Expert Analysis

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  Calif. Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

  

  The year's second quarter brought several noteworthy financial services developments to California, including activity around a commercial finance oversight bill, the former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau head's appointment to lead a new consumer agency, and a ruling reinforcing viable bank-fintech partnerships, say attorneys at Manatt.

• Quantum Readiness May Paradoxically Raise Contractor Risk

  

  The organizations best positioned for the cryptographic system migration deadlines and other requirements under President Donald Trump’s recent quantum executive orders will be those able to inventory their cryptographic dependencies while protecting their vulnerability road map from adversaries, says Jesse Lemon at The Beckage Firm.

• What Ex-CFPB Head's Calif. Role May Foretell For Oversight

  

  California Gov. Gavin Newsom's selection of former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra to lead a new consumer agency signals tougher state financial services oversight, especially for fintechs, as well as heightened enforcement activity and larger penalties, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

• Why SEC Climate Rule Rescission Wouldn't End Disclosure

  

  If the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent proposal to rescind its 2024 climate-related disclosure rules is adopted, companies would no longer need to prepare for the rules' specific governance, emissions, attestation, financial statement and tagging requirements, but several important constraints would remain, say attorneys at Venable.

• Have Private Suits Filled Gap Left By SEC's Crypto Pullback?

  

  In the wake of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's regulatory retreat in the crypto space, private litigants have pursued claims across different types of crypto-related activities and market participants, but whether private lawsuits have replaced SEC enforcement remains unclear, says Simona Mola at NERA.

• New Va. Finance Laws Signal Consumer Protection Push

  

  Virginia's 2026 legislative session produced several noteworthy developments for financial institutions, including garnishment reforms, mortgage assumption requirements and debt collection reforms, signaling broader trends toward increased consumer protection, enhanced fraud prevention obligations and greater accountability in financial services operations, says Jay Spruill at Woods Rogers.

• High Court's FCC Fine Ruling Reframes Agency Enforcement

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Federal Communications Commission v. AT&T sweeps aside uncertainty about what kinds of regulatory enforcement trigger a Seventh Amendment right, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

• Series

  Choral Singing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Singing in the New York City Bar Chorus — a hobby partly inspired by the late U.S. District Judge Richard Owen, who infused my clerkship year with opera music — has improved my legal career by refining my abilities to listen, exude confidence and develop emotional intelligence, says Bonnie Baker at Friedman Kaplan.

• What Ratings Overhaul May Mean For Banking Industry

  

  Proposed revisions to the bank rating system commonly known as CAMELS could constrain examiner discretion and tie supervisory outcomes more closely to measurable financial risk, potentially saving compliance costs, reducing the frequency of ratings downgrades and spurring a more growth-oriented banking system, say attorneys at Debevoise.

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  Illinois Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

  

  The last three months were particularly consequential for Illinois banking law, with a federal court ruling reshaping the Interchange Fee Prohibition Act, the state filling enforcement gaps, significant legislative activity and a revision to the community bank leverage ratio, say attorneys at Riley Safer.

• Attorney Mental Health Is An Ethical Obligation In The AI Era

  

  As attorneys cope with the increasing unpredictability that artificial intelligence and constant policy changes have created, particularly in practice areas where they carry the emotional weight of clients’ most consequential life events, otherwise soft discussions about self-care are a matter of professional competence, says attorney Jack Jrada.

• Tariff Refunds May Reshape Loan Covenant Calculations

  

  Tariff refunds issued after the U.S. Supreme Court's Learning Resources decision may complicate borrowers' covenant calculations depending on accounting treatment, the timing of recognition, customer reimbursement obligations and credit agreement language, say attorneys at Mayer Brown.

• 3 Steps For Banks As Section 1071 Rule Finally Becomes Final

  

  Some community banks and other lenders will get some breathing room in the final Section 1071 rule exempting them from small business lending reporting duties, but other reporting institutions should update applications, systems and staff training ahead of the 2028 compliance date, says Memrie Fortenberry at Jones Walker.

• Prediction Market Case Will Test US Insider Trading Reach

  

  The insider trading case recently brought against Google employee Michele Spagnuolo may help clarify the extraterritorial reach of the Commodity Exchange Act and U.S. agencies' ability to police foreign trading in prediction markets, say attorneys at Akin.

• The Hidden Settlement Problem In Complex Securities Cases

  

  The Second Circuit's recent decision in Knapp v. Barclays is a reminder that in securities cases with complex corporate records, the tracing picture is rarely as settled as the complaint suggests, and that conversations in the early stages require everyone to work from the same underlying facts, says Peter Kamminga at JAMS.