Expert Analysis

• How NEPA Review Has Changed Since Seven County

  

  A year after the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County instituted major changes to judicial review under the National Environmental Policy Act, courts are effectively applying the decision, but where things go from here may be up to agencies and project proponents, say attorneys at Venable.

• 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.

• DOJ Shifts Raise Ethics Questions For White Collar Defense

  

  Recent shifts in U.S. Department of Justice clemency and charge-dismissal practices create ethical gray areas for white collar defense attorneys, who should follow risk-mitigating best practices while still forcefully advocating for their clients, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.

• A Midyear Look At Antiterrorism Act Jurisprudence And Policy

  

  Plaintiffs have filed comparably fewer new actions under the Antiterrorism Act this year, though a handful of key decisions further defined the statute’s aiding-and-abetting standard and highlighted continuing risks for financial services companies, say attorneys at Skadden.

• 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.

• What NERC Reliability Guideline Means For Large Loads

  

  The North American Electric Reliability Corporation's new reliability guideline — which addresses issues associated with large loads like data centers, cryptocurrency mining facilities and factories — is nonbinding, but hints at possible future expansion of reliability obligations for large load owners, operators, developers and equipment providers, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• 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.

• Texas Rule Change Could Speed Trucking Case Dismissals

  

  The Texas Supreme Court's recent comprehensive amendments to Rule 166a, governing summary judgment procedure and standards in Texas state courts, will fundamentally reshape dispositive motion practice, permitting defendants in trucking cases to weaponize the rule against unwitting plaintiffs, and requiring more aggressive early discovery efforts, say attorneys at Hamilton Wingo.

• 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.

• Justices' Obstruction Ruling Clears Venue-Challenge Path

  

  While the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Abouammo v. U.S. poses venue challenges for federal obstruction of justice prosecutions, it is a gift for defense counsel because it offers a clean, constitutional basis to challenge venue where a place of falsification and a place of investigation diverge, says Liz Aloi at MoFo.

• 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.

• Opinion

  Md., Colo. Climate Rulings Point To Need For Federal Solution

  

  As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to review the Colorado Supreme Court's 2025 ruling in Boulder County v. Suncor U.S. Inc., which green-lit a state-level climate lawsuit, a recent conflicting ruling from the Maryland Supreme Court underscores why a uniform federal answer on climate litigation is needed now, says Phil Goldberg at Shook Hardy.

• What Fed's Fast Track To Account Access Means For Fintechs

  

  Fintechs, stablecoin issuers and other nonbank entities should assess eligibility, compliance demands and operational limits ahead of the Federal Reserve's potential finalization of a payment account framework proposing a faster path to direct access to key payment rails, says Stephen Aschettino at Fox Rothschild.