ÃÛÌÒÊÓÆµ

Public Policy

  • July 22, 2025

    EU Deepens Look Into Universal Music $775M Downtown Deal

    European Union antitrust enforcers kicked off an in-depth probe Tuesday into Universal Music Group's bid to buy Downtown Music Holdings, raising concerns that the $775 million transaction could give UMG access to the "commercially sensitive data of its rival record labels" held by Downtown.

  • July 22, 2025

    NJ Judges End Habba's Tenure, Bondi Removes Replacement

    The New Jersey federal district court brought Alina Habba's run as interim U.S. attorney to an end Tuesday by not extending her tenure in the temporary role past 120 days.

  • July 22, 2025

    NY To Make Prison Phone Calls Free, Saving Families Millions

    Phone calls for inmates in New York state prisons will soon be free of charge, officials announced Tuesday — a policy shift advocates say will save more than $13 million annually for families of incarcerated people and strengthen ties that are crucial to rehabilitation and public safety.

  • July 22, 2025

    Missouri Solicitor General, State Judge Secure Federal Seats

    The Senate confirmed two nominees on Tuesday to serve on Missouri federal courts.

  • July 22, 2025

    Judge Blocks Some Planned Parenthood Cuts In Partial Ruling

    A Massachusetts federal judge partially blocked a measure passed by Congress this month stripping Medicaid funding from Planned Parenthood-affiliated facilities, but only as it applies to those that do not provide abortions or that receive minimal federal support.

  • July 22, 2025

    Ore. Extends Brownfield Development Tax Breaks

    Oregon extended its program of local property tax incentives for brownfield development by six years under a bill signed by the governor.

  • July 22, 2025

    Ala. Pot Regulators Seek Dismissal Of Retaliation Suit

    Alabama medical cannabis regulators have urged a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit from a prospective medical marijuana business that was denied a license, or abstain from the matter entirely, because similar cases are pending in state court.

  • July 21, 2025

    Revived Effort To Break Up 9th Circ. Makes Its Way To Senate

    Idaho Republicans have reintroduced a U.S. Senate bill that looks to split up the Ninth Circuit and create a new Twelfth Circuit, according to an announcement made Monday, roughly nearly seven months after a similar bill was introduced in the House.

  • July 21, 2025

    Md. Judges Slam 'Unprecedented' Suit Over Habeas Orders

    Maryland federal judges on Monday pressed a Virginia federal judge to throw out the Trump administration's "unprecedented" suit challenging their standing order that temporarily blocks deportation of detained noncitizens who file habeas petitions, warning that if the suit succeeds, "it will not be the last."

  • July 21, 2025

    Trump Asks DC Circ. To Block FTC Dem's Reinstatement

    The Trump administration on Monday asked the D.C. Circuit to pause a Thursday order restoring a fired Federal Trade Commission Democrat's job, arguing that the ruling defies recent U.S. Supreme Court orders staying similar reinstatements at other independent agencies.

  • July 21, 2025

    The Biggest Telecom Developments Of 2025: Midyear Report

    It's been a headline-grabbing year in communications law so far, with the U.S. Supreme Court handing down a major win for federal programs that help pay for broadband deployment and a new Republican chief at the nation's telecom agency ushering in a rule-slashing agenda.

  • July 21, 2025

    Sinclair Stations Clear Up FCC's Kid TV Enforcement

    Sinclair Broadcast Group stations that aired Hot Wheels commercials during a children's Hot Wheels program in violation of Federal Communications Commission rules are settling with the agency after their owner inked a deal allowing the parent company to avoid a $2.6 million fine.

  • July 21, 2025

    FCC Waives Rules To Use Radar Digging In Construction

    Rod Radar has convinced the Federal Communications Commission to grant it a waiver that would allow it to hook ground-penetrating radar to excavator buckets to help avoid underground infrastructure like utility lines.

  • July 21, 2025

    Man Tweaks Suit Over Gun Purchase Ban Tied To Pot Conviction

    A man who claims he was wrongly denied the right to buy a gun despite his four-decades-old marijuana felony being expunged has tweaked his legal efforts, dropping the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives as defendants in his lawsuit in Kansas federal court.

  • July 21, 2025

    DC Circ. Urged To Leave FERC Project Approvals Alone

    Grid operator Southwest Power Pool Inc. urged the D.C. Circuit to deny utility petitions challenging the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's approval of four transmission projects developed by Kansas-based Sunflower Electric Power Corp.

  • July 21, 2025

    Nonprofits Take Aim At New HUD Grant Rules

    A coalition of nonprofit groups filed suit Monday in Rhode Island federal court, challenging new conditions for U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grants that target diversity, equity and inclusion programs; abortion access; and transgender individuals.

  • July 21, 2025

    ÃÛÌÒÊÓÆµ Ends VyStar Consent Order After $1.5M Penalty Paid

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau disclosed Monday that it has ended another Biden-era consent order, this time with VyStar Credit Union, which the agency said has paid the seven-figure penalty that was imposed against it last year.

  • July 21, 2025

    Feds Tell 3rd Circ. Gun Rights Not Automatic After Crime

    The Third Circuit heard oral arguments Monday over whether the Second Amendment gives a man convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol the automatic right to own weapons after serving his time.

  • July 21, 2025

    House GOP Would Cut SEC Funds, Curb Cyber Breach Rule

    House Republicans are seeking to cut the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's budget by 7% in the upcoming fiscal year, presenting a plan that could also undercut a Biden-era regulation requiring publicly traded companies to quickly report cybersecurity breaches.

  • July 21, 2025

    Not Enough Similarities To Apply DOJ Ad Tech Win: Google

    Google urged a New York federal judge not to let website publishers, advertisers and others lock the company into the Justice Department's win in a separate Virginia federal court monopolization lawsuit over its advertising placement technology business, arguing the cases have key differences in facts and circuit standards.

  • July 21, 2025

    Fla. Judge Pick Probed On Trump Case, Nomination Timing

    A judicial nominee for the Southern District of Florida has fielded more questions from Democrats who have suggested that he ruled in favor of President Donald Trump and repeated the president's "partisan talking points" while simultaneously being vetted for a federal judgeship.

  • July 21, 2025

    9th Circ. Narrows 'Remain In Mexico' Block During Appeal

    A split Ninth Circuit panel ruled that a California federal judge's nationwide block of the Remain in Mexico program can only apply to the clients of the nonprofit that brought the underlying challenge while the Trump administration's appeal proceeds.

  • July 21, 2025

    Pay Bias Judge Guts $2.8M Fee Request, Citing Errors At Trial

    A Pennsylvania federal judge sliced an attorney's requested $2.8 million fee award for a pay-discrimination case against a school district Monday, blaming the plaintiff's counsel for errors during the two trials it took to reach a verdict.

  • July 21, 2025

    Huawei Chips Block Some TVs' NextGen Signals, FCC Told

    Pearl TV is calling on SiliconDust to remove Huawei-made components from its products, which rebroadcast TV signals from viewer antennas over home networks, saying the chips in its HDHomeRun Flex devices are unable to broadcast certain Next Generation TV programming.

  • July 21, 2025

    FinCEN Gives Investment Advisers Reprieve On AML Rule

    The U.S. Department of the Treasury has pushed back the compliance date for a rule requiring investment advisers to report suspicious activity to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network while it weighs the future of the Biden-era regulation.

Expert Analysis

  • How Political Divisions Are Stalling Pa. Energy Development

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    Despite possessing the nation's second-largest natural gas reserves and a legacy of energy infrastructure, Pennsylvania faces a fragmented and politically charged path to developing the energy resources it will need in the future, thanks to legislative gridlock, divided public opinion and competing energy interests, says Andrew Levine at Stradley Ronon.

  • 3rd-Party Audit Tactics To Improve Export Control Compliance

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    Companies should take a strategic approach to third-party audits in response to the Trump administration's ramp-up of export control enforcement with steps that strengthen their ability to identify the control weaknesses of distributors, dealers and resellers, say Michael Huneke at Hughes Hubbard, and John Rademacher and Abby Williams at Secretariat Advisors.

  • A Look At Trump Admin's Shifting Strategies To Curtail ÃÛÌÒÊÓÆµ

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    The Trump administration has so far carried out its goal of minimizing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's authority and footprint via an individualized approach comprising rule rollbacks, litigation moves and administrative tools, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Evading DOJ Crosshairs As Data Security Open Season Starts

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    As the U.S. Department of Justice begins enforcing its new data security program — aimed at preventing foreign adversaries from accessing government-related and personal sensitive data — U.S. companies will need to understand the program’s contours and potential pitfalls to avoid potential civil liability or criminal scrutiny, say attorneys at Cohen & Gresser.

  • How Trump's Trade Policies Are Shaping Foreign Investment

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    Five months into the Trump administration, investors are beginning to see the concrete effects of the president’s America First Investment Policy as it presents new opportunities for clearing transactions more quickly, while sustaining risk aversion related to Chinese trade and potentially creating different political risks, say attorneys at Covington.

  • How Trump Admin Treasury Policies Are Reaching Banks

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    The Treasury Department has emerged as an important facilitator of the Trump administration's financial policies affecting banks, which are now facing deregulation domestically and the use of international economic authorities in cross-border trade and investment, say attorneys at Davis Polk.

  • Series

    My Opera And Baseball Careers Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    Though participating in opera and the world of professional baseball often pulls me away from the office, my avocations improve my legal career by helping me perform under scrutiny, prioritize team success, and maintain joy and perspective at work, says Adam Unger at Herrick Feinstein.

  • FTC Focus: Enforcers Study AI Innovation And Entrenchment

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    The Federal Trade Commission and other regulators setting their sights on the burgeoning artificial intelligence ecosystem are considering how the government should approach innovation in tech markets that tend, almost inevitably, toward concentration, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • High Court ACA Ruling May Harm Preventative Care

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Kennedy v. Braidwood last week, ruling that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services secretary has authority over an Affordable Care Act preventive care task force, risks harming the credibility of the task force and could open the door to politicians dictating clinical recommendations, says Michael Kolber at Manatt.

  • Policy Shifts Bring New Anti-Money Laundering Challenges

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    In the second half of 2025, the U.S. anti-money laundering regulatory landscape is poised for decisive shifts in enforcement priorities, compliance expectations and legislative developments — so investment advisers and other financial institutions should take steps to prepare for potential new obligations and areas of risk, say attorneys at Linklaters.

  • 8 Ways Lawyers Can Protect The Rule Of Law In Their Work

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    Whether they are concerned with judicial independence, regulatory predictability or client confidence, lawyers can take specific meaningful actions on their own when traditional structures are too slow or too compromised to respond, says Angeli Patel at the Berkeley Center of Law and Business.

  • Kousisis Concurrence Maps FCA Defense To Anti-DEI Suits

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    Justice Clarence Thomas' recent concurrence in Kousisis v. U.S. lays out how federal funding recipients could use the high standard for materiality in government fraud cases to fight the U.S. Justice Department’s threatened False Claims Act suits against payees deviating from the administration’s anti-DEI policies, say attorneys at Miller & Chevalier.

  • Despite Dark Clouds, Outlook For US Solar Has Bright Spots

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    While tariff, tax policy and bankruptcy news seemingly portends unending challenges for the U.S. solar energy industry, signs of continued growth in solar generating capacity and domestic solar manufacturing suggest that there is a path forward, say attorneys at Beveridge & Diamond.

  • Assessing New Changes To Texas Officer Exculpation Law

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    Consistent with Texas' recent modernization of its corporate law, the recently passed S.B. 2411 allows officer exculpation, streamlines certificate of formation amendments, authorizes representatives to act on shareholders' behalf in mergers and makes other changes aimed toward companies seeking a more codified, statutory model of corporate governance, say attorneys at Bracewell.

  • How Ending OFCCP Will Affect Affirmative Action Obligations

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    As President Donald Trump's administration plans to eliminate the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, which enforces federal contractor antidiscrimination compliance and affirmative action program obligations, contractors should consider the best compliance approaches available to them, especially given the False Claims Act implications, say attorneys at Ogletree.

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