Expert Analysis

• 11 Noteworthy CFPB Developments From 2023

  

  Under Rohit Chopra’s leadership, 2023 was an industrious year for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, with developments including the release of the proposed personal financial data rights rule, publication of proposed rules involving public registries for nonbanks and the bureau's continuous battle against junk fees, all of which are sure to further progress in 2024, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

• A Potential Proactive Tool For Public-Private Joint Ventures

  

  In the current environment of heightened antitrust enforcement, the National Cooperative Research and Production Act seems tailor-made for the collaborative work among competitors encouraged by the Biden administration's infrastructure and green energy funding legislation, say Jeetander Dulani and Susan Ebner at Stinson.

• 5 AI Risks For Corporate Boards To Examine

  

  Whether companies are building their own artificial intelligence technology or leveraging third-party tools, their directors should get educated on certain legal issues and business risks to ensure the adoption of policies that foster responsible use of generative AI, say James Gatto and Tiana Garbett at Sheppard Mullin.

• 3 Areas Of Focus In Congressional Crosshairs This Year

  

  Companies must prepare for Congress to build on its 2023 oversight priorities this year, continuing its vigorous inquiries into Chinese company-related investments, workplace safety and labor relations issues, and generative artificial intelligence, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• Companies Should Beware Greater Scrutiny Of Subscriptions

  

  The New York Attorney General's Office has been utilizing a severe interpretation of the law in enforcement against subscription services, as demonstrated in last month's Sirius XM complaint and Cerebral settlement — and this focus is representative of heightened subscription scrutiny in other states and at the federal level, say attorneys at Venable.

• Takeaways From FTC Children's Privacy Rule Proposal

  

  The Federal Trade Commission’s recently issued and long-awaited proposed revisions to its Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule are not as seismic as might have been expected under current leadership, and show that the agency's COPPA rulemaking is far from over, says Phyllis Marcus at Hunton.

• Series

  Baking Bread Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  After many years practicing law, and a few years baking bread, I have learned that there are a few keys to success in both endeavors, including the assembly of a nourishing and resilient culture, and the ability to learn from failure and exercise patience, says Rick Robinson at Reed Smith.

• 3 Key Class Action Trends To Use As Guidance In 2024

  

  Telephone Consumer Protection Act, privacy and false advertising class actions saw significant shifts last year — including a trend toward expanding the application of preexisting laws to current technologies — that businesses should keep in mind to navigate the class action landscape in 2024, say attorneys at Mintz.

• Federal Courts And AI Standing Orders: Safety Or Overkill?

  

  Several district court judges have issued standing orders regulating the use of artificial intelligence in their courts, but courts should consider following ordinary notice and comment procedures before implementing sweeping mandates that could be unnecessarily burdensome and counterproductive, say attorneys at Curtis.

• What FTC CARS Rule Means For Auto Dealers And Lenders

  

  A newly finalized Federal Trade Commission rule is aimed at changing how auto dealers interact with customers in the financing process, but will likely also affect banks and finance companies — and consequences for lenders and servicers have been amplified by recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau enforcement actions, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• How Data Brokers Can Prep For Calif. Delete Act Compliance

  

  As California Delete Act obligations approach in late January, data brokers should proactively assess and scrutinize their compliance with the act, taking proactive measures to mitigate potential risks associated with noncompliance, say Goli Mahdavi and Gabrielle Harwell at BCLP.

• Why CFTC Whistleblowers Are Crucial To Crypto Regulation

  

  The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's whistleblower program has proven to be a key tool in the U.S.' efforts to police cryptocurrency, but a funding issue shows that it has become a victim of its own success, says Stephen Kohn at Kohn Kohn.

• How 4 State AGs Are Shaping Data Privacy Compliance

  

  As the landscape of state data privacy laws continues to grow across the nation, understanding how state attorneys general — such as in California, Colorado, Connecticut and Virginia — are thinking about these laws is critical to begin forecasting how enforcement will play out, say Michelle Kallen and Daniel Echeverri at Jenner & Block.

• 7 E-Discovery Predictions For 2024 And Beyond

  

  The legal and technical issues of e-discovery now affect virtually every lawsuit, and in the year to come, practitioners can expect practices and policies to evolve in a number of ways, from the expanded use of relevancy redactions to mandated information security provisions in protective orders, say attorneys at Littler.

• Securities Class Actions Show No Signs of Slowing In 2024

  

  Plaintiffs asserted securities class actions at elevated levels in 2023 — a sign that filings will remain high in the year ahead — as they switched gears to target companies that allegedly have failed to anticipate supply chain disruptions, persistent inflation, rising interest rates and other macroeconomic headwinds, say attorneys at Skadden.