US Attorney General Pam Bondi has renewed the prior Trump administration’s prohibition on the use of sub-regulatory guidance, potentially altering the landscape for False Claims Act cases pursued during the second Trump administration.
On January 21, 2025, President Trump issued a widely expected executive order (EO), Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity, targeting affirmative action and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in the federal government.
The EO creates new compliance obligations for all government contractors and grant recipients and will lead to new Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) rules, eliminating such things as mandatory affirmative action plans and adding a new mandatory contract certification.
Any contractor or grant recipient that currently maintains a DEI program should especially take note, as the EO directly links the maintenance of future DEI programs to False Claims Act (FCA) liability.
On January 29, the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) rescinded M-25-13, which it had issued two days earlier, and which required federal agencies to "temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance."
Days after it was issued on January 27, one federal judge administratively stayed a portion of the memo before the OMB rescinded it altogether. A White House press secretary subsequently explained that the "freeze" was, in fact, still in place, and another judge indicated he intends to issue an injunction soon.
While much remains unclear, there are basic parameters and next steps every FFA recipient should consider.
People around the world continue to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic, the most extreme public health emergency in a century. This Top Ten discusses the public health law framework in the United States and summarizes some recent developments in the law arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Learn about the FTC's priorities under FTC Chair Lina Khan, who has a more expansive view of antitrust enforcement.
In response to Russia invasion of Ukraine, the United States and dozens of its allies and partners around the globe have imposed what the White House has called, "the most impactful, coordinated, and wide-ranging economic restrictions in history." This article (1) provides an overview of OFAC sanctions jurisdiction and circumvention prohibitions, (2) summarizes recent Russia sanctions, (3) provides a synopsis re sanctions evasion through cryptocurrency, (4) highlights existing US regulatory guidance regarding sanctions evasion through cryptocurrencies, and (5) recommends measures that persons and companies may wish to consider to mitigate the risk of sanctions violations.
Governments and regulators have struggled to keep pace as new digital asset classes and other blockchain applications have risen to prominence. This regulatory uncertainty has caused confusion in the markets and impeded greater adoption of distributed ledger technologies in the United States. However, on June 7, 2022, US Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) introduced the Responsible Financial Innovation Act (RFIA), the first major piece of US federal legislation to provide a reasonably comprehensive regulatory framework for digital assets. This article discusses the most significant provisions of the RFIA.
The US Supreme Court has long been skeptical of novel proposals by federal agencies to address issues of vast economic and political significance. In West Virginia v. EPA, the Court made clear that its past cases reviewing novel applications and interpretations of agency powers do constitute an identifiable “doctrine” for application by courts going forward. When an administrative agency makes a “major policy decision,” it must have “clear congressional authorization” to do so. This case may represent one of the Supreme Court’s most significant administrative law decisions since Chevron U.S.A. Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council in 1984.
The US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) spent the summer of 2022 acting on several significant regulatory activities. This resource examines those activities in light of the October 17, 2022, US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruling that the funding mechanism for the CFPB was unconstitutional. On November 14, 2022, the CFPB petitioned the US Supreme Court to overturn the Fifth Circuit’s decision. The CFPB asked the Supreme Court to consider the petition at its January 6, 2023, conference and hear the case during its April 2023 session.
Learn about the Measures for Cybersecurity Reviews adopted by Chinese authorities, which took effect on 15 February 2022.