Aerospace & Defense

  • November 14, 2024

    Soldier Wants 4th Circ. Redo In Fluor Bombing Case

    An American soldier who was left with multiple neurological disabilities after a suicide bombing at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan called for a rehearing on the Fourth Circuit's split panel decision not to revive his tort claims against Fluor Corp., the contractor who hired the bomber to work the airfield.

  • November 14, 2024

    Boeing Could Sell Navigation Unit For $6B, And More Rumors

    Boeing is mulling a sale of its Jeppesen navigation unit at potential $6 billion price tag, Pfizer may be seeking billions for its hospital drug unit, and a U.S. gas station and convenience store business could be sold at a $1.5 billion value. Here, Law360 breaks down these and other notable deal rumors from the past week.

  • November 13, 2024

    Chinese Hackers Stole Call Data From Telecom Cos., Feds Say

    The FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency announced Wednesday that they have identified individuals associated with the Chinese government who have hacked into the networks of multiple telecommunications companies in search of private communications of people involved in government and political activity.

  • November 13, 2024

    Conn. PFAS Judge Vexed By 'Messy' Pollution Source Query

    A Connecticut federal judge weighing the state's motion to remand a pollution lawsuit against 3M and other companies warned Wednesday that the government was advancing "messy" arguments about the sources of contamination, although he did find the case "interesting."

  • November 13, 2024

    CIA Official Charged Over Doc Leak Of Israel Attack Plans

    A CIA official has been arrested in Cambodia on Monday after being charged in Virginia federal court with leaking top secret government documents related to Israel's military attack plans against Iran, according to court documents and reports. 

  • November 13, 2024

    Claims Court Denies 'Creative' Bid For Losing Protester's Fees

    A government contractor fronted by former Pittsburgh Steeler Rocky Bleier was "creative" in its request for attorney fees following its failed bid protest over a $14.7 million VA contract, but the U.S. Court of Federal Claims rejected the request in an order unsealed this week. 

  • November 13, 2024

    Judge Won't Rethink Mootness Of Air Force Vax Mandate Suit

    A Georgia federal judge on Tuesday refused to reconsider his finding that a challenge by U.S. Air Force personnel to the military's now-rescinded COVID-19 vaccination mandate on religious grounds is moot, holding there is no live controversy to keep the case going.

  • November 13, 2024

    Space Activities Need Licensing Latitude, Chamber Says

    The Federal Communications Commission could stifle in-space manufacturing growth if it decides to license new space stations only for individual services instead of broader, category-wide uses, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said.

  • November 13, 2024

    GAO Snubs Co.'s Protest Of Air Force Order Awarded Rival

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office has rebuffed an Ohio company's protest of a U.S. Air Force task order being awarded to a competitor, finding that the information technology, engineering and professional services company has provided insufficient documentation to support its proposal.

  • November 13, 2024

    DOD Issues Strategy For Military Base Private 5G Networks

    The U.S. Department of Defense released its strategy for deploying private 5G networks that are upgraded and specifically tailored for needs that can't be met by public commercial networks.

  • November 13, 2024

    Trump Picks Former Democrat Gabbard For Intelligence Chief

    President-elect Donald Trump said Wednesday that he had chosen former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard as his nominee for director of national intelligence, also confirming he had chosen Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., as his secretary of state.

  • November 13, 2024

    Feds Ink $52M Deal Over Phony Vet Gov't Contract Scheme

    Virginia-based contractor Paragon Systems Inc. has agreed to pay the U.S. government $52 million to settle claims that the company knowingly engaged in a fraudulent scheme to use small businesses that it controlled to obtain contracts reserved for veteran-owned or socially or economically disadvantaged businesses and that its executives received monetary kickbacks.

  • November 13, 2024

    Menendez Prosecutors Admit Evidence Gaffe But Deny Harm

    Prosecutors in former U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez's corruption case told a federal judge Wednesday they accidentally violated a court order when they gave jurors nine exhibits containing information that should have been redacted, but said the error played no part in the guilty verdict.

  • November 12, 2024

    Trump Taps Elon Musk To Head New 'Gov't Efficiency' Dept.

    President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday that billionaire Elon Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy will lead a newly created "Department in Government Efficiency" for his administration come January.

  • November 12, 2024

    Trump Gathers Nat'l Security Team For Border, Defense Roles

    President-elect Donald Trump has chosen a slate of loyalists with hawkish approaches toward foreign policy and securing the U.S. border, creating a team of ideologically aligned officials as he seeks to ramp up deportations and end the war in Ukraine. Law360 takes a look at seven of his national security picks and the impact they will have on defense, immigration and foreign relations with rival nations.

  • November 12, 2024

    Colo. Justices Pass On School ADA Fight Over Veteran's Dog

    The Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday denied a bid by a state university to review an appellate finding that the school may have pried too deeply with its inquiries into a veteran's service dog and relied on an outdated rationale for seeking additional info.

  • November 12, 2024

    Split DC Circ. Says White House Can't Issue NEPA Regs

    A divided D.C. Circuit determined Tuesday that the White House Council on Environmental Quality lacks the authority to issue legally binding regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act, finding there is no statutory language showing Congress empowered it to do so.

  • November 12, 2024

    Huawei Urges Judge To Toss US IP Theft, Fraud Charges

    China's Huawei Technologies and its affiliates have asked a Brooklyn federal judge to dismiss the majority of a criminal indictment, slamming allegations that it tried to steal intellectual property from U.S. rivals and deceived banks and the U.S. government about its business dealings with sanctioned countries.

  • November 12, 2024

    Trump Ally Bannon Seeks Delay Of 'We Build The Wall' Trial

    Former Trump administration strategist Stephen Bannon on Tuesday sought to delay his criminal trial on New York state charges stemming from an alleged scheme to con donors seeking to fund a southern U.S. border wall, two weeks after he wrapped up his federal prison sentence for contempt of Congress.

  • November 12, 2024

    SEC, SolarWinds Walk Away From Settlement Talks

    Settlement negotiations between the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and software developer SolarWinds Corp. reached an impasse Tuesday, with the parties telling a New York federal judge that they did not feel it was worthwhile to continue discussing a possible end to the novel enforcement action.

  • November 12, 2024

    Feds Want Pasadena Claims Tossed In Caltech Pollution Suit

    The U.S. government is urging a California federal court to throw out cross-claims from the city of Pasadena in a suit over groundwater contamination from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's work in the mid-20th century, saying the city is wrongly conflating claims against the California Institute of Technology and the government.

  • November 12, 2024

    Freshfields Adds Ex-DOJ Atty To Co-Lead Investigations Team

    Freshfields has added the former associate deputy attorney general at the U.S. Department of Justice as the firm's new co-chair of its congressional investigations team, according to an announcement Tuesday.

  • November 12, 2024

    Ex-National Guardsman Gets 15 Years For Top Secret Leaks

    A former Massachusetts Air National Guardsman who leaked top secret Pentagon documents on the social media network Discord was sentenced Tuesday to 15 years in prison for a breach that federal prosecutors have said caused "exceptionally grave and long-lasting damage" to national security.

  • November 12, 2024

    Jury Holds CACI Liable For $42M Over Abu Ghraib Torture

    A Virginia federal jury ruled Tuesday that defense contractor CACI must pay $42 million to former prisoners at Iraq's Abu Ghraib military prison, finding it conspired in their torture by the U.S. military.

  • November 12, 2024

    Justices Won't Review Family's Suit Over Airport Searches

    The U.S. Supreme Court declined Tuesday to review the dismissal of a Muslim family's challenge to their possible inclusion on a terrorist watchlist.

Expert Analysis

  • IP Concerns For Manufacturing Semiconductors In Low Orbit

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    With space habitation companies working to launch private space stations in the near future, semiconductor manufacturers aiming to execute research and development in low or microgravity must consider the unique claim drafting and patent protection issues that will emerge, says Greg Miraglia at Quinn Emanuel.

  • $200M RTX Deal Underscores Need For M&A Due Diligence

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    RTX's settlement with regulators for violating defense export regulations offers valuable compliance lessons, showcasing the perils of insufficient due diligence during mergers and acquisitions transactions along with the need to ensure remediation measures are fully implemented following noncompliance, say Thad McBride and Faith Dibble at Bass Berry.

  • Taking Stock Of FCC's New Spectrum Rule For Drones

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    While an order recently adopted by the Federal Communications Commission is intended to provide drones with rapid access to a limited amount of spectrum in the 5030-5091 megahertz band, the commission envisions an incremental approach to full usage that will play out over the course of the coming months and years, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Series

    Round-Canopy Parachuting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Similar to the practice of law, jumping from an in-flight airplane with nothing but training and a few yards of parachute silk is a demanding and stressful endeavor, and the experience has bolstered my legal practice by enhancing my focus, teamwork skills and sense of perspective, says Thomas Salerno at Stinson.

  • Navigating Restrictions Following Biotech Bill House Passage

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    Ahead of the BIOSECURE Act’s potential enactment, companies that obtain equipment from certain Chinese biotechnology companies should consider whether the act would restrict their ability to enter into contracts with the U.S. government and what steps they might take in response, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Dealmaker Lessons From CFIUS' New Enforcement Webpage

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    The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States’ recently launched webpage, which details the actions — and inactions — that led to enforcement activity, provides important insights for dealmakers about filing requirements, mitigation commitments and the cost of noncompliance, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Why Now Is The Time For Law Firms To Hire Lateral Partners

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    Partner and associate mobility data from the second quarter of this year suggest that there's never been a better time in recent years for law firms to hire lateral candidates, particularly experienced partners — though this necessitates an understanding of potential red flags, say Julie Henson and Greg Hamman at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.

  • Considering Possible PR Risks Of Certain Legal Tactics

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    Disney and American Airlines recently abandoned certain litigation tactics in two lawsuits after fierce public backlash, illustrating why corporate counsel should consider the reputational implications of any legal strategy and partner with their communications teams to preempt public relations concerns, says Chris Gidez at G7 Reputation Advisory.

  • How Increased Sanctions Scrutiny Is Affecting Debt Markets

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    U.S. sanctions and export control regulators have recently taken several steps that broaden financial sector oversight, and banks, lenders and borrowers must adapt their syndication and risk assessment processes in different ways or risk incurring substantial penalties, say Cristina Brayton-Lewis and Kerrick Seay at White & Case.

  • It's No Longer Enough For Firms To Be Trusted Advisers

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    Amid fierce competition for business, the transactional “trusted adviser” paradigm from which most firms operate is no longer sufficient — they should instead aim to become trusted partners with their most valuable clients, says Stuart Maister at Strategic Narrative.

  • An Overview Of New Export Controls On Advanced Tech

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    With a new rule that took effect this month, the U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security continues to expand export controls on advanced technologies, including semiconductor, additive manufacturing and quantum computing, in coordination with international partners, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • 3 Patent Considerations For America's New Quantum Hub

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    Recent developments signal an incredibly bright future for Chicago as the new home of quantum computing, and it is crucial that these innovators — whose technology has the potential to transform many industries — prioritize intellectual property strategy, says Andrew Velzen at McDonnell Boehnen.

  • SBA Proposal Materially Alters Contractor Recertification

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    The Small Business Administration's new proposed rule on recertification affects eligibility for set-aside contracts, significantly alters the landscape for mergers and acquisitions in the government contracts industry, and could have other unintended downstream consequences, says Sam Finnerty at PilieroMazza.

  • A Preview Of AI Priorities Under The Next President

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    For the first time in a presidential election, both of the leading candidates and their parties have been vocal about artificial intelligence policy, offering clues on the future of regulation as AI continues to advance and congressional action continues to stall, say attorneys at Mintz.

  • How Companies Are Approaching Insider Trading Policies

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    An analysis of insider trading policies recently disclosed by 49 S&P 500 companies under a new U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rule reveals that while specific provisions vary from company to company, certain common themes are emerging, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

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