Public Policy

  • January 10, 2025

    1st Circ. Questions Reach Of Anti-Torture Law In Civil Cases

    The First Circuit on Friday hinted it may be considering limits on the jurisdiction of the Torture Victims Protection Act, during a hearing where former Justice Stephen Breyer recalled concerns he first raised on the Supreme Court that an overly broad reading could pave the way for other nations to arrest Americans for incidents on U.S. soil.

  • January 10, 2025

    Off The Bench: Venu Deal Off, Fox Suit, Gender Rules Wobble

    In this week's Off The Bench, a last-minute merger ends litigation over the new sports streaming service Venu, only for its backers to mothball the project entirely, Fox Sports is rocked by lurid sexual harassment claims, and a federal judge knocks down an attempt to expand transgender discrimination protections.

  • January 10, 2025

    Fani Willis Seeks Return To Trump Election Interference Case

    Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis has asked the Georgia Supreme Court to reinstate her in the election interference case against President-elect Donald Trump, arguing she was the first Georgia DA to be ejected from a case "without the existence of an actual conflict of interest."

  • January 10, 2025

    NJ Watchdog's New Chief Resigns Amid Residence Questions

    The new chief executive of the New Jersey State Commission of Investigation resigned Friday after questions were raised in a news report about her residency and a second full-time job she holds out of state.

  • January 10, 2025

    IRS Proposes Rules For Roth Catch-Up Contributions

    The Internal Revenue Service floated rules Friday for catch-up contributions made possible by the 2022 retirement law known as Secure 2.0, including the requirement that contributions made by certain participants be designated Roth contributions.

  • January 10, 2025

    Feds To Return $55M In Fees For Axed Immigration Program

    U.S. immigration officials will refund some $55 million in fees tens of thousands of unauthorized immigrants in the country paid to apply for relief through a parole-in-place process that courts struck down.

  • January 10, 2025

    US Hits Russia With Extensive Energy-Related Sanctions

    The Biden administration on Friday announced an extensive round of new sanctions, including blocking two major Russian oil producers, with the goal of reducing Russian revenues from energy in the midst of its war on Ukraine, a move that comes as the U.S. has been amping up sanctions on its foreign rival.

  • January 10, 2025

    NJ Mayor Cops To Using Town Employees to Run Private Biz

    A longtime New Jersey mayor is barred from ever holding public office or employment again after he admitted Friday to using township employees to help run a private business out of his mayoral office, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced.

  • January 10, 2025

    Illinois Adds 4 Conditions To Medical Pot Eligibility List

    The Illinois Department of Public Health has issued an order adding four conditions to the list of medical issues eligible for treatment with medical cannabis.

  • January 10, 2025

    Tougher 911 Outage Report Regs Needed, Responders Say

    First responder groups are urging the Federal Communications Commission to toughen up on network outage reporting requirements impacting 911 services, saying gaps in the current system don't fully meet the needs of emergency communications centers.

  • January 10, 2025

    Feds Ask 15 Years For Menendez In Case Of 'Historical Rarity'

    Prosecutors have asked a Manhattan federal judge to sentence former U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez to at least 15 years in prison after he was convicted of taking bribes from three New Jersey business executives in exchange for political favors.

  • January 10, 2025

    Feds Say Rocket Mortgage Can't Avoid Race Bias Suit

    The federal government has pushed back against Rocket Mortgage LLC's motion to dismiss a racial discrimination suit accusing the company and other parties of undervaluing a Black woman's Denver duplex after she applied for refinancing.

  • January 10, 2025

    Construction Exec Cops To Unlawfully Funding NYC Mayor

    A Turkish-born construction executive with ties to Eric Adams told a Manhattan federal judge Friday that he funneled unlawful donations to the New York City mayor's campaign, as prosecutors secured a guilty plea in their high-profile political corruption investigation.

  • January 10, 2025

    Justices Seem Inclined To Uphold TikTok Sale-Or-Ban Law

    The U.S. Supreme Court seemed likely Friday to uphold a law requiring TikTok to divest from its Chinese parent company over national security concerns or face a nationwide ban, despite some justices expressing concern over the law's impact on the free speech rights of Americans who use the wildly popular social media platform.

  • January 10, 2025

    Conn. GOP Eyes McCarter & English Partner For US Atty Role

    Connecticut's Republican Party chair says the state's next top federal prosecutor should be someone with qualifications that mirror a McCarter & English LLP partner whose three decades in the U.S. attorney's office would make him a logical fit, although Donald Trump's selection could carry "wildcard potential," one observer noted.

  • January 10, 2025

    Treasury Floats Rules For Commercial Green Vehicle Credits

    The U.S. Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service proposed rules Friday for obtaining tax credits for commercial green vehicles under provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act, suggesting ways for determining the credit amount and identifying which vehicles are eligible.

  • January 10, 2025

    DHS Adds Romania To Visa Waiver Program

    U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas on Friday designated Romania as a participant in the visa waiver program, allowing most Romanian citizens to travel to the U.S. for tourism or business for up to 90 days without having to obtain a visa. 

  • January 10, 2025

    Advocates Press For Renewed Broadband Subsidy Bill

    A public interest group on Friday pushed the new Congress to renew a broadband subsidy for low-income households that ran out of money last year.

  • January 10, 2025

    DHS Extends Temporary Protections For 4 Countries

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security extended the temporary protected status for El Salvador, Venezuela, Sudan and Ukraine on Friday for 18 months, citing a wide array of humanitarian conditions in the countries that prevent individuals from safely returning.

  • January 10, 2025

    DOJ Sues To Block Amex GBT's $570M Deal For Rival CWT

    The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit Friday seeking to block American Express Global Business Travel Inc.'s planned $570 million acquisition of corporate travel management rival CWT Holdings LLC.

  • January 10, 2025

    Trump Avoids Jail As Judge Points To Presidential Status

    A New York state judge on Friday spared President-elect Donald Trump any incarceration for his 34-count felony hush money conviction, citing the changed legal landscape, which affords the chief executive with "extraordinary legal protections."

  • January 09, 2025

    Fox Corp. Can't Ax Smartmatic's Defamation Suit, Panel Says

    Fox Corp. will have to face a defamation claim in voting technology company Smartmatic's $2.7 billion lawsuit alleging the media company exercised control over allegedly harmful news coverage during the 2020 presidential election, a New York state appellate court ruled Thursday.

  • January 09, 2025

    Tort Report: Philadelphia Tops Annual 'Judicial Hellhole' List

    Philadelphia's designation by a tort reform group as a top "judicial hellhole" and the nation's largest medical malpractice verdict ever lead Law360's Tort Report, which compiles recent personal injury and medical malpractice news that may have flown under the radar.

  • January 09, 2025

    CFPB Bars Ex-Agency Attys From Revived Innovation Policies

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has said it will not consider applications for its rebooted no-action letter and compliance sandbox policies when those applications are submitted by financial service companies represented by former bureau attorneys as outside counsel.

  • January 09, 2025

    Target Brass Face Derivative Suit Over DEI Fallout

    Target Corp.'s executives and directors have been hit with a shareholder derivative suit in Florida federal court alleging that the company's diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and its offerings of LGBTQ+ merchandise harmed investors.

Expert Analysis

  • Implications Of NY Climate Case For Generating Facilities

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    Regardless of how Greenidge Generation LLC v. New York Department of Environmental Conservation develops on remand, this decision has immediate repercussions for generating facilities seeking permit applications and renewals in New York, likely involving Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act considerations, say attorneys at Hodgson Russ.

  • How CFPB Rule Would Affect Data Brokers And Beyond

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently proposed a rule that would not only expand data broker oversight by classifying many as consumer reporting agencies, but would also impose new limitations on companies seeking to obtain information from them, potentially requiring such entities to alter their business models, say attorneys at Orrick.

  • Firms Still Have The Edge In Lateral Hiring, But Buyer Beware

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    Partner mobility data suggests that the third quarter of this year continued to be a buyer’s market, with the average candidate demanding less compensation for a larger book of business — but moving into the fourth quarter, firms should slow down their hiring process to minimize risks, say officers at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.

  • Reviewing 2024's State Consumer Privacy Law Enforcement

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    While we are still in the infancy of state consumer privacy laws, a review of enforcement activity this year suggests substantial overlaps in regulatory priorities across the most active states and gives insight into the likely paths of future enforcement, says Thomas Nolan at Quinn Emanuel.

  • 5th Circ. Crypto Ruling Shows Limits On OFAC Authority

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    The Fifth Circuit's recent decision that immutable smart contracts on the Tornado Cash crypto-transaction software protocol are not "property" subject to Office of Foreign Assets Control jurisdiction may signal that courts can construe OFAC's authority more restrictively after Loper Bright, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Preparing For The New Restrictions On Investment Into China

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    In light of a new regulatory program governing U.S. investments in China-related technology companies of national security concern, investors should keep several considerations in mind, including the rules' effect on existing and new investments, compliance hurdles, and penalties for noncompliance ahead of the rules' January implementation, say attorneys at Gunderson Dettmer.

  • Opinion

    Congress Should Expand Investment Options For 403(b)s

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    Lawmakers should pass pending legislation to give 403(b) plan participants access to collective investment trusts, leveling the playing field for public sector retirement investors by giving them an investment option their private sector counterparts have had for decades, says Jason Levy at Great Gray Trust Company.

  • What 2024 Election Means For Drugs, Medicare And Medicaid

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    With Republicans running the White House, U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, the incoming administration is likely to provide pathways — through new initiatives and others returning from Trump's previous presidency — for a range of potential changes to drug pricing, Medicare and Medicaid, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • AV Compliance Is Still A State-By-State Slog — For Now

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    While the incoming Trump administration has hinted at new federal regulations governing autonomous vehicles, for now, AV manufacturers must take a state-by-state approach to compliance with safety requirements — paying particular attention to states that require express authorization for AV operation, say attorneys at Frost Brown.

  • Opinion

    Antitrust Posturing Against Algorithmic AI Should End

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    President-elect Donald Trump needs to rein in the federal government's antitrust crusade against algorithmic AI, sending the message that antitrust enforcement must be grounded in evidence and real harm, says attorney David Balto, a former Federal Trade Commission assistant director of policy and evaluation.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: 1 Type Of Case Complexity Stands Out

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    In contrast to some cases that appear complex due to voluminous evidence or esoteric subject matter, a different kind of complexity involves tangled legal and factual questions, each with a range of possible outcomes, which require a “sliding scale” approach instead of syllogistic reasoning, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Immigration Atty Tips For Avoiding Prosecution Under Trump

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    Under the incoming Trump administration, immigration attorneys may need to protect themselves from prosecution when advising clients who may not qualify for relief sought by choosing their words carefully and keeping other key factors in mind, says Michele Carney at Carney & Marchi.

  • Back To The Future? Antitrust Enforcement Under Trump 2.0

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    While the transition to the second Trump administration's antitrust policy should be accompanied by less uncertainty, we're unlikely to get a full sense of the true focus and tenor of competition enforcement under Trump 2.0 before late next year, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • A Closer Look At SDNY Bankruptcy Rule Amendments

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    The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York’s recent amendments to its local rules aim to streamline key Chapter 11 processes, resolve misunderstandings about previous iterations of the rules and urge caution about the use of artificial intelligence, say attorneys at Skadden.

  • How Litigation, Supply Chains Buffeted Offshore Wind In 2024

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    U.S. offshore wind developers continue to face a range of challenges — including litigation brought by local communities and interest groups, ongoing supply chain issues, and a lack of interconnection and transmission infrastructure — in addition to uncertainty surrounding federal energy policy under the second Trump administration, say attorneys at Liskow & Lewis.

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