Public Policy

  • July 07, 2026

    ​​​​​​​Top Groups Lobbying The FCC

    The Federal Communications Commission heard from lobbyists more than 140 times in June, with AT&T at the front of the pack hoping to convince the agency to preempt California rules that the telecom giant says are hindering network modernization.

  • July 07, 2026

    5 Midyear White Collar Trends To Watch

    The practice of white collar criminal defense is fraught with uncertainty halfway into 2026 as lawyers try to navigate upheaval in the U.S. Department of Justice, the prospect of big changes in Congress and the rapidly developing use of artificial intelligence.

  • July 07, 2026

    DC Circ. Backs Tax Bribery Convictions Despite Jury Error

    A D.C. Circuit panel refused on Tuesday to reverse a lower court's judgments against two men in connection to a bribery scheme carried out to evade $2.3 million in business tax obligations, finding a jury instruction error "harmless," among other unsuccessful arguments.

  • July 07, 2026

    NC Gov. Signs Delayed Budget Gutting Civil Legal Aid Grants

    North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein on Tuesday signed into law the state's long-overdue budget, which includes a provision that largely strips funding for civil legal aid services provided by the state's Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts program.

  • July 07, 2026

    Consumer Says Graco, Newell Owe Tariff Refunds

    Graco Children's Products Inc. and Newell Brands Inc. have been hit with a proposed class action in Georgia federal court over allegations that they retained windfall profits from unlawful tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

  • July 07, 2026

    Dem Sens. Probe CEOs On Trump-IRS Settlement Immunity

    Three senior Democratic senators are investigating whether several companies with ties to President Donald Trump are benefiting from what they alleged was immunity for him, his family and his businesses in the settlement he reached with the Internal Revenue Service. 

  • July 07, 2026

    Exxon Seeks $324M Judgment In Dispute On Qatar Deal Tax

    Exxon asked a Texas federal court to rule that it's owed a $273 million tax refund and $51 million in penalties in a dispute with the U.S. government over the tax treatment of a natural gas deal with Qatar.

  • July 07, 2026

    NYC Hits Walgreens, 3 Others With $2.3M In Wage Fines

    New York City has secured more than $2.3 million in settlements from four companies including Walgreens for violating worker scheduling and paid time off protections, the city's consumer and worker protection agency announced Monday.

  • July 07, 2026

    DHS Says Warrantless Entry Challengers Lack Injury

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security hit back at a lawsuit from three immigrant advocacy groups challenging a policy memo authorizing ICE officers to enter private homes without a judicial warrant, saying the groups have not been personally harmed.

  • July 07, 2026

    11th Circ. Upholds Block of Fla. 'Stop WOKE' Law

    The Eleventh Circuit upheld a lower court's preliminary injunction on a Florida law that restricts classroom discussion of race and gender, finding on Tuesday that the law violates the First Amendment's free speech protections. 

  • July 07, 2026

    Data Co. Not Covered In Meta Glasses Privacy Suit, Court Told

    A data annotation company accused of using private recordings collected by Meta's smart glasses to train artificial intelligence models is not entitled to insurance coverage, a Travelers unit told a California federal court, saying the company's policy bars coverage for the wrongful collection of protected personal information.

  • July 07, 2026

    CFPB Eyes Credit-Card Late Fees For Possible Rulemaking

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is readying a request for information on credit-card late fees, signaling a renewed look at an affordability issue that the agency's Biden-era $8 fee cap sought to address before banking industry opposition helped sink it in court.

  • July 07, 2026

    Feds Push 3rd Circ. To Restore ACA Birth Control Exemptions

    Lawyers for the Trump administration and a Catholic religious order Tuesday asked the Third Circuit to restore broad exemptions to the Affordable Care Act's birth control coverage mandate, arguing federal agencies had discretion to pass rules that effectively enabled employers to "opt in" to the mandate rather than opt out.

  • July 07, 2026

    NJ Union Loses Appeal In Insurance Opt-Out Arbitration Row

    A New Jersey appellate panel Tuesday affirmed a state labor agency's decision blocking arbitration over Essex County's refusal to pay health insurance opt-out reimbursements to correction officers who receive state health benefits through their spouses, finding state law preempted the union's grievance.

  • July 07, 2026

    USPTO To Set Up Outreach Centers At Ga., Ala. HBCUs

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is planning to launch projects in Georgia and Alabama to connect historically Black colleges and universities in those states with partners to help develop and commercialize inventions.

  • July 07, 2026

    Women's Law Group Asks FCC To Ditch Plan For 'The View'

    The National Women's Law Center has asked the Federal Communications Commission to drop potential plans to withdraw its "bona fide news" exemption for ABC's "The View" over concerns it would amount to censorship.

  • July 07, 2026

    5th Circ. Again Nixes Challenge To La. 340B Drug Delivery Law

    A Fifth Circuit panel doubled down on its decision to uphold a Louisiana law prohibiting drug manufacturers from blocking contracts between pharmacies and providers in the federal 340B drug discount program, reiterating that conclusion upon rehearing but this time allowing intervention by an advocacy group.

  • July 07, 2026

    House Dems Push To Ban Judges From Prediction Markets

    Ranking members of the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday called on the federal judiciary to ban judges from taking part in prediction markets amid growing concerns that court-related wagers could undermine judicial integrity.

  • July 07, 2026

    NJ Panel Backs Atty's Trimmed Government Pension Credits

    A New Jersey state appeals court said the state's public employee pension system was right to shave eight years of service off a government prosecutor's retirement credits, finding he couldn't skirt a change in law that blocked contractors of professional services from collecting benefits.

  • July 07, 2026

    Consultant Says FARA Verdict Should Be Erased

    A political consultant convicted of knowingly failing to register as a foreign agent as she helped draft a $50 million contract involving a former congressman and Venezuela's state-owned oil enterprise continues to argue she should be acquitted or given a new trial, saying the verdict was "against the great weight of the evidence."

  • July 07, 2026

    Kansas Tribe Looks To Block Lottery Sales On Its Reservation

    The Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation is asking a district court to block the Kansas Lottery from offering games on its reservation, arguing that the sales are a direct violation of federal and tribal laws that require the tribe to have sole proprietary interest in all Class III gaming.

  • July 07, 2026

    IOC Lets Russia Back Into Olympics Over Ukrainian Protests

    The International Olympic Committee on Tuesday lifted the suspension of Russia and its athletes put in place shortly after the country invaded Ukraine, with Ukraine's Olympic committee saying that the IOC's move set "a dangerous precedent.''

  • July 07, 2026

    Legal Tech Co. Drops Suit After Anthropic Embargo Is Lifted

    Legal tech company Legion has voluntarily dropped its claims against the Commerce Department over an order forcing artificial intelligence platform Anthropic to shut down two of its advanced models to foreigners, days after news broke that the government had rescinded the directive.

  • July 07, 2026

    10th Circ. Revives Voter Intimidation Suit Over Canvassing

    The Tenth Circuit revived voter intimidation claims against three Colorado election activists and a private group they formed to investigate alleged voter fraud after the 2020 election, holding that a lower court wrongly tossed the group from the case and too narrowly limited evidence about its canvassing campaign.

  • July 07, 2026

    Justices To Defend Court's Budget In Rare Hill Testimony

    U.S. Supreme Court Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Elena Kagan will testify before House and Senate committees on July 14, marking the first time in seven years that a sitting justice has gone before lawmakers.

Expert Analysis

  • Calif. Case Raises Questions For Medical Practice Investors

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    The California attorney general's amicus brief in Art Center v. WCE and the California Medical Association's response highlight how the California appeals court's ruling could significantly affect the structure and enforceability of succession arrangements in medical practice ownership, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Previewing FDA Preapproval Access In Psychedelics EO

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    The second of two pathways for psychedelic drug access outlined in President Donald Trump's recent executive order constitutes an unprecedented expansion of the Right to Try Act, which could fundamentally alter the psychedelic access landscape while presenting significant regulatory, operational and legal challenges, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • How Data Center Accounting May Draw Enforcement Scrutiny

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    As public and media scrutiny of the data center industry intensifies, regulators, enforcement authorities and Congress will likely focus on accounting judgments that rely on aggressive assumptions, opaque financing structures or rapidly evolving collateral classes, heightening the risk of investigations and inquiries, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • NY's Growing Enviro Reg Framework Will Transform Projects

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    Three closely connected environmental rulemakings in New York state — concerning greenhouse gas reporting, remediation standards and amendments to the State Environmental Quality Review Act — have reached critical stages, and taken together, they will have major impacts on business operations, construction project timelines and transactional risk, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Main St. Bank Bill Could Spur Lending, Ease Barriers To Entry

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    Recently approved by the U.S. House Financial Services Committee, the Main Street Capital Access Act, if passed, would provide senior bank leadership with a framework that could influence how banks pursue growth, particularly at community and regional midsize institutions, says Melody Charlton at FBT Gibbons.

  • Previewing FDA National Priority Vouchers In Psychedelics EO

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    President Donald Trump's recent executive order on psychedelic drug access represents a watershed moment in federal drug policy, but its significance lies in two distinct regulatory pathways, the first being the Commissioner's National Priority Vouchers, which offer a significant opportunity to compress U.S. Food and Drug Administration review, say Kimberly Chew at Husch Blackwell and Odette Hauke at Odette Alina.

  • Series

    Playing Magic: The Gathering Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The competitive card game Magic: The Gathering offers me a training ground for the strategic thinking skills crucial to litigation, challenging me to adapt to oft-updated rules, analyze text as complicated as any statute and anticipate my opponent’s next moves, says Christopher Smith at Lash Goldberg.

  • Why Product-Based Public Nuisance Claims May Be Waning

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    The Maryland Supreme Court's recent decision in Express Scripts v. Anne Arundel County is the latest in a national trend of rulings rejecting product-based public nuisance claims — but other forms of government litigation against companies that allegedly increase the cost of public services are likely to continue, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • How Banks And Fintechs Can Build COPPA-Ready Youth Apps

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    Recent Children's Online Privacy Protection Act and state law activity expanding children's data protections underscore compliance considerations for bank-fintech partnerships offering digital financial tech products for youth, including age-gating, data minimization and parental control, says Erin Illman at Bradley Arant.

  • State Of Insurance: Q1 Notes From Illinois

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    Matthew Fortin at BatesCarey discusses notable insurance developments in Illinois, including the state Supreme Court's highly anticipated Griffith Foods v. National Union Fire Insurance ruling, two bulletins from the Department of Insurance directed at public adjusters and a Seventh Circuit decision precluding a "super excess" tier of coverage.

  • Improving Well-Being In Law, 10 Years After Landmark Study

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    An important 2016 study revealed significant substance abuse and mental health issues among lawyers, and while the findings helped normalize the conversation around these topics, a decade later, structural change is still needed, says Denise Robinson at PLI.

  • How To Gear Up For Trump's Pharma Tariffs

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    President Donald Trump's proclamation establishing tariffs on certain pharmaceutical products holds a few areas of ambiguity that companies should review and prepare for before the tariffs come into effect later this year, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Mapping Bank Exec Clawback Risk Ahead Of Revived Bill

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    The reintroduction of the Failed Bank Executives Clawback Act would allow recovery of executive compensation after bank failures, making it important for executives and counsel to take steps such as mapping compensation, reviewing employment agreements, documenting decisions, and confirming D&O insurance, says Drew Jones at Diamond McCarthy.

  • AG Watch: Texas Charts A Course On Investigative Authority

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    The Texas Supreme Court's recent decision in Texas v. PFLAG affirmed, and arguably expanded, the Texas attorney general's civil investigative demand authority, providing a road map that other courts evaluating state attorney general CIDs may find instructive, amid a lack of precedent, say attorneys at Kelley Drye.

  • 8 Reasons To Consider Maryland As A 'DExit' Option

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    While Nevada and Texas have garnered the most attention as alternative states of incorporation for companies considering leaving Delaware, Maryland offers considerable benefits too, including a predictable statutory framework, robust anti-takeover protections, sophisticated business courts with decades of experience, and more, say attorneys at Miles & Stockbridge.

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