Expert Analysis

• FTC's Consumer Finance Pivot Brings Industry Pros And Cons

  

  An active Federal Trade Commission against the backdrop of a leashed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will be welcomed by most in the consumer finance industry, but the incremental expansion of the FTC's authority via enforcement actions remains a risk, say attorneys at Hudson Cook.

• Amazon Ruling Marks New Era Of Personal Liability For Execs

  

  A Washington federal court's recent decision in FTC v. Amazon extended personal liability to senior executives for design-driven violations of broad consumer protection statutes, signaling a fundamental shift in how consumer protection laws may be enforced against large public companies, say attorneys at Orrick.

• 3 New Cyberinsurance Rulings Aid In Policy Interpretation

  

  Although the cyberinsurance market has exploded, there is no standardized cyber language or form and only a few court decisions thus far interpreting cyberinsurance policy language, making these three recent rulings key for guiding policyholders, insurers and brokers, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.

• USPTO Panel's Reversal Signals A Shift On AI Patents

  

  A recent patent ruling from a U.S. Patent and Trademark Office panel shows that artificial intelligence technologies remain patent-eligible when properly framed as technical solutions, and provides valuable drafting lessons for counsel, say attorneys at Butzel Long.

• Series

  Traveling Solo Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Traveling by myself has taught me to assess risk, understand tone and stay calm in high-pressure situations, which are not only useful life skills, but the foundation of how I support my clients, says Lacey Gutierrez at Group Five Legal.

• Latest PTAB Moves Suggest A Subtle Recalibration

  

  Recent decisions from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, as U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director John Squires transitions into his new role, offer new procedural and substantive tools for patent owners in procuring patent rights and enforcing them against would-be petitioners, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• NY Zelle Suit Highlights Fraud Risks Of Electronic Payments

  

  The New York attorney general's recent action against Zelle's parent company, filed several months after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau abandoned a similar suit, demonstrates the fraud risks that electronic payment platforms can present and the need for providers to carefully balance accessibility and consumer protection, say attorneys at Weiner Brodsky.

• Opinion

  Courts Must Continue Protecting Plaintiffs In Mass Arbitration

  

  In recent years, many companies have imposed onerous protocols that function to frustrate plaintiffs' ability to seek justice through mass arbitration, but a series of welcome court decisions in recent months indicate that the pendulum might be swinging back toward plaintiffs, say Raphael Janove and Sasha Jones at Janove Law.

• Series

  Law School's Missed Lessons: Client Service

  

  Law school teaches you how to interpret the law, but it doesn't teach you some of the key ways to keeping clients satisfied, lessons that I've learned in the most unexpected of places: a book on how to be a butler, says Gregory Ramos at Armstrong Teasdale.

• How Occasional Activists Have Reshaped Proxy Fights

  

  The sophistication and breadth of first-time activist engagement continue to shape corporate governance and strategic outcomes, as evidenced across corporate annual meetings this summer, meaning advisers should anticipate continued innovation in tactics, increased regulatory complexity, and a persistent focus on board accountability, say attorneys at MoFo.

• How The FTC Is Stepping Up Subscription Enforcement

  

  Despite the demise of the Federal Trade Commission's click-to-cancel rule in July, the commission has not only maintained its regulatory momentum, but also set new compliance benchmarks through recent high-profile settlements with Match.com, Chegg and Amazon, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

• Enter The Wu-Tang Ruling That May Change Trade Secret Law

  

  A New York federal court's recent holding that a Wu-Tang Clan album qualifies as a trade secret provides the first federal framework for analyzing trade secret claims involving assets valued primarily for exclusivity, potentially reshaping Defend Trade Secrets Act jurisprudence for the digital economy, says Jason Bradford at Jenner & Block.

• Opinion

  New US-UK Tech Deal Offers Opportunities To Boost Growth

  

  The recently announced U.S. and U.K. Technology Prosperity Deal, encouraging businesses on both sides of the Atlantic to work together toward technological advance, will drive both investment in U.K. capabilities and returns for U.S. investors, says Peter Watts at Hogan Lovells.

• ConvergeOne Ruling May Disrupt Backstop Fee Approach

  

  A Texas federal court's recent ruling in ConvergeOne has the potential to seriously disrupt previously accepted market practice when it comes to sourcing new capital for a restructuring, while offering a nebulous market test for a new approach, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

• Shutdown May Stall Hearings, But Gov't Probes Quietly Go On

  

  Thanks to staff assurances under the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act, the core work of congressional investigations continues during the shutdown that began Oct. 1 — and so does the investigative work that is performed behind closed doors on Capitol Hill, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.