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Public Policy

  • August 20, 2025

    17 States, DC Urge FDA To Lift Mifepristone Restrictions

    Seventeen states and the District of Columbia Wednesday joined four others in urging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to lift restrictions on the abortion drug mifepristone, saying that data their health departments collected overwhelmingly back the drug's safety.

  • August 20, 2025

    Supersede California's Voice Over IP Rules, FCC Urged

    California's new regulatory regime for internet voice call providers is a "power grab" and the Federal Communications Commission should make clear that its rules preempt those of the Golden State, a free market think tank is telling the agency.

  • August 20, 2025

    W.Va. Judge Blocks Private Suits Under State's 'Daniel's Law'

    A West Virginia federal judge has tossed five proposed class actions accusing PeopleConnect, LexisNexis Risk Solutions and several other data brokers of violating the state's Daniel's Law by publishing information on judicial and law enforcement officers, after finding the privacy statute's lawsuit mechanism to be unconstitutional. 

  • August 20, 2025

    Judge Grills Feds On Upending 30-Year Noncitizen Benefits

    A Rhode Island federal judge seemed perplexed Wednesday by a government attorney's contention that for nearly 30 years, various administrations across the political spectrum have wrongly interpreted a law the Trump administration now says requires immigration status checks for additional federal benefits.

  • August 20, 2025

    GOP Sens. See Path To Crypto Market Structure Law This Year

    Republican lawmakers and regulators this week previewed plans to finish cryptocurrency market structure legislation before year's end and continue reducing scrutiny from banking regulators during a multiday event that brought officials and industry participants together in Wyoming.

  • August 20, 2025

    UF Prof's Appeal In Free Speech Suit Was Late, 11th Circ. Says

    The Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday ruled that an English professor who sued University of Florida officials for alleged free speech violations filed his appeal too late, saying he missed his deadline by eight days.

  • August 20, 2025

    TikTok Profits From Addicting Children, Minnesota Says

    TikTok Inc. knowingly designed its social media platform to be addictive to children, according to a state court lawsuit filed by Minnesota, which also accuses the company of operating an unlicensed virtual currency system that facilitates financial and sexual exploitation of minors.

  • August 20, 2025

    DC Judge Won't Reinstate Ex-Copyright Chief Amid Appeal

    A District of Columbia federal judge on Wednesday again refused to reinstate the U.S. Copyright Office's fired head, this time while she takes her fight to the D.C. Circuit, saying she still hasn't convinced the judge she'll suffer irreparable harm if she isn't reinstated as she appeals.

  • August 20, 2025

    Civil Rights Org. Urges FCC Not To Ditch Nat'l Ownership Cap

    A civil rights group founded by the Rev. Al Sharpton said it would be a bad idea for the Federal Communications Commission to strip away ownership regulations that cap how many television stations any one company can own.

  • August 20, 2025

    9th Circ. Blocks Alaska's Bid To Loosen Federal Fishing Regs

    The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday said Alaska state officials may not open part of the Kuskokwim River to gill net fishing by all residents of the state because that would violate a federal law that favors rural, subsistence fishers.

  • August 20, 2025

    Wash. Seeks To Stop NOAA's Climate Change Grant Cuts

    The state of Washington is urging a Seattle federal judge to save more than $9.3 million in climate change resiliency funding that it claims is "on the chopping block" as the Trump administration moves to eliminate programming to promote environmental justice and reduce carbon emissions.

  • August 20, 2025

    Texas AG Says Chase Can't Recoup Failed $10M Project

    The Texas Office of the Attorney General on Wednesday asked the state's highest court to reject JPMorgan Chase Bank NA's attempt to get a city to continue to make payments on a botched $10 million project, saying such payments would run afoul of the Texas Constitution.

  • August 20, 2025

    Colo. AG Pans EPA Plan To End Vehicle-Emission Standards

    Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser testified before the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday to advocate against the agency's proposal to eliminate air pollution standards for motor vehicles.

  • August 20, 2025

    Tribes Say Calif. Cannabis Raids Violate Sovereignty

    The Round Valley Indian Tribes are fighting a Mendocino County sheriff's attempt to toss their California federal court suit claiming law enforcement illegally raided cannabis growing operations on three tribal members' trust allotments, arguing that the raids are illegal and violate their sovereign rights.

  • August 20, 2025

    NAACP, Unions Lose Bid To Stop Education Dept. Closure

    The NAACP and several unions can't halt the Trump administration from shuttering the U.S. Department of Education, a Maryland federal judge ruled, finding the U.S. Supreme Court's stays of lower court orders related to the agency's dismantling indicate the plaintiffs aren't likely to win on their claims.

  • August 20, 2025

    Alaska Telecom Fights Changes To Buildout Rules

    A small Alaskan telecom is continuing its fight against a proposal from GCI Communication Corp. that would lower standards for carriers to receive Alaska Connect Fund support, telling the Federal Communications Commission that GCI should lose funding if it can't meet its commitments.

  • August 20, 2025

    TikTok Can't Dodge NC Claims Over Addictive App Design

    Chinese internet behemoth ByteDance Inc. and its social media subsidiary TikTok Inc. can be sued in the Tar Heel State, North Carolina's business court ruled Tuesday, preserving a lawsuit that accuses the companies of exploiting minors through addictive app design.

  • August 20, 2025

    Wash. AG Wins $28M In Fees In Kroger-Albertsons Deal Fight

    A Washington judge has awarded the state attorney general's office $28.4 million in legal fees for its efforts to block the merger between Kroger and Albertsons that was also challenged by the Federal Trade Commission, largely rejecting the grocery giants' objections to a total fee request of $32.4 million.

  • August 20, 2025

    NC's Cap On Med Mal Damages Is Constitutional, Panel Rules

    The North Carolina state appeals court ruled Wednesday that a state law capping compensatory damages in certain medical malpractice lawsuits at $500,000 is constitutional, handing a defeat to a woman seeking to recoup her full $7.5 million jury verdict stemming from the loss of her unborn baby.

  • August 20, 2025

    Ga. Mom Says State Child Support Policy Is Unconstitutional

    A Georgia mother has sued three state agencies in federal court, alleging the state's child support policy unconstitutionally keeps "indigent parents buried under child-support debts that they will never be able to repay."

  • August 20, 2025

    'Door To Tyranny' Ajar In Pot Smell Appeal, NC Justices Told

    A man appealing his conviction for unlawful firearm possession told North Carolina's highest court this week that state law enforcement entities were attempting to erode the separation of powers by inserting themselves into his case.

  • August 20, 2025

    Feds Lose Bid To Seal In Vax Patent Case Against Moderna

    The U.S. government has failed to show why names and contact information of certain U.S. Department of the Army employees should be hidden in an mRNA vaccine developer's $5 billion patent suit over Moderna's COVID-19 vaccines, a federal judge has found.

  • August 20, 2025

    Atlanta Ignores Sex Assault Claims Against Cops, Court Told

    A Georgia woman and her teenage daughter who was raped by an Atlanta police officer have told a federal judge that the city doesn't get to dodge their suit, arguing they've claimed in "exhaustive factual detail" how it routinely lets sexual misconduct slide among its officers.

  • August 20, 2025

    DC Circ. Upholds Crow Tribe Water Rights Suit Dismissal

    A D.C. Circuit Court panel won't overturn a decision dismissing a suit that looked to nullify a Montana water rights settlement, saying a 2010 law ratifying the agreement doesn't specify which tribal member can greenlight a deadline extension for publication of the agreement's statement of findings.

  • August 20, 2025

    Texas AG Threatens Suit Over Orgs. Mailing Abortion Pills

    Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sent cease-and-desist letters to three organizations he's accused of shipping abortion drugs to women in the state in violation of state and federal laws.

Expert Analysis

  • Litigation Inspiration: How To Respond After A Loss

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    Every litigator loses a case now and then, and the sting of that loss can become a medicine that strengthens or a poison that corrodes, depending on how the attorney responds, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

  • Tips For Cos. From California Climate Reporting FAQ

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    New guidance from the California Air Resources Board on how businesses must implement the state's sweeping climate reporting requirements should help companies assess their exposure, understand their disclosure obligations and begin documenting good-faith compliance efforts, says Thierry Montoya at Frost Brown.

  • FDA's Hasty Policymaking Approach Faces APA Challenges

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    Though the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has abandoned its usual notice-and-comment process for implementing new regulatory initiatives, two recent district court decisions make clear that these programs are still susceptible to Administrative Procedure Act challenges, says Rachel Turow at Skadden.

  • DOJ Crypto Enforcement Is Shifting To Target Willfulness

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    Three pending criminal prosecutions could be an indication of how the U.S. Department of Justice's recent digital assets memo is shaping enforcement of the area, and show a growing focus on executives who knowingly allow their platforms to be used for criminal conduct involving sanctions offenses, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • Legal Considerations Around Ibogaine As Addiction Therapy

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    Recent funding approval in Texas pertaining to the use of ibogaine for the potential treatment of substance use disorders signals a growing openness to innovative addiction treatments, but also underscores the need for rigorous compliance with state and federal requirements and ethical research standards, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • Unpacking DOJ's Suit Against Maryland Federal Bench

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    Political hoopla aside, the Trump administration’s suit naming the Maryland federal district court and all of its judges, which challenges a standing order that delays deportation upon the filing of a habeas petition, raises valid questions about both the validity of the order and the DOJ’s approach, says Steven Gordon at Holland & Knight.

  • What Calif. Insurance Ruling Means For Smoke Damage Limits

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    As California continues to grapple with an increasing number of wildfire claims, a state court's recent Aliff v. California FAIR Plan decision serves as a clear directive to insurers that policy language that narrows the scope of fire coverage below the California Insurance Code's minimum standards is impermissible, say attorneys at Wood Smith.

  • Wash. Law Highlights Debate Over Unemployment For Strikers

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    A new Washington state law that will allow strikers to receive unemployment benefits during work stoppages raises questions about whether such laws subsidize disruptions to the economy or whether they are preempted by federal labor law, says Daniel Johns at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Why SEC Abandoned Microcap Convertible Debt Crackdown

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has recently dismissed several cases targeting microcap convertible debt lenders, a significant disavowal of what was a controversial enforcement initiative under the Biden administration and a message that the new administration will focus on clear fraud, say attorneys at O'Melveny.

  • Justices' Resentencing Ruling Fortifies First Step Act Tools

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Hewitt v. U.S. ruling clarifies that resentencing after vacatur must reflect the law in effect at the time of the new sentencing, ultimately strengthening the strategic tools available to defense attorneys under the First Step Act, says Benson Varghese at Varghese Summersett.

  • The Metamorphosis Of The Major Questions Doctrine

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    The so-called major questions doctrine arose as a counterweight to Chevron deference over the past few decades, but invocations of the doctrine have persisted in the year since Chevron was overturned, suggesting it still has a role to play in reining in agency overreach, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • A Rapidly Evolving Landscape For Noncompetes In Healthcare

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    A wave of new state laws regulating noncompete agreements in the healthcare sector, varying in scope, approach and enforceability, are shaped by several factors unique to the industry and are likely to distort the market, say attorneys at Seyfarth.

  • New PTAB Denial Processes Grow More And More Confusing

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    Guidance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office about the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's new workload management and discretionary denial processes has been murky and inconsistent, and has been further muddled by the acting director's seemingly contradictory decisions, say attorneys at Finnegan.

  • Arguing The 8th Amendment For Reduction In FCA Penalties

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    While False Claims Act decisions lack consistency in how high the judgment-to-damages ratio in such cases can be before it becomes unconstitutional, defense counsel should cite the Eighth Amendment's excessive fines clause in pre-trial settlement negotiations, and seek penalty decreases in post-judgment motions and on appeal, says Scott Grubman at Chilivis Grubman.

  • GENIUS Act Creates 'Commodity' Uncertainty For Stablecoins

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    Half a century ago, Congress made trading in onion futures on commodity exchanges unlawful, and payment stablecoins could soon face a similarly unstable fate in the markets as the GENIUS Act heads to the president's desk for signature, says Peter Malyshev at Cadwalader.

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