September 2026 Month in Review
HIGHLIGHTS:
9 amicus filings – 2 regulatory comments – 10 publications – 2 programs
NEW FILINGS – AMICUS BRIEFS
Civelli v. Mulacek
WLF asks the Fifth Circuit to reverse a trial court judgment built on unreliable expert evidence.
[expert evidence]
Tampa General Hospital v. Eli Lilly & Company
WLF urges the Middle District of Florida to reject an impermissible attempt to privately enforce the federal 340B drug-pricing program through state-law causes of action.
[rule of law]
Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital v. Eli Lilly & Co.
WLF asks the District of New Hampshire to reject an impermissible attempt to privately enforce the federal 340B drug-pricing program through state-law causes of action.
[rule of law]
Hernandez v. AT&T Services, Inc.
WLF urges the Ninth Circuit to affirm dismissal of an novel ERISA class action.
[class action]
Apple Inc. v. Epic Games
WLF asks the Supreme Court to reverse a Ninth Circuit ruling that allows federal courts to impose civil contempt for violating an injunction’s “spirit.”
[rule of law]
Kentucky v. EPA/U.S. Chamber v. EPA
WLF urges the Supreme Court to review a D.C. Circuit opinion recognizing an extra-statutory off-cycle revision procedure under the Clean Air Act.
[environmental regulation]
Ohio Telecom Ass’n v. FCC
WLF asks the en banc Sixth to hold that FCC acted unlawfully in issuing a data-breach reporting rule after Congress nullified a similar rule under the Congressional Review Act.
[rule of law]
Philip Morris USA v. Fontaine
WLF urges the Supreme Court to restore congressional intent as the touchstone in express preemption cases.
[Supremacy Clause]
NLRB v. State of California
WLF asks the Eastern District of California to permanently enjoin California’s new labor law on federal preemption grounds.[Supremacy Clause]
NEW FILINGS – REGULATORY COMMENTS
In re Proposed Amendment to South Carolina Rule 5.4
WLF supports the South Carolina Supreme Court’s proposed changes to Rule 5.4 of the South Carolina Rules of Professional Conduct.
[civil justice]
In re Proposed Enforcement Policy Statement Regarding Personalized Pricing
WLF urges the FTC to withdraw a proposed policy statement announcing stepped-up enforcement efforts against personalized pricing.
[antitrust/consumer protection]
CASE UPDATES (DECISIONS ISSUED)
Construction Laborers Pension Trust of Greater St. Louis v. Funko, Inc.
The Ninth Circuit denies rehearing en banc in a controversial securities case.
[class action]
U.S. ex rel. Zafirov v. Florida Medical Associates
The Eleventh Circuit vacates a decision holding the False Claims Act’s qui tam provision unconstitutional under the Appointments Clause but remands for further consideration under the Vesting and Take Care Clauses.
[government contracting/False Claims Act]
PUBLICATIONS
Why the Supreme Court Should Shut Down Climate-Change Tort Suits in Suncor v. Boulder
Professor Richard A. Epstein, NYU Law School
[rule of law]
Oregon Extended Producer Responsibility Law for Plastics and Packaging Survives Initial Legal Challenge
Reza Zarghamee, Dawn Sestito, and Janine Panchok, O’Melveny & Myers LLP
[environmental regulation]
Direct Employment, Core Services, and the Theory of the Firm: Why NYC’s Delivery Protection Act Is Doomed to Fail
Alex MacDonald, Esq.
[employment law]
With Lawsuits, Climate Crusaders Come for Your 401K
Jim Wedeking and Tanner Baird, Boyden Gray PLLC
[employment law]
The Economic Irrationality of “Surveillance Pricing”: How Bans on Personalized Prices for Groceries Will Make Groceries Cost Even More
Alex MacDonald, Esq.
[antitrust/consumer protection]
Court Puts Retroactive Climate-Change Cost-Shifting State Law on Hold
Michael Showalter, Samuel A. Rasche, and Duncan M. Weinstein, ArentFox Schiff LLP
[environmental regulation]
In Lawsuits Against Sig Sauer, No Good Option Goes Unpunished
Cory L. Andrews, Washington Legal Foundation
[class actions]
Court Grants Preliminary Injunction Blocking Enforcement of New Mexico’s PFAS Disclosure Rule
Katie Bond and Samuel A. Butler, Keller & Heckman
[commercial speech]
Three Problems with the FTC’s Section 2 Theory on Patent-Applications in CareFirst of MD v. Amgen
Jay DeSanto, WLF
[antitrust/consumer protection]
“Possess” or “Collect” under Illinois’ BIPA: Seventh Circuit Resolves Trial-Court Split
Sophia Mancall-Bitel, Matthew Provance, Tony Weibell, and Riley P. Harkin, Mayer Brown LLP
[class actions]
EVENTS
Suncor Energy (U.S.A.) Inc. v. County Commissioners of Boulder County: A Supreme Court Oral Argument Preview
Solicitor General Eric Wessan, State of Iowa; Mike Fragoso, Torridon Law; Phil Goldberg, NAM Manufacturers’ Accountability Project; Mike Toth, Civitas Institute
[environmental regulation]
Cases and Controversies: Expectations for the U.S. Supreme Court’s October Term 2026
Jessica L. Ellsworth, Hogan Lovells Cadwalader; Ephraim McDowell, Cooley LLP; Zac Morgan, Washington Legal Foundation
[multiple]