Public Policy

  • October 16, 2025

    US Attorney Nominations For Missouri And Indiana Advance

    The Senate Judiciary Committee voted to approve, along party lines, two U.S. attorney nominees for Missouri and Indiana on Thursday.

  • October 15, 2025

    Vought Aims To Close CFPB Within '2 Or 3 Months'

    White House budget chief Russell Vought said Wednesday that he wants to shutter the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and expects to succeed in the next few months, despite the Trump administration's claims in court that the agency is just being downsized.

  • October 15, 2025

    Top Del. Judge Details Views On Willful Infringement Issues

    A lawsuit cannot provide an accused infringer with the notice needed for a patent owner to allege indirect and willful infringement, and enhanced infringement demands aren't subject to dismissal motions, Delaware's top judge has ruled.

  • October 15, 2025

    OCC Conditionally OKs Palmer Luckey's Thiel-Backed Bank

    The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on Wednesday gave its initial green light to a new virtual currency-focused national bank backed by tech entrepreneurs Peter Thiel and Palmer Luckey, marking the first such approval for a new bank since Jonathan Gould was sworn in as Comptroller in July.

  • October 15, 2025

    Patent Examiners Facing Productivity Push, Higher Standards

    Officials at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Wednesday detailed changes to patent examiners' performance requirements, outlining increased productivity goals, heightened supervisory scrutiny, and more strenuous evaluation standards for the examiner corps.

  • October 15, 2025

    ICE Policies Harm Noncitizen Crime Survivors, Suit Says

    Legal advocacy groups and noncitizen victims of domestic violence and other serious crimes have lodged a proposed class action in California federal court, accusing the Trump administration of unlawfully ignoring deportation and exploitation protections that Congress took decades to craft.

  • October 15, 2025

    Goldstein Can't Dismiss 2016 Tax Charges As Time-Barred

    A Maryland federal judge denied SCOTUSblog co-founder Tom Goldstein's motion to dismiss four of the 22 federal tax charges brought against him in January, ruling that his defense that the counts stemming from the 2016 tax year should be time-barred will have to be raised at trial.

  • October 15, 2025

    Conn. Pot Licensing Program Is Discriminatory, Suit Says

    A would-be cannabis grower is challenging Connecticut's marijuana licensing program, claiming it unconstitutionally prioritizes in-state "social equity" applicants "above all others" in direct violation of the dormant commerce clause, according to a federal lawsuit.

  • October 15, 2025

    Trump Fundraiser Guilty Of Mar-A-Lago Straw Donor Scheme

    A New York man who raised funds for President Donald Trump's 2020 reelection campaign was found guilty Wednesday of making straw donor contributions under others' names, a scheme prosecutors said was partly intended to help Chinese nationals gain access to Trump.

  • October 15, 2025

    Court Ends Hemp Grower's Suit Over Seized Crop

    An Oregon cannabis cultivator can't sue the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on claims it failed to return 383 pounds of legal hemp mistakenly assumed to be illicit marijuana, a federal judge ruled, saying the government gets sovereign immunity.

  • October 15, 2025

    JPMorgan Dinged By Judge For Raising Arbitration Issue Late

    A Washington federal judge hinted on Wednesday that she's likely to stand by her past decision spurning JPMorgan Chase's attempt to force arbitration of a customer's racial discrimination claims, suggesting the bank lost its chance to make the points it's now relying on to persuade the court to reconsider.

  • October 15, 2025

    High Court Leans Toward Limiting Voting Rights Act Suits

    The U.S. Supreme Court's conservative supermajority seemed ready Wednesday to further limit the use of the Voting Rights Act in challenging alleged racial discrimination in legislative redistricting, but appeared divided over how to accomplish that.

  • October 15, 2025

    Proposed Bill Could Stall NFL Bears' Suburban Stadium Plan

    A member of the Illinois General Assembly has introduced a bill that could delay the Chicago Bears' efforts to build a stadium in the suburbs by requiring a 30-day window to review any proposed state or local agreements on new or renovated pro sports stadiums.

  • October 15, 2025

    Judge Won't Block Mich. Medicaid Mental Health Restructure

    A Michigan state judge has ruled that the Great Lakes State has the authority to competitively bid and restructure the geographic territory of prepaid inpatient health plans that manage mental health care for the state's Medicaid beneficiaries.

  • October 15, 2025

    FDIC's Hill Discusses Stablecoin Rulemaking Lift

    Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. acting Chairman Travis Hill said Wednesday that crafting a licensing regime for stablecoin issuers under his agency's purview will likely be relatively "straightforward," but the recently passed stablecoin legislation has also tasked banking regulators with thornier policy issues.

  • October 15, 2025

    Meat Industry Fights To Defend Nix Of Slaughterhouse Rules

    A meat and poultry industry group has told the Ninth Circuit it opposes green groups' challenge to the federal government's decision to rescind a Biden-era proposal that would have imposed stricter water discharge regulations on slaughtering, processing and rendering facilities.

  • October 15, 2025

    States Want To Keep Eye On $14B HPE-Juniper Deal Review

    The Justice Department is in the middle of trying to settle its challenge to Hewlett Packard Enterprise's $14 billion purchase of Juniper Networks, but a dozen states are now trying to get involved and have asked a California federal judge to allow them to intervene in the litigation.

  • October 15, 2025

    Some Sugar Producers Escape Info Sharing Claims

    A Minnesota federal court dismissed several major sugar producers from a case accusing them of sharing competitively sensitive information but is allowing claims against Domino and United Sugar Producers & Refiners to proceed.

  • October 15, 2025

    10th Circ. Restores Asylum Grant In 10-Year Immigration Fight

    A Tenth Circuit panel said a Honduran woman and her two children can remain in the U.S., ruling that the Board of Immigration Appeals misstepped when it overturned their grant of asylum for a second time in 10 years.

  • 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.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Judging Figure Skating Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Judging figure skating competitions helps me hone the focus, decisiveness and ability to process complex real-time information I need in court, but more importantly, it makes me reengage with a community and my identity outside of law, which, paradoxically, always brings me back to work feeling restored, says Megan Raymond at Groombridge Wu.

  • $100K H-1B Fee May Disrupt Rural Healthcare Needs

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    The Trump administration's newly imposed $100,000 supplemental fee on new H-1B petitions may disproportionately affect healthcare employers' ability to recruit international medical graduates, and the fee's national interest exceptions will not adequately solve ensuing problems for healthcare employers or medically underserved areas, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Series

    Calif. Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q3

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    The third quarter of 2025 brought legislative changes to state money transmission certification requirements and securities law obligations, as well as high-profile accounting and anti-money laundering compliance enforcement actions by the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • What Ethics Rules Say On Atty Discipline For Online Speech

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    Though law firms are free to discipline employees for their online commentary about Charlie Kirk or other social media activity, saying crude or insensitive things on the internet generally doesn’t subject attorneys to professional discipline under the Model Rules of Professional Conduct, says Stacie H. Rosenzweig at Halling & Cayo.

  • Balancing The Risks And Rewards Of Private Equity In 401(k)s

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    The recent executive order directing government agencies to consider encouraging private equity and other alternative investments in 401(k) plans does not change the fundamental fiduciary calculus or reduce risk, as success with private investments will depend on careful analysis of both participant demand and fiduciary obligations, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • What's At Stake In High Court's Ill. Ballot Deadline Case

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    In Bost v. Illinois State Board of Elections, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments next week on whether and when candidates for office have standing to bring prospective challenges to election laws, raising broader issues about the proper timing of federal court election litigation, say Richard Pildes and Samuel Ozer-Staton at NYU School of Law.

  • Kimmel 2nd Circ. Victory Holds Novel Copyright Lessons

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    The Second Circuit's recent decision in Santos v. Kimmel, dismissing a copyright infringement claim against Kimmel for airing Cameo videos recorded by former U.S. Rep George Santos, examines the unusual situation of copyrighted works created at the request of the alleged infringer, say attorneys at Venable.

  • 2 Rulings Highlight IRS' Uncertain Civil Fraud Penalty Powers

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    Conflicting decisions from the U.S. Tax Court and the Northern District of Texas that hinge on whether the IRS can administratively assert civil fraud penalties since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2024 decision in SEC v. Jarkesy provide both opportunities and potential pitfalls for taxpayers, says Michael Landman at Bird Marella.

  • SEC Fine Signals Crackdown On Security-Based Swap Dealers

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent fine against MUFG Securities is unique because it involves a non-U.S. security-based swap dealer complying with U.S. laws based on the election of substituted compliance, but it should not be dismissed as a one-off case, says Kelly Rock, formerly at the SEC.

  • Junior Attys Must Beware Of 5 Common Legal Brief Mistakes

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Junior law firm associates must be careful to avoid five common pitfalls when drafting legal briefs — from including every possible argument to not developing a theme — to build the reputation of a sought-after litigator, says James Argionis at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Expect DOJ To Repeat 4 Themes From 2024's FCPA Trials

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    As two upcoming Foreign Corrupt Practice Act trials approach, defense counsel should anticipate the U.S. Department of Justice to revive several of the same themes prosecutors leaned on in trials last year to motivate jurors to convict, and build counternarratives to neutralize these arguments, says James Koukios at MoFo.

  • As Student Loan Outlook Dims, What Happens To The Banks?

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    While much of the news around the student loan crisis focuses on the direct impact on young Americans' decreasing credit scores, the fate of the banks themselves — and the effect on banking policy — has been largely left out of the narrative, says Madeline Thieschafer at Fredrikson & Byron.

  • How Trade Fraud Task Force Launch Furthers Policy Goals

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    A new cross-agency trade fraud task force is the latest in a series of Trump administration efforts to leverage agency relationships in pursuit of its trade policy goals, and its creation signals a further uptick in customs enforcement, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Keys To Extended Producer Responsibility Compliance

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    As states' extended producer responsibility laws come into effect, reshaping packaging obligations for businesses, regulated entities should ensure they register with a producer responsibility organization, understand state-specific deadlines and obligations, and review packaging to improve recyclability and reduce compliance costs, say attorneys at Baker Donelson.

  • Digital Asset Report Opens Doors For Banks, But Risks Linger

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    A recent report from a White House working group discussing digital asset market structure signals how banks may elect to expand into digital asset custody, trading and related services in the years ahead, but the road remains layered with challenges, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.

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