Keep your finger on the legal world's pulse

The Department of Justice is asking a Mississippi federal court to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the NAACP against xAI, Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence lab that is now owned by SpaceX. In its motion to intervene, the DOJ accused the NAACP of threatening “American national, economic, and energy security” by seeking to shut off power supply needed for AI development. The suit filed in April by the NAACP claimed that xAI violated the federal Clean Air Act by using dozens of methane gas-burning turbines to power its AI data centers without proper permits or pollution controls. “There is no moral or legal precedent for this,” said Laura Thoms, the director of enforcement for Earthjustice, which is representing the NAACP. “This isn’t about national security; it’s a desperate attempt to protect wealthy tech companies from obeying the laws meant to protect people from pollution.”

 

AP News

CNBC

New York Times

The Guardian

The Senate Judiciary Committee is set to hold confirmation hearings for acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on July 15 and 16. President Trump nominated Blanche following a contentious meeting about a $1.776bn settlement fund, which had raised concerns among GOP members. Senator Thom Tillis remarked: “It'll be an issue if the weaponization fund isn't effectively dead by the confirmation hearing.” Blanche, who previously served as one of Trump's personal lawyers, faces a challenging path to confirmation, needing unanimous Republican support if all Democrats oppose him. Senate Majority Leader John Thune expressed optimism about Blanche's hearing, saying: “We'll let the process play out.”

 

U.S. News

According to a Gallup poll, Americans remain nearly evenly divided on the legality of abortion four years after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. The survey indicates that 48% of respondents believe abortion should be legal in most circumstances, while 49% prefer it to be illegal or limited. This reflects a notable shift from 2009, when only 34% supported legalization. The partisan divide is stark, with 75% of Democrats supporting legality versus only 15% of Republicans. Gender differences are also significant: 56% of women find abortion morally acceptable compared to 39% of men. The survey, conducted from May 1-17 with 1,001 adults, has a margin of error of 4%.

 

U.S. News

Carter Page, a former advisor to Donald Trump's 2016 campaign, has faced a setback as the Supreme Court declined to hear his appeal regarding a lawsuit against former FBI officials. Page alleged unlawful surveillance during the FBI's investigation into Russian interference in the election. The Supreme Court's decision followed lower court rulings that dismissed his claims, which were filed too late according to a three-year statute of limitations. Page argued that the clock should start when the government acknowledged the surveillance, not when it was first reported in the media. The FBI had obtained four warrants to surveil Page, but an inspector general's report revealed significant errors in the warrant applications. Page has consistently denied any improper ties to Russia.

 

The Baltimore Sun

U.S. News

Whole Foods Market has failed in its attempt to overturn a union election at its Philadelphia Spring Garden store after the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) unanimously declined to review the certification of the vote, saying the company had raised “no substantial issues warranting review”. Employees voted 130-100 in January 2025 to join the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union. Whole Foods, which is owned by Amazon.com, had argued that restrictions on employer anti-union meetings and procedural issues relating to the NLRB’s quorum affected the fairness of the election. The decision clears the way for the union certification to stand, although further legal challenges remain possible.

 

The Seattle Times

Wall Street Journal

Florida's Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a lawsuit against TikTok on Monday, alleging the platform violates state law by allowing children under 14 to create accounts. "TikTok knowingly deceives parents and allows children to be exposed to harmful and inappropriate content in direct violation of Florida law," Uthmeier said. The lawsuit seeks a court order for TikTok, owned by ByteDance, to comply with the law and demands financial damages. The case is part of a broader trend, with over 25 state attorneys general suing TikTok for its addictive design, which they claim contributes to a mental health crisis among youth. The law, known as H.B. 3, mandates that social media platforms prevent users under 14 from accessing their services and require parental consent for users under 16.

 

The Miami Herald

Amgen's acquisition of antibody specialist Teneobio faces a setback after a federal jury found the companies willfully infringed on a patent held by Harbour Antibodies. A Delaware jury ordered Amgen to pay $20.2m in damages, which could triple to $60.6m due to the willful nature of the infringement. An Amgen spokesperson said the company will pursue "certain important legal issues with the court in post-trial proceedings." Harbour's lawsuit, launched in late 2021, claimed Teneobio's technology was based on its proprietary platforms. Meanwhile, Amgen is shifting focus to its xaluritamig candidate in prostate cancer trials.

 

Fierce Biotech

Skadden has expanded its investment management practice by adding three partners from Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld. Robert Griffin, a 25-year veteran at Akin, and Skye Smith, who joined Akin after a year at DLA Piper, will be based in Skadden's Abu Dhabi office. Kapil Vishnu Pandit, with over 16 years at Akin, will work from Washington, DC.

 

Bloomberg Law

The European Parliament has approved a long-delayed trade agreement with the United States, removing a key obstacle to a deal that helped avert President Donald Trump’s threat to impose higher tariffs on European car exports. Lawmakers voted 440 to 151 in favor of the agreement, which will see the European Union eliminate tariffs on U.S. industrial goods and selected agricultural products, while American tariffs on European imports remain higher. The deal, originally agreed between Mr. Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen last year, was delayed by political disputes and legal challenges in the U.S. The agreement was designed around a 15% tariff rate on E.U. exports to the U.S., but a subsequent U.S. Supreme Court ruling forced the administration to rely on temporary emergency powers, resulting in a 10% additional levy on top of existing duties. The agreement still requires formal approval from EU member states.

 

Euronews

Financial Times

New York Times

Politico

Sweden's parliament has passed a law which allows authorities to revoke immigrants' residency permits following instances of bad behavior, ​such as having unpaid debts, doing undeclared work or ‌links to extremist organizations. Opposition and ​human rights advocacy groups say the law is arbitrary because it would involve decisions about behavior that has not been deemed criminal. "The good behavior law leaves people in uncertainty about what actions or expressions can be used against ​them," Stockholm-based group Civil Rights Defenders said. "It ​undermines the rule of law and the principle of equality before the ‌law." The Swedish parliament has also adopted legislation obliging public sector workers, including employees of tax authorities, employment and social insurance agencies and prison and probation services, to report to the police any migrants who are not authorized to live in Sweden. 

 

AP News

Reuters

The United ‌Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has said that almost all of the world's children are exposed to at least one climate hazard. UNICEF's Children's Climate Risk Report says as many as 1.1 billion children globally were exposed to at least three overlapping climate risks that could overwhelm governments ​and social services. "It's not just the exposure to the single hazards like floods or droughts ‌or ⁠heat waves and extreme heat that children face, but it is the exposure to multiple hazards," explained Rohini Sampoornam Swaminathan, UNICEF statistics manager.

 

Reuters

UNICEF

The Guardian