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Public Policy
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May 01, 2024
Monsanto Gets $185 Million Wash. PCB Verdict Overturned
A Washington state appeals court sided with Monsanto on Wednesday, undoing a $185 million jury verdict for three teachers who claimed they were sickened by PCBs at a Washington school site and ruling the case could be limited by the Evergreen state's 12-year statute of repose for product liability claims.
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May 01, 2024
Republicans Say Bank Merger Reviews 'Need A Shot Clock'
House Republicans on Wednesday raised concerns with federal banking officials about how long it can take their agencies to sign off on proposed bank mergers, a long-standing industry complaint that the lawmakers say a tight "shot clock" could help address.
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May 01, 2024
Sens. Slam UnitedHealth's Security Lapses, Breach Response
UnitedHealth's top executive faced heavy criticism during his first appearance before a U.S. Senate committee since a cyberattack rocked its Change Healthcare subsidiary, with lawmakers blasting the company for lacking basic security measures and for still not being able to confirm the scale and scope of the incident.
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May 01, 2024
3 Takeaways From The DOJ's Cannabis Recommendation
The marijuana advocacy and business world responded with guarded optimism after the U.S. Department of Justice's announcement this week that it recommended relaxing restrictions on marijuana for the first time in more than 50 years.
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May 01, 2024
Future Is 'Bleak' If Judge Rejects Novant Merger, Court Hears
Novant Health on Wednesday sought to portray itself as the "last best hope" to save two struggling hospitals in North Carolina at the start of a multiday hearing in which the Federal Trade Commission is asking the court to squelch Novant's proposed $320 million merger.
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May 01, 2024
Pa. Justices Asked To Determine If Workers' Comp Covers CBD
An attorney representing himself — and, in a way, suing himself — will get an opportunity to convince the Pennsylvania Supreme Court that CBD oil and other nonprescription medicine should be covered by workers' compensation, according to a Tuesday order from the justices.
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May 01, 2024
Bipartisan Reps. Introduce Bill To Trace Battery Supply Chains
Environmental advocacy groups including the Sierra Club, Earthworks and SAFE have thrown their support behind a new bill to promote traceability in battery supply chains, a measure aimed at weeding bad labor and environmental practices out of the supply chain.
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May 01, 2024
NY Lawmakers Call For Cop-Shoving Judge's Replacement
New York State Senate Judiciary Committee members said that either the governor or senate should ensure Justice Mark Grisanti is ousted after an ethics panel opted not to remove the Buffalo judge who brawled with neighbors, shoved a cop and invoked his ties to power, among other unethical behavior.
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May 01, 2024
USPTO Outlines Plan To Boost Diversity In Innovation
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Wednesday unveiled a plan aimed at increasing innovation among young people and those from underrepresented backgrounds, calling on companies, governments and schools to make efforts to diversify and broaden their ranks.
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May 01, 2024
Colorado Asks Judge To Review New Kroger Spinoffs At Trial
Kroger can't throw a new divestiture plan on the table two months before discovery closes and then ask the court to consider it when deciding whether to hand down a preliminary injunction blocking its $25 billion union with Albertsons from moving forward, the state of Colorado says.
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May 01, 2024
Trump's Firm Can't Yet Withdraw After Atty-Client 'Breakdown'
A Manhattan federal judge won't yet allow the attorneys representing Donald Trump's campaign to withdraw from a pregnancy retaliation suit brought by a former campaign aide over what they called an "irreparable breakdown in the attorney-client relationship," but on Wednesday set a conference to review the request behind closed doors.
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May 01, 2024
Mich. Atty Can't Avoid Suspension For Frivolous Cases
The Michigan Attorney Discipline Board has said a 100-day suspension is appropriate for an attorney accused of filing frivolous claims and misleading federal and state courts while representing clients in cases against governmental entities and elected government officials.
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May 01, 2024
Texas 'Gave Away The Game' In ATF Suit, 5th Circ. Judge Says
A Fifth Circuit judge told Texas it "just gave away the game" by stating that the application for obtaining a firearm suppressor counts as the injury, asking how the state could contend it had experienced such an injury without having applied for a license to own a suppressor during oral arguments Wednesday in a suit challenging federal firearm regulations.
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May 01, 2024
Chamber Must Name Cos. It Reps In Noncompete Suit, FTC Says
The Federal Trade Commission has asked a Texas federal judge to limit the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to representing only named members in its challenge to the agency's pending noncompetes ban, arguing the trade group can't hide behind the First Amendment to represent "millions of undisclosed members."
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May 01, 2024
Ariz. AG Warns Repeal Of 1864 Abortion Ban May Be Too Late
Legislation narrowly adopted Wednesday to repeal Arizona's 1864 abortion law won't be enough on its own to keep the near-total ban from taking effect this summer, the state attorney general warned, because the bill lacks an emergency clause.
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May 01, 2024
Senate Revs Up For FAA Funding Fight
The U.S. Senate on Wednesday inched toward advancing multiyear legislation reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration's safety and airport improvement programs, accelerating debate on a package that would hire more air traffic controllers and enhance passenger protections amid high-profile aviation industry mishaps.
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May 01, 2024
Senate Dems Reintroduce Bill To Tax And Regulate Cannabis
Senate Democrats on Wednesday reintroduced a cannabis legalization bill that would remove the drug entirely from the ambit of the Controlled Substances Act and impose a tax-and-regulate scheme akin to what is currently in place for alcohol and tobacco.
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May 01, 2024
Colo. House OKs Tax Credits For Middle-Income Housing
The Colorado House approved a pilot program Wednesday to provide a tax credit to developers of housing aimed at middle-income residents
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May 01, 2024
DC Circ. Scrutinizes Social Welfare In Tribe's Land Trust Bid
The D.C. Circuit on Wednesday grappled with whether a Native American tribe's bid to compel the federal government to take land into trust for a casino venture would promote tribe members' social welfare, as one judge sounded wary of such a move's repercussions.
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May 01, 2024
Pa. Court Upholds University Cop's Firing Over Racist Posts
A Pennsylvania appeals court scrapped the reinstatement Wednesday of a Kutztown University police officer who was fired for sharing racist and offensive posts on his personal Facebook page, ruling that the arbitrator who gave him his job back improperly ignored anti-bias laws.
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May 01, 2024
9th Circ. Slams Door On Kids' Climate Case
The Ninth Circuit ordered an Oregon federal judge Wednesday to immediately dismiss a closely watched suit by young adults against the federal government over the effects of climate change, saying its earlier order to end the matter could not be brushed off.
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May 01, 2024
FCC Leaders Look To Boost Wireless Supply Chain Security
Federal Communications Commission members Wednesday unveiled a bipartisan plan to beef up wireless supply chain security by more tightly scrutinizing whether equipment labs are tied to foreign powers.
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May 01, 2024
Split 2nd Circ. Backs Arbitration Denial In ERISA Suit
A divided Second Circuit panel ruled Wednesday that a group of financial services companies can't compel individual arbitration of a proposed class action accusing them of overcharging an employee stock ownership plan, saying that doing so would prevent a plan participant from seeking planwide remedies authorized by federal benefits law.
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May 01, 2024
Middle East, North African Gov'ts Back UN For Corp. Tax Talks
Governments should make a high-level commitment to address corporate tax reform within the United Nations' framework convention on international tax cooperation, an intergovernmental group of Middle Eastern and North African countries said Wednesday.
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May 01, 2024
Biden Admin Sanctions Cos. Helping Russia Evade Curbs
The Biden administration on Wednesday set financial and visa restrictions on nearly 300 individuals and businesses abroad, including those suspected to be helping Russia evade existing sanctions and obtain critical defense materials.
Expert Analysis
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Opinion
NY Shouldn't Pair 421-a Restoration And Good Cause Eviction
The good cause eviction system of rent control should not be imposed in New York, nor should its legislation be tied to renewal of the 421-a tax abatement program, which New York City desperately needs, says Alexander Lycoyannis at Holland & Knight.
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Opinion
OFAC Should Loosen Restrictions On Arbitration Services
The Office of Foreign Assets Control regulations should be amended so that U.S. persons can provide arbitration services to sanctioned parties — this would help align OFAC policy with broader U.S. arbitration policy, promote efficiency, and effectively address related geopolitical and regulatory challenges, says Javier Coronado Diaz at Diaz Reus.
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Proposed RCRA Regs For PFAS: What Cos. Must Know
Two rules recently proposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency would lead to more per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances being regulated under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, and would increase the frequency and scope of corrective action — so affected industries should prepare for more significant cleanup efforts, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.
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7 Common Myths About Lateral Partner Moves
As lateral recruiting remains a key factor for law firm growth, partners considering a lateral move should be aware of a few commonly held myths — some of which contain a kernel of truth, and some of which are flat out wrong, says Dave Maurer at Major Lindsey.
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Basics Of Bank Regulators' Push For Discount Window Use
As the Federal Reserve and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency emphasize short-term liquidity risk management as central to preventing spring 2023-style bank collapses, banks should carefully tune into regulators’ remarks encouraging use of the Fed’s discount window, which some policymakers identify as a key component in the evolution of liquidity regulation and backstop lending, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.
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Proposed Hydrogen Tax Credit Regs May Be Legally Flawed
While the recently proposed regulations for the new clean hydrogen production tax credit have been lauded by some in the environmental community, it is unclear whether they are sufficiently grounded in law, result from valid rulemaking processes, or accord with other administrative law principles, say Hunter Johnston and Steven Dixon at Steptoe.
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No AI FRAUD Act Is A Significant Step For Right Of Publicity
The No Artificial Intelligence Fake Replicas and Unauthorized Duplications Act's proposed federal right of publicity protection, including post-mortem rights, represents a significant step toward harmonizing the landscape of right of publicity law, Rachel Hofstatter and Aaron Rosenthal at Honigman.
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How Broker-Dealers Can Prepare For New Remote Work Rules
Securities regulators recently expanded broker-dealers' ability to permit flexible remote working arrangements through the introduction of residential supervisory locations, a welcome change that better allows broker-dealers to attract and retain talent, say attorneys at King & Spalding.
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Series
Cheering In The NFL Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Balancing my time between a BigLaw career and my role as an NFL cheerleader has taught me that pursuing your passions outside of work is not a distraction, but rather an opportunity to harness important skills that can positively affect how you approach work and view success in your career, says Rachel Schuster at Sheppard Mullin.
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Perspectives
Compassionate Release Grants Needed Now More Than Ever
After the U.S. Sentencing Commission's recent expansion of the criteria for determining compassionate release eligibility, courts should grant such motions more frequently in light of the inherently dangerous conditions presented by increasingly understaffed and overpopulated federal prisons, say Alan Ellis and Mark Allenbaugh at the Law Offices of Alan Ellis.
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Communication Is Key As CFPB Updates Appeals Process
Though a recently updated Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule expands financial institutions' abilities to appeal supervisory decisions, creating strong relationships and open communication channels with CFPB examiners may help resolve disputes faster than the more cumbersome formal process, says Jason McElroy at Saul Ewing.
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Considerations For Disclosing AI Use In SEC Filings
Recent remarks from U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler should be heard as a clarion call for public companies to disclose artificial intelligence use, with four takeaways on what companies should disclose, says Richard Hong at Morrison Cohen.
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Unpacking The New Russia Sanctions And Export Controls
Although geographically broad new prohibitions the U.S., U.K. and EU issued last week are somewhat underwhelming in their efforts to target third-country facilitators of Russia sanctions evasion, companies with exposure to noncompliant jurisdictions should pay close attention to their potential impacts, say attorneys at Shearman.
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Args In APA Case Amplify Justices' Focus On Agency Power
In arguments last week in Corner Post v. Federal Reserve, the U.S. Supreme Court justices paid particular importance to the possible ripple effects of their decision, which will address when a facial challenge to long-standing federal rules under the Administrative Procedure Act first accrues and could thus unleash a flood of new lawsuits, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.
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After TikTok, Tiptoeing Toward Patent Transfer Alignment
Following the Fifth Circuit's TikTok decision, which aimed to standardize transfer analysis in patent cases, the Federal Circuit and Texas federal courts facing transfer requests have taken small steps to consider the practical realities of patent litigation, reinforcing the intensely factual focus of the analysis, says Charles Fowler at McKool Smith.