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
FAA Caps O’Hare Summer Flights at 2,708 Daily, Cutting Up to 400
The Federal Aviation Administration has limited Chicago O’Hare International Airport to 2,708 takeoffs and landings per day from May 17 through Oct. 24, shaving roughly 300‑400 flights from airlines’ original summer schedule. The move targets worsening delays and safety concerns as traffic spikes 15% over last summer.
Payments Industry Launches $1M ‘Credit Card Chaos’ Campaign to Repeal Illinois Interchange Fee Ban
A coalition of banks, credit unions and card networks has rolled out a seven‑figure advertising push to force Illinois lawmakers to repeal the state’s Interchange Fee Prohibition Act. The group warns the law could cripple credit‑card processing for sales‑tax and...
Kraftwerk Lose Long-Running Copyright Dispute
The European Court of Justice has ruled in favor of German producer Moses Pelham, finding his two‑second drum loop from Kraftkraft’s 1977 track “Metall auf Metall” lawful under the EU’s “pastiche” exception. The dispute, sparked by Pelham’s unlicensed sample in...
Nurse Who Downed at Least 14 Tequila Shots Wins $300,000 in Lawsuit Against Cruise Line
Nurse Diana Sanders drank at least 14 tequila shots over 8.5 hours on a Carnival cruise, fell down stairs and suffered serious injuries. She sued Carnival Corp. for negligence and overserving, and a Miami‑Dade County jury found the cruise line...
Colorado Mass Balance Debate Underscores Industry Faultlines
The American Chemistry Council (ACC) voluntarily dismissed its Colorado lawsuit challenging the state’s mass‑balance allocation rules for recycled‑content reporting. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment will keep the current EPR plan in place while reviewing alternative credit methods...
Stakeholders Urge Labor Department to Finalize PBM Transparency Rule
Employers, lawmakers and patient groups urged the Labor Department to finalize a rule that forces pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to disclose detailed compensation data, including rebates and spread‑pricing. The DOL’s proposal, released in January, would require PBMs to share dollar‑level...
Morning Docket: 04.17.26
Private equity firms are actively scouting law firms for acquisition, signaling a new wave of financial backing for boutique practices. Federal judges have endorsed a paralegal‑driven initiative to modernize and digitize briefing formats, aiming to streamline court processes. Law school...
Lycamobile Wins Appeal Against Regulatory Fine in Belgium
Lycamobile Belgium successfully appealed an administrative fine imposed by the Belgian telecom regulator Bipt for allegedly inadequate procedures to refund unused prepaid credit to customers who left the service. The Brussels appeals court ruled that the regulator failed to conduct...
Portions of Trina Solar TOPCon Patents Deemed ‘Unpatentable’
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board issued final written decisions finding that key portions of Trina Solar’s two TOPCon patents are unpatentable. As a result, Runergy and Canadian Solar are cleared of infringement claims, while Adani...
Investment Advisor Hit with 18-Month Ban, $30,000 Fine
Canada’s self‑regulatory body CIRO has sanctioned investment advisor Calogero “Charlie” Alaimo with an 18‑month ban from any securities‑related work at CIRO‑member firms, a $30,000 CAD fine (≈$22,200 USD), $14,314 CAD disgorgement (≈$10,600 USD) and $10,000 CAD costs (≈$7,400 USD). The penalties stem from...
$5M Refund Case Raises Fresh Concerns over CRA Controls
The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) mistakenly paid a bogus refund of roughly $3.7 million USD to Teresa Wallace, whose small hemp and grain business generates about $54,000 a year. The claim listed a fabricated $9.99 million CAD foreign income with a 100%...
The SEC’s New SOX Squad: Five Takeaways for Auditors and Public Companies – Intelligize
The SEC has launched a new enforcement unit, the SOX group, dedicated to policing auditor misconduct. The move arrives amid a broader scaling back of the agency’s enforcement activities, including fewer cases, lower penalties, and reduced staffing. By singling out...
Own Up: Proposed Rule to Help Judges Catch Conflicts Inches Forward
A federal appellate judge has advanced a proposed rule that would require judges to disclose financial interests and automatically trigger recusal when conflicts arise. The amendment, praised by U.S. District Judge Sarah Vance, seeks to standardize conflict‑of‑interest detection across the...
The White-Collar Defence Lawyers with Nothing to Do
At a recent conference for America’s white‑collar defence bar, lawyers joked about having little work, reflecting a sharp slowdown in fraud and securities cases. The lull stems from the Trump administration’s de‑escalation of traditional white‑collar enforcement, leaving many firms with...
Connecticut AG Puts Businesses on Notice: Old Laws Still Apply to AI
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong issued an advisory warning that AI deployments remain fully subject to the state’s existing civil‑rights, privacy, data‑security, consumer‑protection and antitrust laws. The guidance, analyzed by Squire Patton Boggs, makes clear there is no AI‑specific statute...
State to Audit Ohio School Districts’ Cybersecurity Plans
The Ohio Auditor of State will launch audits of school districts' cybersecurity programs in July, as mandated by House Bill 96. The legislation requires districts to establish policies that protect data, information technology, and related resources while ensuring availability, confidentiality,...
RFK Jr. Defends Makary, Claims Pharma ‘Owns’ Congress and Media
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. defended FDA Commissioner Marty Makary during a Ways and Means Committee hearing, praising the agency’s recent drug‑approval record and rejecting criticism from the pharmaceutical industry. He highlighted the FDA’s decision to reject Replimune’s oncolytic...
‘A Fancy Deck and a Round of Funding Doesn’t Make a Law Firm’
AI-native legaltech startups are drawing sizable venture capital by promising AI‑driven efficiency and lower costs for corporate legal departments. Norm Law, backed by more than $140 million from investors such as Blackstone and Bain Capital, employs 40 attorneys alongside engineers to...
Crypto Bill Languishes in Senate, Leaving Tiny CFTC in Limbo
The Senate has stalled the crypto market‑structure bill, leaving the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) with limited authority to oversee digital commodities. The agency has shed more than 20% of its workforce, dropping below 550 employees, and is only posting...
Newzoo: Top Roblox Games in 2025
Roblox outpaced the broader gaming market in 2025, posting a 36% year‑over‑year revenue increase to $4.9 billion and a 55% jump in total bookings to $6.8 billion. Users logged 123.8 billion hours in games, with daily active users rising to 126.5 million. New titles...
When Agents Act: The Rule 26(f) Disclosure Threshold for Agentic AI in eDiscovery
A Colorado magistrate judge in Morgan v. V2X, Inc. required a pro se plaintiff to disclose the generative‑AI tool used on confidential discovery material, setting a template for protective orders involving AI. The ruling affirmed that AI‑assisted outputs remain work...
LegalRM Makes Raft of Hires to “Support Clients at Scale”
LegalRM announced a series of strategic hires spanning delivery, support, AI, marketing and Azure infrastructure to bolster its ability to serve a growing global client base. New Director of Delivery Stanley Gee will standardize implementation methodologies, while Head of Support...
US Will Punish Fraud and Insider Trading, Derivatives Regulator Tells Congress
CFTC Chair Michael Selig testified before the House Agriculture Committee, assuring lawmakers that the agency will aggressively pursue fraud, manipulation and insider trading in derivatives markets. His remarks follow media reports that the CFTC is probing oil futures trades placed...
Expanded Access to Investigational Drugs for Treatment Use: Questions and Answers
The FDA issued a final Level 1 guidance titled “Expanded Access to Investigational Drugs for Treatment Use: Questions and Answers,” originally released in June 2016 and updated in October 2017. The document consolidates frequently asked questions about the 2009‑enacted expanded‑access regulations under 21 CFR part 312...
What Do We Know About ‘Birth Tourism’?
FactCheck.org reports that the U.S. government does not publish data on birth tourism, the practice of pregnant visitors using tourist visas to secure citizenship for their newborns. An external analysis estimates the phenomenon could generate more than 20,000 U.S.-born children...
The Maduro Case Needs a New Judge
U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein, a 92‑year‑old senior judge, has been assigned the high‑profile indictment of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Since the case was filed in January 2026, Hellerstein has failed to set a pre‑trial schedule, leaving the prosecution without a...
When War Is No Excuse
Geopolitical turmoil is prompting contractors to lean on force‑majeure clauses, yet FIDIC’s Red Book sets a strict “prevented” threshold that many overlook. The recent Black Sea shipping dispute shows tribunals demanding concrete evidence of impossibility, causation, and critical‑path delay, rejecting...
Connecticut Judge Refuses to Hit Pause in Multistate Generic-Drug Antitrust Fight
A federal judge in Connecticut denied a request to pause the multistate antitrust lawsuit accusing generic‑drug manufacturers of price‑fixing. The ruling keeps the coordinated MDL active while settlement discussions continue, preserving litigation pressure on the defendants. The case is a...
Not Judge Judy, Juror Judi—But "Stupid Mistake" Isn't "Actual Malice" For Libel Purposes
In April 2024, A360 Media published a story that mistakenly identified alternate juror Judi Zamos as Judge Judy, claiming she advocated for the Menendez brothers' resentencing. The false report led Judge Judy (Judy Sheindlin) to sue for defamation, but the...
Know the Legal Age to Buy Tobacco Products in the U.S.? Many Parents Don’t
Since 2019, the United States has enforced a federal Tobacco‑21 law that raises the minimum purchase age for cigarettes, vapes, and other nicotine products to 21. A recent Stanford‑led survey of over 2,000 parents found that fewer than half correctly...
Federal Jury Convicts Fugitive Sex Offender Who Vanished After Staging Crime Scene and Fleeing Oklahoma in 2012
A federal jury convicted Anthony Michael Lennon, a 44‑year‑old fugitive sex offender, of failing to register under federal law. Lennon vanished in 2012 after staging a crime scene, lived under false identities across Nevada, Illinois and New York, and was arrested...
Justice Department Secures Settlement in First-Ever Lawsuit Enforcing the Violence Against Women Act Housing Rights Subpart
The Justice Department announced a settlement in United States v. David Montanus and Lisa Montanus, the first case filed to enforce the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) housing‑rights subpart. The defendants, who evicted a survivor after she called police for...
East Bay Men Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit H1-B Visa Fraud Claiming Clients Would Work for the University of...
Two Dublin residents, Sampath Rajidi and Sreedhar Mada, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit H‑1B visa fraud. Rajidi, who owned S‑Team Software and Uptrend Technologies, submitted false petitions claiming beneficiaries would work for the University of California, while Mada, UCANR’s...
‘We’re Massive Video Game Fans’: Technology Lawyer Trio Launch IP, AI Boutique in Washington DC
Technology lawyers Ross Dannenberg, Scott Kelly and Kirk Sigmon have launched KellDan Law, a Washington, D.C. boutique that concentrates on intellectual property, artificial intelligence and broader technology issues. The firm will advise on patent strategy, AI governance, licensing and emerging‑technology...
Brussels’ AI Squeeze: Regulating What It Leaves Standing
The European Commission issued a Supplementary Statement of Objections to Meta, seeking to restore third‑party AI assistants’ access to WhatsApp under pre‑October 2025 terms. Meta’s recent policy change excluded these assistants from its paid Business Platform, a move the Commission deems...
Replimune Cries Foul on Regulatory Flexibility. But Many Americans Want a Stricter FDA
The FDA rejected Replimune’s RP1 melanoma combination therapy twice, citing patient‑population heterogeneity that it says undermines efficacy interpretation. The biotech’s CEO decried the agency’s lack of regulatory flexibility, while a Politico poll revealed most Americans prefer a slower, more rigorous...
Tribunal Upholds Worker Dismissal After Alleged Assault
A UK employment tribunal dismissed a worker's claim of unfair dismissal after he was fired for a physical altercation with a colleague. The tribunal found L. Lynch Plant Hire & Haulage acted reasonably, classifying the incident as gross misconduct based...
Statement by Commissioner Peirce on the Costs, Risks, and Privacy Concerns of the Consolidated Audit Trail
Commissioner Hester Peirce announced the SEC’s new concept release aimed at overhauling the Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT). She highlighted that CAT’s annual budget has ballooned from an estimated $55 million in 2016 to almost $250 million, and that the system remains years...
IBM, DEI and a $17 Million Warning Shot
IBM agreed to pay $17 million to resolve DOJ allegations that its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices violated federal contracting rules. The settlement stems from the Justice Department’s newly created Civil Rights Fraud Initiative, which targets companies that use race...
Trusts Come in Many Forms Beyond Revocable/Irrevocable
All Trust (Funds) are not create equal. There are so many type of trusts. And I’m talking outside of revocable an irrevocable.
Anthropic Aims Claude at $1 Trillion Legal Market
Anthropic Targets Lawyers With Claude For Word “it’s surely not lost on Anthropic that legal is a global $1 Trillion industry, with about half of that in the US alone.” https://t.co/G5bAlKdUU2 https://t.co/58SA2Dcm4M
Judge Dismisses CVS-Aetna’s Lawsuit Against Radiology Partners
A federal judge in Jacksonville dismissed CVS‑Aetna's lawsuit accusing Radiology Partners of a multi‑phase fraud scheme, granting the radiology group’s motion and barring the insurer from re‑filing the claims. The case centered on alleged misuse of a Florida practice’s tax...
China Fines Alibaba, PDD for Food Delivery Business Failures
Chinese regulators imposed a record fine of 3.6 billion yuan (≈ $528 million) on major food‑delivery platforms including Alibaba Group, PDD Holdings, Meituan, JD.com and Douyin. The State Administration for Market Regulation said the penalties stem from the platforms’ failure to filter out...
A Class-Action Lawsuit Accuses Amazon of Intentionally Degrading Early Fire TV Stick Devices to Push Consumers Into Buying New Ones
A California class‑action lawsuit claims Amazon deliberately slowed the first‑ and second‑generation Fire TV Stick to force upgrades. Plaintiff Bill Merewhuader alleges his 2018 second‑gen stick became unusable years before its expected lifespan. The complaint says Amazon failed to disclose...
Samsung Electronics Files Injunction to Block Union Strike Actions Ahead of Planned Walkout
Samsung Electronics filed a preliminary injunction in Suwon District Court to block a planned 18‑day general strike by its Supra‑Enterprise Labor Union, citing risks of illegal occupation of production lines and equipment damage. The union has warned that the strike...
You Have No Rights
The California Supreme Court officially disbarred former Trump lawyer John Eastman, citing his role in a scheme to obstruct the certification of the 2020 election results. Eastman, a former clerk for Justice Clarence Thomas and senior fellow at the Claremont...
🌊 Sam Altman’s Plan to Regulate AI
A decade after Elon Musk warned that AI needs proactive regulation, the United States still lacks any federal AI framework. Recent NBC polling shows 57% of voters believe AI’s risks, especially job loss, outweigh its benefits, while only 26% view...
Unlocking Growth: How SME Law Firms Can Thrive Through Referrals
In episode 22 of Osprey Approach’s "Empowering Law Firm Leaders" podcast, corporate lawyer and Adviserly CEO Robert Flint outlines how SME law firms can unlock growth through structured referral strategies. He introduces the BTOP framework—Budget, Team, Other parties, Planning—to qualify referrals,...
Regulating AI in Asia Pacific: Can Companies Keep Up?
AI regulation is accelerating across the Asia‑Pacific, with 77 % of firms already subject to or expecting AI‑related rules within five years and 90 % facing obligations tied to cybersecurity, data protection and consumer rights. Singapore leads the effort through AI Verify,...
Richard Desmond Loses £1.3bn Damages Battle over National Lottery Licence
Media mogul Richard Desmond’s lawsuit seeking up to $1.6 billion in damages over the Gambling Commission’s award of the UK national lottery licence to Allwyn has been dismissed by the High Court. The court ruled the commission’s procurement process lawful, rejecting...