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Public Policy
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June 04, 2024
Telecom Org. Says Expanding Universal Fund Only Way To Go
The head of a major telecommunications industry group is urging Congress to tap big tech in order to keep the Universal Service Fund afloat, saying in a new article that "the solution to affordable connectivity is staring us in the face."
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June 04, 2024
DOJ Remains 'Clear Eyed' About No-Poach Prosecutions
A senior U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division prosecutor continued Tuesday to emphasize the importance of criminal cases accusing employers of fixing wages or curtailing recruitment and hiring of workers from rivals, asserting that despite courtroom defeats, enforcers are trying to learn from past failures.
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June 04, 2024
Meta, Texas Strike Deal To End State's Biometric Privacy Suit
Meta Platforms Inc. and Texas' attorney general have agreed to settle the state's suit accusing the social media giant of using its facial recognition technology to illegally collect Facebook users' biometric information without their consent, the parties told a state court.
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June 04, 2024
Airlines Seek Shield From Chicago's New Paid Sick Leave Law
The trade group representing the largest U.S. airlines alleged in a federal lawsuit Tuesday that Chicago's new paid sick leave law cannot be enforced against airlines because it interferes with flight crew staffing and scheduling in violation of federal law and collective bargaining agreements.
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June 04, 2024
Sen. Leaders Press Biden's Tax Court Nominees On Fairness
Senate Finance Committee leaders pressed President Joe Biden's three new judicial nominees for the U.S. Tax Court to explain Tuesday how they would extend fair treatment to taxpayers if they are confirmed.
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June 04, 2024
Garland Defends DOJ Integrity, Demurs On Justices' Ethics
Attorney General Merrick Garland on Tuesday defended the Department of Justice's independence, deflecting questions about ethics scandals at the U.S. Supreme Court and rejecting Donald Trump's "conspiracy theory" that federal prosecutors were the real force behind his recent conviction.
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June 04, 2024
White House Threatens Veto Over Policy Riders In VA Bill
The White House has threatened to veto a $147.5 billion bill funding military construction and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, citing partisan policy proposals it said would harm minority groups and risk patient safety at VA medical facilities.
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June 04, 2024
6th Circ. Says 1,000-Yard Gun Range Not Constitutional Right
A split Sixth Circuit panel said a Michigan town had the authority to ban long-distance gun ranges despite the Second Amendment's protections, ruling it was "difficult to imagine" that training to shoot from 1,000 yards away was needed to defend oneself.
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June 04, 2024
Nurse Staffing Exec Wants Antitrust, Fraud Charges Separated
An indicted home health care staffing executive asked a Nevada federal court to separate the antitrust charge against him for allegedly fixing nurses wages from claims that he concealed the conspiracy and government probe when selling the business for more than $10 million.
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June 04, 2024
Top 3 Groups Lobbying The FCC
The Federal Communications Commission heard from advocates nearly 200 times in May on issues ranging from cybersecurity in schools and libraries to tribal broadband funding and deployment, net neutrality rules and captioning for the hearing- and speech-disabled.
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June 04, 2024
Red States Target EPA's Tribal Water Rights Rule
A group of red states has told a federal court that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has turned the Clean Water Act into what they derisively called the "Tribal Rights Act," through a rule that protects Native American rights to water resources.
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June 04, 2024
Biden Admin Looks To Take Down Ariz. Monument Lawsuits
The Biden administration is asking a federal district court to dismiss lawsuits by the Arizona Legislature and a rancher that look to undo the national monument designation of an Indigenous site in the Grand Canyon region, arguing the lawmakers lack standing to challenge the Antiquities Act as unconstitutional.
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June 04, 2024
9th Circ. Rejects Immigrant's Evidence Authenticity Challenge
A split Ninth Circuit refused to revive a Guyanese man's bid for deportation relief, saying he didn't actually challenge the authenticity of evidence used to support his removability, including an FBI rap sheet he said included an incorrect birthplace.
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June 04, 2024
First Citizens Bank Seeks $15M Tax Refund After Bailout
First Citizens bank is seeking a $15 million refund from the North Carolina Department of Revenue stemming from taxes it paid on a federal bailout it received during the mid-2000s financial crisis, according to a filing in the state court.
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June 04, 2024
Senate Confirms DC Judge As Court Calls For Attention
The Senate voted 57-41 Tuesday to confirm Judge Tanya Monique Jones Bosier to serve on the D.C. Superior Court for a term of 15 years, which chips away at the "vacancy crisis" plaguing the district's court system.
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June 04, 2024
Khan, Kanter Say There's Bipartisan Will To Stop 'Coercion'
The federal government's top antitrust enforcers said Tuesday their aggressive scrutiny of mergers and acquisitions is changing the way businesses approach consolidation at the start of the process, and that's good for consumers and workers alike.
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June 04, 2024
Senate Energy Panel Advances Trio Of FERC Nominees
A U.S. Senate energy panel on Tuesday advanced a trio of nominees to fill vacant commissioner slots at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, with the panel's chairman hinting that new energy infrastructure permitting legislation is also on the horizon.
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June 04, 2024
Bracewell Adds Energy Pro From Dentons In DC
Even before becoming an attorney and government affairs professional specializing in the energy and environmental sectors, Andrew Shaw was interested in environmental issues.
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June 04, 2024
Paxton Asks Texas Justices To End Bar's Political 'Lawfare'
The Texas bar's ethics lawsuit against Attorney General Ken Paxton over his challenge to the 2020 presidential election violates the state constitution's separation of powers and is barred by sovereign immunity, Paxton told the state Supreme Court on Tuesday, calling the case "politically motivated lawfare" in an announcement.
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June 04, 2024
Buchanan Ingersoll Denies Deceit Over Harrisburg Incinerator
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC didn't give Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, bad advice when it set up a debt deal that allowed construction to continue on a controversial incinerator project that sent the state capital into financial distress, an attorney for the firm told the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court on Tuesday.
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June 04, 2024
NJ Pitches Rule To Clarify Disparate Impact Bias Ban
New Jersey's civil rights agency proposed a rule laying out the standards for the state's prohibitions on workplace policies that have a disproportionate impact on people in protected classes.
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June 04, 2024
Sens. Offer Stark Takes On Abortion Two Years Post-Dobbs
Republican and Democratic members of the Senate health committee on Tuesday offered two different views of abortion in America two years after the Dobbs Decision overturned the federal right to the procedure.
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June 04, 2024
Biden Halts Noncitizens' Entry At Southern Border
President Joe Biden announced executive measures on Tuesday to temporarily suspend the entry of noncitizens at the Southern border and bar asylum claims from those crossing illegally — measures that the American Civil Liberties Union immediately vowed to challenge in court.
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June 04, 2024
11th Circ. Affirms Nix Of IRS Easement Disclosure Guidance
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed Tuesday that an Internal Revenue Service notice imposing reporting requirements on potentially abusive conservation easements was invalid because the agency failed to solicit the public feedback required by administrative law.
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June 04, 2024
MLB Player Banned For Life For Betting Violations
Major League Baseball has permanently banned San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano, and handed down a one-year ban to Oakland Athletics pitcher Michael Kelly and three minor leaguers, for betting on baseball, according to a Tuesday statement.
Expert Analysis
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3 Recent Decisions To Note As Climate Litigation Heats Up
Three recent rulings on climate-related issues — from a New York federal court, a New York state court and an international tribunal, respectively — demonstrate both regulators' concern about climate change and the complexity of conflicting regulations in different jurisdictions, say J. Michael Showalter and Robert Middleton at ArentFox Schiff.
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Perspectives
Justices' Repeat Offender Ruling Eases Prosecutorial Hurdle
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last week in Brown v. U.S., clarifying which drug law applies to sentencing a repeat offender in a federal firearms case, allows courts to rely on outdated drug schedules to impose increased sentences, thus removing a significant hurdle for prosecutors, says attorney Molly Parmer.
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Investors Can Aid In The Acceptance Of Psychedelic Medicine
Psychedelic medicine is ready to have its breakthrough moment, and although it still faces political, legal and communications challenges, private equity investors can play a significant role in changing the public perception on psychedelics from taboo to acceptance, say Kimberly Chew at Husch Blackwell, Charlie Panfil at the Daschle Group and Ethan Lutz at FTI Consulting.
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Opinion
Exec Liability Bill For Failed Banks Is Unnecessary, Unwise
A bill before the U.S. Senate, which would effectively empower the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to hold senior bank executives strictly liable for reasonable business decisions that lead to bank failures, needlessly overwrites the existing negligence standard and rewards counterproductive caution in management, say attorneys at Davis Polk.
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National Security And The Commercial Space Sector: Part 1
The recently published U.S. Department of Defense space strategy represents a recalibration in agency thinking, signaling that the integration of commercial space capabilities has become a necessity and offering guidance for removing structural, procedural and cultural barriers to commercial-sector collaboration, say Jeff Chiow and Skip Smith at Greenberg Traurig.
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BF Borgers Clients Should Review Compliance, Liability
After the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recently announced enforcement proceedings against audit firm BF Borgers for fabricating audit documentation for hundreds of public companies, those companies will need to follow special procedures for disclosure and reporting — and may need to prepare for litigation from the plaintiffs bar, say attorneys at Debevoise.
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How Employers, Attorneys Can Respond To Noncompete Ban
As the Federal Trade Commission's recently issued noncompete ban faces ongoing legal challenges, now is a good time for employers to consider whether they want to take a wait-and-see approach before halting use of noncompetes and for practitioners to gain insight into other tools available to protect their clients' business interests, says Jennifer Platzkere Snyder at Dilworth Paxson.
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New TSCA Risk Rule Gives EPA Broad Discretion On Science
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recent final amendments to its framework for evaluating the risks of chemical substances under the Toxic Substances Control Act give it vast discretion over consideration of scientific information, without objective criteria to guide that discretion, say John McGahren and Debra Carfora at Morgan Lewis.
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Perspectives
Trauma-Informed Legal Approaches For Pro Bono Attorneys
As National Trauma Awareness Month ends, pro bono attorneys should nevertheless continue to acknowledge the mental and physical effects of trauma, allowing them to better represent clients, and protect themselves from compassion fatigue and burnout, say Katherine Cronin at Stinson and Katharine Manning at Blackbird.
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Fintech Compliance Amid Regulatory Focus On Sensitive Data
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recent, expansive pursuit of financial services companies using sensitive personal information signals a move into the Federal Trade Commission's territory, and the path forward for fintech and financial service providers involves a balance between innovation and compliance, say attorneys at Wilson Sonsini.
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Opinion
Del. Needs To Urgently Pass Post-Moelis Corporate Law Bill
After the Delaware Chancery Court's decision in West Palm Beach Firefighters' Pension v. Moelis sparked confusion around governance rights, recently proposed amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law would preserve the state's predictable corporate governance system, says Lawrence Hamermesh at Widener University Delaware Law School.
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Cos. Must Stay On Alert With Joint Employer Rule In Flux
While employers may breathe a sigh of relief at recent events blocking the National Labor Relations Board's proposed rule that would make it easier for two entities to be deemed joint employers, the rule is not yet dead, say attorneys at Day Pitney.
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Opinion
NY Should Pass Litigation Funding Bill To Protect Plaintiffs
New York state should embrace the regulatory framework proposed in the Consumer Litigation Funding Act, which would suppress the unregulated predatory lenders that currently prey on vulnerable litigants but preserve a funding option that helps personal injury plaintiffs stand up to deep-pocketed corporate defendants, says Alan Ripka at Alan Ripka & Associates.
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Series
Playing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My deep and passionate involvement in playing, writing and producing music equipped me with skills — like creativity, improvisation and problem-solving — that contribute to the success of my legal career, says attorney Kenneth Greene.
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Contractors Must Prep For FAR Council GHG Emissions Rule
With the U.S. Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council expected to finalize its proposed rule on the disclosure of greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related financial risk this year, government contractors should take key steps now to get ready, say Thomas Daley at DLA Piper, Steven Rothstein at the Ceres Accelerator for Sustainable Capital Markets, and John Kostyack at Kostyack Strategies.