Nightly Brief

Your Friday night briefing from the staff of Courthouse News

Top CNS stories for today including a federal judge saying a crude oil pipeline under construction through North America’s largest swamp already has caused irreparable harm; in a surprise move on what the fifth day of a trial over trade secrets and autonomous vehicles, Waymo announces it had reached a settlement with Uber; a federal judge sides with Grubhub’s position that its former delivery driver was an independent contractor; California lawmakers and environmentalists come together in resistance to the Trump administration's plan to sell new offshore oil leases, off California’s coastline; one of the world’s largest lava domes has been discovered in the Kikai Caldera south of Japan’s main island, and more.

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National

1.) Ruling from the bench late Thursday, a federal judge said that a crude oil pipeline under construction through North America’s largest swamp already has caused irreparable harm, galvanizing environmentalists who sued the Army Corps of Engineers for permitting it.

2.) In a surprise move on what was supposed to be the fifth day of a month-long trial over trade secrets and autonomous vehicles, Waymo announced Friday it had reached a settlement with Uber.

3.) The House moved swiftly early Friday to reopen the federal government and pass a $400 billion budget deal, endorsing enormous spending increases despite looming trillion-dollar deficits. President Trump signed the bill hours later.

4.) In a pivotal case for labor rights in the emerging gig economy, a federal judge on Thursday sided with Grubhub’s position that its former delivery driver was an independent contractor not entitled to overtime pay and other employment benefits.

Regional

5.) With the federal government plotting new offshore oil leases, California lawmakers and environmentalists have coalesced around a clear goal: Keeping big oil off California’s coastline.

6.) California’s ban on the possession of high-capacity gun magazines passes constitutional muster, a federal judge ruled Wednesday, though he gave the gun owners a fourth opportunity to make their case.

7.) The St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin sued the state’s attorney general Thursday, arguing state laws regulating hemp and cannabidiol do not apply to tribal lands and cannot block its production of hemp oil.

Science

8.) One of the world’s largest lava domes has been discovered in the Kikai Caldera south of Japan’s main island.

Research & Polls

9.) While the rise of hate groups is a national issue, the underlying factors that fuel the formation of these factions vary by region, according to a new study.

International

10.) Facing a new 30 percent import tariff on their solar products, three Canadian manufacturers claim in a federal complaint that President Donald Trump acted rashly without input from trade officials.

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