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.

• 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.

• FTC Focus: Calibrating Biden-Era Issues In 2026's 1st Half

  

  In the first half of 2026, Federal Trade Commission actions have redefined which of the previous administration's theories it views as legally sustainable, institutionally worthwhile and consistent with a more restrained conception, including a pivot from rulemaking to case-specific noncompete enforcement this spring, say attorneys at Proskauer.

• 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.

• HHS Enforcement Restructuring Signals Compliance Risks

  

  The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' recent restructuring of its Office for Civil Rights suggests that, while Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act enforcement remains central, its priorities have expanded to encompass civil rights, conscience and religious freedom, and data and cybersecurity issues, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

• Using NY Lawsuit Loan Law, Ruling Against Shady Injury Suits

  

  The combination of a New York state appellate ruling that exposes litigation lenders in potentially fraudulent personal injury cases to discovery and a new law limiting predatory loans to plaintiffs provides defense counsel a powerful new toolkit for confronting suspicious claims, say attorneys at Stradley Ronon.

• 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.

• Fed. Circ. Clarifies Standard For Contesting CICA Overrides

  

  The Federal Circuit's recent holding in Life Science Logistics strengthens the hand of protesters facing an override of the Competition in Contracting Act stay, and a Court of Federal Claims decision the same day demonstrates that how a protester frames its requested relief remains critically important, says Richard Arnholt at Bass Berry.

• 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.

• A Decade Later, Escobar Is Still Shaping FCA Cases

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's decision 10 years ago in Universal Health Services v. U.S. ex rel. Escobar changed the way in which lower courts evaluate False Claims Act cases — and the ruling remains vital in nearly every FCA case filed today, say attorneys at Bradley Arant.

• How Hantavirus May Expand Cruise Ship Liability Concerns

  

  In an incident like the recent hantavirus outbreak aboard a cruise ship, application of maritime negligence principles may expand beyond environmental exposure considerations to encompass how operators identify, respond to and manage emerging infectious disease risks in real time, says Eric Shane at Leesfield & Partners.

• Ch. 15 Ruling Is A Restructuring Blueprint For Cannabis Cos.

  

  The recent Cannabist Chapter 15 recognition order is arguably the most significant cannabis bankruptcy development in U.S. history, providing a concrete and tested road map by which such companies with foreign parent structures can access the protective machinery of U.S. bankruptcy law, say attorneys at Saul Ewing.

• How FCA, FCPA Risks Are Shifting As Feds Pull Back

  

  As the federal government continues its retreat from white collar enforcement, companies should expect False Claims Act risk to grow through private whistleblower suits and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act scrutiny to shift toward foreign prosecutors, requiring more adaptability as accountability becomes less centralized, says Temidayo Aganga-Williams at Selendy Gay.

• Trump Admin's Agency Records Purge Tests Judicial Notice

  

  While courts commonly take judicial notice of data in government websites and reports, the Trump administration's recent modification or wholesale deletion of these sources means that litigants must look elsewhere to support trial admission of this information, says Jon Gryskiewicz at Lewis Baach.