Expert Analysis

• Why Data Centers Must Focus On Water Stewardship

  

  Reducing overall water use is important for data center developers and operators, but comprehensive water stewardship — including cooling system operation, chemical treatment, wastewater discharge, maintenance activities and interactions with municipal water infrastructure — is rapidly becoming both a regulatory expectation and a business imperative, say attorneys at Baker Donelson.

• Patent Ruling Shows Concrete Tech Solution Key To Eligibility

  

  The Federal Circuit’s recent Ceiva Opco v. Amazon.com decision offers an important reminder that software-related inventions can remain patent eligible when they claim a concrete technological solution to a specific problem, says Irah Donner at Manatt.

• How To Structure Protective Order AI Provisions In IP Disputes

  

  A survey of protective orders in recent intellectual property litigation reveals best practices for drafting provisions on artificial intelligence use that maximize IP protection while balancing enforceability with efficient discovery, say Matthew Stephens and Bryce Tabbut at MoFo.

• Discovery Into Insurers' AI Use Should Stay Proportional

  

  As insurers increasingly use artificial intelligence to make claim decisions, plaintiffs in first-party coverage litigation should seek discovery that tracks how materially the automated system influenced the challenged decision, not whether the insurer used AI somewhere in its operations, says attorney Joe Zaid.

• How FCC Covered List Blitz Is Sidelining Commerce Dept.

  

  The swath of recent Federal Communications Commission rulemakings raises serious questions about the purpose and future of Commerce's Office of Information and Communications Technology and Services, and how the U.S. government will go forward in imposing national security regulation on domestic applications of adversary-linked technologies, says Peter Jeydel at Troutman.

• Fed. Circ. Rulings Emphasize Adjudicative Access And Review

  

  Decisions from the Federal Circuit's 2026 docket indicate that the court is increasingly paying attention to whether tribunals possess authority to act, meaning practitioners will need to properly address procedural hurdles before they can argue the merits of a case, say attorneys at Reichman Jorgensen.

• Amazon v. Perplexity Ruling Limits CFAA Reach Over AI Tools

  

  The Ninth Circuit's recent decision in Amazon v. Perplexity provides important early guidance on how the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act applies to agentic artificial intelligence, and is the latest in a line of rulings in which courts have declined to stretch existing statutes to broadly regulate AI, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

• Monitor Exposure, Stay Flexible Amid Tariff Uncertainty

  

  To navigate an unstable trade environment, businesses must evaluate their exposure to new tariffs invoked under a patchwork of statutory authorities and be prepared to adapt to further changes that may be on the horizon, says Bhargav Prajapati at Capital Trade.

• CFPB Complaint Portal Overhaul Signals Changing Priorities

  

  The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's updates to its consumer complaint portal and decision to cease publishing consumer complaint narratives should be viewed by companies as one component of a larger recalibration of how the CFPB collects information and allocates its supervisory and enforcement resources, say attorneys at Cooley.

• Series

  Being In A Band Made Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Playing shows in storied New York City venues and rehearsing with my bandmates in poorly ventilated rooms helped develop the professional qualities I rely on as a litigator, including an ability to collaborate with strong-minded equals and the determination to treat each client with singular focus, says Eliad Shapiro at Herrick Feinstein.

• Rethinking Corporate Travel Rules After Device Search Cases

  

  A recent New York federal court decision approving a warrantless seizure and search of company laptops and a pending Georgia federal court criminal case over a phone's data deletion underscore how little protection corporate personnel have at the border, necessitating a review of corporate travel programs, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

• 6 Key Takeaways From CFIUS Annual Report

  

  Attorneys at Simpson Thacher review highlights from the annual report of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., released to Congress this month, including the launch of the American First Investment Policy and the Known Investor Pilot Program, and the agency's continued focus on enforcement despite its resource constraints.

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  Law School's Missed Lessons: Surviving A Long Trial

  

  Most of law school trial advocacy is geared toward the sprint of trying a short case, but beyond managing a cross-examination or closing argument, effectively handling the marathon of a lengthy trial requires the ability to maintain composure, organization and credibility with the jury, says Mihir Elchuri at Hirschler.

• A Deepening Patent-Trademark Divide Over Irreparable Harm

  

  Recent Federal Circuit decisions, along with legislation being considered in Congress, may exacerbate the differences that patent owners and trademark owners face when seeking to stop infringement before irreparable harm is caused, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

• 7th Circ. Ruling May Reduce Litigation Risk For Text Marketers

  

  The recent Seventh Circuit holding in Steidinger v. Blackstone Medical Services that unwanted marketing text messages are not telephone calls under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act may strengthen companies' responses to presuit demand letters and early-stage litigation claims premised on do-not-call text theories, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.