Expert Analysis

• Data Reveals Pivot In Feds' Financial Fraud Priorities

  

  Recent Justice Department data shows fraud prosecutions fell to their lowest rate in a decade in 2025, illustrating a move away from traditional financial cases and toward a targeted mix of healthcare, government program, consumer and sanctions matters, say Paul Hinton and Adrienna Huffman at The Brattle Group.

• Tracking The Rare 'Quick Look' Win In FTC's Zillow-Redfin Suit

  

  The Federal Trade Commission’s suit claiming that Zillow illegally paid Redfin to exit the apartment rental market is one to watch because its early success under the less rigorous “quick look” standard of antitrust review could turn into a rare case won under the doctrine, say attorneys at Axinn.

• Why Highly Specialized Experts May Risk Exclusion At Trial

  

  Expert witnesses with highly specific areas of focus may be vulnerable to exclusion in court, making it important for attorneys to check how potential witnesses' qualifications can be bolstered by their publications and other professional activities, say Evan Weisberg and Christopher Cunio at Hunton, and Kevin Cahill at FTI Consulting.

• Gatorade Suit Offers Lessons On Product Performance Claims

  

  A proposed class action in New York federal court disputing PepsiCo's claim that Gatorade "hydrates better than water" presents a broad challenge to the way food and beverage companies communicate product benefits — and the risks that arise when marketing claims outpace the evidence supporting them, says Pejman Javaheri at Juris Law Group.

• Trump AI Order: Voluntary Framework, Mandatory Implications

  

  President Donald Trump's recent executive order promoting the advancement of artificial intelligence innovation and security establishes a new framework for government collaboration with the AI industry, but its classified benchmarking criteria, prerelease framework terms and operational rules will determine whether it establishes de facto compliance expectations, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

• FDIC Proposal Takes Bank-Like AML Approach To Stablecoins

  

  Rather than craft a bespoke regime for stablecoin issuers, a recently proposed Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. rule builds a technology-neutral Bank Secrecy Act compliance framework under the Genius Act, firmly anchoring stablecoins within the U.S. financial regulatory perimeter, says David Zaslowsky at Baker McKenzie.

• Opinion

  FTC's Clinical Trial Requirement Threatens Food Claim Rules

  

  The Federal Trade Commission's general requirement for randomized controlled trials for most health-benefit claims, recently embraced by the National Advertising Review Board, lacks legal basis and endangers the existing statutory framework Congress created for marketing food and dietary supplements versus drugs, say attorneys at Keller & Heckman.

• How A Novel NY Law Fits Into The AI Legal Landscape For Ads

  

  An amendment to New York's General Business Law requiring disclosures when advertisements use performers generated by artificial intelligence arrives at a moment of rapid transformation in the marketing ecosystem and indicates that advertisers should take a proactive approach grounded in transparency, contractual protections and alignment across legal and creative teams, say attorneys at Manatt.

• Opinion

  Current Consumer Protection Laws Can Fit Agentic Commerce

  

  While agentic commerce — artificial intelligence that searches, compares and makes purchases for customers — doesn't warrant a new consumer protection regime, it will require companies to design compliance into their products from the outset and challenge regulators to consistently apply existing laws, says Katherine Adkins at Affirm.

• How Reserve Studies Fit Into Condo Association Compliance

  

  In the five years since the Surfside condominium collapse and as states like New Jersey establish related safety mandates, reserve planning has emerged as a central compliance concern for community associations, acting as a practical tool for responsible disclosure and managing long-term capital obligations, say attorneys at Dilworth Paxson.

• AI Heightens Old Compliance Risks For Investment Advisers

  

  Though artificial intelligence offers genuine promise for investment advisers, it also magnifies long-standing risks — including those involving fiduciary duties, books and records, client confidentiality, and marketing — with most foundational compliance requirements likely to remain, says Theodore Edwards at Troutman.

• 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.

• California Antitrust Bill Raises New Risks For Dealmakers

  

  A pending California bill would turn the state attorney general's office into a more powerful antitrust enforcer, introducing a host of implications for dealmakers beyond whether deals close, such as deal certainty and risk allocation, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

• Colorado's New Chatbot Law May Be Defined By Its Carveouts

  

  What makes Colorado's conversational artificial intelligence service law worth close attention is what it leaves out, so a thorough scoping analysis may be as important as compliance planning for companies that develop, license or deploy conversational AI, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.

• Risk Reduction Lessons For PE Firms From PowerSchool Suit

  

  A California federal court's recent orders allowing claims against Bain Capital to proceed based on a data breach at its subsidiary PowerSchool indicate that private equity firms need to strategically approach acquisition activities to avoid cybersecurity risks, say attorneys at Womble Bond.