Public Policy

  • September 17, 2026

    FAR Council Releases Second Batch Of Regulatory Changes

    The Trump administration released a second batch of proposed rules Thursday as part of its effort to streamline the Federal Acquisition Regulation, covering everything from commercial products and services to contract negotiations.

  • September 17, 2026

    FDIC Pitches Plan For Faster Bank Merger Reviews

    The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. moved Thursday to revamp its procedures for vetting bank mergers, floating a package of proposed changes that could speed up the agency's reviews for many transactions and lead to fewer getting held up over competition concerns.

  • September 17, 2026

    Sue To Stop AI Armageddon? Not So Fast, Attys Say

    As executives at leading artificial intelligence companies increasingly assert that their own technology could one day pose an existential threat to humanity, a natural question follows: If the risk is real, can anyone sue to stop it before disaster strikes?

  • September 17, 2026

    T-Mobile Can't Challenge Ruling That It Broke Wash. Data Law

    A Washington state judge said he will not reconsider his finding that T-Mobile committed more than 722,000 violations of a state data breach notification law.

  • September 17, 2026

    AT&T Seeks To End Biz Landline Service In 34 States, DC

    AT&T is continuing its quest to end legacy copper line service across the United States, this time asking the Federal Communications Commission for permission to end traditional phone service for businesses in 34 states and Washington, D.C.

  • September 17, 2026

    Feds Resist Release Guarantee For Unlawfully Deported Man

    Immigration officials and attorneys for asylum seekers disagreed on the conditions required for the return from El Salvador of an unlawfully deported man, with the government refusing to guarantee the man will not be held in detention upon his return.

  • September 17, 2026

    Rail Giants Point To Shipper Support For $85B Merger

    Droves of companies that rely on freight in their daily business have recently thrown their support behind Union Pacific Corp.'s planned $85 billion merger with Atlanta-based Norfolk Southern Corp. in filings with a federal board being asked to approve the tie-up.

  • September 17, 2026

    Watchdogs Sue Trump Over Early Truth Social Post Access

    Two government watchdog groups are suing President Donald Trump and other high-ranking officials, claiming that their sale of early access to Trump's policy-focused Truth Social posts violates the First and Fifth amendments and only serves to enrich the president and his social media platform.

  • September 17, 2026

    7th Circ. Questions Illinois' Out-Of-State Liquor Delivery Ban

    The Seventh Circuit seemed unsure Thursday whether it should back a district court decision tossing two wine collectors' constitutional claim against an Illinois law barring out-of-state retailers delivering alcohol to in-state customers, questioning the state's underlying reasoning for the ban.

  • September 17, 2026

    NY Urges 2nd Circ. To Halt DOT Efforts Vs. Congestion Pricing

    New York transportation agencies have urged the Second Circuit to shut down the Trump administration's continued efforts to eliminate congestion pricing, saying the federal government doesn't have free rein to renege on cooperative agreements without justification.

  • September 17, 2026

    Ex-FCC Leaders Call ABC Probe Attack On Free Speech

    A bipartisan group of former top officials at the Federal Communications Commission on Thursday urged a D.C. federal court to put a halt to the agency's ongoing probe of ABC's Disney-owned stations, calling it an attack on free speech.

  • September 17, 2026

    SpaceXAI, Apple Must Show Texas Judge Antitrust Deal Terms

    A Texas federal judge has ordered Elon Musk's companies and Apple Inc. to provide him with a copy of their recent settlement for in-camera review after OpenAI Inc. demanded to look over the agreement and argued its terms may undermine the antitrust allegations SpaceXAI LLC is still pursuing against OpenAI.

  • September 17, 2026

    Ex-Conn. Utility Regulator Defends Appeal Of FOIA Fine

    Former Connecticut utility regulator Marissa P. Gillett has asked a state court not to toss her appeal of a $2,500 fine imposed on her by the Freedom of Information Commission for failure to comply with a records request from Eversource Energy, disagreeing with the commission that her case is now moot because the agency paid the fine and underwent FOIA training.

  • September 17, 2026

    EU Antitrust Chief Says AI Competition Mitigates Risk

    Europe's top antitrust enforcer raised concerns Thursday about the need to regulate artificial intelligence companies, while a top U.S. official said enforcers need to hear more about potential collaborations on AI safety before deciding if they're problematic.

  • September 17, 2026

    10th Circ. Debates Bid To Revive Colo. Atty Fee Law Challenge

    Colorado residents and community watch groups urged the Tenth Circuit on Thursday to revive their constitutional challenge against a Colorado law that mandates attorney fee awards to local governments in certain land use disputes, fielding court questions on the case's reviewability and whether sovereign immunity applies.

  • September 17, 2026

    Trump Withdraws ICE Nominee Schroyer After Senate Delay

    The White House announced Thursday that it withdrew President Donald Trump's nomination of former Oklahoma state trooper Lance Schroyer to lead U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement after his nomination stalled in the Senate.

  • September 17, 2026

    EPA Sued Over Power Plant Greenhouse Gas Rule Repeal

    Environmental and public health groups on Thursday sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over its repeal of greenhouse gas emissions standards for power plants, accusing the agency of renouncing its legal obligation to tackle climate change-related pollution from the power sector.

  • September 17, 2026

    DHS Says Western Hemisphere Asylum Claims Are Meritless

    U.S. Department of Homeland Security General Counsel James Percival sent a letter to the American Immigration Lawyer's Association this week warning that attorneys who file frivolous asylum applications will be "subject to penalties."

  • September 17, 2026

    Michigan Court Pilot Aims To Aid Unrepresented Litigants

    The Michigan Supreme Court announced Wednesday that it is launching a pilot project, based on recent reforms in Utah and Arizona, that will allow trained nonlawyers to provide in-court support to people who cannot afford a lawyer in civil cases.

  • September 17, 2026

    Tribe Says HHS Defied High Court On Contract Funding

    A California tribe has sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and its Indian Health Service in Washington, D.C., federal court, accusing them of unlawfully slashing about $2.37 million in contract support costs to less than $100,000.

  • September 17, 2026

    Judge Nixes DEI Conditions For Federal Education Funds

    A Massachusetts federal judge Thursday found the U.S. Office of Management and Budget cannot stipulate education research funding on rooting out diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, but declined to force the government to spend certain education funds before they expire this month.

  • September 17, 2026

    Ore. Judge Denies HHS' Attempt To Amend Gender Care Order

    An Oregon federal judge on Thursday rejected the Trump administration's bid to narrow an earlier order that voided a policy declaration central to the government's crackdown on gender-affirming care for minors.

  • September 17, 2026

    Weaponization Fund Plaintiffs Say Discovery Ruling Was Right

    Plaintiffs suing over the Trump administration's once-proposed "anti-weaponization fund" are telling a Virginia federal judge to reject the U.S. Department of Justice's objections to a magistrate judge's discovery order, accusing the administration of stonewalling their requests and urging prompt discovery production.

  • September 17, 2026

    Industry Groups, IP Attys Back High Court PTAB Denials Case

    The bar association for the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, a group of intellectual property law attorneys and others have urged the U.S. Supreme Court to scrutinize the discretionary denial policies of current U.S. Patent and Trademark Office leadership.

  • September 17, 2026

    Colo. $2B Graduated Tax Proposal Faces Signature Challenge

    A proposal to cut Colorado income tax rates for most earners, raise rates for high earners and raise $2 billion annually failed to gather the signatures needed to reach the state's November ballot, a lawsuit against state election officials charges.

Expert Analysis

  • Why Courts Are Pushing Back On Greenwashing Laws

    Author Photo

    Recent Fourth Circuit and California federal court decisions blocking state greenwashing statutes on First Amendment grounds reveal a tension at the heart of environmental marketing regulation — while states want clarity, courts aren't prepared to let legislatures flatly ban categories of truthful commercial speech, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • What NYC Bridge Crash Signals About Micromobility Liability

    Author Photo

    A recent fatal crash between a cyclist and a man riding a high-powered electric scooter on New York City's Queensboro Bridge highlights how litigation over accidents involving micromobility devices may increasingly shift away from ordinary negligence and toward product liability, says Jeff Korek at Gersowitz Libo.

  • 3 Ways Tokenization Is Moving To Traditional Finance

    Author Photo

    Recent initiatives reflect efforts to integrate distributed ledger technology into existing regulatory frameworks for securities, banking and payments settlements while preserving the underlying rights and obligations of market participants, say attorneys at Hughes Hubbard.

  • At The Intersection Of Right-To-Repair Laws And IP Rights

    Author Photo

    Right-to-repair legislation passing through Congress highlights a broad tension between manufacturers' security measures and consumer autonomy, with important repercussions for the automotive industry's intellectual property rights, says Keith Noe at Lando & Anastasi. 

  • Opinion

    States Should Reconsider Forced PBM Divestiture Laws

    Author Photo

    State legislatures are attempting to enact policies intended to force pharmacy benefit managers to divest from pharmacies, but these laws would have the practical effect of reducing patient access and competition, potentially violating the U.S. Constitution in the process, says former Utah Attorney General John Swallow.

  • HSR Deals Proceed More Steadily Than Narratives Suggest

    Author Photo

    The most recent Hart-Scott-Rodino Act data show that transaction volume remained relatively stable, transaction values continued to increase and enforcement activity remained low, suggesting that enforcement rates have been relatively consistent across presidential administrations despite widely differing public rhetoric regarding merger enforcement, says Amanda Wait at Michael Best.

  • Assessing The Benefits Of Fla.'s Newest Business Structure

    Author Photo

    As of July 1, Florida business owners can create protected series LLCs to shield assets from liability while avoiding increased costs and wasted time, but burdensome recordkeeping obligations are crucial to maintaining the very protection that makes them attractive in the first place, says Gregory Ritter at Moritt Hock.

  • Key Post-Proposal Shifts Likely In CFPB Loss Mitigation Rule

    Author Photo

    Mortgage servicers, borrowers and consumer advocates should prepare for a likely narrowed version of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's loss mitigation rule, which is likely to permit sequential reviews, defer to investor guidelines, extend compliance timelines and preempt conflicting state standards, say attorneys at Goodwin.

  • Series

    Teaching SEC Investigations Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Instructing a law school course on U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission investigations has made me a more thoughtful, deliberate practitioner because it requires me to continually reassess and challenge what I know about securities law enforcement, how I know it and how best to explain it, says David Chase at Miami Law.

  • Noncompete Laws Show States Focusing On Bans, Healthcare

    Author Photo

    The first half of 2026 confirms that state legislatures are driving the most consequential changes in noncompete law, including a few state bans and several healthcare-specific laws, making a one-size-fits-all approach increasingly untenable for multistate employers, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

  • What's Inside Proposed, Expanded NY Stablecoin Regulations

    Author Photo

    New York's recently proposed regulations for payment stablecoin issuers would, if adopted, increase the regulatory burdens of a state license, and midsize issuers considering a conversion to a federal charter should weigh the associated costs of both options, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Justices' Tax Sale Ruling Tees Up Auction Fairness Battles

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Pung v. Isabella County, Michigan, that taxpayers are not entitled to fair market value of real property seized to satisfy a tax debt shifts attention to the fairness of state and local auction procedures, and whether taxpayers claiming surplus proceeds face unwarranted hurdles, say attorneys at Miller Canfield.

  • What Corporate Counsel Can Learn From OpenAI Test Breach

    Author Photo

    The significance of the recent artificial intelligence testing breach involving OpenAI and Hugging Face lies in what it reveals about the path of AI’s evolution, because legal professionals must translate that trajectory into actionable governance, contractual and advisory frameworks, says Jason Mueller at Vorys.

  • Patent Eligibility Reforms Keep Chasing The Wrong Fixes

    Author Photo

    Repeated efforts to create a consistent, predictable patent eligibility standard under Section 101 have centered on replacing judge-made exceptions with new statutory language, but the better fix is to align examination standards with how courts actually apply eligibility doctrine, says former Patent Trial and Appeal Board judge Amee Shah.

  • Opinion

    Qualified Immunity Bill's Reach Goes Beyond Federal Officers

    Author Photo

    The federal Qualified Immunity Abolition Act, introduced earlier this year and described by the bill sponsors as a federal-officer measure, would in actuality reach the entire universe of Section 1983 defendants, a distinction that matters as much to defense counsel as to plaintiffs, says attorney V. James DeSimone.

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.