 101

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    Cultivating a network isn't part of the law school curriculum, but learning the soft skills needed to do so may be the key to establishing a solid professional reputation, nurturing client relationships and building business, says Sharon Crane at Practising Law Institute.

  • Defeating Estoppel-Based Claims In Legal Malpractice Actions

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    State supreme court cases from recent years have addressed whether positions taken by attorneys in an underlying lawsuit can be used against them in a subsequent legal malpractice action, providing a foundation to defeat ex-clients’ estoppel claims, says Christopher Blazejewski at Sherin and Lodgen.

  • Takeaways As Justices Let 5th Circ. Pollution Ruling Stand

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent certiorari denial leaves intact a Fifth Circuit ruling that environmental justice organizations have standing to pursue a civil rights challenge to a parish's land-use practice, underscoring the importance of local governments proactively engaging with communities to address cumulative impacts of development, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • AI's Role In Google Antitrust Suit May Reshape Tech Markets

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    The evolution of AI in retail has reshaped the U.S.' antitrust case against Google, which could both benefit small business innovators and consumers, and fundamentally alter future antitrust cases, including the Federal Trade Commission's lawsuit against Amazon, says Graham Dufault at ACT.

  • Series

    The Biz Court Digest: How It Works In Massachusetts

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    Since its founding in 2000, the Massachusetts Business Litigation Session's expertise, procedural flexibility and litigant-friendly case management practices have contributed to the development of a robust body of commercial jurisprudence, say James Donnelly at Mirick O’Connell, Felicia Ellsworth at WilmerHale and Lisa Wood at Foley Hoag.

  • Next Steps For DOE's Large-Load Interconnection Reforms

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    The U.S. Department of Energy's recent letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission may mark a substantial expansion of FERC's open-access framework for large-load facilities, though the proposed timeline for the rulemaking appears to be extraordinarily short, say attorneys at Davis Wright.

  • Adapting To Calif.'s Enhanced Regulation Of PE In Healthcare

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    New California legislation enhances oversight on the role of private equity groups and hedge funds in healthcare transactions, featuring both a highly targeted nature and vague language that will require organizations to carefully evaluate existing practices, says Andrew Demetriou at Husch Blackwell.

  • What To Note In OCC, FDIC Plan To Standardize Supervision

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    The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s recent proposals to standardize the meaning of "unsafe or unsound practice" and revise the process for issuing matters requiring attention could significantly narrow the scope of activities that spawn enforcement actions, says Brendan Clegg at Luse Gorman.

  • How The SEC May Overhaul Its Order Protection Rule

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    Attorneys at Skadden trace the evolution of the controversial Rule 611 of Regulation National Market System, examine the current debate surrounding its effectiveness, and consider how the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's emerging Project Crypto initiative could reshape Regulation NMS for a tokenized, on-chain market environment.

  • State Child Privacy Laws May Put More Cos. In FTC's Reach

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    Starting with Texas in January, several new state laws requiring app stores to share user age-related information with developers will likely subject significantly more companies to the Federal Trade Commission’s child privacy rules, altering their compliance obligations, say attorneys at Womble Bond.

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