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
Satellite Set to Headline FCC’s April Open Meeting
The FCC’s April 30 open meeting will spotlight a proposed overhaul of satellite spectrum‑sharing rules, aiming to replace the decades‑old EPFD framework with performance‑based protection criteria. SpaceX’s Starlink petition and Amazon’s Project Leo stand to benefit from higher speeds and relaxed capacity limits if the order is adopted. Chairman Brendan Carr signals a likely 2‑1 vote in favor, though Democratic Commissioner Anna Gomez may push for broader affordability considerations. The agenda also includes items on E‑Rate bidding, test‑lab recognition, and robocall mitigation.
Court Denies Anthropic's Pause Request, Blacklist Remains
A bit of a setback for Anthropic "a federal appeals court said no to Anthropic's emergency request to pause the blacklist by DOW". This is not the final decision in the lawsuit between Anthropic and DOW, but for now they are...
States Quietly Enact Proof‑Citizenship Voting Laws Amid Senate Stalemate
While the bill introduced March 17 remains stalled in the Senate, some state leaders have posted about, proposed and even enacted statewide proof of citizenship laws to vote. https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/as-save-america-act-stalls-gop-states-are-quietly-enacting-their-own-proof-of-citizenship-laws/
EU-Securitisation-Reform-Hinges-on-Calibration
The European Union is close to finalising its securitisation reform, focusing on how risk‑weight calibrations will be set for the Simple, Transparent, Standardised (SRT) framework. Regulators aim to strike a balance between tighter safeguards and market‑friendly capital treatment to restore...
Going Paperless in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
Going paperless with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is not a compliance liability when governed correctly. Organizations must align controls across Business Central, SharePoint Online, and Microsoft Purview rather than rely on physical filing. Properly designed digital workflows provide clearer audit...
New-Clean-up-Call-Rules-to-Help-US-SRT
The U.S. Structured Risk Transfer (SRT) market is set to benefit from newly introduced clean‑up call provisions and an updated p‑factor methodology, collectively dubbed the B3E redux framework. These rules allow issuers to trigger early redemption of residual tranches if...
Cross-Examined
The inaugural episode of Cross-Examined introduces the new Law Institute of Victoria podcast, outlining its mission to keep legal professionals up‑to‑date on the rapidly evolving landscape of law. It previews the range of topics the series will cover, including artificial...
Civil Trial over LAPD Shooting of 14-Year-Old Girl Begins
The wrongful‑death civil trial over the 2021 LAPD shooting that killed 14‑year‑old Valentina Peralta began in Los Angeles. Plaintiffs claim Officer William Jones ignored senior‑officer commands and fired an AR‑15, causing a ricochet that struck the girl, while the city...
Liberian Registry: Sanctions Compliance Checks Should Extend to Seafarers
The Liberian Registry, which commands roughly 17% of the global flag‑services market, is urging the maritime sector to extend sanctions compliance checks to seafarers, beginning with the credentialing process. It is embedding these checks into license applications and rolling out...
Iowa Sues Instagram over Harm to Youngsters
Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird filed a lawsuit against Meta, accusing Instagram of misrepresenting its age‑rating on app stores while exposing minors to pornography, profanity, drug and alcohol content. The complaint says Meta answered "infrequent" for harmful categories yet rated...
Attorney Creates Trust Funds to Sustain Black Wealth
Hi, I am Attorney Henderson , Black Trust Fund Baby and Attorney and I set up trust funds for Black People to sustain Black Wealth. Nice to me Meet You. Click here to join our email list where I send...
25-072 - USA V. Hudson Et Al
On February 9, 2026 a federal judge granted a 72‑day continuance for the criminal case against James Alvin Hudson and Kayla Labrae Melton, pushing the jury trial from April 14 to May 12, 2026. A second order on April 7 extended the deadline again, excluding time from...
25-187 - Porter Et Al V. State Farm Fire and Casualty Company Et Al
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma issued three key orders in the multi‑plaintiff case Porter et al v. State Farm. In April 2025, the court denied a motion to remand the case to state court and...
25-042 - Cisneros V. State Farm Fire and Casualty Company Et Al
The U.S. District Court issued a series of orders in the multi‑plaintiff case Cisneros v. State Farm. It ruled that the Jim Campos Agency, Inc. was fraudulently joined, stripping its citizenship for jurisdictional purposes and dismissing related claims without prejudice....
26-352 - Kumar V. Johnson Et Al
On April 7, 2026, a federal district court adopted Report and Recommendation 12 on de novo review and partially granted the petitioner’s claim that immigration officials violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). The order mandates that the respondents provide a bond hearing under...
Fort Bragg Veteran Charged with Releasing Classified Information to a Journalist
U.S. Army Special Operations veteran Courtney Williams was indicted after a federal grand jury found she transmitted Secret‑level information about a Fort Bragg special‑forces unit to investigative journalist Seth Harp. The leaked tactics, techniques and procedures appeared in Harp’s Rolling...
Mazur: Law Society Still Mulling Appeal as SRA Reviews Investigations
The Law Society has not yet decided whether to appeal the High Court’s Mazur ruling, while the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is reassessing a small number of investigations triggered by the original decision. The Court of Appeal overturned Mr Justice...
Eight Out of 10 Candidates Say SQE Is Not Fit for Purpose
A recent National Junior Lawyers Division survey found that eight‑in‑ten SQE candidates consider the exam neither fit for purpose nor good value. Nearly half (44%) report total costs exceeding £10,000 (about $12.7 k), while 63% view preparatory courses as poor value....
Bar Tribunals: Earlier Naming and All Rulings Published
The Bar Standards Board (BSB) will publish every Bar tribunal ruling, moving the naming of charged barristers to shortly after charges are filed. The change follows Baroness Harriet Harman’s review urging immediate naming unless an anonymity order is granted. Additional...
Turns Out A Law Degree Is Actually Worth It
A recent study by Yale economist Joseph Altonji and Vassar economist Zhengren Zhu quantifies the earnings boost from a Juris Doctor, finding an average increase of roughly 100% for graduates. This gain ranks third among professional degrees, trailing only pharmacists...
Why Housing Disrepair Claims Against Councils Have Leapt by Nearly 400%
Housing disrepair claims against English councils have exploded, with some areas reporting increases of up to 400% over the past five years. The surge is driven by an aging social‑housing stock, tighter budgets, heightened tenant awareness of legal rights, and...
Weighing Partner Track: More Money, Worse Hours
You’re 39, Corporate Attorney, New York. $650k income. Married, 2 kids. Sole earner. $900k retirement, $400k brokerage. You’re offered a partner track role at another firm with even worse hours. Do you switch or stay put?
DOJ Antitrust Unit Crumbles as Top Lawyers Depart
DOJ's top antitrust litigator quits. So do three other senior antitrust attorneys. This unit has been absolutely gutted. First it was political staffers. Now it's the career folks too. https://t.co/vICsW7nVwY
Europe’s AML Package: A Strong Framework at the Wrong Time?
The EU adopted a sweeping Anti‑Money Laundering Package in May 2024, creating a single AML regulation, a new directive and the Anti‑Money Laundering Authority (AMLA) based in Frankfurt. The framework expands oversight to 40 high‑risk cross‑border institutions and extends the crypto...
Nevada Regulator Urges Tribal-State Unity Against Betting Prediction Threat
"The chair of the Nevada Gaming Control Board said tribes and states must stick together to fight an “existential threat” posed by sports betting prediction platforms." IGA: Nevada regulator addresses prediction markets in deep detail https://t.co/Q2sswHYMcz
New Merger Control Regime Off to Positive Start
Australia’s revamped merger control regime launched on 1 January 2026 and is already delivering on its speed commitments. In the first three months the ACCC received 50 merger notifications and 108 waiver applications, approving 39 notifications in Phase 1 and granting 70 waivers....
DraftKings, FanDuel Seek Federal Venue for Baltimore Betting Lawsuit
"DraftKings and FanDuel are trying to convince a federal appeals court to move a sports betting lawsuit by the City of Baltimore to federal jurisdiction..." DraftKings, FanDuel Claim Sports Betting Apps Not Affected by State Policy https://t.co/UuZ3aKu8e9
Lula Calls for Ban on Online Betting Platforms
"I am deeply worried about the indebtedness of the Brazilian people. If these platforms cause harm, why don’t we end them? We are discussing this very seriously." Brazil’s Lula argues for ban on online betting platforms https://t.co/K8LyuPjO8X
D.C. Circuit Declines to Stay Department of War's "Supply-Chain Risk" Designation of Claude
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Anthropic PBC’s bid for a stay of the Department of War’s supply‑chain risk designation on its Claude AI model. The judges held that the balance of equities favors the government, citing national‑security concerns...
Automating Debt Recovery Before the Law Required It: A Conversation with Botagoz Karimova
Botagoz Karimova, named Employee of the Year at a leading Kazakh bank, designed and launched an automated pre‑judicial debt‑recovery platform that linked internal processes to the national notary, enforcement and data‑showcase systems years before the 2025 banking reforms made such...
Europe's Complex System Drives Entrepreneurs to Seek Simpler Jurisdictions
Fellow entrepreneurs: I probably need to incorporate somewhere else outside of Europe. Not because of taxes, etc. But mainly because the system is ridiculously complex. Any advice?
Tech Lobbyists Are Trying To Kill Colorado’s Popular ‘Right To Repair’ Law
Tech giants Cisco and IBM are lobbying Colorado to pass SB26‑090, a bill that would exempt a broadly defined “critical infrastructure” from the state’s right‑to‑repair protections. Colorado’s 2022 law, praised for covering wheelchairs, farm equipment and consumer electronics, aims to...
Guilty Plea Highlights DOJ Focus on Black-Market Peso Exchange Laundering
A Mexican national pleaded guilty to a two‑year, multimillion‑dollar trade‑based money‑laundering conspiracy that moved drug proceeds from Texas to Mexico via a black‑market peso exchange. The case highlights the DOJ’s focus on dismantling the financial infrastructure of narcotics trafficking, not...
Prosecutors Move to Subpoena Tiger Woods’ Prescription Drug Records
Florida prosecutors announced a subpoena for Tiger Woods' prescription drug records from Lewis Pharmacy, covering the period from January through the previous month. The request seeks details on fill dates, pill counts, dosages, and any warnings about operating a vehicle...
Digging In - A Practical Guide to L&E Diligence in M&A
On April 28, 2026, Littler hosted a one‑hour webinar titled “Digging In – A Practical Guide to Labor & Employment Diligence in M&A.” The session, part two of a series, walked participants through the full spectrum of L&E due‑diligence topics, from wage‑and‑hour...
The 2026 Littler Executive Employer Conference
The 2026 Littler Executive Employer Conference is an invitation‑only gathering for senior in‑house counsel and C‑suite leaders focused on labor and employment law. The event features workshops, roundtables and deep‑dive sessions covering compliance, benefits, IE&D, privacy and workforce solutions. Registration...
EXp Loses Bid to Get Fraud Claims Tossed in Sexual Misconduct Case
A California federal court denied eXp Realty and its parent eXp World Holdings a motion to dismiss a fraudulent misrepresentation count in a sexual‑assault lawsuit. The plaintiffs, who added the fraud claim in October 2023, satisfied the legal standard by...
"Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker" / Convicted Murderer Caleb McGillvary Loses Defamation Case Against Rolling Stone
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld Rolling Stone's victory in a defamation suit brought by convicted murderer Caleb McGillvary. The judges concluded that the magazine's four contested statements were either non‑actionable opinion, substantially true, or lacked...
Trump’s Awful No Good Day At The Supreme Court
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments on President Trump’s bid to eliminate birthright citizenship through an executive order, and the justices signaled a decisive rebuff. Trump attended the hearing in person but departed before the session ended as his Solicitor...
Sally Beck: Covid Vaccine Is a CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY, Court Told
The post reports that a Dutch civil case has presented allegations that COVID‑19 mRNA vaccines constitute a biological weapon and that Bill Gates, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla and several Dutch officials could face crimes‑against‑humanity charges. The accusations stem from an...
The 2026 Digital Omnibus
The European Commission’s Digital Omnibus, unveiled in November 2025, seeks to streamline the EU’s fragmented digital regulatory regime by consolidating reporting portals and aligning definitions across GDPR, the AI Act, NIS2 and DORA. Key proposals include a Single Entry Point for...
Free Speech Unmuted: Speech, Not "Conduct": Supreme Court Rules on Conversion Talk Therapy
The Supreme Court, in an 8-1 ruling in Chiles v. Salazar, struck down a state law that prohibited sexual orientation and gender identity conversion therapy, emphasizing that the practice is fundamentally speech rather than conduct. The decision clarifies that bans...
Trump Asks New York’s Top Court to Toss Civil Fraud Judgment
President Donald Trump filed a 119‑page brief with New York’s Court of Appeals, seeking to overturn the roughly $500 million civil fraud judgment stemming from Letitia James’s 2022 lawsuit. The appeal argues the Attorney General lacked authority and that the case...
LinkedIn Scanning Users' Browser Extensions Sparks Controversy and Two Lawsuits
LinkedIn is facing two class‑action lawsuits in California alleging it secretly scans users’ browsers to identify installed extensions. The suits rely on a German “BrowserGate” report by Fairlinked, which is linked to Estonian firm Teamfluence that previously sued LinkedIn for...
A New Legal Blow to the U.K.’s Chagos Islands Deal
A UK Supreme Court ruling has overturned the ban on Chagossians living on the outer islands of the Chagos Archipelago, challenging the legal basis of Britain’s 2024 agreement with Mauritius to transfer sovereignty while leasing Diego Garcia for 99 years....
Creators Of ICE Reporting Tools Press Censorship Claim Against Trump Admin
The creators of the EyesUp app and the ICE Sightings — Chicagoland Facebook group sued the Trump administration, alleging it coerced Apple and Meta into removing their tools that let users report ICE activity. The lawsuit claims former officials Pamela Bondi and...
Texas Spanks Small B-D for GWG Bond Sales
The Texas State Securities Board fined Landolt Securities Inc. $10,000 and issued a reprimand for selling GWG Holdings L‑bonds that violated suitability standards. The bonds, yielding 5.5%‑8.5%, were illiquid, high‑risk securities that nearly 40 broker‑dealers sold totaling about $1.6 billion before...
Regulatory Software Company ViClarity Launches AI-Powered Regulation Tracker
ViClarity, a regulatory‑software specialist, unveiled an AI‑powered Regulation Tracker that continuously scans global rule changes and delivers machine‑generated summaries. The solution leverages large‑language models to translate dense legal text into concise briefs, aiming to slash manual compliance effort. It plugs...
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PAPER VICTORY: CPS Ordered to Pay Sassa R81.3m, but the Balance Sheet Says, Good Luck
South Africa's Constitutional Court ordered Cash Paymaster Services (CPS) to repay R81.3 million (≈ $4.3 million) to the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa). However, CPS entered liquidation with only about R51 million (≈ $2.7 million) in undisputed assets against R779 million (≈ $41.5 million) in proved claims, meaning...
Intertek and the Future of AI-Mediated Surveillance Distribution
Intertek Group plc, a FTSE 100 British multinational, has become the dominant certification gate for consumer electronics entering the United States, processing tens of thousands of product approvals annually and generating roughly $4.3 billion in revenue for 2025. The firm recently added...