Today's Legal Pulse
UK pushes commonhold reform to boost housing supply
The Draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill proposes abolishing leasehold and mandating new homes be sold as commonhold, tying the change to a target of delivering 1.5 million homes annually—the highest since 1968. The model remains untested, with fewer than 25 developments and unresolved issues around dispute resolution.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Hogan Lovells and Cadwalader clear final merger hurdles
The Appalling State of the Ordinary Business Grounds for Excluding a Shareholder Proposal
In Dinapoli v. BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, D. Mass., Judge Leo Sorokin granted an injunction forcing BJ’s to include a New York State Comptroller‑sponsored ESG proposal in its 2026 proxy, despite the company’s reliance on the ordinary‑business exclusion under Rule 14a‑8(i)(7). The proposal, which asks for a deforestation‑risk assessment of private‑label brands, received less than 25% support in prior votes and grants BJ’s broad discretion over its implementation. The case highlights the SEC’s ambiguous policy on shareholder proposals and the challenges ESG‑focused investors face when their requests are framed as non‑binding. The author suggests a reform requiring proposal sponsors to reimburse issuers for proxy‑statement costs to curb low‑impact filings.
Employers Stuck Between Mandatory AI Bias Audits and Anti‑Race Tracking
The Law Says Fix the Bias. The White House Says Stop Counting Race. Employers face a split-track compliance problem in 2026: state laws require proactive AI bias audits with at least four years of records, while federal anti-DEI pressure pushes...
How the ‘MrBeast’ Suit Could Spark a #MeToo Movement as Influencers Move From Social Media to the Boardroom
YouTube star Jimmy "MrBeast" Donaldson, who earned roughly $85 million last year and runs a multi‑billion‑dollar media empire, faces a lawsuit alleging sexual harassment and a toxic workplace culture at his Beast Industries studios. The complaint, filed by former employee Lorrayne...
26-881 - Delgado V. Mullin Et Al
The United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma filed a new civil action, Delgado v. Mullin et al, under docket number 26‑881 on April 24, 2026. The case information, including citation formats and downloadable metadata files (MODS,...
14-280 - United States of America V. Mercer
The United States v. Mercer case tracks a series of federal rulings from 2015 through 2026 involving Donovan Gene Mercer’s conviction for child‑pornography offenses. Courts repeatedly denied Mercer’s motions to suppress evidence, vacate his sentence, or obtain a certificate of...
26-744 - Tewelde V. Blanche Et Al
On April 24, 2026, U.S. District Judge Patrick R. Wyrick issued an order denying the first motion for a temporary restraining order (TRO) filed by four petitioners in Tewelde v. Blanche et al. The plaintiffs sought immediate injunctive relief against...
26-505 - Chester V. Dykes Et Al
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, via Magistrate Judge Suzanne Mitchell, recommended denying the plaintiff’s motion to proceed In Forma Pauperis (IFP) in case 26‑505, Chester v. Dykes. The court set a 21‑day deadline for the...
26-390 - Tran V. Figueroa
On March 31 2026, Magistrate Judge Amanda Leigh Maxfield recommended dismissing Tran v. Figueroa after the petitioner failed to obey a prior court order. The district court, led by Judge Bernard M. Jones II, adopted the recommendation on April 24 2026 and dismissed the case...
26-393 - Palacio V. Warden of Cimarron Correctional Facility
On April 24, 2026 Magistrate Judge Suzanne Mitchell issued a Report and Recommendation in case 26‑393, Palacio v. Warden of Cimarron Correctional Facility. The magistrate advised the district court to deny the petitioner’s writ of habeas corpus and dismiss the petition without...
25-1557 - Tate V. Shelter Mutual Insurance Company
The Western District of Oklahoma issued a decision in Tate v. Shelter Mutual Insurance Company, a 2026 case concerning a disputed property‑damage claim. Plaintiff Tate alleged that Shelter Mutual improperly denied coverage and acted in bad‑faith, seeking damages exceeding $250,000....
25-629 - Reed V. Bashorun Et Al
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma issued two key orders in Reed v. Bashorun et al. On November 4 2025, the court dismissed the plaintiff’s complaint without prejudice after granting ten defendants’ motions to dismiss, allowing the plaintiff...
Judge Finds Epstein-Related Plaintiff Lies, Spoliation, and Lawyer Misconduct in Rape Lawsuit Against Investor Leon Black
U.S. District Judge Jessica Clarke denied Leon Black's request for case‑terminating sanctions in a sexual‑assault lawsuit, but imposed significant penalties on the plaintiff’s former counsel and law firm for repeated lies and evidence spoliation. The court barred the plaintiff from...
FTC Secures Temporary Halt in Alleged Health-Care Impersonation Fraud
On April 22 the Federal Trade Commission obtained a temporary restraining order from a Florida federal court to shut down a nationwide health‑care impersonation scheme. The operation allegedly pretended to be government agencies and major insurers to trick consumers seeking...
Brazil Party Asks Court to Halt Rare Earths Miner’s Sale
Rede Sustentabilidade, a left‑wing Brazilian party, petitioned the Supreme Court to block the sale of Serra Verde Group, a domestic rare‑earth miner, to U.S. firm USA Rare Earth Inc. The filing argues that Brazil’s constitution does not provide adequate safeguards...
Colorado Adds Open-Source Exemption to Age-Verification Bill
Colorado’s age‑attestation bill, which obliges operating‑system providers and app stores to emit an age‑related signal for downstream applications, cleared the House committee with a significant amendment. The amendment carves out a broad exemption for open‑source operating systems, applications, public code...
Never Too Late: If You Missed the IPKat Last Week!
The IPKat’s weekly roundup surveyed pivotal IP rulings and policy shifts. In copyright, the Supreme Court’s Cox v Sony decision narrowed ISP liability to actual knowledge of infringement, while the CJEU’s Pelham II judgment clarified the EU definition of “pastiche” for...
Bloomberg Law: Court Okays Ten Commandments in Schools (Podcast)
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Texas' policy allowing public schools to post the Ten Commandments in classrooms, citing the historical‑tradition exception to the Establishment Clause. First Amendment scholar Caroline Mala Corbin explained the legal reasoning behind the decision....
Federal Judge Prevents Deportation of Humboldt Broncos Killer
A Federal Court judge issued an emergency stay that temporarily blocks the deportation of Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, the truck driver convicted for the 2018 Humboldt Broncos crash that killed 16 people. The order pauses his removal while judges assess a...
U.S. Extends Jones Act Waiver for 90 Days to Ease Energy Supply Disruptions
The White House announced a 90‑day extension of the emergency Jones Act waiver, permitting foreign‑flagged ships to transport oil, fertilizer and other essentials between U.S. ports. The move is framed as a short‑term fix to keep energy supplies flowing as...
Transit‑Oriented Development and ESG Mandates Reshape 2026 CRE Landscape
Clark Hill’s latest market updates reveal that Massachusetts and Florida are accelerating transit‑oriented development (TOD) mandates, while ESG and sustainability regulations are tightening across the U.S. Together, these policy shifts are creating fresh investment opportunities and compliance challenges for commercial...
Capital One Secures $425 Million Settlement, Boosts Payouts to Savings Customers
Capital One reached a revised $425 million settlement with U.S. regulators, directing the full amount to eligible 360 Savings customers and raising legacy account rates for two years. The deal lifts total relief above $1.2 billion, addressing earlier criticism that the original...
Sullivan & Cromwell Apologises After AI Hallucinations Taint Court Filing
Sullivan & Cromwell sent a formal apology to U.S. District Judge Martin Glenn after a bankruptcy motion contained AI‑generated hallucinations and erroneous citations. The firm acknowledged policy breaches, underscoring the growing risk of generative AI in litigation and prompting industry‑wide calls...
Live Nation Ex‑executive Sues for $35 M, Alleges Company‑wide Financial Fraud
Nicholas Rumanes, a former Live Nation executive, has filed a $35 million wrongful‑termination lawsuit accusing the concert giant of a company‑wide pattern of financial misstatement and hidden “junk fees.” The suit arrives weeks after a New York jury found Live Nation...
Links to My Posts on Chatrie V. United States, the Geofence Warrant Case
Supreme Court will hear arguments in Chatrie v. United States, the first case to address the legality of geofence warrants. The author, a legal scholar, compiled a chronological list of his posts, briefs, and commentary spanning from 2022 to 2026...
Texas Can Arrest and Deport People Who Illegally Cross at Mexico Border, Court Says
A federal appeals court has lifted a 2024 injunction, allowing Texas to enforce its 2023 Senate Bill 4, which authorizes state and local police to arrest migrants who cross the Mexico border illegally. The Fifth Circuit ruled 10‑to‑7 that the...
AI Hiring Laws Become Liability, Not Compliance
There Are No Rules. There Are Only Lawyers. Employers now face a patchwork of state, local, and federal requirements governing AI in employment decisions, with Illinois, Colorado, and New York City leading enforcement. Illinois's House Bill 3773, effective January 2026,...
Billionaire Tax Actually Targets Every Californian, Not Just Rich
The Billionaire Tax is actually an Everyone Tax. The Billionaire Tax is a new tax proposal written by four professors who don't believe in the American dream. Some of them aren’t even American…go figure. Despite its name, it applies to every...
Plaintiffs Can't Sue the Chinese Government with Largely Sealed Complaint
A federal judge in Washington rejected plaintiffs' request to seal a 300‑page complaint that underlies an eight‑page public pleading in a lawsuit against Chinese officials and entities. The suit invokes the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, the Alien Tort Statute, and...
Trump Defends Crypto Legislation at Private Event Featuring Boxer Mike Tyson, Tether CEO
President Donald Trump used a private Mar‑a‑Lago gathering of top $TRUMP memecoin holders to reaffirm his support for the stalled Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, warning banks not to block the legislation. The event, attended by crypto heavyweights such as...
The US Wants to Cut Off China’s Chip Equipment. China Says the Supply Chain Will Break for Everyone.
The U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee advanced the MATCH Act, compelling the Netherlands and Japan to align DUV lithography export restrictions with U.S. rules within 150 days, effectively cutting off ASML’s remaining sales and service to Chinese fabs. China’s Ministry...
DOJ Drops Powell Probe—Not a Reason to Celebrate
ABOUT THE DOJ DROPPING ITS INVESTIGATION OF JEROME POWELL (DOCUMENT INCLUDED) You may be wondering why you didn’t see a ‘woot’ from me at yesterday’s news that the DOJ was dropping its investigation of Jerome Powell. That’s because it’s really...
Kenya Dispatch: Court of Appeal Overturns 2022 High Court Abortion Ruling
Kenya’s Court of Appeal in Malindi overturned a 2022 High Court ruling that had declared abortion a constitutional right, reaffirming that the Constitution does not guarantee such a right. The bench interpreted Article 26 as protecting life from conception, limiting legal...
Gov. Healey Wants to Remove Public Access to Vital Records. So We’re Giving Her a Muzzle Award — Her Third.
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey has introduced a budget‑attached bill that would delay public access to birth, death and marriage records by up to 90 years for births and marriages and 50 years for deaths. The proposal mirrors a 2020 effort...
Regulation Shifts From Entities to Protocols: Law Becomes Code
Financial regulation in a zero-human world isn't about controlling entities It's about governing protocols The shift from noun to verb From who to how Code is law becomes law is code We're not ready for this
READ IN FULL: Sean 'Diddy' Combs Moves for Default in Defamation Battle After Defendant 'Has Not Answered'
Sean “Diddy” Combs has moved to obtain a default judgment in his defamation lawsuit after defendant Courtney Burgess failed to respond despite multiple service attempts. The court authorized alternative service methods—including certified mail, email, publication and text message—and confirmed service was...
U.S. News Sues OpenAI, Adding to the Publisher AI Copyright Wave
U.S. News & World Report has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in the Southern District of New York, alleging the AI developer used the publisher’s articles without permission to train its models and generate competing outputs. The case joins a...
Judge‑shopping Exposed: Kalshi Case Omitted From CFTC Filing
"We'll see you in court" apparently doesn't apply to cases before SDNY judge Analisa Torres (who is presiding over Kalshi v. NY). The CFTC's civil cover sheet omits Kalshi v. NY as a "related case" (even Coinbase concedes they are related...
INTERPOL Notice in U.S. Immigration Law: How They Affect Visa, Asylum, and Naturalization Cases
INTERPOL’s Red Notices and Diffusions, administrative alerts used to locate wanted individuals, have no judicial authority in U.S. immigration proceedings. Recent case law—including the BIA’s *Matter of W‑E‑R‑B‑* and the Ninth Circuit’s *Khalikov v. Garland*—confirms that these notices cannot establish...
FCC Paperwork Dispute Threatens Rural Wireless Broadband Rollout
Brevet Capital, managing about $2.5 billion, faces an FCC‑driven revocation of spectrum licenses after a paperwork error in a 2021 bankruptcy transfer. The dispute could stall high‑speed internet expansion to underserved rural areas and deter future private‑sector investment in satellite spectrum.
AI-Driven Software Will Push Shorter Vendor Contracts
Contract terms will shorten in the future. If AI commoditizes much of software and switching costs come down (which they are)… then I am more much likely to go with the vendor that offers shorter contracts I’ll still do *some* longer-term, but not...
South Korea Greenlights Single‑Stock ETFs and 2x Leveraged Funds, Expanding Derivative‑Like Tools
South Korea's Financial Services Commission approved amendments to the Enforcement Decree of the FSCMA, permitting single‑stock ETFs and exchange‑traded notes with up to 200% leverage. The rules take effect on April 28, with the first leveraged ETFs expected to list on...
VA’s $10 Billion Cerner EHR Rollout Stalls, Exposing Enterprise Migration Risks
Eight years after a $10 billion no‑bid contract was awarded, the Veterans Affairs department has installed Oracle‑Cerner’s electronic health‑record system at just 10 of its 1,400 hospitals. The stalled rollout has triggered patient‑safety alerts, a wave of clinician resignations, and bipartisan...
Judge Sanctions Leon Black’s Opposing Lawyer for Repeated Lies in Epstein‑Linked Suit
U.S. District Judge Jessica Clarke sanctioned plaintiff’s counsel Jeanne Christensen and Wigdor LLP for repeatedly lying to the court in the Epstein‑linked sexual‑assault case against billionaire Leon Black. The ruling imposes a one‑year filing ban in the Second Circuit and...
U.S. Cities Impose Heavy Short‑Term Rental Fines Ahead of 2026 FIFA World Cup
Ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, major U.S. host cities are cracking down on illegal short‑term rentals, imposing fines up to $500 per violation and new licensing fees. The moves aim to protect hotel revenue as demand for temporary...
Elon Musk and Sam Altman Face Jury Trial Over OpenAI’s For‑Profit Reorganization
Elon Musk and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman are headed to an Oakland federal courtroom as a nine‑person jury will decide whether OpenAI’s 2024 reorganization into a public‑benefit for‑profit violated securities law. The dispute stems from Musk’s claim that the nonprofit‑to‑profit...
Paris Jackson’s Estate Fight Highlights $3.5 B Michael Jackson Legacy Stakes
Paris Jackson has sued the executors of her father’s estate, demanding greater control over a multibillion‑dollar music catalog and a $200 million biopic. The dispute pits her against co‑executors who have already spent $10‑15 million on reshoots and paid themselves $148 million, while...
Canada Greenlights $4 B Enbridge Gas Pipeline Expansion to Add 300 MMcf/D in British Columbia
The Canadian government approved Enbridge's $4 billion Sunrise Expansion, a natural‑gas pipeline project in British Columbia that will add up to 300 million cubic feet per day of transport capacity. The expansion, part of Enbridge’s Westcoast system, is slated to begin construction...
SpaceX Files Confidential IPO Paperwork, Valuation Could Top $2 Trillion
SpaceX submitted confidential S‑1 paperwork for a potential initial public offering that could raise $75 billion at a valuation exceeding $2 trillion. The filing flags regulatory investigations into its AI subsidiary xAI and underscores a cash‑burn profile that rivals big‑tech spenders. Analysts...
UK Unveils Sweeping FinTech Reforms to Cement Global Hub Status
During FinTech Week in London, the UK government rolled out a package of digital‑markets reforms that modernise payments regulation, expand Open Banking and introduce a tokenised wholesale market. The measures, led by new Wholesale Digital Markets Champion Chris Woolard, are...
Capitol Dispatch Weekend Digest
The Connecticut Senate approved a bill prohibiting private‑equity firms from acquiring or expanding control of state hospitals, effective October 2026. Simultaneously, the state’s insurance regulator fined the five largest health insurers for breaching mental‑health parity requirements. The state agricultural lab...