Public Policy

  • May 12, 2025

    Full DC Circ. Won't Review Copyright Denial For AI-Created Art

    The D.C. Circuit on Monday denied a computer scientist's request for a three-judge panel rehearing or en banc review of an order that found copyright law protects only human creations, nixing his appeal that attempted to obtain copyright for a two-dimensional artwork made by the computer scientist's artificial intelligence system.

  • May 12, 2025

    Will Justices Finally Rein In Universal Injunctions?

    The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to address for the first time Thursday the propriety of universal injunctions, a tool federal judges have increasingly used to broadly halt presidential orders and policy initiatives, and whose validity has haunted the high court's merits and emergency dockets for more than a decade.

  • May 12, 2025

    Okla. Lawmaker Seeks Override Of Veto On Tribal Bill

    A Democratic Oklahoma state representative is looking to win a legislative override of Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt's veto of a bill that would have provided state money to fund investigations of missing and murdered Indigenous people, the lawmaker's office said Monday.

  • May 12, 2025

    Texas Judge Suspended Over Vote Harvesting Indictment

    A Texas county judge was suspended without pay Monday by the state's judicial disciplinary body in connection with a felony indictment charging her with taking part in a vote harvesting scheme related to the 2022 election.

  • May 12, 2025

    Texas Rep. Cuellar Argues He's Immune From Bribery Charges

    U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, on Friday moved to dismiss a 14-count indictment accusing him of accepting bribes in exchange for political favors, arguing it violates the immunity representatives are afforded under the Constitution's speech and debate clause.

  • May 12, 2025

    Arnold & Porter Adds Former US Ambassador In DC

    A veteran U.S. Department of State official with over 35 years of experience in federal government has made the move to Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP as a senior international policy adviser, the firm said Monday.

  • May 12, 2025

    Agencies Win Stay Of Mental Health Parity Rule Suit

    A D.C. federal court on Monday agreed to stay a suit from a benefits-focused employer trade group seeking to block a recently finalized mental health parity rule, after the DOL and other federal agencies told the court they plan to rescind or modify the rule.

  • May 12, 2025

    US, China Agree To Temporarily Cut Soaring Tariffs

    The U.S. will cut tariffs on most Chinese goods to 30% for 90 days while China will reduce tariffs on most U.S. goods to 10%, the countries announced Monday after the two governments agreed to relax soaring tariffs.

  • May 12, 2025

    AI Training May Need Licensing, Copyright Office Says

    Using copyrighted material to train generative artificial intelligence systems may not always be excused by fair use, the U.S. Copyright Office said in a highly anticipated report addressing the issue, suggesting that licensing may be required in some instances.

  • May 12, 2025

    Capital Group Inks $18.7M Deal With Conn. Housing Authority

    Titan Capital ID LLC on Monday accepted $18.7 million to settle a damages feud with a nonprofit tied to a Connecticut public housing authority, agreeing to drop an interest rate from 24% to 12% on an underlying $16.2 million promissory note while waiving an 8% late fee.

  • May 12, 2025

    Copyright Office Director Latest To Get Axed By Trump

    The Trump administration has fired the director of the U.S. Copyright Office, shortly after the office issued a report raising questions about the legality of using copyrighted material to train generative artificial-intelligence models and two days after the White House ousted the leader of the Library of Congress.

  • May 12, 2025

    GOP Floats $30,000 SALT Cap, Renewed R&D Credit

    House Ways and Means Republicans proposed a $30,000 state and local tax deduction cap and a renewed research and development credit in updated legislation to extend their 2017 tax overhaul law, which the committee plans to consider Tuesday.

  • May 12, 2025

    New York Medical Cannabis Industry Wary Of $15M Fee

    The large, vertically integrated companies that make up the Empire State's medical cannabis trade said Monday that Gov. Kathy Hochul's proposal to levy $15 million fees on dispensaries seeking to enter the recreational market would "doom" the industry.

  • May 09, 2025

    FTC Says Amazon Hid Doc Calling Bezos 'Dark Arts Officer'

    The Federal Trade Commission has urged a Seattle federal court to impose punitive sanctions on Amazon in the commission's lawsuit accusing the e-commerce giant of trapping consumers into Prime subscriptions, saying Amazon withheld tens of thousands of documents in bad faith by baselessly claiming the documents were privileged.

  • May 09, 2025

    Trump's Latest Sanctuary City Order Can't Avoid Injunction

    A California federal judge on Friday clarified that the Trump administration can't use the president's latest executive order targeting sanctuary cities and counties to evade a preliminary injunction blocking it from withholding federal funds from the local governments.

  • May 09, 2025

    Calif. Judge Blocks Trump's Gov't Reorganization, Job Cuts

    A California federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked federal agencies and Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency from carrying out President Donald Trump's directive to reduce the government workforce, saying the president doesn't have the constitutional or statutory authority "to reorganize the executive branch."

  • May 09, 2025

    Pa. Top Court Snapshot: Cap & Trade, Prosecutor Power

    The scope of powers held by the Pennsylvania governor, the attorney general, and state and local utility authorities will take center stage in Harrisburg when the state Supreme Court convenes for its May session.

  • May 09, 2025

    National Report Exposes Gaps In Missing Minority Cases

    A growing number of minority groups, including Indigenous and Black people, have gone missing and remain unaccounted for around the United States, and systemic disparities contribute to the failure of law enforcement to track and resolve cases, a new report said.

  • May 09, 2025

    'See You In Court:' Fired CPSC Commissioner Vows To Sue

    Consumer Product Safety Commissioner Richard Trumka Jr. said Friday that he plans to fight President Donald Trump's attempt to fire him, arguing that the president doesn't have the authority to sack members of the independent, bipartisan commission and telling Trump, "See you in court, Mr. President."

  • May 09, 2025

    Atlanta Sued Over Ex-Cop's Sexual Assault Of Teen

    The city of Atlanta and a former police officer were hit with a civil rights lawsuit from a mother and her teenage daughter who said the officer sexually assaulted the girl when he stopped under the guise of helping her after a serious car crash.

  • May 09, 2025

    Calif. Bar Seeks Provisional Licenses And More For Exam Snafu

    California Bar trustees voted on Friday to ask the state Supreme Court to grant provisional licenses to the hundreds of applicants who did not pass the tumultuous February bar exam, which was rife with technical, proctoring and procedural issues.

  • May 09, 2025

    Treasury Pushes To Ax Shareholders' FHFA Director Suit

    The federal government has said a Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shareholder complaint should be dismissed because it is "devoid of any allegations" that tenure protections for the Federal Housing Finance Agency's director affected their dividend payments. 

  • May 09, 2025

    SEC's Crypto Retreat Warrants Court Scrutiny, Crenshaw Says

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's lone Democratic member called on courts to "take a long hard look" at the agency's reversals in crypto enforcement matters in a scathing dissent of the agency's settlement with blockchain firm Ripple Labs, which she argued "undermines" earlier court decisions in the case.

  • May 09, 2025

    New Orleans Wants Out Of Airbnb's Short-Term Rentals Suit

    New Orleans urged a Louisiana federal court on Friday to toss a suit brought by Airbnb Inc. and multiple property owners challenging several of the city's short-term rental ordinances.

  • May 09, 2025

    Biden-Era Asylum Restrictions Mostly Struck Down

    A D.C. federal judge on Friday largely vacated a Biden-era rule that generally requires noncitizens to make an appointment through the CBP One mobile app at a port of entry to be eligible for asylum, finding it contravenes federal immigration law.

Expert Analysis

  • Foreign Countries Have Strong Foundation To Fill FCPA Void

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    Though the U.S. has paused enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, liberal democracies across the globe are well equipped to reverse any setback in anti-corruption enforcement, potentially heightening prosecution risk for companies headquartered in the U.S., says Stephen Kohn at Kohn Kohn.

  • How Attys Can Use A Therapy Model To Help Triggered Clients

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    Attorneys can lean on key principles from a psychotherapeutic paradigm known as the "Internal Family Systems" model to help manage triggered clients and get settlement negotiations back on track, says Jennifer Gibbs at Zelle.

  • A Tale Of Two Admins: Parsing 1st Half Of SEC's FY 2025

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    The first half of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's fiscal year 2025, which ended March 31, was unusually eventful, marked by a flurry of enforcement actions in the last three months of former Chair Gary Gensler's tenure and a prompt pivot after Inauguration Day, say attorneys at Jones Day.

  • A Closer Look At Amendments To Virginia Noncompete Ban

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    Recently passed amendments in Virignia will prohibit noncompetes for all employees who are eligible for overtime pay under federal law, and though the changes could simplify employers’ analyses as to restrictive covenant enforceability, it may require them to reassess and potentially adjust their use of noncompetes with some workers, say attorneys at McGuireWoods.

  • What Bank Regulator Consolidation Would Mean For Industry

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    Speculation over the Trump administration’s potential plans to consolidate financial service regulators is intensifying uncertainty, but no matter the outcome for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the industry should expect continued policy changes, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.

  • Getting Ahead Of The SEC's Continued Focus On Cyber, AI

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is showing it will continue to scrutinize actions involving cybersecurity and artificial intelligence, but there are proactive measures that companies and financial institutions can take to avoid regulatory scrutiny going forward, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Navigating Florida's Bad Faith Reforms After Appellate Ruling

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    A Florida appellate court's recent decision is among the first to interpret two significant amendments to the state's insurance bad faith law, and its holding that one of the statutes could not apply retroactively may affect insurers' interpretation of the other statute, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • 3 Steps For In-House Counsel To Assess Litigation Claims

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    Before a potential economic downturn, in-house attorneys should investigate whether their company is sitting on hidden litigation claims that could unlock large recoveries to help the business withstand tough times, says Will Burgess at Hilgers Graben.

  • IRS And ICE Info Sharing Could Drive Payroll Tax Enforcement

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    Tax crimes are historically difficult to prosecute, but the Internal Revenue Services’ recent agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to share taxpayer records of non-U.S. citizens could be used to enhance payroll tax-related enforcement against their employers, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Breaking Down Ill. Bellwether Case For Bank Preemption

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    The banking industry's pending lawsuit against the state of Illinois stands to permanently enjoin state regulation of bank card processing, as well as clarify the outstanding and consequential issue of whether conflict preemption continues to cover third parties in certain circumstances, says Tom Witherspoon at Stinson.

  • Despite SEC Climate Pause, Cos. Must Still Heed State Regs

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    While businesses may have been given a reprieve from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's rules aimed at standardizing climate-related disclosures, they must still track evolving requirements in states including California, Illinois, New Jersey and New York that will soon require reporting of direct and indirect carbon emissions, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • A Primer On The Trading And Clearing Of Perpetual Contracts

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    The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission recently released a request for comment on the trading and clearing of perpetual-style derivatives, most common in the cryptocurrency market, necessitating a deep look at how these contracts operate and their associated risks, say attorneys at Moore & Van Allen.

  • Series

    Teaching College Students Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Serving as an adjunct college professor has taught me the importance of building rapport, communicating effectively, and persuading individuals to critically analyze the difference between what they think and what they know — principles that have helped to improve my practice of law, says Sheria Clarke at Nelson Mullins.

  • 5 Areas Contractors Should Watch After 1st 100 Days

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    Federal agencies and contractors face challenges from staff reductions, contract terminations, pending regulatory reform and other actions from the second Trump administration's first 100 days, but other areas stand to become more efficient and cost-effective, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.

  • Planning For Open Banking Despite CFPB Uncertainty

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    Though pending litigation or new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau leadership may reshape the Biden-era regulation governing access to consumer financial data, companies can use this uncertain period to take practical steps toward an open banking strategy that will work regardless of the rule’s ultimate form, says Adam Maarec at McGlinchey Stafford.

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