Yesterday Adam Peters and I filed an amicus brief in the DC Circuit arguing that the court should cast a very skepitcal eye on the Department of Transportation's claims that it has authority to regulate computer reservation systems that are not owned by airlines. The brief has a lot to do with the extent to which courts should defer to agencies when they use rulemakings to articulate new, expansionary interpretations of their jurisdiction, especially when another agency already--in this case the FTC--possesses jurisdiction over the same subject matter.
If this type of administrative law and regulatory governance issue makes your mouth water, then you are a good candidate to attend the First Annual Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice Institute on April 7-8 here in Washington. The conference topic is Making Agency Law Through Rulemaking, and it has a world-class faculty, including Dick Pierce, author of the widely-acclaimed and leading Administrative Law Treatise, DC Circuit Judge Merrick Garland, FERC Chairman Pat Wood III, former White House Counsel Boyden Gray, former Secretary of Transportation Jim Burnley, and many more notables and rulemaking experts. Dick Wiley is giving the Institute's first Distinguished Lecture, and it is entitled, "The 'Ins' and 'Outs' of Rulemakings: Lessons from Government and K Street". See the entire program and sign-up information here.
The Institute is sponsored by the American Bar Association's Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice. I confess by way of a disclaimer that I'm Chair of the Ad Law Section. But this program is so good I am not bashful about promoting it strongly to anyone interested in learning a lot more about how policy is made in Washington.