Public Policy

  • February 06, 2025

    FCC Says No To Ohio Group's Bid For Low Power FM Station

    An Ohio church has come out on top in its battle to be awarded the rights to launch a low power FM station in its neck of the woods after the group it was up against was accused of knowingly listing a manager's dead grandmother on a license renewal application.

  • February 06, 2025

    Colo. Panel Upholds State Attys' Immunity In Defamation Row

    A Colorado appeals panel on Thursday upheld the dismissal of a state economist's defamation claims against two government lawyers, finding that nothing in the state's government immunity statute carves out an exception for lawyers and that professional misconduct does not automatically cancel lawyers' immunity.

  • February 06, 2025

    Dems Attack Bondi Memos Ahead Of Patel's Confirmation Vote

    While expressing their opposition to Kash Patel becoming FBI director, Democrats also took shots at newly confirmed Attorney General Pam Bondi, warning at a hearing on Thursday they fear the U.S. Department of Justice as a whole is becoming politicized.

  • February 06, 2025

    FTC GOP Focusing On Merger 'Friction,' AI, 'Censorship'

    Federal Trade Commission Republicans are beginning to signal their Trump-era policies, including a friendlier approach to mergers with fewer challenges based on "weak or factually unsupported theories," a more hands-off take on artificial intelligence, and a heavy emphasis on combating alleged online censorship of conservatives.

  • February 06, 2025

    FERC Tells DC Circ. Revised Grid Hookup Policy Is Sound

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission defended the penalty framework in its revised policy on hooking up new power projects to the grid, telling the D.C. Circuit it reasonably balanced competing interests and imposed a variety of safeguards. 

  • February 06, 2025

    Detroit Public School District Can't Get Quick Tax Ruling

    A Michigan judge has refused to issue an order guaranteeing in the short term that Detroit Public Schools can keep collecting a property tax to pay down debt, finding on Wednesday the debt-burdened school district is not facing imminent harm. 

  • February 06, 2025

    Texas' Google Ad Tech Trial Delayed From March To August

    A Texas federal judge has pushed back the trial date for a group of Texas-led states' antitrust suit against Google over its digital advertising business, moving the scheduled start from March to August.

  • February 06, 2025

    Democrats Press Trump's USTR Pick On Tariff Approach

    Senate Finance Committee Democrats pressed President Donald Trump's pick for U.S. Trade Representative on Thursday over Trump's universal tariff proposal and the 25% across-the-board tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports, suspended for one month, arguing that constituents are facing consequences.

  • February 06, 2025

    CFPB's Frotman To Depart As General Counsel

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's top lawyer is resigning, Law360 has learned, marking the latest high-level exit from the agency following President Donald Trump's firing of its former director Rohit Chopra.

  • February 06, 2025

    US To Appeal Block On Corporate Transparency Act

    The federal government plans to challenge an order preventing it from enforcing the Corporate Transparency Act's reporting requirements for businesses, following the U.S. Supreme Court's pause of another nationwide block on the law in a separate case, according to a notice filed in a Texas federal court.

  • February 06, 2025

    Pot Co. Jushi Can't End Rival Shop's Antitrust Claims

    Cannabis distributor Jushi Holdings could plausibly be shown to have taken advantage of a Massachusetts town's retail marijuana permitting process and conspired with the sellers of a shop it purchased in 2021 to block a competitor from opening nearby, a Massachusetts federal judge ruled.

  • February 06, 2025

    EU Can't Let US Global Tax Rebuff Harm Its Cos., Official Says

    The European Union cannot allow the legal uncertainty surrounding President Donald Trump's rejection of a global tax deal to harm its companies, a European Commission official said Thursday, adding that the U.S. and EU will discuss the matter in April.

  • February 06, 2025

    No Bail For Ex-Federal Reserve Adviser In Espionage Case

    A former senior adviser to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors was ordered to be detained by a D.C. federal judge Wednesday at the request of prosecutors who warned that his significant ties to China put him at high risk of fleeing his charges of stealing classified information for that nation.

  • February 06, 2025

    Judges Balk At CFPB's Stay Bids In Capital One, SoLo Suits

    Two federal judges have turned down requests from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to suspend activity in ongoing enforcement lawsuits amid its acting director's litigation freeze, including in the agency's case against Capital One NA.

  • February 06, 2025

    NY Court Puts A Limit On Child Welfare Agency Surveillance

    A New York appellate court ruled that child welfare agencies lack the authority to surveil a parent just because their child's other parent was charged with abuse or neglect, banning a statewide practice that lasted for decades, an attorney told Law360 on Thursday.

  • February 06, 2025

    House Committee Weighs Wildfire Strain On Calif. Insurers

    A U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee met Thursday to discuss the recent California wildfires and how regulatory policy may aid future prevention of natural disasters, as experts emphasized that the fires only further exposed the state's ongoing insurance crisis.

  • February 06, 2025

    Musk's Access To Records Blocked In DOGE, Treasury Suit

    A Washington, D.C., federal judge on Thursday approved a consent order blocking Elon Musk and additional Department of Government Efficiency employees from accessing the federal government's payment systems, although a "special government employee" will have limited access as the Treasury Department and suing plaintiffs spar over a preliminary injunction.

  • February 06, 2025

    On Heels Of Bondi Memo, DOJ Launches 1st Sanctuary Suit

    The U.S. Department of Justice wasted no time lodging a suit on Thursday over local sanctuary policies, suing in Illinois federal court the day after Attorney General Pam Bondi was sworn in and hours after she halted department funding for sanctuary jurisdictions

  • February 06, 2025

    Leave Power Limits Alone In CBRS Airwaves, FCC Told

    The Federal Communications Commission is looking at overhauling the Citizens Broadband Radio Service, but a coalition of band users have come together to urge the agency to reject proposals to allow high power use in the midband spectrum.

  • February 06, 2025

    Carr Names Project 2025 Co-Author As FCC General Counsel

    A Michigan State University law professor and onetime Jones Day litigator known for his involvement in Project 2025 and criticism of Big Tech will serve as the Federal Communications Commission's top lawyer.

  • February 06, 2025

    Family Says Tax Shelter Creator To Blame In $81M IRS Case

    Counsel for members of a wealthy extended family accused of shorting the IRS nearly $81 million by knowingly participating in an unlawful tax shelter told a Manhattan federal judge Thursday that the creator of the so-called Son-of-Boss scheme is to blame.

  • February 06, 2025

    Conn. Gov. Pitches $350M Corporate Tax Boost In Budget

    Connecticut would make changes to its corporate taxes that would raise nearly $350 million over two years under the governor's budget proposal, which would also provide property tax relief for residential owners.

  • February 06, 2025

    Mich. Man's Challenge To LA Pot Social Equity Program Axed

    A California federal judge has dismissed with prejudice a Michigan man's suit challenging Los Angeles' social-equity cannabis-licensing scheme, finding he can't claim the program is unconstitutional because the dormant commerce clause does not apply to the federally illegal interstate cannabis market.

  • February 06, 2025

    Wash. Judge Latest To Halt Trump Birthright Citizenship Edict

    A Washington federal judge on Thursday became the latest judge to block President Donald Trump's order limiting birthright citizenship amid a legal challenge by four states, keeping enforcement on hold and calling out the president for trying to amend the U.S. Constitution "under the guise of an executive order."

  • February 05, 2025

    Cuomo Faces Skeptical Panel In AG Document Lawsuit

    Counsel for former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo faced a doubtful appellate panel Wednesday, who questioned whether the disgraced executive had jumped the gun in suing Attorney General Letitia James for records from the state's sexual harassment investigation against him that are still being reviewed and produced.

Expert Analysis

  • What Compensation Committees Must Keep In Mind In 2025

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    New disclosure obligations, an evolving discussion on the analysis of executive perks and updated proxy adviser policies — on top of a new presidential administration — are all important things compensation committees must pay close attention to in 2025, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • Likely Doomed CFPB Contract Rule Still Has Industry Pointers

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    While the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's January proposal on consumer financial contract provisions is unlikely to be finalized under the new administration, its provisions are important for industry to recognize, particularly if state attorneys general decide to take up the enforcement mantle, say attorneys at Saul Ewing.

  • Preparing For A Possible End To The Subminimum Wage

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    The U.S. Department of Labor's proposed rule to end the subminimum wage for employees with disabilities may significantly affect the community-based rehabilitation and training programs that employ these workers, so certified programs should be especially vigilant about compliance during this period of evaluation and scrutiny, say attorneys at Jackson Lewis.

  • Engaging With Feds On Threats To Executives, Employees

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    In an increasingly polarized environment, where companies face serious concerns about how to protect executives and employees, counsel should consider working with federal law enforcement soon after the discovery of threats or harassment, says Jordan Estes at Gibson Dunn.

  • The Risk And Reward Of Federal Approach To AI Regulation

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    The government has struggled to keep up with artificial intelligence's furious pace, but while an overbroad federal attempt to adopt a more unified approach to regulating AI poses its own risks, so does the current environment of regulatory uncertainty, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Losing A Motion To Dismiss Ruling Isn't Necessarily The End

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    A recent Delaware Court of Chancery ruling, that the Manti Group had not demonstrated any conflicts of interest favoring private equity fund operator The Carlyle Group, serves as an important reminder that a decision on a pleading motion is not the end of the story, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Anticipating Direction Of Cosmetics Regulation Under Trump

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    It is unclear how cosmetics regulation reform from the last few years will fare under President Donald Trump, but the new administration's emphasis on deregulation and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s views on product safety provide some insight, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • Drug Pricing Policy Trends To Expect In 2025 And Beyond

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    Though 2025 may bring more of the same in the realm of drug pricing policy, business as usual entails a sustained, high level of legal and policy developments across at least six major areas, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Drug Cartels' Terrorist Label Raises Litigation Risk For Cos.

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    President Donald Trump's planned designation of some Latin American drug-trafficking groups as foreign terrorist organizations creates an additional and little-noticed source of legal exposure: U.S. civil litigation risk involving terrorism claims by victims of those groups, say attorneys at Covington.

  • IRS Basis-Shifting Rule Poses Notable Reporting Obligations

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    While the IRS’ recently finalized rule requiring partnerships to report certain related-party basis adjustment transactions is narrower than originally proposed, taxpayers and their advisers will still need to comb through myriad transactions to comply, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • How Cos. Can Prepare Now For SEC E-Filing System Changes

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's amendments to the Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval system are designed to improve access to and management of EDGAR accounts, and with the March 24 effective date fast approaching, and the transition requiring significant coordination, companies should begin planning now, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • The Tides Are Changing For Fair Access Banking Laws

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    The landscape of fair access banking laws, which seek to prevent banks from denying services based on individuals' ideological beliefs, has shifted in the last few years, but a new presidential administration provides renewed momentum for advancing such legislation against the backdrop of state efforts, say attorneys at Latham.

  • Imagine The Possibilities Of Openly Autistic Lawyering

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    Andi Mazingo at Lumen Law, who was diagnosed with autism about midway through her career, discusses how the legal profession can create inclusive workplaces that empower openly autistic lawyers and enhance innovation, and how neurodivergent attorneys can navigate the challenges and opportunities that come with disclosing one’s diagnosis.

  • A Halftime Analysis Of DOJ's Compensation Pilot Program

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    The U.S. Department of Justice appears to consider the first half of its three-year pilot program on compensation incentives and clawbacks to be proceeding successfully, so companies should expect prosecutors to emphasize the program and other compliance-related considerations early in investigations, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Opinion

    How Congress Can Stem Consumer Finance Law Uncertainty

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    In the face of rising uncertainty about consumer finance laws that are based largely on fluctuating administrative rules, Congress should cement certain existing laws into statute and clarify federal agencies' delegations of authority, say attorneys at Bradley Arant.

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