Roundup

GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

By Michele Gorman

Experts say it will likely take at least a month for the thousands of SEC employees now back to work after the government shutdown to catch up with submissions for initial public offerings. Meanwhile, clean energy developers are increasingly looking to privately held investors amid a race to beat a July 2026 cutoff to maintain eligibility for clean electricity investment and production tax credits. These are some of the stories in corporate legal news you may have missed in the past week.

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SEC's Atkins Turns A Critical Lens On BlackRock, Vanguard

By Jessica Corso

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Paul Atkins said Friday morning that his agency is working to rein in large institutional asset managers like BlackRock and Vanguard that "get out of line" by trying to influence management decisions.

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Analysis

SEC Off-Channel Sweep Led To Recordkeeping Compliance

By Sarah Jarvis

Despite Chairman Paul Atkins' criticism of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's previous off-channel communications settlements, that Biden-era enforcement sweep has boosted firms' recordkeeping compliance efforts, and a lack of big-dollar penalties on the horizon hasn't erased the pressure to comply, experts say.

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First Brands Lenders Seek New Counsel For Finance Entities

By Rick Archer

Lenders of First Brands are arguing to a Texas bankruptcy judge that the company's financing entities need their own separate attorneys in the auto parts maker's Chapter 11 case, citing concerns about conflicts of interest.

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Mawson Says Ex-CEO Misled Board To Land $2.6M Bonus

By Emily Lever

Mawson Infrastructure Group has accused its former CEO in Delaware's Chancery Court of concealing the bitcoin mining company's deteriorating finances and the collapse of a key prospective contract so he could secure board approval for a bonus worth about $2.6 million.

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UAW Monitor Says Fear, Division Blocking Reform Progress

By Danielle Ferguson

A watchdog overseeing United Auto Workers reforms after a kickback scandal said in a Friday report that the union still has a culture steeped in fear and division that is stalling needed change, urging current leadership to put aside their political differences to keep corruption from creeping back in.

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Analysis

Feds' Use Of AI In Permitting, Rulemaking Raises Concerns

By Juan-Carlos Rodriguez

Federal government agencies with environmental responsibilities have begun using artificial intelligence tools, but attorneys say information about exactly why, how and when they are being used has been hard to get, leading to uncertainty about their effectiveness and shortcomings.

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Texas Judge Rejects Bid To Block Kenvue's $398M Dividend

By Jonathan Capriel

Texas can't stop the makers of Tylenol from marketing the drug as safe for children and pregnant women or halt a nearly $400 million payment to shareholders, a state court ruled on Friday, rejecting arguments by Attorney General Ken Paxton's motion.

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Horizon BCBS To Pay $100M To End NJ AG's Overcharge Suit

By Carla Baranauckas

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey has agreed to pay the state $100 million to resolve allegations that it fraudulently secured a multibillion-dollar contract to administer public employee health plans and then systematically overcharged taxpayers for years, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced Friday.

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'Love Island' Production Co. Hit With $100M Retaliation Suit

By Hailey Konnath

A former CEO at WPP Media, the company that produces reality television hit "Love Island," has filed a $100 million suit claiming he was pushed out of the firm after he raised concerns about billing practices he called "unsustainable, unlawful and a significant threat to the company."

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IRS Expert Challenges Data Used In Eaton's Projections

By Molly Moses

An expert witness for the Internal Revenue Service questioned the financial projections prepared by Eaton Corp.'s experts Friday in U.S. Tax Court, saying the data they relied on wasn't available in 2012, when the company took on debt to acquire Ireland-based Cooper Industries, a global electrical products manufacturer, for $13 billion.

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FirstEnergy Investors Ask Again For 6th Circ. Clarification

By Katryna Perera

A week after the Sixth Circuit declined to reconsider a ruling blocking FirstEnergy investors from accessing documents prepared by BigLaw firms investigating the company's $1 billion bribery scandal, investors have once again asked the court to clarify its decision, arguing that it is "premised on a clear error of fact."

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Roundup

UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

By Laura Stewart Liberty

This past week in London has seen Freeths face a professional negligence claim from a Scottish car dealership, Rolls-Royce sue logistics giant Kuehne + Nagel, and a team of Oberon Investments Group investment managers sued by their former employer.  

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Roundup

Taxation With Representation: Wachtell, Paul Hastings, Sidley

By Zak Kostro

In this week's Taxation With Representation, Pfizer Inc. completes its acquisition of obesity drug developer Metsera Inc., motion and controls technologies company Parker-Hannifin Corp. acquires Filtration Group Corp., and fund administrator JTC PLC backs a cash offer in the billions from British private equity shop Permira.

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Roundup

Real Estate Recap: Public RMBS Revival?

By Real Estate Authority Staff

Catch up on this past week's key developments by state from Law360 Real Estate Authority — including a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission veteran's view into how public offerings of residential mortgage-backed securities could return for the first time since financial crisis-era reforms.

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Drafting For Distress: D&O Policy Tips Ahead Of Ch. 11 Filings

Considering recent bankruptcy statistics and the economic climate, now is a good time for companies to revisit their directors and officers liability insurance coverage, as understanding how these programs are structured and which terms matter at placement or renewal can materially improve protection for leaders of a distressed company, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

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Why Foreign Cos. Should Prep For Increased SEC Oversight

With the recent trading suspensions of 10 foreign-based issuers listed on the Nasdaq, an enforcement action against a U.K. security-based swap dealer and the announcement of a cross-border task force, it's clear that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will expand oversight on foreign companies participating in the U.S. capital markets, says Tejal Shah at Cooley.

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What To Do If A Retirement Plan Participant Is Deported

Given recent immigration policy changes in the U.S., many businesses are experiencing employee deportations, but retirement plan administrators should still pay and report benefits to avoid violating the plan, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act or tax reporting requirements, says Teri King at Smith Gambrell.

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How Litigating Antitrust Fix Helped GTCR Prevail In Court

An Illinois federal judge's recent denial of the Federal Trade Commission's injunction request in the GTCR acquisition of Surmodics joins a developing series of cases in which deal parties have prevailed against government antitrust challenges by proposing a post-complaint fix and litigating the as-amended deal, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

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Lawyers Call On High Court To Stop 'Capitulating' To Trump

By Katie Buehler

Lawyers and legal advocates gathered in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on Saturday to protest rulings that have allowed President Donald Trump and his administration to implement allegedly "unlawful actions" amid legal battles, and to demand the justices act as a check on executive power in future cases.

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Frequent DEI Foe Takes Aim At Mich. Law Firm's Scholarships

By Madison Arnold

American Alliance for Equal Rights, a group known for challenging diversity, equity and inclusion scholarships, has set its sights on Michigan personal injury firm Buckfire & Buckfire PC for alleged discrimination via the firm's scholarship programs for minorities.

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How To Kill A Person: A Legal Battle Over Execution Methods

By Marco Poggio

As botched executions pile up and states reach for untested methods like nitrogen hypoxia, prisoners are turning to the courts for a say in how they will die — and are being met with a legal framework stacked against finding execution methods unconstitutional.

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Buchalter Won't Be Sanctioned For 'Hallucinated' AI Citations

By Rose Krebs

An Oregon federal judge has decided not to sanction Buchalter PC and other counsel representing an environmental nonprofit in a trademark infringement dispute for submitting "hallucinated" case citations generated by an artificial intelligence tool, saying he is satisfied with "remedial actions" already done or to be taken.

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Perkins Coie Sued By Omani Co. Over Trade Case Defense

By Rachel Riley

An Omani screw manufacturer has launched a legal malpractice suit in Washington state court accusing Perkins Coie LLP of a "series of deadly mistakes" while representing the Middle Eastern company in a U.S. Department of Commerce probe, allegedly leading to steep penalties and tariffs that cost the company hundreds of millions of dollars.

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Manning Kass Hit With Age Bias Suit In Calif.

By Christine DeRosa

Manning & Kass Ellrod Ramirez Trester LLP is facing an age bias lawsuit in California state court alleging a firm leader has made ageist comments at employees over 40 and is trying to drive those workers out of the firm.

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'Constitutional Word Salad': Judge Rips Suit Over Mascot Ban

By Bonnie Eslinger

A New York federal court judge denied a Long Island school district's bid to amend claims in a lawsuit challenging the state's ban on Indigenous mascots, calling proposed changes a "constitutional word salad," but said a district parent could add First Amendment claims to the litigation.

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Non-Attys Could Help Close Georgia's Civil Justice Gap

By Emily Johnson

Low-income Georgians and rural Georgians face several barriers to accessing legal services, including living in a legal desert, according to a Georgia Supreme Court committee’s report. The panel's proposal allowing "limited licensed legal practitioners" to assist with civil housing and consumer debt matters could improve access to justice across the state.

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DOJ Official Among Trump Picks For District Courts

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump announced judicial nominees for federal courts in Tennessee, Indiana and Missouri on Friday, including a current U.S. Department of Justice official.

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King & Spalding, Atty Move To End Bias Suit At 4th Circ.

By Grace Elletson

King & Spalding LLP and an attorney who complained that she didn't apply to a summer associate program as a straight, white woman because the firm sought diverse applicants have agreed to end her bias case, according to a filing in the Fourth Circuit.

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New California Bar Leader Aims To Rebuild Public Trust

By Tracey Read

After less than two weeks on the job, Laura Enderton-Speed, the California State Bar's new executive director, is already busy working to strengthen trust in the organization following the botched administration of the February bar exam.

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NC, Utah Attorneys General Launch Nationwide AI Task Force

By Matt Perez

Democratic North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson and Republican Utah Attorney General Derek Brown have announced the formation of a nationwide artificial intelligence task force in collaboration with developers OpenAI and Microsoft, as well as the Attorney General Alliance, a nonprofit group of bipartisan state attorneys general.

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Northern NY US Atty To Defend DOJ In Maurene Comey Suit

By Jack Karp

The U.S. attorney's office for the Northern District of New York has agreed to defend the U.S. Department of Justice against a lawsuit from former FBI Director James Comey's daughter over what she calls her illegal firing, that office informed a New York federal judge this week.

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House Eyes Vote To Repeal Provision On Senators' Lawsuits

By Courtney Bublé

A House bill to repeal a controversial provision tucked into the government funding package that would allow senators investigated by former special counsel Jack Smith to sue for damages is listed for possible consideration on the schedule for the week of Nov. 17.

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Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Kevin Penton

Sidley Austin LLP and Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP lead this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after a Washington federal jury cleared Novo Nordisk of allegations that it defrauded the state's Medicaid and Medicare systems by paying kickbacks and promoting off-label use to illegally boost prescriptions of its hemophilia drug NovoSeven.

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In Case You Missed It: Hottest Firms And Stories On Law360

For those who missed out, here's a look back at the law firms, stories and expert analyses that generated the most buzz on Law360 last week.

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