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Public Policy
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December 06, 2024
Senate OKs Bill To Ease SEC Reporting Regs On Rural Telcos
The Senate has unanimously passed a bipartisan bill to expand access to broadband in rural areas by reducing the "red tape" on smaller broadband providers.
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December 06, 2024
AI Hype Won't Wash With Canadian Securities Regulators
The Canadian Securities Administration is warning market participants against hyping ties to artificial intelligence in order to drum up interest for investments — a practice called "AI washing" — as the agency invites public comment before crafting AI-focused regulations.
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December 06, 2024
Off The Bench: Kyrie Irving Sued, Golf's New Transgender Ban
In this week's Off The Bench, the New York Knicks and Rangers sue the unknown masses of people selling counterfeit team gear, a therapist who put on a family retreat for Kyrie Irving sues him over the bill, and two major golf organizations block transgender players from women's tournaments.
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December 06, 2024
Gov't Appeals Texas Judge's Block On Anti-Laundering Law
The U.S. government has appealed a Texas federal judge's order that halted the rollout of new reporting requirements aimed at unmasking anonymous shell companies, setting the stage for the Fifth Circuit to weigh in on the nationwide preliminary injunction.
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December 06, 2024
1st Circ. Affirms Mass. Wind Energy Permits
A three-judge First Circuit panel rejected a pair of fishing industry challenges to environmental permits for the massive — and now paused — Vineyard Wind project off the coast of Massachusetts.
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December 06, 2024
Canada's Chinese Import Surtaxes Expected To Raise $334M
Canada's new surtaxes on Chinese electric vehicles and steel and aluminum products are estimated to generate CA$473 million ($334 million) over the next five years, though the EV surtax on its own is likely to cause a dip in revenue, a government analysis said.
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December 06, 2024
EU Finalizes Deal With South American Trade Bloc
After 25 years of negotiations, and five years after a deal was initially struck, the European Union finalized a sweeping trade accord with the South American trading bloc Mercosur Friday, but is likely to face stiff headwinds from European farmers.
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December 06, 2024
DC Circ. Won't Revisit Retroactive FARA Registration
The D.C. Circuit rejected a bid asking the en banc court to reconsider a panel ruling that bars the federal government from suing to compel former foreign agents to retroactively register their onetime foreign influence.
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December 06, 2024
Boston City Councilor Indicted In Bonus Kickback Scheme
A Boston city councilor stole thousands of dollars in public funds through a bonus kickback scheme she orchestrated with a relative she hired to work in her office, federal prosecutors said Friday.
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December 06, 2024
Trump Adds Border Hardliners To Homeland Security Team
President-elect Donald Trump rolled out three more picks to staff his homeland security team whose backgrounds indicate the incoming administration is poised to proceed apace with its planned border crackdown.
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December 06, 2024
DC Circ. Upholds TikTok Sale-Or-Ban Law
A D.C. Circuit panel on Friday upheld a federal law giving TikTok until January to cut ties with its Chinese parent company or face a ban in the U.S., ruling that the statute survives constitutional scrutiny.
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December 05, 2024
Trump Taps Musk Ally David Sacks As 'AI & Crypto Czar'
President-elect Donald Trump announced Thursday that he has selected David O. Sacks, a tech investor who worked alongside Elon Musk and entrepreneur Peter Thiel in the early days of PayPal, to be the newly created "White House AI & Crypto Czar."
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December 05, 2024
Internet Archive Won't Take E-Book Fair Use To Justices
The Internet Archive on Wednesday said it will not ask the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on whether its practice of distributing copyrighted e-books for free without permission from some of the world's biggest publishers is excused by the Copyright Act's fair use doctrine.
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December 05, 2024
Feds Defend Asylum Rule And 'Manifestation' Standard
The Biden administration on Wednesday defended its recent rule curtailing asylum at the southern border, telling a D.C. federal court that it acted reasonably in putting the "onus" on noncitizens to express a fear of persecution or torture.
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December 05, 2024
Texas Lt. Gov. Wants Ban On Hemp-Derived THC Products
Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has unveiled legislation that looks to ban all forms of consumable THC, including hemp products that "might include unremovable, nonintoxicating trace amounts of delta-9 THC."
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December 05, 2024
Ally Visa Seekers Say Feds Are Trying To Add Delay To Delay
A certified class of Afghans and Iraqis who aided U.S. troops and are waiting for the government to process their already unreasonably delayed special immigrant visas told a D.C. federal judge on Wednesday the government shouldn't be able to add even more time to the plan to deliver their visas.
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December 05, 2024
Rocket Mortgage Sues HUD, Hits Back At DOJ Race Bias Suit
Rocket Mortgage, the largest U.S. mortgage lender, has punched back against housing discrimination claims brought by the U.S. government, countersuing in Colorado federal court to challenge what it argues are "conflicting and irreconcilable" mandates at play.
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December 05, 2024
Frontier Pays $3.5M To End Calif. AG's Illegal Dumping Probe
The California subsidiary of telecom company Frontier Communications will pay $3.5 million to end an investigation into the improper disposal of batteries, aerosol cans and other hazardous waste at warehouses and field service facilities dating back to 2008, the Golden State's attorney general announced Thursday.
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December 05, 2024
CFTC Flags AI Compliance Obligations In New Advisory
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Thursday issued a staff advisory outlining its registrants' compliance obligations under the Commodity Exchange Act regarding the myriad of ways they may be using artificial intelligence, with the agency's chair painting the guidance as a first step ahead of potential policies.
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December 05, 2024
Freddie Mac Beats Suit Over Payoff Statement Fees, For Now
A Washington federal judge has tentatively let Freddie Mac off the hook in borrowers' proposed class action alleging loan servicer Nationstar Mortgage illegally charged fees for payoff statements, ruling Thursday that Freddie Mac can't be liable for conduct it didn't authorize — even if it did own one loan at issue.
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December 05, 2024
'Texas Two-Step,' Exec Bonus Bankruptcy Bills Reintroduced
Lawmakers in the U.S. Senate this week renewed efforts to pass two bankruptcy bills that would bolster rights for employees and crack down on the controversial use of so-called Texas two-step bankruptcies.
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December 05, 2024
Vidal Sends Nokia's Patent Challenges Back To PTAB, Again
The head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has again vacated a Patent Trial and Appeal Board refusal to hear three patent challenges by Nokia, saying the board needs to take a look at the case a third time.
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December 05, 2024
DOJ Is Eyeing Foreign Patent Litigation Funding, GAO Says
The U.S. Department of Justice is examining the role foreign countries might be playing in funding patent litigation in the U.S., the Government Accountability Office said in a report released Thursday exploring the benefits and pitfalls of the proliferation of third-party intellectual property litigation financing.
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December 05, 2024
Providers' $2.8B BCBS Antitrust Deal Gets Judge's Initial OK
An Alabama federal judge has given his initial approval for a $2.8 billion settlement inked between Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and a proposed class of medical providers in a more than 12-year-old antitrust case targeting association rules.
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December 05, 2024
Gov't Efficiency Push Is A 'New Day,' House Speaker Says
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., spoke excitedly Thursday about the new government efficiency operation helmed by billionaire Elon Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and touted the budding bipartisan lineup of a congressional caucus that will work with it.
Expert Analysis
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FERC's Reactive Power Compensation Cutoff Is No Shock
While the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's recent final rule ending compensation for reactive power provided within the standard power factor range will mean less revenue for some generators, it should not come as a surprise, since FERC has long signaled its interest in this shift, says Linda Walsh at Husch Blackwell.
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Navigating Decentralized Clinical Trials With FDA's Guidance
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's recently finalized guidance on conducting decentralized clinical trials, while not legally binding, can serve as a road map for sponsors, investigators and others to ensure trial integrity and participant safety, say attorneys at Phillips Lytle.
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Unpacking The CFPB's Personal Financial Data Final Rule
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's personal financial data rights rule includes several important changes from the proposed rule, and hundreds of pages of supplementary information that provide important insights into the manner in which the bureau will enforce the final rule, say attorneys at Sidley.
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Opinion
Feds May Have Overstepped In Suit Against Mortgage Lender
The U.S. Department of Justice's lawsuit against Rocket Mortgage goes too far in attempting to combat racial bias and appears to fail on the fatal flaw that mortgage lenders should be at arm's length from appraisers, says Drew Ketterer at Ketterer & Ketterer.
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The Bar Needs More Clarity On The Discovery Objection Rule
Almost 10 years after Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 34 was amended, attorneys still seem confused about what they should include in objections to discovery requests, and until the rules committee provides additional clarity, practitioners must beware the steep costs of noncompliance, says Tristan Ellis at Shanies Law Office.
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Trump Faces Uphill Battle If He Tries To Target Prosecutors
On the campaign trail, President-elect Donald Trump promised to go after the state and federal prosecutors who had investigated and prosecuted him, but few criminal statutes would be applicable — to say nothing of the evidence required to substantiate any charges against prosecutors, says William Johnston at Bird Marella.
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Foreclosing Lenders Still Floating In Murky Legal Waters In NY
The New York foreclosure landscape remains in disarray after the state's highest court last month declined to weigh in on whether legal changes from 2022 that severely curtailed lenders' ability to bring successive foreclosure cases were retroactive, says Brian Rich at Barclay Damon.
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What's Next For The CFTC After The Election
While much of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's enforcement actions in line with its traditional priorities will continue as usual in the near term, postelection leadership changes at the CFTC and new congressional priorities may alter the commission's regulatory framework in 2025 and beyond — particularly its oversight of crypto, say attorneys at WilmerHale.
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Expect More State-Level Scrutiny Of Noncompetes Ahead
Despite the nationwide injunction against the Federal Trade Commission’s noncompete ban, and the incoming Republican administration, employers should anticipate that state legislatures will continue to focus on laws that limit or ban noncompetes, including those that target certain salary thresholds or industries, says Benjamin Fryer at FordHarrison.
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What's Still Up In The Air After Ruling On Calif. Climate Laws
A California federal court's recent ruling on challenges to California's sweeping climate disclosure laws resolved some issues, but allows litigation over the constitutionality of the laws to continue, and leaves many important questions on what entities will need to do to comply with the laws unanswered, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.
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The Do's And Don'ts Of Commercial Debt Under Calif. FDCPA
Lenders, servicers and attorneys collecting on their behalf should pay careful attention to the consumer protections under the newly expanded California Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act that may apply going forward to some commercial debts, say attorneys at Womble Bond.
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A Look At The Hefty Demands In Calif. Employer AI Draft Regs
California's draft regulations on artificial intelligence use in employment decisions show that the California Privacy Protection Agency is positioning itself as a de facto AI regulator for the state, which isn't waiting around for federal legislation, says Lily Li at Metaverse Law.
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Series
Being A Navy Reservist Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Serving this country in uniform has not only been one of the greatest honors of my life, but it has also provided me with opportunities to broaden my legal acumen and interpersonal skills in ways that have indelibly contributed to my civilian practice, says Phillip Smith at Weinberg Wheeler.
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How To Prepare For Expanded HSR Notification Process
Following the recent publication of the Federal Trade Commission's final rule enhancing premerger reporting requirements under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, filing parties can take key steps to comply by the new Feb. 10 effective date, say attorneys at Squire Patton.
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Cos. Should Inventory Issues To Prep For New Congress
As the legislative and oversight agendas of the 119th Congress come into sharper focus, corporate counsel should assess and plan for areas of potential oversight risk — from tax policy changes to supply chain integrity — even as much uncertainty remains, say attorneys at WilmerHale.