The Texas legislative session kicked off on January 14, and cannabis policy is set to be a major topic of debate. The state, known for its conservative stance on many issues, is at a crossroads with its cannabis laws, facing both calls for stricter regulations and pushes for legalization.
West Virginia Attorney General (AG) Patrick Morrisey announced a total $17 million settlement agreement with pharmaceutical companies, Pfizer and Ranbaxy after more than a decade of litigation regarding the companies’ alleged “pay-for-delay” antitrust violations related to the cholesterol drug, Lipitor.
The U.S. Supreme Court closed out 2024 by confirming states’ authority to regulate internet service providers. On December 16, 2024, the Court denied certiorari in New York State Telecommunications Association, Inc., et al. v. Attorney General Letitia James, Case No. 21-1975, allowing New York’s Affordable Broadband Act (ABA) to stand.
On October 21, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced a settlement with two debt settlement companies, Financial Solutions Group and Accelerated Debt Settlement.
In August, North Carolina-based cigarette importer, King Maker Marketing Inc., challenged a decision by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (Customs) that rejected its claims for more than $11 million in drawback duties as untimely.
Jeff Johnson, former deputy solicitor general in the Missouri attorney general’s (AG) office, has joined Troutman Pepper’s Regulatory Investigations, Strategy + Enforcement (RISE) practice and nationally recognized State AG team.
Wisconsin Attorney General (AG) Josh Kaul has announced an $85,000 settlement with the global food supply company Kerry, Inc. in relation to the company’s operation of a liquid smoke manufacturing facility.
California Attorney General (AG) Rob Bonta announced a $50 million settlement with Vitol, Inc. (Vitol) and SK Energy Americas Inc. along with its parent company SK Trading International (collectively SK), to resolve a lawsuit involving allegations of antitrust violations and unfair competition in California’s gasoline market. The AG accused the companies of inflating gasoline prices after an oil refinery in Torrance, CA exploded in 2015.
On June 6, New York Attorney General (AG) Letitia James filed suit against NovaTech Advisors, LLC, AWS Mining Pty Ltd., and several other entities, alleging the defendants orchestrated two consecutive, fraudulent cryptocurrency schemes that largely targeted Haitian nationals. Defendants Cynthia Petion and Eddy Petion allegedly defrauded investors of tens of millions of dollars by promising large returns in WhatsApp group chats and social media advertisements in Haitian creole by appealing to religious beliefs. The action highlights the regulation-by-enforcement nature of the cryptocurrency industry, and underscores the need for comprehensive, consistent regulation.
Spirit AeroSystems, Inc. (Spirit), a subsidiary of a company that produces fuselages for Boeing’s 737 jets, has filed a lawsuit against Texas in response to the attorney general’s (AG) recently initiated investigation into the company’s alleged manufacturing issues — which the AG says led to midair emergencies earlier this year. The lawsuit, filed on May 1, asserts that the state’s probe is unconstitutional and violates Spirit’s rights to be free from unreasonable searches.