Expert Analysis

• Drawing A Line Between Settlement Pressure And Extortion

  

  U.S. v. Luo, pending in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, may force courts to address anew when settlement negotiations become criminal extortion, particularly in the age of easily fabricated digital evidence, says attorney Denis Kiely.

• Responding To US Labeling Brazilian Gangs As Terrorist Orgs

  

  The Trump administration's recent designation of two Brazilian criminal organizations as foreign terrorists affects companies in multiple sectors that must now assess their exposure and enhance their sanctions, know-your-customer and anti-money-laundering screening programs, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

• Securities Class Cert., 5 Years After Goldman Ruling

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's 2021 decision in Goldman Sachs Group v. Arkansas Teacher Retirement System has not only armed defendants in securities cases with more arguments in individual class certification fights, but may also be providing greater certainty and finality in class certification battles, say attorneys at Skadden.

• What Fed's Fast Track To Account Access Means For Fintechs

  

  Fintechs, stablecoin issuers and other nonbank entities should assess eligibility, compliance demands and operational limits ahead of the Federal Reserve's potential finalization of a payment account framework proposing a faster path to direct access to key payment rails, says Stephen Aschettino at Fox Rothschild.

• A Lender's Guide To Fraud: Identifying Risks

  

  The evolving lending landscape, particularly the private credit boom, has heightened lenders' exposure to fraud, but recent bankruptcies demonstrate where fraud risks most commonly materialize and how banks can mitigate exposure at the outset, say attorneys at Moore & Van Allen.

• Series

  Founding An Autism Academy Made Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Starting a nonprofit autism school with no building, no funding model and no guarantee that families would trust us taught me the importance of mission, patience and purpose — lessons that sharpened my practice and showed how meaningful work outside the office can make lawyers better, says Phillip Russell at Ogletree Deakins.

• Brightline Debt Woes Highlight Risks In Private Rail Finance

  

  The reported creditor negotiations and mounting debt obligations of Florida railroad Brightline arrive at a moment when the assumptions underlying a decade of privately financed infrastructure investment are under pressure across multiple asset classes, says Robert Charbonneau at Agentis.

• The Banking Issue Hiding In Justices' Freight Broker Ruling

  

  While the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent liability preemption ruling in Montgomery v. Caribe Transport was front-page news for the transportation industry, the banking industry seems to have missed that the decision exposes freight broker lenders to credit, documentation and litigation issues, say attorneys at Barack Ferrazzano.

• Opinion

  Rule Of Law Requires Gov't Engagement With Bar, Not Retreat

  

  A federal agency's absence from national and local bar conferences, most recently illustrated by the U.S. Department of Justice's withdrawal from a New York City Bar Association white collar conference, disserves the bar, the government lawyers themselves and, ultimately, the administration of justice, says Muhammad Faridi at Linklaters.

• AG Watch: Oregon's Strategic Civil Enforcement Approach

  

  Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield’s recent antitrust litigation activity and proposed staffing increase are the latest in a series of structural and policy changes that signal that the state Department of Justice is taking a more aggressive approach to civil enforcement, says Keturah Taylor at Cozen O'Connor.

• How Nasdaq's 23/5 Rule Will Alter Public Offering Strategies

  

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent approval of Nasdaq's proposal to extend trading hours to 23 hours a day, five days a week, may reshape how certain public offerings are executed, particularly for confidentially marketed public offerings, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

• Fannie, Freddie AI Rules Raise Stakes For Mortgage Lenders

  

  Artificial intelligence governance frameworks recently released by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac impose monitoring and vendor oversight standards on mortgage lenders, potentially reshaping secondary-market eligibility, fair lending reviews and risk management as compliance deadlines approach, says Brendan Palfreyman at Harris Beach.

• The Paradoxical Duty To Adopt AI When You Can't Bill For It

  

  Both billing for hours saved using artificial intelligence and preserving billable time by not adopting AI may violate rules of professional conduct, but until bar associations' ethics rules catch up to this emerging economic dilemma, firms must decide how to adjust fee structures themselves, says Ines Lassalle at Peyrot & Associates.

• Sripetch May Prove To Be An Empty Victory For The SEC

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Sripetch v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission held that the SEC need not prove pecuniary harm for disgorgement, but if the commission must still identify victims and distribute funds in a compensatory way, it faces the same economic problem as before the ruling, says Erin Smith at Compass Lexecon.

• TTAB's Everwise Decision Highlights Token-Use Pitfalls

  

  The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board's recent cancellation of Everwise Credit Union's registration for the standard character mark "Everwise Credit Union" offers a detailed road map for practitioners on both sides of reexamination proceedings, and a blunt warning on specimen strategy, say attorneys at Akerman.