Know What's Happening in Legal
Know What's Happening in Legal
Delaware Supreme Court lets insurers pursue contract claims against Blackbaud over ransomware breach
The Delaware Supreme Court reversed lower‑court dismissals, permitting insurers to bring breach‑of‑contract actions against Blackbaud for its 2020 ransomware incident. Blackbaud had previously paid a $3 million SEC fine and $49 million to state attorneys general for misleading breach disclosures.
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By the numbers: Oil majors acquire $164M of Alaska oil leases
A federal judge concluded that Donald Trump digitally penetrated E. Jean Carroll, characterizing the act as rape in the ordinary sense, and the Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed both the $5 million sexual‑abuse judgment and the $83.3 million defamation award. The jury’s finding of sexual abuse was based on New York’s narrow rape definition, but Judge Kaplan and the appellate courts applied broader federal and state standards to label the conduct as rape. Trump has petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review the $5 million verdict, while the $88 million total liability continues to grow with interest. The case highlights how legal definitions shape high‑profile civil litigation outcomes.
The Office of Management and Budget issued a memo requiring chief information officers of major federal agencies to report every IT contract they approve each month from May through October, creating a centralized view of government technology spending. The directive...
Compliance is moving from a reactive, post‑incident model to an AI‑driven, forward‑looking strategy. The Optro report shows that high‑maturity firms are six times more likely to embed AI across GRC functions, with 72% using it for proactive risk tracking and...
Merrick has filed a lawsuit against State Farm Fire and Casualty Company and co‑defendants, claiming the insurer improperly denied coverage for losses stemming from recent Oklahoma wildfires. The complaint, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of...
First Mortgage Company LLC sued Strategic Mortgage Finance Group LLC and related parties in the Western District of Oklahoma. On July 30, 2021, the court denied First Mortgage’s motion to dismiss, allowing the case to proceed. Five years later, on...
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma issued two pivotal orders in the Whinery et al v. State Farm case. On December 15, 2025, Judge Charles Goodwin stayed the plaintiffs' motion to dismiss, putting the matter in...
On March 30, 2026, U.S. District Judge Jodi W. Dishman issued orders in Saxon et al v. Safeco Insurance Company of America. The court granted Liberty and Safeco’s motion for summary judgment, dismissing the plaintiffs’ breach of contract and breach of the duty of good...
A lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, docket number 25‑421, pits plaintiff McBride against State Farm Fire and Casualty Company and additional defendants. The complaint, filed in 2026, alleges that State Farm failed...
A lawsuit titled Turner v. State Farm Fire and Casualty Company et al was filed in the Western District of Oklahoma in 2026. The plaintiff, Turner, alleges that State Farm engaged in bad‑faith practices regarding an insurance claim. The case...
A U.S. district judge in Georgia gave final approval to the settlement agreements that eXp Realty and Weichert Realtors reached in the Hooper buyer‑agent commission lawsuit. eXp will contribute $34 million to a broader settlement fund exceeding $1 billion, while Weichert will...
The U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division has filed a lawsuit against Minnesota, asserting that the state’s policies allowing transgender girls to compete on girls’ sports teams breach Title IX’s prohibition on sex‑based discrimination. The complaint argues that the rules force...
U.S. District Judge Daniel Calabretta ruled that the historic Daguerre and Englebright dams on California's Yuba River are not agency actions under the Endangered Species Act, granting summary judgment to the Army Corps and NMFS. The decision ends a decade‑long...
Early education minister Olivia Bailey has announced amendments to the EYFS statutory framework that embed stricter safer‑sleep requirements, a move prompted by the 2022 death of nine‑month‑old Genevieve Meehan. The changes, slated for September, shift guidance from NHS references into...
SEC Chair Paul Atkins announced plans to simplify executive compensation reporting under Item 402 of Regulation S‑K, calling current disclosures costly, burdensome, and filled with non‑material data. He highlighted pay‑versus‑performance metrics and executive security perks as priority areas for reform....
Aam Aadmi Party MP Raghav Chadha called on the Indian government to enact a statutory right to paid paternity leave during a Rajya Sabha session, noting that only central government employees currently receive 15 days. The proposal targets the 90%...
Australia is overhauling its privacy framework with the 2024 Privacy and Other Legislation Amendment Act, tasking the OAIC with a new Children’s Online Privacy Code. The draft, now open for public comment until June 5, extends to all digital services that...
Russia's digital minister Maksut Shadaev announced a package of measures to curb VPN usage, including mandatory blocking by platforms, a proposed data surcharge, and the removal of custom VPN apps from the Apple App Store. The crackdown coincides with intensified...
The Interior Department’s Endangered Species Committee, known as the “God Squad,” voted to exempt all federal oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico from Endangered Species Act protections. The move, driven by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s national‑security claim,...
South Dakota follows equitable distribution—not a clean 50/50 split. That means a judge divides property based on what they think is fair, not necessarily equal. Interestingly, fault can creep in to divorce proceedings in SD and the courts can consider marital...
JUST IN: The US is urgently setting up a refund portal to return $166 billion in Trump tariffs after the Supreme Court's February ruling declared them unconstitutional.
Litify introduced Litify ACE, an AI‑powered Agentic Case Expert that autonomously drives legal workflows, reduces administrative burden and speeds case resolution. The platform‑wide feature promises to turn case data into real‑time actions without adding new tools, marking a shift toward...
Taylor, this is the same entirely bizarre opinion that laced your pod with “these cases, he’s happy about them. are giving them more power…” “This is all part of the master plan…” ironically, panic confusing an appealable court decision based on...
A D.C. Circuit panel stayed the part of Judge Lamberth's Voice of America order that ordered USAGM employees back to work, until they can review the appeal. https://t.co/t8Tb05bKkU https://t.co/xA7JAjBjIg
The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Trump v. Barbara, challenging President Donald Trump’s executive order that seeks to end birthright citizenship. Plaintiffs argue the order violates the 14th Amendment, while the administration contends the Constitution’s jurisdiction clause has...
Tesla disclosed that its Austin‑based robotaxi service still depends on remote human operators who can take direct control in low‑speed situations. The revelation, made in a response to a U.S. Senate inquiry, intensifies scrutiny over the company’s claims of full...
The Australian Parliament is set to pass legislation that will prohibit life insurers from using predictive genetic test results in underwriting, taking effect in about six months for all new life‑insurance contracts. The ban covers death, income protection, disability and...
Nova Scotia Health (NS Health) awarded six sole‑sourced health contracts without adhering to provincial procurement rules, often approving them after the contracts were already signed. The auditor general, Kim Adair, found weak justification for four of the six contracts and...
A Seattle federal judge partially dismissed a class action accusing Amazon of misleading users about Alexa’s "false wake" recordings, dropping Washington consumer‑protection claims but allowing wiretap claims in Florida, Maryland and federal court to proceed. The court found Amazon’s disclosures...
A federal judge ruled that the U.S. government properly approved Ioneer’s Rhyolite Ridge lithium‑boron mine in Nevada, allowing the project to move forward despite a lawsuit from conservationists protecting the endangered Tiehm’s buckwheat. The 11‑square‑mile site hosts the world’s largest...
A federal judge in Texas dismissed the proposed settlement that would have lifted the IRS’s Johnson Amendment ban on pastors endorsing political candidates, ruling the court lacked authority to approve the agreement. The dismissal ends a lawsuit brought by the...
Your compliance and regulatory experience travels further than you think. Healthcare. Finance. Government. Manufacturing. Any industry with strict rules and high stakes needs people who understand how to build within constraints. Stop thinking your niche is limiting you. Start seeing...
Singapore's Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) issued Letters of Caution to two major social‑media platforms, placing them under Enhanced Supervision for failing to detect and remove child sexual exploitation material and terrorism‑related content. The action stems from the Code of...
The Ministry of Justice reports that digital probate applications have become the norm, with 81% of unrepresented filings submitted online between April and June 2025. For small estates under £10,000 (about $12,700), self‑filing rose from 62% in 2019 to 74%...
A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction halting the $400 million White House State Ballroom project, a flagship construction plan of President Donald Trump. The ruling finds the administration likely lacks statutory authority to proceed without explicit congressional approval. The stop...
The Legal Ombudsman warned that online information is giving home buyers and sellers unrealistic expectations about conveyancing timelines. In Q4 2025, conveyancing accounted for 36% of accepted complaints, up from 30% a year earlier, with consumers expecting transactions to finish in...
In‑house legal departments are at a tipping point as generative AI matures, forcing leaders to rethink how multigenerational teams adopt new tools. James Lewindon argues that blending the tech‑savvy of younger lawyers with the experience of senior counsel creates a...
Japan has amended its Civil Code to allow divorced parents to negotiate joint custody for the first time in over a century. The amendment permits couples to choose joint or sole custody and enables petitions to family courts to alter...
The UK government has introduced a temporary moratorium on cryptocurrency donations to political parties, acting on the Rycroft Review’s recommendations. The move targets growing concerns that crypto can mask foreign financial interference in UK politics. While critics argue the measure...
Secretary Markwayne Mullin, sworn in as DHS head, faces Senate scrutiny over whether he has rescinded the 2025 guidance that let ICE and Border Patrol agents enter homes using administrative warrants instead of judicial ones. Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal asked...
A federal judge halted the Trump administration's $400 million White House ballroom project, siding with a preservationist group and stating the president lacks statutory authority over historic properties. The injunction is delayed 14 days to allow for an appeal. In a...
The U.S. Supreme Court issued an 8‑1 decision siding with Colorado therapist Kaley Chiles, finding that the state’s ban on conversion therapy for minors likely infringes the First Amendment. Justice Neil Gorsuch authored the majority opinion, emphasizing that the law...
Anthropic, the $380 billion AI firm, signed a formal AI‑safety memorandum of understanding with Australia’s Albanese government, committing to share research, conduct joint safety evaluations, and provide Economic Index data on AI adoption. The pact includes roughly US$2 million in Claude API...
Students away at college could especially be disenfranchised because often they are blocked from registering and voting where they attend college
More than 130 hospitals have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, challenging a 2023 CMS rule that changes how disproportionate share hospital (DSH) payments are calculated. The rule counts Medicare Advantage Part C patient...
President Donald Trump’s Justice Department successfully revoked U.S. citizenship from Yu Zhou and Li Chen, a Chinese‑born couple convicted of conspiring to steal pediatric medical trade secrets. A San Diego federal judge ruled their naturalization was obtained through misrepresentation, meeting...
Massachusetts legislators are scrutinizing ballot initiative No. 25‑10, which would repeal adult‑use cannabis sales and revert the state to prohibition. The proposal, backed by the out‑of‑state‑focused Coalition for a Healthy Massachusetts, faces fierce opposition from local operators, equity advocates, and the...
The New York court granted summary judgment in lieu of complaint under CPLR 3213 for a partially‑paid promissory note exceeding $24 million in TSLA Capitals v. ATL Funds. The ruling clarifies that a note remains an “instrument for the payment of money...
A federal judge ordered the University of Pennsylvania to provide the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission with a list of its Jewish faculty and staff, including personal contact details, after the EEOC issued a subpoena alleging a pattern of antisemitic harassment....
Independent broker‑dealer Osaic filed a motion in Delaware Superior Court to dismiss United Capital's poaching lawsuit, arguing the complaint relies on vague, conclusory allegations. United Capital claims Osaic induced three Florida advisors to breach contracts, taking client data and about...
On March 20, 2026 the Federal Trade Commission announced a new Healthcare Task Force that unites antitrust and consumer‑protection resources to curb consolidation‑driven price hikes and quality gaps. The task force will be co‑chaired by leaders from the FTC’s Competition...
