Public Policy

  • September 08, 2026

    Kik App Is 'A Parent's Worst Nightmare,' Conn. AG Says

    The mobile messaging app Kik is "a cesspool of sexual abuse, exploitation and bullying" and "a parent's worst nightmare," Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said Tuesday in announcing his office would investigate allegations that inadequate privacy and content moderation measures endanger children.

  • September 08, 2026

    DOL Issues Mental Health Parity Enforcement Guidance

    The U.S. Department of Labor's employee benefits arm issued guidance Tuesday on how to comply with federal laws that require employer health plans to produce an analysis of their mental health and substance use disorder coverage, which remains subject to litigation in D.C. federal court.

  • September 08, 2026

    SEC Sues Proxy Adviser Firm ISS For Client Voting Records

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has asked a Pennsylvania federal court to enforce a subpoena against Institutional Shareholder Services, alleging the proxy advisory firm is improperly withholding information about the voting advice ISS gives institutional investors due to fears of retaliation.

  • September 08, 2026

    'Resilience,' Scale Up For Changes In EU Merger Overhaul

    With major European Union merger reforms due for finalization by the end of the year, the EU's top competition official said Sunday that enforcers plan to add more clarity to the draft merger guidelines, including by spelling out how improving environmental "resilience" can push transactions across the finish line.

  • September 08, 2026

    ITC Seeks Input On Long-Dormant Trade Bias Program

    The U.S. International Trade Commission is working to redevelop a practice for identifying potentially discriminatory trade actions against the U.S. as required under the dormant Great Depression-era statute President Donald Trump used to launch recent tariffs against Canada, the commission said.

  • September 08, 2026

    Ed. Dept. Says It Will Fund Research But Opposes Court Order

    A lawyer representing the government told a Massachusetts federal judge Tuesday the U.S. Department of Education intends to spend hundreds of millions of dollars in research funding before it expires at the end of this month but urged the court not to order the department to do so.

  • September 08, 2026

    Humboldt To Pay FTC $12M Over 'Sham' Merchant Payment Biz

    Payment processing company Humboldt Merchant Services has agreed to pay $12 million and be permanently banned from processing payments for merchants with a higher risk of fraud to resolve Federal Trade Commission claims that it processed payments for more than 1,000 merchants that defrauded customers.

  • September 08, 2026

    Idaho Supreme Court OKs Revised Abortion Ballot Language

    The Idaho Supreme Court has agreed to revised ballot language for an abortion amendment scheduled to be in front of voters this November. 

  • September 08, 2026

    Comcast, APCo At Odds Again Over Pole Replacement Rates

    Comcast has doubled down on its call for the Federal Communications Commission to direct Appalachian Power Co. to assume more of the cost for replacing damaged utility poles to allow for broadband gear attachments.

  • September 08, 2026

    3rd Circ. Revives Firearm Group's Challenge To NJ Gun Law

    The Third Circuit on Tuesday held that the National Shooting Sports Foundation can challenge New Jersey's law allowing the state to sue firearms manufacturers for endangering public safety, also reversing a lower court's decision to put the case on hold.

  • September 08, 2026

    Top LA Prosecutor Faces New DQ Attempt After 9th Circ. Ruling

    A criminal defendant has renewed his attempt to disqualify top Los Angeles federal prosecutor Bill Essayli from overseeing his case, following a Ninth Circuit decision that upheld a similar ruling against Nevada's lead federal prosecutor, saying the government is "playing shadow games" with prosecutorial powers.

  • September 08, 2026

    Makers Of Meta Glasses Won't Provide Repair Parts, Suit Says

    A Denver electronics repair shop has sued the makers of Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses in Colorado state court, alleging they refused to provide the repair parts, software and technical documentation that state law now requires manufacturers to make available to independent repair businesses.

  • September 08, 2026

    W.Va. AG Calls Pa. Alternative Energy Laws Unconstitutional

    West Virginia Attorney General J.B. McCuskey has filed a federal lawsuit over Pennsylvania laws that limit most of the Keystone State's "alternative energy credits" to in-state power producers, arguing that shutting out sources from other states violates the dormant commerce clause of the U.S. Constitution.

  • September 08, 2026

    Ex-Conn. Lawmaker Is Denied New Trial, Slips 3 Fraud Counts

    Former Connecticut state Sen. Dennis A. Bradley Jr. will not receive a new trial on charges that he improperly collected public campaign funds, but a federal judge has reversed his convictions on three counts in a wire fraud case centered around a 2018 party that he claimed was hosted by his law firm.

  • September 08, 2026

    Canada Defends Retaliatory Tariffs Against US As Necessary

    Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney defended Canada's retaliatory tariffs against the U.S. as they went into effect Tuesday, saying they are needed to protect Canadian workers and industries from President Donald Trump's latest trade war action.

  • September 08, 2026

    Calif. Urges Justices To Let Paramount Merger Case Play Out

    California and other state enforcers that are challenging Paramount Skydance Corp.'s planned $110 billion purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery have urged the U.S. Supreme Court not to expedite Iowa and Montana's case seeking to block the merger challenge.

  • September 08, 2026

    CIT Backs Commerce's Reworked Korean Wind Tower Rate

    The U.S. Department of Commerce properly justified revised antidumping duty rate calculations for certain Korean wind tower imports, according to a U.S. Court of International Trade opinion that blessed a new rate for the products over stakeholder objections.

  • September 08, 2026

    DC Circ. Affirms Injunction Against IRS-ICE Data Sharing

    The D.C. Circuit affirmed a lower court's preliminary injunction Tuesday barring the IRS from sharing taxpayer data with immigration authorities, finding that the coalition challenging the deal has standing and that the arrangement likely violates the law.

  • September 08, 2026

    DOJ, Pinnacle Reach RealPage Rent-Fixing Settlement

    The federal government wants to settle its antitrust claims against Cushman & Wakefield unit Pinnacle Property Management Services LLC, which was accused in North Carolina federal court of using property management software company RealPage Inc.'s revenue management technology to fix rental prices, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

  • September 08, 2026

    Hemp Cos. Win Block Of New Ohio THC Regulations

    An Ohio federal judge has agreed to block enforcement of a new state law classifying any product with more than 0.3% THC as cannabis, finding the hemp companies have sufficiently shown that the law violates the dormant commerce clause by unfairly discriminating against out-of-state actors.

  • September 08, 2026

    Ed Martin Joins Trump Ally's Think Tank

    Ed Martin, the recently departed White House pardon attorney, has joined a conservative policy think tank started by a key ally of President Donald Trump.

  • September 08, 2026

    Asian Plywood Imports Harming US Industry, ITC Finds

    The U.S. International Trade Commission said Tuesday that hardwood and decorative plywood imports from China, Indonesia and Vietnam determined by the Commerce Department to be sold at unfair prices are harming domestic industry, setting up Commerce to issue duty orders against the products.

  • September 07, 2026

    Missouri Asks Justices To Prevent Election 'Disaster'

    Missouri has implored the U.S. Supreme Court to stay the state high court's ruling prohibiting the use of a new congressional map drawn to help Republicans in this year's midterms and requiring the map be submitted for voter approval, claiming the decision will create an unconstitutional "disaster." 

  • September 07, 2026

    USPS Asks High Court To Allow 'Modest' Mail Ballot Rules

    The Trump administration has once again asked the U.S. Supreme Court to lift a Massachusetts federal judge's order barring the U.S. Postal Service from enforcing new mail-in ballot regulations ahead of this year's midterms, arguing the "modest" changes are well within USPS' authority and don't affect election administration. 

  • September 04, 2026

    Feds Can't Force NJ To Assist ICE Efforts, Judge Says

    A New Jersey federal judge Friday tossed the Trump administration's suit challenging Gov. Mikie Sherrill's February executive order limiting immigration officials' access to state property without a warrant, saying the federal government cannot commandeer state resources.

Expert Analysis

  • Immigration Ruling Maps Alternative To Universal Injunctions

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    A Rhode Island federal court's decision in Dorcas International Institute of Rhode Island v. USCIS vacating policies that froze key immigration adjudications for nationals of 39 countries, and paused asylum applications altogether, suggests how practitioners might press for the Administrative Procedure Act's bad faith exception to record review and seek vacatur as a viable alternative to universal injunctions, says Kemal Hepsen at Mandamus Lawyers.

  • New Va. Finance Laws Signal Consumer Protection Push

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    Virginia's 2026 legislative session produced several noteworthy developments for financial institutions, including garnishment reforms, mortgage assumption requirements and debt collection reforms, signaling broader trends toward increased consumer protection, enhanced fraud prevention obligations and greater accountability in financial services operations, says Jay Spruill at Woods Rogers.

  • How Montgomery Ruling Will Affect Cos. Across Supply Chain

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    Since the U.S. Supreme Court's May 14 decision in Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, the immediate focus has been on freight brokers and negligent carrier-selection claims, but the ripple effects may extend to shippers, logistics providers, insurers, transportation managers and other participants in the supply chain, say attorneys at Quintairos Prieto.

  • High Court's FCC Fine Ruling Reframes Agency Enforcement

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Federal Communications Commission v. AT&T sweeps aside uncertainty about what kinds of regulatory enforcement trigger a Seventh Amendment right, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • How Maine's Expanded Health Deal Reviews Complicate M&A

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    A pair of recently approved Maine competition laws establish notice and approval requirements for certain healthcare transactions and expand state antitrust oversight, creating new hurdles for dealmakers as states take a more aggressive role in policing healthcare consolidation, especially involving private equity, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • Opinion

    Congress Must Resolve Growing Subchapter V Uncertainty

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    Congress must pass a bill to permanently restore the Subchapter V debt limit and clarify several other key points of the law to prevent a practical restructuring tool from becoming a costly procedural morass, says Ted Gavin at Gavin Solmonese.

  • CFTC Policy Substantially Expands Self-Reporting Incentives

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    A recent U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission policy moves from a mitigation-centered model to prioritizing declination for early self-reporting and full cooperation, reflecting a deliberate effort to harmonize voluntary self-disclosure incentives across the federal enforcement authorities, say attorneys at Sullivan & Cromwell.

  • Opinion

    Exxon Shareholders Were Right To Save New Voting Program

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    Following Exxon shareholders’ recent vote that rejected a bid to dismantle the company’s new retail voting program, other companies should replicate it as a way to lower the friction for shareholders who already vote with the board to keep doing so without wrestling a ballot every spring, says J.W. Verret at the Antonin Scalia Law School.

  • Series

    Choral Singing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Singing in the New York City Bar Chorus — a hobby partly inspired by the late U.S. District Judge Richard Owen, who infused my clerkship year with opera music — has improved my legal career by refining my abilities to listen, exude confidence and develop emotional intelligence, says Bonnie Baker at Friedman Kaplan.

  • What Ratings Overhaul May Mean For Banking Industry

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    Proposed revisions to the bank rating system commonly known as CAMELS could constrain examiner discretion and tie supervisory outcomes more closely to measurable financial risk, potentially saving compliance costs, reducing the frequency of ratings downgrades and spurring a more growth-oriented banking system, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Series

    Illinois Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

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    The last three months were particularly consequential for Illinois banking law, with a federal court ruling reshaping the Interchange Fee Prohibition Act, the state filling enforcement gaps, significant legislative activity and a revision to the community bank leverage ratio, say attorneys at Riley Safer.

  • Attorney Mental Health Is An Ethical Obligation In The AI Era

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    As attorneys cope with the increasing unpredictability that artificial intelligence and constant policy changes have created, particularly in practice areas where they carry the emotional weight of clients’ most consequential life events, otherwise soft discussions about self-care are a matter of professional competence, says attorney Jack Jrada.

  • Md. Ruling Reflects Classic Administrative Law Principle

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    A Maryland federal court's recent decision in Columbus v. Kennedy significantly limits how far the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services can go in reshaping the Affordable Care Act through regulation, highlighting a principle that will likely be applied in similar Administrative Procedure Act challenges, says Michael King at Brownstein Hyatt.

  • DOJ China Container Indictments Signal Global Cartel Risk

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's recent announcement that it had indicted Chinese manufacturers for conspiring to drive up the price of shipping containers sold in the U.S. illustrates the Antitrust Division's interest in pursuing overseas cartel conduct, especially in China, signaling that multinational companies with employees abroad should strengthen antitrust compliance to avoid running afoul of U.S. national security policy, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • More Cos. Will Copy SpaceX's Shareholder Proposal Opt-Out

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    For more than 80 years, the shareholder proposal looked like a federal right guaranteed to all public company investors, but after SpaceX opted out before its recent initial public offering, other companies are likely to follow, says Mohsen Manesh at the University of Oregon School of Law.

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