Public Policy

July 21, 2025
Lawmakers' Plan To Target Bid Protesters Seen As Unfounded

Congress's quest to deter frivolous protests from companies that fail to win Pentagon contracts exposes a gap between lawmakers and attorneys who refute the problem, and worry that small businesses that get penalized could get shut out of the procurement process.
July 21, 2025
How GOP Judges Teed Up 4th Circ.'s Supreme Court Shutout

No appeals court found the U.S. Supreme Court's latest term less endearing than the Fourth Circuit, where a supersize shutout accentuated a multiyear slump for the once-favored circuit and repeatedly vindicated conservative dissenters on the left-leaning bench.
July 21, 2025
Board Says Salvadoran Women Not A Social Group Under INA

The Board of Immigration Appeals has dismissed a Salvadoran woman's attempt to revive her application for asylum and withholding of removal, ruling that a particular social group based solely on an individual's sex and nationality is "overbroad and insufficiently particular."
July 21, 2025
Energy Litigation To Watch In The 2nd Half Of 2025

Courtroom showdowns between the Trump administration and blue states over U.S. energy and climate change policy will dominate the energy litigation landscape for the rest of 2025. Here is what the energy industry will be watching closely in the second half of the year.
July 21, 2025
Builder Accuses NC County Of Losing $1.3M In Phishing Scam

A general contractor is suing to recoup the cost of renovating a county administrative building in eastern North Carolina after local officials fell for a phishing scam and sent more than $1.3 million in payments for the project to fraudsters, according to a state court complaint.
July 21, 2025
California Invests $10M In Tribal College's Accreditation Push

A $10 million California budget allocation is bringing a Native American college one step closer to receiving federal tribal accreditation, which, in turn, will bring future employment, student financial grants and loan opportunities.
July 21, 2025
JetBlue Says Fla. Used Unlawful Formula In Calculating Taxes

JetBlue urged a Florida state court on Monday to negate a $631,000 corporate tax assessment by the state's Department of Revenue, arguing that a component of the agency's formula for taxing out-of-state miles is inconsistent with federal law.
July 21, 2025
COVID-19 Fraudster Can Keep His Pension, Conn. Judge Says

A former Connecticut firefighter who pled guilty in connection with a COVID-19 relief fund scam can keep the pension he earned through 26 years of service, a state trial court judge has ruled, pointing to the employee's otherwise clean record and comparatively lesser role in the scheme.
July 21, 2025
States Say Noncitizen Benefit Restrictions Are Creating Chaos

A coalition of 20 Democratic-led states and the District of Columbia sued the Trump administration on Monday for "upending" noncitizens' access to publicly funded programs like Head Start and food banks.
July 21, 2025
Trade Court Hits Importer With $3.4M Penalty Over Fraud

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is due to collect more than $2.4 million in duties plus interest and a $3.4 million civil penalty after the U.S. Court of International Trade determined in a recent opinion that a California-based importer falsely reported Chinese mattress springs were imported from Thailand.
July 21, 2025
DC Circ. Strikes Down Gag Order On X Corp. Subpoenas

A D.C. Circuit panel has struck down a lower court's sweeping order blocking X Corp. from informing users about government data requests, with the appeals court finding the district court failed to identify specific harm that would come from keeping users in the loop.
July 21, 2025
Ex-ComEd CEO Gets 2 Years For Burying Madigan Bribes

The former CEO of Commonwealth Edison and later Exelon Utilities was sentenced to two years in prison Monday for a scheme to pay millions to associates of ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan to secure his support for major energy legislation, and for hiding the nature of those payments to circumvent the company's internal accounting controls.
July 21, 2025
EPA Asks 9th Circ. To Reverse Calif. Judge In Fluoride Suit

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is asking the Ninth Circuit to reverse a California federal judge who ruled that the EPA's current "optimal" level of fluoride in drinking water poses an unreasonable risk of lowering children's IQ.
July 21, 2025
Stadium Deal Still On Despite Trump Threat, DC Officials Say

The mayor and city council chair of Washington, D.C., said on Monday that they were focusing on their roles in approving the $3 billion plan for a new stadium for the NFL's Commanders, regardless of President Donald Trump's weekend threat to kill the deal if the team's racist former nickname was not brought back.
July 21, 2025
States, Territories Get The OK For $42B In Broadband Grants

The U.S. Department of Commerce said Monday that all 56 states and territories taking part in a $42.5 billion expansion of U.S. broadband service can now begin picking contractors to get the work done on the ground.
July 21, 2025
Officials' Intent Key In Visa Revocation Trial, Judge Says

A Massachusetts federal judge hearing a free-speech case stemming from the arrests of pro-Palestinian student activists said Monday he is grappling with whether immigration officials were carrying out an official Trump administration policy or using their own discretion to implement a broader set of priorities within the law.
July 21, 2025
4th Circ. Reverses Portion Of Railroads' Broadband Suit

The Fourth Circuit has ruled that the Association of American Railroads has standing to challenge a Virginia state law requiring railroads to allow for broadband crossings, reversing a trial court decision and dealing another blow to a law that the Virginia Supreme Court already gutted on state constitutional grounds in May.
July 21, 2025
Judge Allows Calif. Tribe In Casino Suit, Denies Dismissal Bid

A California tribe at the center of a dispute over a decision to take 70 acres into trust for its proposed Sonoma County hotel and casino project can intervene in the litigation, a federal judge said, while finding that the Indigenous nation cannot dismiss the case based on sovereign immunity.
July 21, 2025
Feds Move To Drop Some Counts Against Texas Rep. Cuellar

The federal government on Friday moved to drop counts of a bribery indictment against U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar and his wife, citing "prosecutorial discretion."
July 21, 2025
DOL Rescinds ERISA Guidance On Citi Racial Equity Program

The U.S. Department of Labor rescinded a Biden-era opinion letter Monday that had backed Citi's commitment to pay fees for diverse investment managers overseeing Citi-sponsored benefit plans regulated by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, saying the letter no longer reflected the department's views.
July 21, 2025
Not So Fast: CFPB Shelves Bid To Scrap State Notice Rules

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Monday withdrew a plan to repeal rules that regulate how state officials are supposed to alert it before suing companies under its federal enforcement authority, reversing course after industry groups lobbied to tighten, not toss, the requirements.
July 21, 2025
NJ US Atty Accused Of Ethics Violations Amid Possible Exit

A group of ethics experts and former presidential advisors requested an ethics investigation into interim U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba on Monday, as she reportedly approaches the end of her run as the top federal prosecutor in the Garden State.
July 21, 2025
Ruger Says Colo. Shooting Suits Can't Lean On Conn. Ruling

Sturm Ruger & Co. on Monday asked a Connecticut state judge to strike lawsuits by the families of the victims of a Colorado mass shooting, saying litigation from the Sandy Hook massacre does not open the Constitution State's unfair trade practices statute to all advertising-based claims against gunmakers.
July 21, 2025
Trump DOJ To Appeal Axing Of Order Targeting Jenner & Block

The U.S. Department of Justice plans to fight a federal judge's ruling that struck down President Donald Trump's executive order targeting Jenner & Block LLP, as it filed a notice of appeal Monday in D.C. federal court.
July 21, 2025
Trump Admin's Harvard Cuts Vex Judge: 'Staggering To Me'

A Massachusetts federal judge said Monday that the Trump administration has not presented evidence that Harvard has failed to address antisemitism on its campus and expressed bewilderment at the government's legal justifications for cutting $2.2 billion in funding.

Editor's Picks

Trump's Legal Battles

States, federal employee unions, various advocacy groups and several individuals have filed over 220 lawsuits challenging the Trump administration's implementation of executive orders and other initiatives. Law360 has created a database of those lawsuits, separated into categories based on their subject matter.

Expert Analysis

FDA's Hasty Policymaking Approach Faces APA Challenges

Though the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has abandoned its usual notice-and-comment process for implementing new regulatory initiatives, two recent district court decisions make clear that these programs are still susceptible to Administrative Procedure Act challenges, says Rachel Turow at Skadden.
DOJ Crypto Enforcement Is Shifting To Target Willfulness

Three pending criminal prosecutions could be an indication of how the U.S. Department of Justice's recent digital assets memo is shaping enforcement of the area, and show a growing focus on executives who knowingly allow their platforms to be used for criminal conduct involving sanctions offenses, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.
Legal Considerations Around Ibogaine As Addiction Therapy

Recent funding approval in Texas pertaining to ibogaine for the potential treatment of substance use disorders signals a growing openness to innovative addiction treatments, but also underscore the need for rigorous compliance with state and federal requirements and ethical research standards, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.
Unpacking DOJ's Suit Against Maryland Federal Bench

Political hoopla aside, the Trump administration’s suit naming the Maryland federal district court and all of its judges, which challenges a standing order that delays deportation upon the filing of a habeas petition, raises valid questions about both the validity of the order and the DOJ’s approach, says Steven Gordon at Holland & Knight.
What Calif. Insurance Ruling Means For Smoke Damage Limits

As California continues to grapple with an increasing number of wildfire claims, a state court's recent Aliff v. California FAIR Plan decision serves as a clear directive to insurers that policy language that narrows the scope of fire coverage below the California Insurance Code's minimum standards is impermissible, say attorneys at Wood Smith.
Wash. Law Highlights Debate Over Unemployment For Strikers

A new Washington state law that will allow strikers to receive unemployment benefits during work stoppages raises questions about whether such laws subsidize disruptions to the economy or whether they are preempted by federal labor law, says Daniel Johns at Cozen O'Connor.
Why SEC Abandoned Microcap Convertible Debt Crackdown

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has recently dismissed several cases targeting microcap convertible debt lenders, a significant disavowal of what was a controversial enforcement initiative under the Biden administration and a message that the new administration will focus on clear fraud, say attorneys at O'Melveny.
Justices' Resentencing Ruling Fortifies First Step Act Tools

The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Hewitt v. U.S. ruling clarifies that resentencing after vacatur must reflect the law in effect at the time of the new sentencing, ultimately strengthening the strategic tools available to defense attorneys under the First Step Act, says Benson Varghese at Varghese Summersett.
The Metamorphosis Of The Major Questions Doctrine

The so-called major questions doctrine arose as a counterweight to Chevron deference over the past few decades, but invocations of the doctrine have persisted in the year since Chevron was overturned, suggesting it still has a role to play in reining in agency overreach, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.
A Rapidly Evolving Landscape For Noncompetes In Healthcare

A wave of new state laws regulating noncompete agreements in the healthcare sector, varying in scope, approach and enforceability, are shaped by several factors unique to the industry and are likely to distort the market, say attorneys at Seyfarth.
New PTAB Denial Processes Grow More And More Confusing

Guidance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office about the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's new workload management and discretionary denial processes has been murky and inconsistent, and has been further muddled by the acting director's seemingly contradictory decisions, say attorneys at Finnegan.
Arguing The 8th Amendment For Reduction In FCA Penalties

While False Claims Act decisions lack consistency in how high the judgment-to-damages ratio in such cases can be before it becomes unconstitutional, defense counsel should cite the Eighth Amendment's excessive fines clause in pre-trial settlement negotiations, and seek penalty decreases in post-judgment motions and on appeal, says Scott Grubman at Chilivis Grubman.
GENIUS Act Creates 'Commodity' Uncertainty For Stablecoins

Half a century ago, Congress made trading in onion futures on commodity exchanges unlawful, and payment stablecoins could soon face a similarly unstable fate in the markets as the GENIUS Act heads to the president's desk for signature, says Peter Malyshev at Cadwalader.
EU Space Act Could Stifle US Commercial Operators

The EU Space Act, proposed last month, has the potential to raise global standards for safety and sustainability in space, but the U.S. and EU need to harmonize their regulatory approaches to avoid imposing regulatory burdens that undermine commercial innovation and agility, say Jessica Noble and Adriane Mandakunis at Aegis Space Law.
Cos. Face Convergence Of Anti-Terrorism Act, FCPA Risks

Recent moves by the U.S. Department of Justice to classify cartels and transnational criminal organizations as terrorist groups, and to use a range of statutes including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act to pursue these types of targets, mean that companies operating in certain jurisdictions are now subject to overlapping exposure, say attorneys at Miller & Chevalier.