FINRA Announces Probe Of Broker-Dealers' China Work

By Jessica Corso

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority notified its members on Thursday that it is investigating broker-dealers that have helped small companies based out of China and other foreign jurisdictions to go public, signaling that it is looking for possible stock manipulation tied to the firms' work. 

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Trump Pardons Convicted Binance Founder Changpeng Zhao

By Aislinn Keely

President Donald Trump has pardoned the convicted Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, a move that could open the door for Zhao to return to Binance if he so chooses, and for the crypto exchange to renegotiate the terms of its own plea deal, experts said Thursday.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Texas Dials Up Exposure With App Store, Telemarketing Laws

By Allison Grande

A new Texas age verification law and sweeping revisions to the state's telemarketing statute are poised to saddle the broad universe of companies that support mobile apps and disseminate marketing texts with new obligations that will open them up to more lawsuits and other legal risks, unless opponents find success with fledgling constitutional challenges.

4 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

FCC's Carr Sees Ongoing Consumer Harm From Shutdown

By Christopher Cole

The head of the Federal Communications Commission warned Thursday that new device and license applications are "just sitting there," creating an FCC backlog, and that other day-to-day but important work remains on hold during the government shutdown.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Split DC Circ. Won't Lift Block On FTC's Media Matters Probe

By Bryan Koenig

A divided D.C. Circuit panel refused Thursday to let the Federal Trade Commission subpoena Media Matters for America while the agency appeals an order blocking that probe, crediting district courts' findings of "seemingly unusual and unprecedented" facts suggesting the investigation is retaliation for reporting about Nazi content on X.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Top Calif. Judge Warns Attys On AI, Eyes Antitrust Changes

By Bonnie Eslinger

Speaking at an antitrust law conference Thursday, California Supreme Court Chief Justice Patricia Guerrero warned Golden State lawyers to use artificial intelligence "cautiously and not cut any corners," and talked about "important work" by the California Law Revision Commission that could result in the state's antitrust law being "untethered" from federal law.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Feds, Ex-Magellan CEO Still Split Over Sentencing Factors

By Julie Manganis

Lawyers for a former Magellan Diagnostics CEO and the government are still at odds over whether a judge should consider the product mislabeling charge she pled guilty to in March to be tantamount to fraud — an assertion the defense says is an attempt by prosecutors to "shoehorn" in allegations never put to proof.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ex-SVB Top Brass Can't Ditch FDIC Suit Over 2023 Collapse

By Katryna Perera

Silicon Valley Bank's former CEO and several other past members of the bank's top brass must face a suit from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. accusing them of mismanagement that led to the bank's costly 2023 failure, a California federal judge has ruled.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Full 5th Circ. Asked To Rehear Texas Bankers' OCC Dispute

By Katryna Perera

Two former Texas bankers have asked the full Fifth Circuit to revive their constitutional challenge to an in-house Office of the Comptroller of the Currency enforcement case, arguing that the appellate panel's decision to reject their appeal wrongly stripped them of their right to a jury trial and handed banking agencies "unlimited discretion" to prosecute old misconduct.

Petition attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Jurors See MIT Bros' Chats, Plans For $25M Crypto Gambit

By Stewart Bishop

Jurors weighing the fate of two MIT-educated brothers accused of pulling a $25 million crypto heist on Thursday saw a swath of messages and search history that prosecutors say detail the planning for a high-tech fraud that profited at the expense of other traders on the Ethereum blockchain.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Energy Cos. Face Permit, Regulatory Delays Due To Shutdown

By Keith Goldberg

Energy companies are starting to feel the pinch of the federal government shutdown, as scaled-back operations and new furlough announcements at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency threaten the approval of needed permits and the issuance of highly anticipated regulations.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Wash. Judge Halts Feds From Pulling $9M In Climate Funds

By Tom Lotshaw

A Washington federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from scrapping more than $9 million of climate resiliency agreements with Washington state, finding state officials likely to prevail on claims the administration acted unlawfully when it abruptly ended them.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

4th Circ. Pushed To Retain Block On Chemours PFAS Dumping

By Mike Curley

A pair of environmental groups is urging the Fourth Circuit to leave in place an injunction blocking The Chemours Co. FC LLC from continuing to discharge so-called forever chemicals into the Ohio River, saying the company is using strawman arguments to get its way.

Brief attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ex-ComEd CEO Asks 7th Circ. For Bail Pending Appeal

By Celeste Bott

Former Exelon Utilities and Commonwealth Edison CEO Anne Pramaggiore has renewed her request to remain out of jail while she seeks to unwind her criminal conviction and two-year prison sentence, this time asking the Seventh Circuit for bond ahead of her December surrender date.

Motion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ex-Amazon Coder Says She's Turned Life Around Since Hack

By Ben Adlin

A former Amazon.com Inc. coder who exposed the personal data of nearly 100 million people should be sent to prison, the U.S. government said in a new Seattle federal court filing that seeks a seven-year sentence for her.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

OpenAI Reduced Suicide Safety Before Teen Died, Parents Say

By Hailey Konnath

OpenAI decided to remove some longstanding suicide prevention protocols and cut short its safety testing in the months before a California teenager died by suicide, according to an updated version of the wrongful death suit filed by the teen's parents in San Francisco County Superior Court.

1 document attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

DC Judge Won't Let Meta Claw Back Discovery Docs

By Emily Field

A D.C. Superior Court judge on Thursday said that attorneys for Meta told researchers to modify their research into its platform's effects on teens' mental health to curtail liability, finding that the crime-fraud exception to communications between attorney and client applies.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Tech Org. Calls Next-Gen TV Tuner Mandate Bad Idea

By Nadia Dreid

As the Federal Communications Commission solicits opinions on how to usher the industry into the next generation of television broadcasting, a consumer technology trade group is reiterating its argument that the agency should not rush the process and let companies do what they will.

Letter attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Brief

Senate Clears Bill For FCC List Of Foreign Authorizations

By Christopher Cole

The U.S. Senate Thursday passed a bill requiring the Federal Communications Commission to publish a list of companies with ties to certain foreign countries that hold FCC authorizations.

Bill attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Court Won't Rethink 'Survivor' Winner's $3M Tax Bill

By Anna Scott Farrell

A Rhode Island federal judge won't reconsider his opinion that the first winner of reality show "Survivor" must pay $3.3 million in taxes, maintaining that it is unclear whether the federal government can take his sister's property to pay down the debt.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Bradley Arant Adds Atlanta Attys From CFPB, In-House Role

By Emily Johnson

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP has boosted the firm's growing Atlanta office with the assistant litigation deputy for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the senior corporate counsel at GoTo Foods, the parent company of brands like Cinnabon.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Greenberg Traurig Adds Energy Lawyers In NY, DC

By Jack Rodgers

Greenberg Traurig LLP has rehired a former attorney who left to work as general counsel of the New York Public Service Commission, who returns alongside a lawyer joining the firm from the U.S. Department of Energy, in the nation's capital.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Federal Debanking Scrutiny Prompts Compliance Questions

Recent U.S. Small Business Administration guidance sets forth requirements for preventing so-called politicized debanking and specific additional instructions for small lenders, but falls short on clarity for larger institutions, leaving lenders of all sizes with questions as they navigate this unique compliance challenge, say attorneys at Cooley.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

7 Lessons From The Tractor Supply CCPA Enforcement Action

The California Privacy Protection Agency's recent enforcement action targeting Tractor Supply for alleged violations of the California Consumer Privacy Act provides critical insights into the compliance areas that remain a priority for the California regulator, including businesses with significant consumer interactions, say attorneys at Troutman.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Considering Judicial Treatment Of The 2023 Merger Guidelines

Courts have so far primarily cited the 2023 merger guidelines for propositions that do not differ significantly from prior versions of the guidelines, leaving it unclear whether the antitrust agencies will test the guidelines’ more aggressive theories, and how those theories will be treated by federal judges, say attorneys at Covington.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Rules Of Origin Revamp May Be Next Big Trade Development

The rules of origin for determining what tariff applies to any given import appear to be on the cusp of an important rethink, and it seems likely that the administration will try to align the rule with its overall tariff strategy in one of three ways, says Ted Posner at Baker Botts.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Key Lessons From Youths' Suit Against Trump Energy Orders

A Montana federal court's recent decision in Lighthiser v. Trump, dismissing a challenge by a group of young plaintiffs to President Donald Trump's executive orders promoting fossil fuels, indicates that future climate litigants must anchor their suits in discrete, final agency actions and statutory text, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Series

Writing Novels Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Writing my debut novel taught me to appreciate the value of critique and to never give up, no matter how long or tedious the journey, providing me with valuable skills that I now emphasize in my practice, says Daniel Buzzetta at BakerHostetler.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Columbia-Based Advocate Sues For Law Firms' DEI Details

By Grace Elletson

A free speech institute at Columbia University told a New York federal court Thursday that President Donald Trump's administration effectively denied its requests for information related to the government's demands that law firms supply details about their diversity, equity and inclusion practices.

Complaint attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Judges Admit AI Missteps After Grassley's Oversight Push

By Courtney Bublé

Federal judges in New Jersey and Mississippi admitted their staff used artificial intelligence in faulty orders they had to redo over the summer, according to correspondence released Thursday by Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, who is investigating the matter.

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Sanctions Threats Mount For Atty Who Ignored Citation Order

By Emily Sawicki

An attorney who ignored a show cause order earlier this summer after his co-counsel included a fake case citation in a filing for their then-client, a former in-house attorney for Workday Inc., told a San Francisco federal judge Thursday that his failure to respond was a "mistake," in response to a renewed show cause order.

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

5th Circ. Vacates Lewis Brisbois' $1.5M Trademark Award

By Elliot Weld

The Fifth Circuit vacated a $1.5 million damages award Thursday that Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP won against three attorneys who registered a business with the same name, saying the Texas federal judge who granted the award had not explained his reasoning under the relevant statutes.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Baldwin Opposes 7th Circ. Pick For Her State

By Courtney Bublé

Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., on Thursday officially opposed the nomination to the Seventh Circuit of Rebecca Taibleson, a federal prosecutor in Wisconsin, who would serve in her state.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Judge Dings Law Profs In Judge-Shopping Sanctions Case

By Ryan Boysen

The federal judge behind a controversial sanctions order accusing three attorneys of judge shopping while challenging an Alabama gender care law is pushing back on claims that he lacked jurisdiction, as the ruling is on appeal in the Eleventh Circuit.

Motion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Derailment Counsel Fee Provision 'Troubles' 6th Circ. Judge

By P.J. D'Annunzio

A three-judge Sixth Circuit panel on Thursday seemed skeptical that counsel representing victims of the fiery 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, was blindsided by a "quick-pay" provision in the attorney fee agreement that saw class lawyers get paid before their clients.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

'Civility' A Concern As IP Atty Asks To Depose Party Suing Her

By Lauren Berg

A Florida federal magistrate judge overseeing discovery in a patent licensing company executive's defamation suit against a Baker Botts LLP intellectual property litigator told the parties Thursday that she's inclined to appoint a special master to oversee depositions in the case to ensure "the appropriate decorum and civility."

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Quinn Emanuel Loses Bid To Get $1.7M Bill From Sheriff Case

By Rae Ann Varona

A California state appeals court Thursday shot down Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP's effort to recover a more than $1.7 million bill for representing a former Los Angeles County sheriff in a suit county supervisors lodged, finding that the sheriff lacked authority to retain the firm.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Squire Patton Boggs Partner Confirmed To Kentucky Bench

By Courtney Bublé

The Senate voted 48-45, along party lines, on Thursday to confirm former Kentucky Solicitor General and Squire Patton Boggs LLP partner Chad Meredith to the Eastern District of Kentucky.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

McGuireWoods Asks NC Justices To Stay Defamation Case

By Andrea Keckley

McGuireWoods LLP and a former partner are asking North Carolina's highest court to halt a defamation case over statements made in connection with an investigation into the former CEO of a managed care organization, saying they risk permanently losing their immunity defense if the suit is allowed to move forward.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ky. Rep. Revives Attempt To Abolish PTAB, Expand Eligibility

By Dani Kass

U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., said Thursday he's again attempting to overhaul the patent system, including abolishing the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, normalizing injunctions and broadening what can be patented.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »