Public Policy

  • October 15, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Again Urged To Probe Settled Expectations Rule

    A nonprofit represented by former U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director Kathi Vidal has thrown its weight behind the latest Federal Circuit petition challenging the USPTO's policy of denying review of patents based on the owner's "settled expectations," saying the rule is "economically harmful and legally unsound."

  • October 15, 2025

    Judge Sinks Youths' Suit Challenging Trump Energy Orders

    A Montana federal judge on Wednesday dismissed a suit by youths seeking to undo President Donald Trump's energy-related emergency orders, saying that it's beyond the power of federal courts to dictate U.S. environmental and energy policy.

  • October 15, 2025

    Wash. Urges 9th Circ. To Deny GEO Detention Law Rehearing

    Washington state called on the Ninth Circuit on Tuesday to reject Geo Group's request that the full appellate court revisit a panel's decision siding with the state in a case challenging a new law imposing additional health and safety standards at the state's privately run immigration detention center.

  • October 15, 2025

    FERC Ignored La. LNG Terminal's Enviro Harms, DC Circ. Told

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission shirked its obligation to evaluate the potential harms of a massive liquefied natural gas export terminal in Louisiana before approving its construction, environmental groups and fishermen have told the D.C. Circuit.

  • October 15, 2025

    Glock Loses Bid To Toss New Jersey AG's Gun Violence Suit

    A New Jersey state judge has declined to dismiss a suit brought by the state's attorney general seeking to hold Glock Inc. liable for gun violence, finding that a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in a case brought by Mexico against gunmakers doesn't bar the state's claims.

  • October 15, 2025

    Pa. Justice Criticizes Court For Passing On Pot-Smell Appeal

    After hearing oral arguments and receiving briefs, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court dismissed an appeal as "improvidently granted," refusing to clarify whether a Philadelphia police chase that arose from the smell of pot smoke was legal, to the dismay of a dissenting justice.

  • October 15, 2025

    Tax Court Says Easement Fraud Penalties Don't Require Jury

    The U.S. Tax Court refused to throw out civil fraud penalties faced by a partnership accused of overvaluing a conservation easement tax deduction, rejecting the partnership's reliance on a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that limited federal agencies' authority to impose certain penalties without a jury trial.

  • October 15, 2025

    3rd Circ. Weighs If AR-15s Are 'Dangerous,' 'Unusual' Arms

    The full Third Circuit on Wednesday quizzed counsel in a gun rights case about whether AR-15s, other widely owned semi-automatic firearms, and high-capacity magazines should be considered so "dangerous" or "unusual" as to not be protected by the Second Amendment, with the panel giving no clear leanings as to how it might rule.

  • October 15, 2025

    Ga. Justices Stand By Holding That Runoff Fees Aren't Taxes

    The Supreme Court of Georgia has for the second time ruled that a landowner can't use a constitutional challenge to get out of paying stormwater utility bills to its local government, declining Wednesday to overturn a decade-plus precedent that ruled the county was enforcing a fee rather than a tax.

  • October 15, 2025

    Feds Drop 1 Lying Count Amid Ex-Budget Official's Trial

    Federal prosecutors on Wednesday dropped one charge against Connecticut school construction official Kosta Diamantis, releasing him from allegations that he lied to the FBI when he allegedly said he didn't care who was hired to manage an emergency school construction project in Tolland.

  • October 15, 2025

    AGs Concerned About Landlord Settlements In RealPage Case

    Attorneys general of the District of Columbia and three states told a Tennessee federal court Wednesday that they have concerns about a combined $141.8 million worth of class settlements for antitrust claims against several multifamily landlords that allegedly used property management software company RealPage Inc.'s technology for rent price-fixing.

  • October 15, 2025

    DC Think Tank Says It Wants FBI FISA Compliance Docs

    The Justice Department will not turn over records related to an FBI audit it conducted to determine whether the agency was complying with section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which gives the government a backdoor to intercept communications without a warrant, a new suit says.

  • October 15, 2025

    Carriers Take Heat From Hill GOP Over Sens.' Phone Data

    The Big Three phone carriers face growing pressure from Capitol Hill Republicans over reports that they tracked eight senators' cellphone data at the FBI's request, with one lawmaker saying there was no "criminal predicate" for the subpoenas.

  • October 15, 2025

    Colo. Urges Justices To Reject Nebraska South Platte Case

    Colorado on Wednesday asked the U.S. Supreme Court not to get involved in Nebraska's claims that Colorado is failing to deliver water from the South Platte River according to the terms of an early 20th-century compact.

  • October 15, 2025

    Cherokee Nation Member Appointed IHS Chief Of Staff

    The Indian Health Service has appointed a Cherokee Nation citizen as its new chief of staff, responsible for overseeing the coordination of key agency activities, including support for its leadership in a broad range of duties related to development and implementation of initiatives and priorities.

  • October 15, 2025

    Chief Judge Bars Civil Arrests In Cook County Courts

    Cook County's top judge issued an order Wednesday prohibiting the warrantless civil arrest of individuals attending court proceedings in Chicago-area state courthouses, as the federal government has ramped up immigration enforcement and arrests in the area.

  • October 15, 2025

    FCC Looks To Pull Hong Kong Telecom's US Authorization

    The Federal Communications Commission has warned it could expel Hong Kong telecom HKT from the U.S. market, citing ties to the Chinese Communist Party.

  • October 15, 2025

    States Seek To Revive FEMA's Disaster-Mitigation Funding

    A group of 22 states and the District of Columbia urged a Massachusetts federal court Wednesday to block the Trump administration's termination of a disaster mitigation program under the Federal Emergency Management Agency, arguing such authority lies with Congress.

  • October 15, 2025

    Feds Seek To Block Pot Legalization Talk In Maine Drug Trial

    Federal prosecutors have asked a Maine federal judge to bar any discussion of medical or recreational marijuana legalization in the state from an upcoming trial of persons accused of illegally growing cannabis.

  • October 15, 2025

    Sen. Panel To Consider Bill Meant To Curb Foreign Scam Calls

    A U.S. Senate committee later this month will consider a bill to direct Federal Communications Commission resources toward reducing spam robocalls originating overseas.

  • October 15, 2025

    Mich. AG Urges Justices To Leave Enbridge Suit In State Court

    Michigan's attorney general has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to strictly enforce the statutory deadline for transferring a case to federal court and refuse Enbridge Energy LP's entreaties to move her lawsuit seeking to shut down a pipeline out of state court.

  • October 15, 2025

    UNC Fights Ex-Provost's Bid To Access Trustee Devices

    The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill urged a state court to deny an ex-provost's request to expedite discovery in an open meetings lawsuit that implicated the hiring of UNC football coach Bill Belichick, panning the ask as a mere "fishing expedition."

  • October 15, 2025

    Ex-WH Ethics Attys Slam 'Vindictive' Comey, James Charges

    Three former White House ethics attorneys have filed complaints with the U.S. Department of Justice over what they call the "vindictive and meritless" criminal prosecutions of former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

  • October 15, 2025

    Florida Accused Of Hiding Info On Detention Center Grant

    A nonprofit focused on protecting the Everglades has accused the Florida Division of Emergency Management of breaking the state's laws by refusing to provide information about federal grant funding for the "Alligator Alcatraz" immigration detention center.

  • October 15, 2025

    Ethics Probe Of 2 Mich. Judges Recommended For Dismissal

    A retired Michigan judge overseeing an ethics probe of two state judges stemming from a dispute over a bike rental on Mackinac Island have recommended dismissing the complaints, determining that the judges did not commit misconduct and questioning why the matter led to a formal complaint.

Expert Analysis

  • How Hyperlinks Are Changing E-Discovery Responsibilities

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    A recent e-discovery dispute over hyperlinked data in Hubbard v. Crow shows how courts have increasingly broadened the definition of control to account for cloud-based evidence, and why organizations must rethink preservation practices to avoid spoliation risks, says Bree Murphy at Exterro.

  • Pharma Copay Programs Raise Complex Economic Questions

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    The growing prevalence of copay accumulator and maximizer programs in the pharmaceutical industry is drawing increased scrutiny from patients, advocacy groups, lawmakers and courts, bringing complex questions about how financial responsibility for prescription drug purchases is determined and complicating damages assessments in litigation, say analysts at Analysis Group.

  • State False Claims Acts Can Help Curb Opioid Fund Fraud

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    State versions of the federal False Claims Act can play an important role in policing the misuse of opioid settlement funds, taking a cue from the U.S. Department of Justice’s handling of federal fraud cases involving pandemic relief funds, says Kenneth Levine at Stone & Magnanini.

  • Pemex Bribery Charges Provide Glimpse Into FCPA Evolution

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    A recently unsealed indictment against two Mexican nationals for allegedly bribing officials at Pemex, Mexico’s state-owned oil company, reveals that Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement is adapting to new priorities, but still remains active, and compliance programs should continue apace, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • CFPB Proposal Defining Consumer Risk May Add Uncertainty

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    Though a recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposal would codify when risks to consumers justify supervisory intervention against nonbanks, furthering Trump administration plans to curtail CFPB authority, firms may still struggle to identify what could attract supervisory designation under the new rule, say attorneys at Steptoe.

  • Targeting Execs Could Hurt SEC's Probusiness Goals

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    While many enforcement changes under the Trump administration’s U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission have been touted by commission leadership as proinnovation and probusiness, a planned focus on holding individual directors and officers responsible for wrongdoing may have the opposite effect, say attorneys at MoFo.

  • Preserving Refunds As Tariffs Await Supreme Court Weigh-In

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    In the event that the U.S. Supreme Court decides in V.O.S. Selections v. Trump that the president doesn't have authority to levy tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, importers should keep records of imports on which they have paid such tariffs and carefully monitor the liquidation dates, say attorneys at Butzel.

  • How Justices' Ruling Upends Personal Jurisdiction Defense

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Fuld v. Palestinian Liberation Organization, holding that the Fifth Amendment's due process clause does not require a defendant to have minimum contacts with a forum, may thwart foreign defendants' reliance on personal jurisdiction to evade federal claims in U.S. courts, say attorneys at Axinn.

  • Key Points From DOJ's New DeFi Enforcement Outline

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    Recent remarks by the U.S. Department of Justice's Criminal Division head Matthew Galeotti reveal several issues that the decentralized finance industry should address in order to minimize risk, including developers' role in evaluating protocols and the importance of illicit finance risk assessments, says Drew Rolle at Alston & Bird.

  • Revamped Opportunity Zones Can Aid Clean Energy Projects

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    The Qualified Opportunity Zone program, introduced in 2017 and reshaped in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, offers investors federal tax incentives for development in low-income communities — incentives that are especially meaningful for clean energy projects, where capital-intensive infrastructure and long-term planning are essential, say attorneys at Dentons.

  • Assessing Potential Ad Tech Remedies Ahead Of Google Trial

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    The Virginia federal judge tasked with prying open Google’s digital advertising monopoly faces a smorgasbord of potential remedies, all with different implications for competition, government control and consumers' internet experience, but compromises reached in the parallel Google search monopoly litigation may point a way forward, say attorneys at MoloLamken.

  • Earned Wage Access Providers Face State Law Labyrinth

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    At least 12 states have established laws or rules regulating services that allow employees to access earned wages before payday, with more laws potentially to follow suit, creating an evolving state licensing maze even for fintech providers that partner with banks, say attorneys at Venable.

  • The Pros And Cons Of Levying Value-Based Fees On Patents

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    The potential for a recurring, value-based maintenance fee on patents, while offering some benefits, raises several complications, including that it would likely exceed the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's statutory authority and reduce research and development activities in the U.S., says Sandip Patel at Marshall Gerstein.

  • Sales And Use Tax Strategies For Renewables After OBBBA

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    With the One Big Beautiful Bill Act sharply curtailing federal tax incentives for solar and wind projects, it is vital for developers to carefully manage state and local sales and use tax exposures through early planning and careful contract structuring, say advisers at KPMG.

  • 9th Circ. Ruling Leaves SEC Gag Rule Open To Future Attacks

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    Though the Ninth Circuit's recent ruling in Powell v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission leaves the SEC's no-admit, no-deny rule intact, it could provide some fodder for litigants who wish to criticize the commission's activities either before or after settling with the commission, says Jonathan Richman at Brown Rudnick.

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