Keep your finger on the legal world's pulse
24th December 2025
 
THE HOT STORY
Business group's challenge to Trump's $100,000 H-1B visa fee is rejected
U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell in Washington, D.C. has rejected a challenge from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce that President Donald Trump's $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas for highly skilled foreign workers conflicts with federal immigration law and will lead many employers to cut jobs and the services they provide to the public. "The parties’ vigorous debate over the ultimate wisdom of this political judgment is not within the province of the courts," wrote Howell, an appointee of Democratic former President Barack Obama. "So long as the actions dictated by the policy decision and articulated in the Proclamation fit within the confines of the law, the Proclamation must be upheld."
EMPLOYMENT LAW
EEOC must meet high legal bar to prove DEI policies discriminate
Interviews with more than a dozen corporate legal and compliance experts suggest that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has a high bar to clear to prove companies' diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies violate discrimination law, Reuters reports. New EEOC chair Andrea Lucas told Reuters last week that the agency plans to launch inquiries into corporate DEI practices to find out whether employers made race or sex-based decisions - but former EEOC chair Jenny Yang says it still has to build a case and convince the courts that a company's programs run afoul of the law.
NSA employee sues over order on transgender rights
Sarah O'Neill, a transgender data scientist at the National Security Agency, is suing the Trump administration to block an executive order that she claims violates federal civil rights law. Filed in a U.S. District Court in Maryland, the lawsuit challenges the order that mandates recognition of only two sexes, asserting it denies her existence. O'Neill argues that the NSA has rescinded her rights, creating a hostile work environment. She seeks restoration of her workplace protections and financial damages, citing a Supreme Court ruling that prohibits discrimination based on gender identity.
LAW
Supreme Court ruling 'could create tariff refund problem'
A Supreme Court ruling that scraps the Trump administration's tariffs imposed on dozens of nations under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act, and which refunds the import fees collected, would create a major “administrative problem,” Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council, has told CBS' “Face the Nation.” The president's top economic advisor said: “We really expect the Supreme Court is going to find with us,”  but even if it didn't find in the administration's favor, Hassett argued it would be “pretty unlikely that they're going to call for widespread refunds because it would be an administrative problem to get those refunds out there.”
Supreme Court blocks Trump’s troop deployment
The Supreme Court has denied the Trump administration's request to deploy National Guard troops in Chicago to assist with immigration enforcement. The court declined to overturn a ruling by U.S. District Judge April Perry, who found no substantial evidence of a "danger of rebellion" in Illinois. The majority opinion stated that the administration had “failed to identify a source of authority that would allow the military to execute the laws in Illinois.” Dissenting justices Alito, Thomas, and Gorsuch argued that the administration needed troops to enforce immigration laws. The ruling could influence other legal challenges regarding military deployments in Democratic-led cities. The Trump administration has appealed similar rulings in California and Oregon.
WA lawmakers propose limiting immigration enforcement at schools
As immigration enforcement intensifies under the Trump administration, Washington state lawmakers are proposing Senate Bill 5906 to protect early learning facilities, schools, colleges, and universities from immigration authorities without a court-approved warrant. Sponsored by Sen. Drew Hansen, the bill aims to establish clear boundaries for immigration enforcement in sensitive areas. “We have strong policies already, but we want to put those in state law,” Hansen said, emphasizing the need for judicial oversight. The legislation also mandates that educational institutions provide information on immigration rights and maintain a list of legal service providers. The bill comes in response to heightened concerns about immigration enforcement in schools, where many educators are immigrants.
LAWSUITS
Author sues AI firms over book use
Investigative journalist John Carreyrou and five other writers have sued xAI, OpenAI, Google, Meta, Anthropic, and Perplexity, accusing them of using copyrighted books - including Carreyrou’s "Bad Blood" - without permission to train AI models. Filed in California federal court, the lawsuit challenges industry practices and criticizes class action settlements as undervaluing author claims. Unlike prior cases, this is the first to name Elon Musk’s xAI. The authors argue the AI companies violated copyright law, seeking individual claims over mass settlements that pay only a small fraction of statutory damages.
LEGAL TECH
White & Case to roll out Legora’s legal AI software
White & Case and Legora are launching the "Legora Portal" to improve collaboration between law firms and in-house legal teams. Dipen Sabharwal KC, a London-based arbitration partner at White & Case, said: "This partnership is part of our strategic approach to AI and innovation." The Legora Portal offers a secure workspace for in-house teams to access expertise, automate workflows, and integrate external counsel. Key features include the ability for law firms to create custom AI workflows for tasks including contract review and legal drafting.
APPOINTMENTS
Greenberg Traurig hires Squire Patton Boggs tax lawyer
Taylor Klavan has joined Greenberg Traurig as a shareholder in its public finance and infrastructure practice in Houston. She specializes in tax issues related to public finance, representing clients, including governmental entities and underwriters, on projects such as airports, roadways, and healthcare systems. Klavan previously worked at Squire Patton Boggs.
INTERNATIONAL
WSJ's parent firm accused of dismissing reporter over union role
Selina Cheng, a former reporter for The Wall Street Journal, has begun her testimony against Dow Jones Publishing Co., the parent company of the Journal, in a trial concerning her alleged termination due to union activities. Cheng, who is also chairperson of the Hong Kong Journalists Association, claims her dismissal in July 2024 was due to her refusal to withdraw from a union election. Dow Jones faces two charges under the Employment Ordinance, both of which it denies. Cheng's case has raised significant concerns about press freedom in Hong Kong, where media operations have increasingly come under pressure since the imposition of a national security law in 2020.
Louvre Museum boosts security after heist
The Louvre Museum in Paris has installed security bars on the balcony used by burglars who stole jewels worth $102m on October 19. The heist lasted less than seven minutes. The museum also acknowledged inadequate security camera coverage and is now implementing other changes, including a mobile police presence and 100 additional cameras. "The Louvre is learning all the lessons from the theft of October 19," the museum said. Police have identified eight suspects, but the stolen jewels remain missing.

 

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