Today's Legal Pulse
Biden sues DOJ to block release of interview audio
President Joe Biden has filed a federal lawsuit seeking to prevent the Department of Justice from publishing an audio recording of his interview. The action, reported by Axios and TIME, aims to keep the interview confidential amid political controversy.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Hogan Lovells and Cadwalader clear final merger hurdles
FCA Introduces Clearer and Simpler Short Selling Rules
The UK Financial Conduct Authority has finalized a streamlined short‑selling regime that replaces individual seller disclosures with aggregated net‑short data. The new rules extend the reporting timetable, giving firms more time to calculate positions, and simplify market‑maker notifications to an annual exemption confirmation. While cutting administrative effort, the FCA retains its emergency powers and oversight responsibilities. The changes aim to balance lighter compliance burdens with continued market fairness.
Year 2 Consumer Duty Board Reports: Progress and What Comes Next
The FCA’s second‑year Consumer Duty board reports reveal that firms are tightening governance, with boards formally reviewing and signing off on outcomes and action plans. Data usage has broadened, incorporating both quantitative trends and qualitative insights, especially for vulnerable customers....
EBA Proposes Major Simplification of ESG Supervisory Reporting Requirements for Banks
The European Banking Authority (EBA) has unveiled a draft overhaul of its ESG supervisory reporting framework, stripping out several EU Taxonomy templates and introducing a three‑tier, proportionality‑based regime. Large banks (assets over €30 billion) will retain most Pillar 3 disclosures plus two...
AIFMD & UCITS Directive — New Obligations for Fund Managers From 16 April 2026
The EU’s AIFMD II and updated UCITS Directive become mandatory on 16 April 2026, harmonising rules for alternative investment funds across member states. Key measures include a EU‑wide loan‑origination framework, mandatory liquidity‑management tools for open‑ended AIFs, expanded delegation requirements and enhanced investor disclosures....
Thursday Radio Prep
An appeals court ordered a federal judge to stop a contempt investigation into Trump‑era deportation flights, effectively ending Judge Boasberg’s personal probe of the former administration. The same ruling was framed by critics as a rebuke of what they called...
New AI Policy in South Africa Stresses Corporate Liability for Agentic Systems
South Africa’s new AI policy treats autonomous, or “agentic,” systems as delegated decision‑makers and places full corporate liability on the deploying organisation. The Companies Act 71 of 2008 and the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 require board‑level...
Why Were These Two US Immigration Judges Fired? | Seth Stern
The Justice Department fired immigration judges Roopal Patel and Nina Froes after they ruled against deportations of immigrant journalists and activists, signaling a shift toward politicized adjudication. Both judges upheld First‑Amendment protections for non‑citizens, while Judge Blake Doughty avoided dismissal...
Why the SEC Just Gave Self Custody Crypto Apps 5 Years to Get Traditional Broker Licenses
On April 13, the SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets issued a staff statement defining “Covered User Interface” providers. The guidance lets self‑custodial crypto apps operate without broker‑dealer registration if they avoid execution, custody, financing and discretionary routing. Providers must...
French Minister Says New Measures Are Coming After Crypto Kidnappings
French interior minister delegate Jean‑Didier Berger announced new measures to curb crypto kidnappings, known as wrench attacks, after a recent €400,000 ransom case. Authorities have launched a prevention platform that already has thousands of sign‑ups and are collaborating with Interior...
EU Proposes that Google Allow Third-Party Search Engines Access to Data — What We Know
The European Commission has drafted measures to force Google to grant third‑party search engines access to its search data, including AI‑driven chatbot queries, to satisfy the EU Digital Markets Act. Interested parties must submit comments by 1 May 2026, with a...
FCA Targets AI Governance and Off-Channel Messaging
In February 2026 the FCA replaced a backlog of individual letters with a series of sector‑specific Regulatory Priorities reports, beginning with insurance and followed by wholesale markets, retail banking and consumer investments. The reports signal a collaborative stance on artificial...
Webinar: Perspectives on the Digital Networks Act
PolicyTracker will host a 90‑minute webinar on 27 May 2026 to examine the EU’s proposed Digital Networks Act (DNA). The DNA seeks to revamp spectrum governance by enhancing EU‑level coordination, revisiting assignment models, and rebalancing authority between the European Commission and...
The EU Has Told Google What It Must Do to Share Search Data with Rivals
The European Commission has issued preliminary findings under the Digital Markets Act, outlining six concrete measures that require Google to share search‑ranking, query, click and view data with competing search engines and AI chatbots. The proposal defines eligibility, data scope,...
Fieldfisher Disputes Co-Head Elected President of London Solicitors Litigation Association
Fieldfisher’s co‑head of dispute resolution, John McElroy, has been elected president of the London Solicitors Litigation Association (LSLA) for a two‑year term, succeeding Nikki Edwards. The LSLA highlighted that AI adoption, sanctions regimes and a surge in civil‑fraud claims are reshaping litigation...
Biodiversity Net Gain: Small Sites Exemption Confirmed, NSIP Compliance Date Set
The UK government confirmed that housing sites under 0.2 hectares will be exempt from the 10% biodiversity net gain (BNG) uplift, while medium‑scale projects (10‑49 homes) will face relaxed rules. Data from TerraQuest shows 43.1% of planning applications fall into...
AI‑Generated Books Flood Market, Sparking Legal and Ethical Debate
A wave of AI‑written, edited and ‘polished’ books has entered major retail platforms, with thousands of titles now available for purchase. The Conversation warns that the surge raises urgent questions about authorship, copyright enforcement and the overall quality of literature....
Vedanta Accuses JAL Creditors of Preaching ‘Process’ While Ignoring It Themselves
Vedanta challenged the Committee of Creditors (CoC) in the Jaiprakash Associates insolvency case, arguing that its ₹17,000 crore (~$2.0 bn) offer was unfairly rejected in favor of Adani's lower‑value plan. The CoC chose Adani’s ₹14,543 crore (~$1.75 bn) proposal, citing faster cash payouts despite...
How Community Banks Can Strengthen AML in 2026
Community banks face a paradoxical regulatory climate in 2026: the OCC has relaxed examination procedures but kept AML obligations unchanged, while FinCEN’s pending rule will codify risk‑based programmes as a formal requirement. The new OCC guidelines let examiners focus on...
FDA to Review Easing Restrictions on Peptide Injections Backed by RFK Jr.
The Food and Drug Administration announced a July meeting to consider easing limits on more than half a dozen peptide injections championed by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The move pits the secretary’s “Make America Healthy Again” agenda against...
Artists Accuse Top AI Firms of Using Their Work Without Permission
Artists and documentary makers allege that AI powerhouses such as OpenAI, Anthropic, xAI, Meta and Google have mined copyrighted artwork to train generative models without permission or payment. The dispute, highlighted by Oscar‑winning director Daniel Roher, underscores a growing legal...
ISS Sues Indiana Over H.B.1273 Law Targeting Proxy Advisers
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) has filed a federal lawsuit challenging Indiana's new H.B.1273 law that would force proxy advisers to issue mandated warnings when recommending votes against company management. ISS argues the statute is unconstitutionally vague, infringes free speech, and...
Ohio Casino Control Commission Fines Kalshi $5 Million for Unlicensed Binary‑options Contracts
The Ohio Casino Control Commission imposed a $5 million penalty on prediction‑market platform Kalshi for offering binary‑options style contracts without a license. The fine follows a federal court ruling that treated the contracts as gambling, not swaps, and comes as Kalshi...
Cleary Gottlieb's ClearyX Offers AI‑Driven Self‑Service Legal Platform
Cleary Gottlieb subsidiary ClearyX launched an AI‑powered self‑service platform that lets corporate clients handle due diligence and contract analysis in‑house. Pricing begins at $12,000 per project or $30,000 annually for CX+Transact and $50,000 a year for CX+Insights, signaling a shift...
TCS Sends Nashik Staff Home Over Harassment Probe, Prompting Protests
Tata Consultancy Services ordered its Nashik BPO staff to work from home on April 16, citing safety concerns amid a police investigation into sexual harassment and alleged forced religious conversion. The move follows nine FIRs, eight arrests and allegations that...
Supplements 101: Biotic Regulations in the European Union
The European Commission now regards the terms “probiotic” and “prebiotic” as implied health claims, meaning they cannot be used on dietary supplements without EFSA authorization. Despite more than 400 applications since the late 2000s, none have been approved, and only...
Supreme Court Rules Offshore Wind Farm Survey Costs Ineligible for Tax Relief
The UK Supreme Court ruled unanimously that environmental survey costs incurred by Ørsted for four offshore wind farms cannot be claimed as capital allowances. The decision means these expenses are ineligible for tax relief, raising the effective cost of development....
MLBPA Dismisses COO Xavier James and HR Chief Michael O'Neill Amid Probe
The Major League Baseball Players Association terminated chief operating officer Xavier James and human‑resources head Michael O'Neill on Wednesday, citing findings from an internal investigation tied to a federal probe. The firings come as the union grapples with a looming...
Oxford Casino Sues Maine Over Tribal Internet Gaming Monopoly
Oxford Casino filed a federal suit on Jan. 23 alleging that Maine's law granting the Wabanaki Nations exclusive internet‑gaming rights creates a race‑based monopoly. The case, now joined by all four Maine tribes, could force the Supreme Court to revisit...
‘AI Is No Longer a Side Project’ - How European Firms Are Moving From AI Pilots to Full-Scale Adoption
European law firms are moving beyond generative‑AI pilots toward firm‑wide, repeatable deployments, according to a Global Legal Post report with LexisNexis. Senior partners are establishing governance, prompt libraries and AI agents to embed AI into document review, research and contract...
Roblox Pays $12 Million in Nevada Settlement and Launches New Youth Safety Features
Roblox Corp. settled with Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford for more than $12 million, funding youth programs and a law‑enforcement liaison while rolling out age‑verification, facial‑age estimation, and new Kids and Select accounts. The deal marks the first major state‑level agreement...
New Law a ‘Turning Point’ for Bangladesh Garment Workers
Bangladesh enacted the Labour (Amendment) Act 2026, dramatically lowering the thresholds for union formation. Workers can now organize with as few as 20 employees in factories under 300 staff and with 400 employees in sites exceeding 3,000 workers. The reform...
CFTC Probes Suspicious Oil Futures Trades Ahead of Trump’s Iran Policy Shift
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has launched a probe into oil futures contracts traded on CME Group and Intercontinental Exchange platforms, alleging the trades were timed ahead of President Donald Trump’s policy shift on the Iran war. Regulators have...
Maine Legislature Passes First‑In‑Nation Temporary Ban on New Data Centers
The Maine Legislature approved LD 307, a temporary moratorium on new data centers consuming 20 MW or more of electricity until November 2027, and sent the bill to Governor Janet Mills. Proponents say the pause lets the state study power and water impacts,...
FTC and Eight States Settle Antitrust Case with WPP, Publicis and Dentsu Over Brand‑Safety Collusion
The Federal Trade Commission and eight Republican‑led states secured a consent decree with advertising giants WPP, Publicis and Dentsu, prohibiting coordinated brand‑safety rules that allegedly suppressed conservative media. The agencies denied wrongdoing but agreed to a court‑ordered monitor and five‑year...
Booster-Backed NIL Deals Face Scrutiny; Know Valid Business Purpose
Every booster-backed business paying athletes is going to face additional scrutiny. What is a valid business purpose in an NIL deal, and what kinds of deals don’t qualify? I walk through this in my book NIL 101: The House Settlement Currently 40% off https://t.co/yBVisUkFCL https://t.co/VpmFopICjh
Monavate Integrates Sumsub for KYC Compliance
Monavate has integrated Sumsub’s identity‑verification engine into its MonavateOne platform, allowing programme managers to run full KYC checks without separate infrastructure. The live integration, currently covering the UK and the European Economic Area, offers document validation for over 220 countries,...
Commission Updates EU Competition Rules for Technology Licensing Agreements
The European Commission has adopted a revised Technology Transfer Block Exemption Regulation (TTBER) and new Guidelines on applying Article 101 to technology transfer agreements, effective 1 May 2026. The updates address digital‑economy trends, notably data licensing and standard‑essential technology pools, and simplify market‑share...
A Look at Eudia’s Expert Digital Twins – Scaling In-House Legal Knowledge
Eudia, a California‑based legal‑tech startup, unveiled its expert digital twins in March, a system that records a company’s preferred legal positions, drafting style and risk tolerances and delivers that expertise as a self‑service layer across the enterprise. The platform’s MIND...
Indonesia’s Bali Wants Illegal Rentals to Be Legitimate as Operators Flag Red Tape
Indonesia’s Ministry of Tourism set a March 31 deadline for unlicensed hotels, guest houses, villas and homestays in Bali, Yogyakarta, West Nusa Tenggara and West Java to register, aiming to improve service quality and tax compliance. Only 12,277 properties are officially...
Governing Law: Don’t Be Swayed by DExit
Baker McKenzie partner Pete Korzynski argues that the DExit debate should not dominate the choice of governing law for merger agreements. He stresses that while a target’s incorporation state governs internal corporate matters, the acquisition contract’s external affairs are best governed by...
What Lawyers Don’t Tell You About Court Document Retrieval Services (Until Now)
Court document retrieval services are far more complex than a simple request‑and‑receive model. Each jurisdiction has its own filing system, mix of digital and physical records, and unique access rules, requiring specialists to interpret case numbers and locate hidden files....
Things Can't Go on Like This with Online Safety, Starmer Tells Tech Bosses
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer convened senior executives from Meta, Snap, Google, TikTok and X at Downing Street to demand tougher safeguards for children online. The meeting comes amid a government consultation on extending age‑restriction rules, including a possible ban...
Alt Legal Acquires UK-Based WebTMS, Adding Global IP Portfolio Management to Its Trademark Platform
Alt Legal announced its sixth acquisition, buying UK‑based WebTMS to embed global IP portfolio management into its trademark docketing platform. WebTMS, with 25 years of experience, serves more than 500 clients worldwide. The deal merges Alt Legal’s automation‑focused trademark workflow...
'The AI Doc' Director Says ‘F*ck You’ To AI Companies Stealing Artists’ IP
AI companies such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta, and Google have been training large models on copyrighted artwork and media without obtaining permission or paying royalties. The U.S. Copyright Office’s recent report suggests that such training likely falls outside fair‑use protection,...
Ohio Jury Awards $22.5M in Pregnancy Accommodation/Wrongful Death Case
An Ohio jury awarded roughly $22.5 million in a wrongful‑death suit after a logistics company denied a pregnant employee’s request to work from home. The employee, who needed bed‑rest for a cervical complication, was placed on unpaid leave despite medical documentation...
Ofgem – Publication of Inside Information Under REMIT Article 4: Use of Thresholds and Related Practices
On 15 April 2026, Ofgem issued a letter to wholesale energy market participants warning that the common 100 MW threshold used to decide whether outage information is inside information under REMIT Article 4 is unreliable. The regulator argues that fixed MW limits can delay...
Ayana Dow on Updating Crypto Regulation and Preserving the Freedom to Build (Senior Counsel, Defi Education Fund)
In this episode, Chad Main talks with Ayanna Dow, Senior Counsel at the DeFi Education Fund, about the evolving regulatory landscape for decentralized finance and the need for updated crypto legislation. Ayanna shares how her experience on Capitol Hill, at...
HKIRC Recognised As Certification Authority Under Hong Kong Electronic Transactions Ordinance
The Hong Kong government has officially recognized Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Limited (HKIRC) as a certification authority under the Electronic Transactions Ordinance. This designation, announced on 16 April 2026, permits HKIRC to issue six types of trusted digital certificates for individuals...
Victoria’s New Housing and Building Minister and HIA; Safeguard Mechanism; Plastics; CRREM; Degraded Land
Victoria’s new Housing and Building Minister Nick Staikos faces immediate pressure from the Housing Industry Association to delay the NCC 2025 rollout, echoing Tasmania’s recent postponement. Meanwhile, Australia’s Safeguard Mechanism shows only a 2.3% drop in onsite emissions while offset usage...
How to Simplify DORA Compliance Across Jurisdictions
The EU's Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) became enforceable on 17 January 2025, shifting regulators’ focus from implementation to proof of ongoing compliance. A 2024 ESA dry‑run showed only 6.5% of nearly 1,000 firms passed all 116 data‑quality checks, highlighting widespread gaps....