Public Policy

  • January 20, 2025

    Trump Ends Biden Moratorium That Limited LNG Exports

    President Donald Trump on Monday lifted former President Joe Biden's moratorium on approvals of liquefied natural gas exports to countries that don't have free-trade agreements with the U.S., fulfilling a promise he made repeatedly on the campaign trail.

  • January 20, 2025

    Trump Delays TikTok Ban To Hammer Out Deal

    President Donald Trump issued an executive order Monday that will keep TikTok from going dark in the U.S. while he works to broker a deal that would override the legislative mandate for the popular social media app to cut ties with its Chinese parent company or face a nationwide ban.

  • January 20, 2025

    Trump Clears Way For Ban on Transgender Military Service

    President Donald Trump on Monday issued an executive order clearing the way to bring back a ban on transgender people serving openly in the military.

  • January 17, 2025

    Law360 Names Practice Groups Of The Year

    Law360 would like to congratulate the winners of its Practice Groups of the Year awards for 2024, which honor the attorney teams behind litigation wins and significant transaction work that resonated throughout the legal industry this past year.

  • January 17, 2025

    Law360 Names Firms Of The Year

    Eight law firms have earned spots as Law360's Firms of the Year, with 54 Practice Group of the Year awards among them, steering some of the largest deals of 2024 and securing high-profile litigation wins, including at the U.S. Supreme Court.

  • January 20, 2025

    Trump Names Immigration Official As Acting Attorney General

    President Donald Trump on Monday designated a longtime immigration official at the U.S. Department of Justice to be acting attorney general until his pick Pam Bondi, former Florida attorney general, can be confirmed.

  • January 20, 2025

    Trump, Musk Sued By Nonprofits Over DOGE Transparency

    Public Citizen and other nonprofits hit the Trump administration with multiple lawsuits seeking to shut down the new Department of Government Efficiency in D.C. federal court Monday, alleging the Elon Musk-led advisory committee targeting government waste lacks requisite transparency guardrails to prevent DOGE from solely advancing private interests.

  • January 20, 2025

    Trump Taps EEOC's Sole Republican As Acting Chair

    President Donald Trump selected the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's sole Republican appointee to lead the agency for now, but the new acting head will contend with a Democratic majority slated to keep hold of the five-seat agency through 2026.

  • January 20, 2025

    Trump Announces 2nd Exit From Paris Climate Agreement

    President Donald Trump announced upon being sworn in Monday that for a second time, he will pull the United States out of the Paris climate accord.

  • January 17, 2025

    Split 6th Circ. OKs FERC's Revocation Of Ohio Utility Grid Perk

    A split Sixth Circuit panel Friday backed the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's decision to revoke an incentive for power companies that are required to be members of a regional transmission organization, ruling that federal law requires that utilities voluntarily participate in an RTO to receive the incentive.

  • January 17, 2025

    Red States Challenge DOE Rule On Gas Heater Efficiency

    Several red states and industry groups are challenging the Biden administration in its waning days over a final rule the U.S. Department of Energy has issued on making certain natural gas water heaters more energy efficient, asking the Eleventh Circuit to toss the rule in a petition for review filed Friday.

  • January 17, 2025

    FDIC Missed Some Crypto 'Pause' Letters, Coinbase Ally Says

    The research consultancy suing the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on behalf of Coinbase for documents on the regulator's internal views on crypto said Friday that it intends to update its complaint with new allegations that the FDIC did not conduct a thorough search and may be engaging in unlawful practices, based on purported whistleblower reports.

  • January 17, 2025

    DOJ Says Ga. County's Districts Disenfranchised Black Voters

    Federal prosecutors have hit middle Georgia's Houston County with a voting rights lawsuit alleging that the county's "history of official discrimination" has continued to the present day by gerrymandering Black citizens out of representation in their local government.

  • January 17, 2025

    9th Circ. Revisits Board Members' Blocks On Social Media

    An attorney for two California school board members on Friday urged the Ninth Circuit to reverse a lower court's ruling that his clients violated the First Amendment by blocking two constituents from their Facebook page, saying that new rules outlined by the U.S. Supreme Court when it remanded the case call for it.

  • January 17, 2025

    5th Circ. Finds DACA Unlawful, Limits Ruling To Texas

    The Fifth Circuit on Friday affirmed a Texas federal court's finding that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program is unlawful but limited its ruling to Texas, saying the state was the only one to show it was injured due to DACA.

  • January 17, 2025

    CFPB Inks $1.5M Redlining Deal As Biden Era Ends

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is poised to collect a $1.5 million fine from an Illinois mortgage company as part of a settlement unveiled late Friday over claims it engaged in redlining, a form of residential lending discrimination.

  • January 17, 2025

    NHTSA Defends Fuel-Economy Regulations In 6th Circ.

    The U.S. Department of Transportation told the Sixth Circuit on Friday that its new fuel-economy standards are technologically feasible and properly account for a variety of alternative-fuel vehicles, rejecting claims from Republican-led states and fuel industry groups that the stringent standards amount to an unlawful electric vehicles mandate.

  • January 17, 2025

    DC Circ. Unsure On Restoring CFTC's Election Betting Ban

    The D.C. Circuit seemed hesitant Friday to reimpose a ban that the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission had placed on gambling over the fate of U.S. elections, as the judges spent over an hour trying to parse what Congress meant when it said that gaming on derivatives platforms was prohibited.

  • January 17, 2025

    Biden Says Equal Rights Amendment Is 'The Law Of The Land'

    President Joe Biden said Friday that he believes the Equal Rights Amendment has effectively become part of the U.S. Constitution and is "the law of the land," according to a statement from the White House.

  • January 17, 2025

    Google Judge Says Apple Intervention Could Open 'Floodgates'

    A D.C. federal judge seemed skeptical Friday about allowing Apple Inc. to intervene in legal wrangling between Google and the U.S. Department of Justice over the proper fix for Google's search monopoly, raising concerns that granting intervention would pave the way for other companies to do the same.

  • January 17, 2025

    Immigrant Military Members OK To Ax Time-In-Service Appeal

    Immigrant members of the military challenging a since-rescinded U.S. Department of Defense requirement to serve for one year before becoming eligible for citizenship told the D.C. Circuit on Thursday that they would not oppose the dismissal of the agency's appeal on its terms.

  • January 17, 2025

    9th Circ. Backs Vacating Some Trump-Era Oil And Gas Leases

    A split Ninth Circuit ruled Friday that an Idaho federal court, but not a Montana federal court, abused its discretion in striking down oil and gas leases sold during the Trump administration, but halted "surface-disturbing activity" while the federal government reconsiders the leasing decisions.

  • January 17, 2025

    NM Justices Reject Utility Challenges To Solar Rule

    New Mexico's top court issued a slip opinion explaining its decision to back a community solar rule enacted by state regulators and to reject arguments by an Xcel Energy unit and other utilities claiming the rule ran afoul of a Community Solar Act passed by lawmakers.

  • January 17, 2025

    Red States And Oil Groups Attack Biden's Coastal Drilling Ban

    Louisiana-led states and fossil fuel groups are asking a federal judge in the Pelican State to scrap a pair of Biden administration memos that recently banned new oil and gas leasing across more than 625 million acres of federal waters.

  • January 17, 2025

    Instacart, Uber Team Up Against Driver Job Security Law

    Instacart has joined Uber's fight against Seattle's new app-based worker account deactivation rules, with both companies urging the judge who refused to temporarily block the law to grant a stay while the companies appeal to the Ninth Circuit.

Expert Analysis

  • What FARA Enforcement In 2024 Reveals For The Year Ahead

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    A number of developments, from indictments to legislation, shaped the Foreign Agents Registration Act enforcement landscape last year, and following the U.S. Department of Justice's recently released long-awaited proposed amendments to the law, 2025 shows no signs of slowing down, says Tessa Capeloto at Wiley.

  • How New Fraud Enforcement Tool Affects Gov't Contractors

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    Government contractors will likely face greater scrutiny under the recently enacted Administrative False Claims Act, which broadens federal agencies' authority to pursue low-dollar fraud claims, but contractors may also find the act makes settlement of such claims easier to negotiate, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Predicting What's Next For SEC By Looking At Past Dissents

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    While Paul Atkins' nomination to be the next chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has taken center stage, an analysis of Republican Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda's past votes and dissents provides a preview of where enforcement may shift in the new administration, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • FTC Picks Augur Pro-Business Bent For Much Of Economy

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    President-elect Donald Trump's choice of two top Federal Trade Commission officials suggests a business-friendly climate for a significant portion of the U.S. economy, with noteworthy exceptions of continued scrutiny of healthcare and Big Tech companies, excluding artificial intelligence, say attorneys at BCLP.

  • Takeaways From 2024's Emerging IP Licensing Trends

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    Themes in intellectual property licensing from the past year – including artificial intelligence; risk management; and name, image and likeness rights – highlight key considerations for navigating an evolving landscape, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.

  • Top 10 Legal Issues This Year For Transportation Industry GCs

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    General counsel must carefully consider numerous legal and policy challenges facing the automotive and transportation industry in the year to come, especially while navigating new technologies, regulations and global markets, says Francesco Liberatore at Squire Patton.

  • Exploring Venue Strategy For Trump-Era Regulatory Litigation

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    Litigation will likely play a prominent role in shaping policy outcomes during the second Trump administration, and stakeholders have several tools at their disposal to steer regulatory litigation toward more favorable venues, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Searching For Insight On Requested Google Chrome Remedy

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    The potential for Google to divest its Chrome browser — a remedy requested by the Justice Department following a D.C. federal court’s finding the company is a monopolist — has drawn both criticism and endorsement, but legal precedent likely supports the former, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.

  • Opinion

    3 New Year's Resolutions For Antitrust Agencies To Consider

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    James Fredricks at Skadden rings in 2025 with his wish list for the federal antitrust agencies, starting with a provision for a presumptive safe harbor for information sharing.

  • FTC Focus: A Changing Of The Guard

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    While rigorous antitrust enforcement is unlikely to slow down at the Federal Trade Commission, the focus will undoubtedly change, including when it comes to Big Tech, as Andrew Ferguson prepares to take the reins from Chair Lina Khan, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • 5th Circ.'s Nasdaq Ruling Another Piece In DEI Policy Puzzle

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    The Fifth Circuit's recent en banc opinion vacating Nasdaq's board diversity listing rule wades into the hotly debated topic of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at a time when many public companies are navigating the attention that DEI commitments are drawing from activists and shareholders, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • 8 Trends And Predictions Following PE's Late 2024 Surge

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    Private equity will remain at the forefront of value creation in 2025, and anticipated market trends include sponsors' desire to return capital to investors and a more business-friendly tack by the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, say attorneys at Weil.

  • Series

    Playing Esports Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Competing in a global esports tournament at Wimbledon last year not only fulfilled my childhood dream, but also sharpened skills that are essential to my day job, including strategic thinking, confidence and networking, says AJ Schuyler at Jackson Lewis.

  • How Changes In State Gift Card Laws May Affect Cos. In 2025

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    2024 state legislative movements around the escheatment of unused gift card balances and consumer fraud protections should prompt issuers to consider whether changes in company domicile or blanket cash-back policies are needed in the new year, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Health Tech Regulatory Trends To Watch In 2025

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    With an upcoming change in administration and the release of some long-awaited rules, the healthcare industry should prepare for shifting trends, including a growing focus on health data and interest in technology-enabled delivery of healthcare, say attorneys at Orrick.

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