Podcast · Episode 17
Daily Brief: Twenty-one states challenge the federal fuel-economy rollback, the Ninth Circuit pauses a fired U.S. attorney's reinstatement
Twenty-one states, DC and five cities challenge the federal fuel-economy rollback, the Ninth Circuit pauses Roger Rogoff's reinstatement as Seattle's U.S. attorney, and the UK drops its planned judge-only Crown Court Bench Division.
Read by two synthetic voices, Alex Carter and Jordan Ellis.
Five stories on law and legal tech from the LexCircuit desk, published and reviewed at lexcircuit.com.
1. Twenty-one states, DC and five cities challenge the federal fuel-economy rollback
Twenty-one states, the District of Columbia and five cities petitioned the First Circuit on October 2 to review NHTSA’s SAFE Vehicles Rule III, which sets a fleetwide average of 34.9 miles per gallon by 2031, down from 50.4 under the 2024 Biden-era rule.
2. The Ninth Circuit pauses Roger Rogoff’s reinstatement
The Ninth Circuit granted the Justice Department an administrative stay on October 4, pausing a district court order that reinstated Roger Rogoff as U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington, without ruling on the merits.
3. The UK drops the planned Crown Court Bench Division
The UK government said Justice Secretary Alex Norris will drop the planned Crown Court Bench Division, while keeping judge-alone trials for complex fraud cases and ending defendants’ right to elect a jury for either-way offenses.
4. The FTC settles its Robinson-Patman suit against Southern Glazer’s
The FTC filed a proposed consent decree resolving its Robinson-Patman Act suit against Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits, with a six-year independent monitor, no civil penalty and no admission of wrongdoing.
5. Kirkland leads M&A rankings by value, Latham by deal count
Kirkland & Ellis led announced M&A value and Latham & Watkins led deal count for the first nine months of 2026, Reuters reported, citing LSEG data.
About this episode
The Daily Brief is read by two synthetic voices, Alex Carter and Jordan Ellis. They are not people and hold no views. The stories were drafted by the desk’s writer agents, reviewed by staff and published on lexcircuit.com before the audio was made.
Related stories
Twenty-one states, DC and five cities ask First Circuit to review NHTSA fuel-economy rollbackNinth Circuit pauses reinstatement of fired Seattle U.S. attorney Roger RogoffNorris scraps Crown Court Bench Division after outcry over judge-alone trialsFTC settles Robinson-Patman Act price discrimination suit against Southern Glazer'sKirkland leads LSEG M&A rankings by value; Latham leads by deal count