Public Policy

  • September 11, 2026

    State Dept. Must Give Court 3 Diversity Visa Updates A Week

    A California federal judge has ordered the U.S. Department of State to provide three updates per week on the status of diversity visa applications, saying he was "troubled" by the lack of progress since he ordered adjudications to be resumed.

  • September 11, 2026

    5th Circ. Says Enviro Groups Timely In Prairie-Chicken Fight

    The Fifth Circuit on Friday allowed two environmental groups to join a lawsuit over the endangered designation of the lesser prairie-chicken, saying their second request to intervene was timely filed after the Trump administration made it clear it would stop defending the designation.

  • September 11, 2026

    Copyright Office To Test New Registration System In Late 2026

    The U.S. Copyright Office is making progress on its launch of its new modernized registration system, with plans to start rolling out some functions to Copyright Public Modernization Committee members later this year, leaders said Friday.

  • September 11, 2026

    Wis. Groups Say Warrantless Flock Searches Violate Chatrie

    Wisconsin privacy groups have sued a group of local governments over their warrantless searches of Flock Group Inc. camera data, arguing that they run afoul of the Fourth Amendment after the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Chatrie v. U.S.

  • September 11, 2026

    Tatneft Says Ukraine Is Politicizing $173M Award Appeal

    The Russian oil company Tatneft pressed the D.C. Circuit on Thursday to restart litigation aimed at enforcing a confirmed $173 million arbitral award against Ukraine, accusing the country of relying on "unsupported assertions and innuendo" to keep the case on pause indefinitely.

  • September 11, 2026

    Employers In Bind As Noncitizen Workers Lose TPS

    The Trump administration's rollback of Temporary Protected Status for 13 of 17 countries that had the designation has put work authorization for hundreds of thousands of noncitizen workers at risk across various industries, including healthcare, hospitality and construction.

  • September 11, 2026

    U of Mich. Hit With Suit Over Foreign Service Tuition Rate

    A student has accused the University of Michigan of violating federal law and his constitutional rights by refusing to grant him in-state tuition despite his parents' claim that Michigan is their permanent legal residence and his father's service as a U.S. Foreign Service officer overseas. 

  • September 11, 2026

    9th Circ. Leaves VA On Hook For Homeless Vet Housing

    The full Ninth Circuit Friday refused to revisit a ruling requiring the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to build supportive housing for homeless disabled veterans, sparking dissents that accused judges of swapping their robes for hard hats and "bulldozing" established disability law.

  • September 11, 2026

    DOJ Gets Final OK For Agri Stats Antitrust Settlement

    A Minnesota federal court has granted final approval to the U.S. Department of Justice's settlement with Agri Stats, with the company agreeing to stop offering the sales reports for meat processors at the center of the case.

  • September 11, 2026

    7th Circ. Probes Ill. Nonprofit Demographic Disclosure Law

    A Seventh Circuit panel wrestled Friday with whether Illinois' law requiring nonprofits to publicize their demographic data merely encourages diversity or unconstitutionally compels speech, with one judge questioning whether its "nudging effects" establish an injury while another highlighted legislators' statements indicating a push to influence leadership or donor decisions.

  • September 11, 2026

    New IHS Director Says Bill Protects $5.3B In Health Programs

    Newly confirmed Indian Health Service Director Mark Cruz in one of the first acts of his four-year term has told tribal leaders that $5.3 billion in federal funds earmarked for IHS programs is safe following the U.S. government's passage of a stopgap spending bill.

  • September 11, 2026

    3M Wants Conn. Firefighter PFAS Suit Moved To Different MDL

    3M Co. has asked to peel PFAS "forever chemicals" claims by Connecticut firefighter unions and several individuals away from a recently empaneled Minnesota multidistrict litigation containing claims by municipalities who purchased firefighting turnout gear, arguing the unions' and individuals' allegations instead belong in an ongoing South Carolina MDL.

  • September 11, 2026

    DC Circ. Probes DOT Authority To Withhold Calif. Funds

    A panel of D.C. Circuit judges grilled a Trump administration attorney Friday over the U.S. Department of Transportation's move to slash California's federal highway funding because of the state's commercial driver's licensing rules for nondomiciled drivers, wondering whether the agency had any authority to take the drastic measure.

  • September 11, 2026

    Prediction Markets' High Court Clash Looks More Imminent

    The widespread clash over whether the regulation of prediction markets falls under federal or state jurisdiction was bound to land in the U.S. Supreme Court, and a new circuit split and urgent policy questions may force the justices' hands to take up the issue.

  • September 11, 2026

    FCC Can't Avoid Final Order On Fox Philly Issue, Court Told

    A media advocacy group told the D.C. Circuit on Friday that the Federal Communications Commission cannot sidestep its duty to issue a final order on whether to dismiss a petition over Fox TV's character fitness for a broadcast license in Philadelphia.

  • September 11, 2026

    Zurich Needn't Cover Auto Dealers In Deceptive Pricing Row

    Two Zurich units have no duty to defend or indemnify a group of auto dealers accused by the Federal Trade Commission and the Maryland Attorney General's Office of misrepresenting the cost of vehicles to consumers, a Virginia federal judge ruled Friday.

  • September 11, 2026

    Bank Regulators Propose Tailored Third-Party Risk Guidance

    Federal banking regulators Friday proposed revisiting 3-year-old guidance on third-party risk management for banks, saying they plan to let banks tailor their practices more specifically to the actual risk posed by each relationship.

  • September 11, 2026

    IRS Can Withhold Docs That May Air Taxpayer ID, Court Rules

    The IRS may withhold documents sought by a tax news publisher, a Washington, D.C., federal judge said, finding the subject is prominent enough that disclosing the records could allow the taxpayer to be identified using a former IRS contractor's leak of President Donald Trump's tax returns and thousands of others.

  • September 11, 2026

    Australian Bill Would Hone R&D Tax Credit To Newer Firms

    The Australian government is seeking input on a bill that would narrow eligibility for its research and development tax credit to newer firms while raising the value of the credit for businesses that qualify, the Department of the Treasury said Friday.

  • September 11, 2026

    Mich. Township Seeks To Pause Winery Events Fight

    A northern Michigan township asked a federal judge to dismiss or stay a lawsuit brought by several local wineries that claim the township is attempting to bypass a previous court ruling to block them from hosting special events, saying the township's appeal of that earlier ruling remains pending in the Sixth Circuit.

  • September 11, 2026

    ABA Cyber Task Force Co-Chair Eyes AI Education Boost

    With the legal industry presenting a more and more enticing target for cyberattacks, it's becoming increasingly important for practitioners to know how to best protect clients' data and most effectively use emerging artificial intelligence tools — a task that the American Bar Association's Cybersecurity Legal Task Force is well positioned to assist with, its incoming co-chair recently told Law360.

  • September 11, 2026

    Corp. Transparency Law Unconstitutional, Justices Told

    The Supreme Court should find that the Corporate Transparency Act is unconstitutional to prevent a future administration from reviving its application to domestic entities, the National Small Business Association told the justices.

  • September 11, 2026

    RV Part Cos. Give Enforcers More Time To Review Merger

    LCI Industries and Patrick Industries have pulled and refiled their merger notices, giving enforcers with the Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Department of Justice additional time to review a planned merger between two of the nation's biggest RV parts suppliers.

  • September 11, 2026

    Commerce Probing 3 Nations' Hydraulic Cylinders For Duties

    The U.S. Department of Commerce is investigating whether linear hydraulic cylinders imported into the U.S. from China, India and Mexico are benefiting from government subsidies, it said Friday.

  • September 11, 2026

    ITC Probing Imported Pizza Boxes For Possible Harms

    The U.S. International Trade Commission said Friday it is investigating whether corrugated pizza boxes imported into the country from China, Malaysia and Turkey that are being allegedly sold at unfair prices are harming U.S. domestic industry.

Expert Analysis

  • NC Dental Review Change Counters Tougher National Trend

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    North Carolina’s elimination of its prior review requirement for dental management agreements departs sharply from the national trend toward expanded corporate practice of medicine oversight, but stakeholders should not view this regulatory shift as a relaxation of compliance expectations, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Prepping To Use Crypto Collateral Under Ohio Ownership Law

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    Ohio's digital asset law should ease the path to using cryptocurrency as collateral, and as the October effective date approaches, lenders should update their loan documentation and diligence processes to take advantage of the new control-based perfection rules, say attorneys at Kegler Brown.

  • NY Bill Would Boost Litigation Risk For Cosmetics Cos.

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    The Beauty Justice Act, now pending in the New York Legislature, would not only present compliance challenges for companies making cosmetics and personal care products, but could also be used by private plaintiffs to bring consumer fraud, false advertising, toxic exposure and product liability claims, says Kadeejah Kelly-Previl at Faegre Drinker.

  • Appellate Vape Rulings May Expand State Regulation Powers

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    Two recent federal appeals courts decisions rejecting Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act preemption challenges to state electronic nicotine delivery systems directory laws signal an emerging appellate consensus that could significantly expand states' power to regulate vaping product sales where federal enforcement falls short, say attorneys at Troutman.

  • Parsing Gov't Scrutiny Of Lending To Unauthorized Workers

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    Attorneys at Mayer Brown explain guidance recently issued by three banking regulators that addresses risks associated with lending to so-called non-work authorized individuals and discuss what the regulatory update could mean for fintech companies.

  • Discovery Into Insurers' AI Use Should Stay Proportional

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    As insurers increasingly use artificial intelligence to make claim decisions, plaintiffs in first-party coverage litigation should seek discovery that tracks how materially the automated system influenced the challenged decision, not whether the insurer used AI somewhere in its operations, says attorney Joe Zaid.

  • How FCC Covered List Blitz Is Sidelining Commerce Dept.

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    The swath of recent Federal Communications Commission rulemakings raises serious questions about the purpose and future of Commerce's Office of Information and Communications Technology and Services, and how the U.S. government will go forward in imposing national security regulation on domestic applications of adversary-linked technologies, says Peter Jeydel at Troutman.

  • DOJ Healthcare Declination Offers Self-Disclosure Checklist

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's declination of criminal charges against Campus Eye Management signals that its new self-disclosure policy provides a real path for healthcare companies to avoid criminal exposure, but that path is paved with speed, transparency and operational remediation, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

  • SEC Rulemaking Radar: The Rubber Meets The Road

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's new rulemaking agenda shows its regulatory reset taking shape, with sweeping crypto proposals that could bring the biggest changes it has made to broker-dealer, exchange and trading compliance in decades, says Christopher Grobbel at Goodwin.

  • Monitor Exposure, Stay Flexible Amid Tariff Uncertainty

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    To navigate an unstable trade environment, businesses must evaluate their exposure to new tariffs invoked under a patchwork of statutory authorities and be prepared to adapt to further changes that may be on the horizon, says Bhargav Prajapati at Capital Trade.

  • CFPB Complaint Portal Overhaul Signals Changing Priorities

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's updates to its consumer complaint portal and decision to cease publishing consumer complaint narratives should be viewed by companies as one component of a larger recalibration of how the CFPB collects information and allocates its supervisory and enforcement resources, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • Series

    Being In A Band Made Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing shows in storied New York City venues and rehearsing with my bandmates in poorly ventilated rooms helped develop the professional qualities I rely on as a litigator, including an ability to collaborate with strong-minded equals and the determination to treat each client with singular focus, says Eliad Shapiro at Herrick Feinstein.

  • Opinion

    Correctional Healthcare Requires Clearer Legal Standards

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    As the correctional healthcare industry increasingly faces financial instability due to litigation, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons should develop clear standards for constitutionally adequate care for incarcerated patients, says Susanne Moore at Blackstone Trial Group.

  • 6 Risk Areas Future Fla. Stablecoin Issuers Should Plan For

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    Companies hoping to issue stablecoins under Florida’s new supervision regime should prioritize constructing robust risk management architecture across key areas before the Oct. 1 effective date so they can secure licenses, avoid a web of potential liabilities, and operate sustainably as state and federal regulations evolve, says Elizabeth Brusa at Shumaker.

  • 6 Key Takeaways From CFIUS Annual Report

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    Attorneys at Simpson Thacher review highlights from the annual report of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., released to Congress this month, including the launch of the American First Investment Policy and the Known Investor Pilot Program, and the agency's continued focus on enforcement despite its resource constraints.

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