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
NetDocuments Teams with Anthropic to Embed Claude via Model Context Protocol
NetDocuments announced a partnership with Anthropic that connects Claude, the firm’s large‑language model, to NetDocuments through the Model Context Protocol (MCP). The integration lets law firms query and draft using Claude while keeping all documents inside NetDocuments’ secure repository, preserving existing governance and compliance controls.
Trillion-Dollar Tech Bandits Are Finally Facing Justice
On March 24‑25, 2026 juries in New Mexico and California handed down landmark verdicts against Meta, Google and YouTube, ordering $375 million and $6 million in damages for child exploitation and social‑media addiction. The rulings mark the first successful state‑level trials holding...
Pizza Hut Franchisee Sues Over AI Delivery System, Seeks $100 Million in Damages
Chaac Pizza Northeast, a top Pizza Hut franchisee, filed a Texas Business Court suit on May 6 accusing the chain of forcing an AI‑driven delivery platform that it says crippled operations and cost over $100 million. The case spotlights emerging tech‑risk disputes...
Texas Children’s Hospital Pays $10 Million, Ends Gender‑Transition Care for Minors
The U.S. Department of Justice and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton reached a settlement with Texas Children’s Hospital that includes a $10 million payment, a ban on gender‑transition procedures for minors, and the creation of the nation’s first detransition clinic. The...
Estate Planning Without Children
Estate planning for child‑free Americans is becoming a distinct niche as more people forgo traditional family structures. Without children, clients must deliberately select trustees, agents, and beneficiaries, often turning to extended relatives, friends, or corporate trustees. The absence of heirs...
Feedback From Meeting with Johannesburg Deeds Registry Management
The Johannesburg Deeds Registry met with the Conveyancing Committee on May 7, 2026 and issued a detailed action plan. Examiners will now be available from 08:00‑11:30 for direct consults, and deputy‑led section meetings will address unnecessary notes and rejections. A specific email...
SEC Clears Nasdaq to Pilot Blockchain Tokenized Stock Offerings
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission gave Nasdaq permission to launch a pilot that will let qualified participants trade tokenized versions of Russell 1000 equities and major ETFs on its platform. The move, backed by a partnership with Kraken and...
Sedona Conference Publishes Model Jury Instructions on DTSA’s 10th Anniversary
The Sedona Conference’s Trade Secrets Working Group has published the first model jury instructions for federal Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) cases, concluding a three‑year, consensus‑driven drafting effort. The instructions cover trade‑secret definition, misappropriation, and damages, seeking to bring uniformity...
USPTO Details Broad Principles of Discretionary Denial in AIA Proceedings
On May 14, 2026 the USPTO issued a precedential decision in an inter partes review that clarifies the Director’s discretionary authority to deny institution of AIA proceedings. The ruling frames the PTAB as a narrow, public‑interest‑driven alternative to district‑court litigation,...
Justices Call for New Review of Voting Rights Act Enforcement After Landmark Decision
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to review two Section 2 Voting Rights Act cases, directing lower courts to reassess the disputes under its recent *Louisiana v. Callais* ruling. The order focuses on who has standing to bring vote‑dilution claims, not the...
Raj Abhyanker’s Firm Ordered to Pay $90k+ for Ill-Advised Trademark Enforcement Lawsuit–LegalForce V. LawFirms
Judge Corley ordered LegalForce, the operator of Trademarkia, to pay over $90,000 in fees after finding its trademark claim against LawFirms’ logo meritless and pursued in bad faith. The court also criticized the defense for frivolously delaying discovery and for...
THE JUNIOR LAWYER CRISIS – How AI Is Hollowing Out the Future of Legal Talent…
AI‑driven drafting tools are rapidly replacing the traditional grunt work of junior lawyers, creating a "Talent Hollow‑Out" that threatens the apprenticeship model long relied upon by law firms. A LexisNexis report shows 72% of legal professionals worry that AI will...
Supreme Court Declines to Hear Drugmakers' Challenge to Price Negotiations
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear appeals from six major drug manufacturers seeking to block the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program. The decision leaves lower‑court rulings that uphold the program intact, allowing the government to continue negotiating prices for...
Texas Chick-Fil-A Franchisee Sued for Religious Discrimination
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed a lawsuit against Hatch Trick, Inc., a Texas Chick‑fil‑A franchisee, alleging it violated Title VII by refusing to accommodate an employee’s Sabbath observance and terminating her when she declined a demoted role. The...
Great Bowery Inc. V. Consequence Sound LLC
The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a district‑court summary judgment that had dismissed Great Bowery Inc.'s copyright infringement suit against Consequence Sound. The appellate court held that Great Bowery, as an exclusive licensee of photographer Annie Leibovitz, retains statutory...
![[Audio] New Preorder Patent Owner Rights in Ex Parte Reexamination — Patents: Post-Grant Podcast](/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,quality=75,format=auto,fit=cover/https://jdsupra-static.s3.amazonaws.com/profile-images/og.14355_0412.jpg)
[Audio] New Preorder Patent Owner Rights in Ex Parte Reexamination — Patents: Post-Grant Podcast
The USPTO issued a new director memo that introduces preorder patent‑owner rights in ex parte reexamination, allowing owners to submit a request before any third‑party challenger. The memo outlines procedural steps and clarifies when the preorder can affect the examiner’s...
TalkingTech: Real Conversations on Product Adoption, Pricing and Data in Legal Tech
Legal IT Insider convened a boutique "TalkingTech" roundtable in France, gathering IT directors and legal‑tech innovators to dissect real‑world product adoption hurdles. Participants examined how pricing structures—from flat‑fee subscriptions to usage‑based models—are influencing procurement decisions across law firms and corporate...
The Supreme Court Won't Take up Drugmakers' IRA Cases
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear several lawsuits filed by major drugmakers challenging the Medicare drug‑price negotiation provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act. The cases, brought by AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and other manufacturers, sought to block the administration’s...
Women in Aviation Group Sues Digital Ticketing Firm over Dinner Event Cash
The Women in Aviation Kenya Chapter has filed a small‑claims suit against digital ticketing firm M‑Tickets Kenya Ltd., alleging the platform withheld most of the $3,500 (Sh527,000) collected for its March 2026 dinner. Under a contract that allowed a 5%...
Kraken Wants to Be a (Legally Speaking) Bank. Why?
Kraken's parent Payward has filed for a trust charter with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, a step that could upgrade the exchange to a full‑service bank and secure a master account at the Federal Reserve. The Independent...
SAS Daniels Offers Valued Insight on Employment Rights Act 2025
SAS Daniels, a Cheshire‑based law firm, is hosting a free online webinar on May 21 to demystify the Employment Rights Act 2025. The session follows a well‑attended in‑person briefing in Stockport and will cover the legislation’s core reforms, common misconceptions,...
Thursday’s Podcast Episode: CFPB Finalizes Sweeping ECOA Rule Changes: What Lenders Need to Know About Disparate Impact, Discouragement, and SPCPs
The Consumer Finance Monitor podcast breaks down the CFPB’s final rule that overhauls ECOA enforcement. The agency eliminated disparate‑impact liability, narrowed discouragement liability to explicit statements, and revised the framework for Special Purpose Credit Programs. While the federal landscape now...
Plaintiff Can Sue Pseudonymously Because She's a Criminal Defense Lawyer with a Gambling Addiction
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington provisionally allowed plaintiff E.B., a criminal‑defense lawyer with a diagnosed gambling addiction, to proceed under a pseudonym. The judge found a sufficient showing that revealing her identity could cause significant...
Access Legal Survey Shows 59% of UK Lawyers Use Unapproved AI, Breaching Confidentiality
Access Legal’s survey of 200 UK legal professionals reveals 59% have used unapproved AI, such as free‑version ChatGPT, in client work, directly contravening the SRA Code of Conduct. The findings come after the Upper Tribunal’s Munir decision, which says open‑source...
Chicago Jury Awards $49.5 Million to Ethiopian Airlines Family in Boeing 737 MAX Case
A federal jury in Chicago awarded $49.5 million to the family of Samya Stumo, a victim of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, marking the latest compensatory verdict against Boeing for the 737 MAX disasters. The award, broken into $21 million for flight experience, $16.5 million...
Report: Quebec Court of Appeal Upholds Ruling That CP Was ‘Not Liable’ for Lac-Mégantic Disaster (UPDATE, 5/18)
A Quebec Court of Appeal has affirmed a lower‑court decision that Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) bears no liability for the 2013 Lac‑Mégantic oil‑train disaster. The ruling rejected three joined appeals seeking to force CP into a $460 million compensation fund...
Ad Law Reading Room: “The Original Role of Article III in Federal Imprisonment,” By Con Reynolds
Con Reynolds’ forthcoming University of Pennsylvania Law Review article argues that Article III courts historically played an active, interventionist role in overseeing federal prisons, contrary to the modern narrative of judicial deference. By uncovering forgotten statutes, case law, and more than...
Linklaters Aims to Solve ‘Otherwise Intractable’ Challenges for Clients with AI-Focused Legaltech Team
Linklaters, one of the UK’s top ten law firms, has launched a six‑person Applied Intelligence team of three lawyers and three data scientists to create custom AI tools for clients. The group will tackle data‑intensive legal tasks—such as compliance gap...
Notre Dame Pro-Abortion-Rights Professor Ordered to Pay $200K in Fees in Failed Libel Lawsuit Against Student Newspaper
Notre Dame professor Dr. Tamara Kay’s defamation lawsuit against the student newspaper The Irish Rover was dismissed by an Indiana judge, who also ordered her to pay roughly $200,000 in attorney fees. The court found the newspaper’s articles, which quoted...
Chiles V. Salazar: The First Amendment, Medical Malpractice Litigation and Medical Board Disciplinary Proceedings
The U.S. Supreme Court in Chiles v. Salazar (June 2026) invalidated Colorado’s ban on conversion‑therapy for minors, ruling it violated the Free Speech Clause. The decision builds on National Institute of Family and Life Advocates, extending First Amendment protection to professional...
8½-Year Sentence for American Who Fought for ISIS Is Too Lenient, Says Sixth Circuit
The Sixth Circuit upheld an 8½‑year (101‑month) prison term for Mirsad Ramic, a naturalized U.S. citizen who traveled to Syria, fought for ISIS, and aided its propaganda and recruitment. The appellate panel rebuked the district court for downplaying ISIS’s atrocities,...
Canadian Legal Summit Returns with the Profession's Hardest Conversations
The Canadian Legal Summit returns to Toronto on Oct. 14, gathering roughly 500 lawyers, in‑house counsel, and legal innovators for candid discussions. This year’s agenda spotlights AI’s existential impact on the billable hour, rising burnout as a business risk, and...
Legal Knowledge: Lexsoft Announces T3 Is Accessible via MCP and Tiger Eye Launches AI Curation Assistant
Lexsoft Systems announced that its T3 legal knowledge management platform is now fully accessible through the Model Context Protocol (MCP), allowing firms to embed the system directly into existing applications. The integration promises real‑time data exchange and streamlined workflow automation...
Legal Knowledge: Lexsoft Announces T3 Is Accessible via MCP and Tiger Eye Launches AI Curation Assistant
Lexsoft Systems announced that its legal knowledge platform, T3, is now fully accessible through the Model Context Protocol (MCP), enabling plug‑and‑play integration with AI orchestrators such as Microsoft Copilot, Claude, Gemini and third‑party tools like Harvey. The update also adds an...
Appeals Court Revives Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Against Radiologist, Claiming Judge Gave Jury Improper Instructions
An appellate court in New York has revived a medical malpractice suit against radiologist Dr. Voytek Sobieraj and Associated Radiologists of the Finger Lakes, overturning a 2024 jury verdict that had dismissed the case. The court found the trial judge...
From Manual to Manageable: How Multi-Payor Billing Transforms the Way Law Firms Handle Complex Matters
Centerbase launched a Multi-Payor Billing engine that automates the allocation of invoices across multiple funding sources within a single matter record. Users can configure up to 70 payors, assign percentages, and let the system handle even distribution, rounding adjustments, and...
The Billing Problem You Inherited Has a Fix.
Centerbase has launched Multi-Payor Billing, a native feature that automates split invoicing, payment allocation, and AR reporting for matters with multiple funding sources. The tool supports up to 70 payors per matter, offers one‑click distribution and rounding fixes, and adds...
Cyber Attacks Cost UK Businesses £3.7bn in Litigation in 2025
Research by Gallagher and the Centre for Economics and Business Research shows UK large enterprises faced $14.6 billion in total cyber‑attack costs in 2025. Shareholder litigation alone accounted for $4.6 billion, making it the second‑largest expense after $6.8 billion in direct trading disruption....
LawX Lands $8.2M Seed Round to Build AI‑driven Legal Operating System for Europe
LawX, a Berlin legal‑tech startup, closed a €7.5 million seed round led by Motive Partners, with participation from WENVEST Capital, xdeck, SIVentures and several angels. The funding will accelerate development of its AI‑driven platform that automates case management, billing and other...
DOJ Probes BlackRock Private Credit Fund After 19% NAV Drop and $25M Loan Write‑Off
The U.S. Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation into BlackRock TCP Capital Corp., a publicly traded private‑credit BDC, after the fund disclosed a 19% net‑asset‑value markdown and a $25 million loan to Infinite Commerce Holdings was written off as worthless....
Supreme Court Weakens Voting Rights Act, Upending 17 Local Election Maps
The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Louisiana v. Callais narrows the Voting Rights Act’s Section 2 standard, prompting legal challenges to at least 17 state and local election maps. Advocates warn the decision will make it harder to protect minority voting...
Court of Appeal Backs HOKA's Restrictions on Online Sales
The UK Court of Appeal overturned a Competition Appeals Tribunal ruling that had branded Deckers’ HOKA online‑sales restrictions as illegal. The appellate court held that limiting sales to approved websites did not constitute a ‘by‑object’ breach of competition law and...
D&O Insurance: Delaware Court Says Disgorgement Isn’t “Penalty” That Bars Coverage
The Delaware Superior Court held that disgorgement awards in an SEC case are not “penalties” that trigger the exclusion clause in directors‑and‑officers (D&O) policies. The ruling, involving a large media company, relied on the precise language of the SEC’s statutory...
Bill C-22 Surveils Ordinary Canadians While Leaving Cartel Networks Untouched
Bill C-22, dubbed the Lawful Access Act, would expand Ottawa's authority to access metadata and communications of all Canadians. Major tech firms—including Signal, Shopify’s CEO, and VPN providers—threaten to pull services or relocate if the bill passes, citing privacy violations....
AI‑Driven Power Surge Sparks State Battles Over Utility Profits and Rising Bills
Governors and attorneys general in Arizona, Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania are confronting utilities over proposed rate increases tied to soaring AI data‑center demand. The Energy and Policy Institute says for‑profit utility earnings jumped from $39 B in...
Bitcoin Depot Files Chapter 11, Initiates Asset Sale Amid Tightening U.S. Crypto Rules
Bitcoin Depot announced Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to orderly wind down its U.S. and Canadian Bitcoin ATM network and sell assets. CEO Alex Holmes cited mounting state compliance costs and litigation as making the business model unsustainable, a development that...
Bar Standards Board Introduces New Guidance on the Use of AI
The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has issued new guidance outlining how solicitors should safely and responsibly incorporate artificial intelligence into legal practice. The framework requires firms to conduct risk assessments, disclose AI‑generated content to clients, and implement robust data‑privacy safeguards....
Bar Standards Board Introduces New Guidance on the Use of AI
The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has released new guidance on the safe and responsible use of artificial intelligence in barristers’ practice. The document maps existing Core Duties to technology‑specific expectations, urging lawyers to maintain AI competence, assess risks, and protect...
Will the Fair Work Agency Use AI to Enforce Employment Law?
The UK Fair Work Agency (FWA) launched on 7 April 2026 with a £60.1 million (~$76 million) budget to consolidate labour‑market enforcement across several existing bodies. It can inspect workplaces, demand payroll and contract records, issue 200% penalties for under‑payment and even bring tribunal...
SEC Looking to Rescind Enforcement’s “Gag Rule”: Four Things to Know
The SEC is poised to rescind its 54‑year “gag rule,” which barred parties in enforcement settlements from publicly denying allegations. The final rule would replace the long‑standing “neither admit nor deny” provision with a framework that may let companies openly...