Expert Analysis

• OCC Letter Affirms Nat'l Banks' Shield From State Licensing

  

  The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency recently published a letter supporting Fidelity Digital Assets' stance that state money transmitter licensing requirements do not apply to national banks, confirming the agency's long-standing interpretive position on this issue, say attorneys at Katten.

• Opinion

  Denying Emergency Abortion Care Is A Liability Oversight

  

  Health systems in states with abortion bans should consider that refusing to provide emergency abortion care carries greater legal risk than the risk of prosecution under post-Dobbs laws for providing treatment, say Kimberly Chernoby at FemInEM and Rachel Rebouché at the University of Texas, Austin School of Law.

• Solar's Momentum At Mid-2026 Will Help It Overcome Snags

  

  The rapid expansion of U.S. solar development in the first half of 2026 is likely to continue its pace, even amid ongoing shifts in federal trade policy and supply chain regulations, obstacles to permitting reform, and an increasing divide between states enacting policies to encourage or stymie project development, say attorneys at Beveridge & Diamond.

• The Debanking Minefield: Navigating Fair Access In 2026

  

  Federal regulators' recent elimination of reputational risk from bank supervision, alongside a growing patchwork of state fair access laws, is reshaping how banks make account and service decisions and ushering in a new compliance era requiring individualized, objective and risk-based access determinations, say attorneys at Spencer Fane.

• Carbon Health Settlement Highlights Why Evidence Is Key

  

  The California Attorney General's Office's first-of-its-kind settlement with Carbon Health, imposing penalties for alleged corporate practice of medicine violations, shows that friendly professional corporation challenges usually hinge not on the parties' management services agreement, but on whether the operational record matches it, says Ben Dubin at VC Expert Services.

• How To Brace For A Potential Democratic Oversight Push

  

  With the possibility of a shift in congressional control after the November midterm elections, companies and their general counsel should prepare now by mapping oversight exposure, reviewing government interactions, preserving records and developing coordinated communications strategies, say attorneys at Hogan Lovells.

• Opinion

  Labor Contract Bill Would Introduce Sweeping Risks For Cos.

  

  The House-approved Faster Labor Contracts Act would force rapid first-contract bargaining, subject businesses to binding arbitration over key workplace terms, and create major uncertainty for nonunion companies, making it crucial for employers to assess their exposure and mitigate the risks now, say attorneys at FBT Gibbons.

• DOD's Cyber Certification Pause May Heighten FCA Risks

  

  The July 14 pause in implementation of the U.S. Department of Defense Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program places more weight on the accuracy of contractors' own compliance representations and thereby increases their False Claims Act exposure by leaving stringent self-assessment requirements intact, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.

• Assessing New Risks After The End Of The SEC's Gag Rule

  

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent rescission of its long-standing no‑deny gag rule marks a transition from a regime of enforced silence to one of strategic communication, meaning the question is no longer simply whether to settle, but how to manage the narrative that follows, say attorneys at Nelson Mullins.

• New Pipeline Repair Rules Shift Burden To Engineer Judgment

  

  A proposal from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration to allow operators more flexibility to make analysis-informed repair choices, rather than hew to long-standing prescriptive criteria, could make documenting the engineer’s decision-making process as important to compliance as the ultimate repair performed, says Ahuva Battams at Beatty & Wozniak.

• AI-Fueled Pro Se Suits Pose Rising Risk For Lenders

  

  Harris v. Pinnacle Bank, a recently decided Mississippi federal court case, illustrates how pro se borrowers are using artificial intelligence to file more sophisticated documents that can complicate and prolong loan enforcement proceedings, making early procedural challenges and tighter litigation strategies increasingly important for lenders, says Joseph Briggett at Baker Donelson.

• Series

  Being A Magician Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  The skills I've developed as a lifelong magician have translated directly into tangible benefits in the courtroom because performing magic and trying cases both live at the intersection of psychology, storytelling, timing and disciplined rehearsal, says Mark Dombroff at Fox Rothschild.

• What Ga. Stablecoin Licensing Law Means For Payments Cos.

  

  Georgia recently enacted one of the first state-level licensing frameworks for stablecoin issuance aligned with the Genius Act, which may appeal to eligible companies by making licensure accessible to nondepository entities and potentially offering easier access to regulatory guidance, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.

• Illinois Audit Law Will Make AI Clauses Actually Enforceable

  

  A law recently enacted in Illinois creates a first-in-the-nation requirement for artificial intelligence developers to undergo annual audits, providing objective standards that can be incorporated into private contracts and addressing the problem of defining responsible AI use, says William Tanenbaum at Moses & Singer.

• Opinion

  Shareholder Derivative Litigation Needs A Better Framework

  

  Uncoordinated, multiforum shareholder derivative litigation is a growing issue for corporate defendants that have little to no recourse for organizing and consolidating actions, but several commonsense steps should be utilized to preempt such disputes, say attorneys at Sullivan & Cromwell.