Today's Legal Pulse
Biden sues DOJ to block release of interview audio
President Biden filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent the Department of Justice from publishing an audio interview, arguing the release would be improper. The action has sparked political commentary, including remarks from former President Trump.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Hogan Lovells and Cadwalader clear final merger hurdles
Washington State Moves to Ban Forced Employee Microchips
Washington state lawmakers introduced HB 2303 to prohibit employers from requiring or coercing employees to receive subdermal microchip implants. The bill cleared the House and a Senate Labor and Commerce Committee with bipartisan backing and now heads toward final enactment. It defines violations with a minimum $10,000 fine for the first offense and $20,000 for each subsequent breach. While microchips have legitimate uses for pets and medical data, the legislation seeks to prevent potential civil‑rights infringements in the workplace.
ISDA/ASIFMA Request Clarifications on RBI IRD Master Directions
On February 11, 2026 ISDA and the Association of Securities and Intermediaries in Financial Markets (ASIFMA) sent a joint letter to the Reserve Bank of India requesting clarification on the RBI’s 2025 Master Direction for Rupee Interest Rate Derivatives. The...
California Bill Would Exclude Military Retirement Pay From State Taxable Income
California’s Senate Bill 1407 proposes eliminating the $20,000 cap on military retirement pay exemptions, allowing veterans to exclude their entire pension and survivor benefits from state income tax. The measure, backed by a bipartisan coalition, aims to reverse a loss...
Brussels Regulatory Brief: November/December 2025–January 2026
The European Commission unveiled new guidelines on the EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation, defining presumptions for targeted subsidies, a balancing test, and a prior‑notification regime for below‑threshold deals. In parallel, it levied hefty penalties: €72 million on automotive starter‑battery makers for a...
Prof. Tom Merrill (Columbia) Guest-Blogging About "Unstated": How Three Implicit Legal Ideas Have Sidelined Congress and Empowered the President and...
Columbia Law professor Thomas W. Merrill will deliver the Hallows Lecture at Marquette, examining three largely implicit legal ideas that have reshaped the constitutional balance. He argues these unstated doctrines have amplified presidential authority through orders and regulations and expanded...
A Solicitation Misreading Knocked These Joint Ventures Out of OASIS+
A federal judge ruled that the GSA OASIS+ solicitation unambiguously required two qualifying projects, disqualifying CWS FMTI JV and Mainsail-OASIS JV for submitting only one. The court rejected the joint ventures' claim that a protégé‑specific clause overrode the general two‑project...
Mayor's Right to Dismiss Volunteer Board Appointees for Speech, Including Religiously Motivated Speech
The Ninth Circuit affirmed San Diego Mayor Gloria’s decision to veto correctional officer‑pastor Dennis Hodges’s reappointment to the Police Advisory Board, finding the mayor’s action permissible under the "commonality of political purpose" exception. The court held that volunteer board members may...
8 Tax Pitfalls to Avoid When Expanding Your U.S. Startup Overseas
The article outlines eight tax pitfalls U.S. startups face when expanding overseas, from permanent‑establishment risks to state‑tax nexus. It explains how U.S. worldwide taxation, foreign filing obligations, and local sales taxes can generate unexpected liabilities. Early strategic planning and specialist...
$24M Verdict Against Seattle Stem Cell Center Clinic in Man’s Death
Seattle Stem Cell Center was ordered to pay $24 million after a jury found the clinic liable for the 2019 death of Michael Trujillo, who suffered catastrophic bleeding following an undocumented epidural injection while on blood‑thinning medication. Evidence showed the procedure...
Lawyers' True Value: Asking the Right Questions
AI won't replace lawyers. But it did expose that a lot of what gets billed at $/hr was never really 'thinking.' It was formatting, copy-pasting, and researching things a machine now does in seconds. The real skill is in knowing...
FCA Direction on the Relevant Application Period for an Application for a Cryptoasset Permission
The FCA has issued a direction that defines the relevant application period for crypto‑asset permissions under section 55U of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. The window opens at 9:00 am on 30 September 2026 and closes at 11:59 pm on 28 February 2027. The direction clarifies...
Court Blocks Government Delay, Secures Taxpayer Refunds
As a taxpayer, I greatly appreciate the speed with which the CAFC handled this proceeding and rejected the administration's baseless stalling tactics. Every day that IEEPA tariff refunds aren't paid will cost American taxpayers millions.
SAVE Act Only 16% Chance of Passing
NEW MARKET: 🏦 Will the SAVE Act become law? Currently a 16% likelihood it happens https://t.co/0OhAeeS1eY
Fox’s Lachlan Murdoch Expects Regulators to Put Conditions on Paramount-WBD Merger
Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch warned that U.S. regulators will likely attach a third‑party content‑licensing condition to the $110 billion Paramount‑Warner Bros. Discovery merger. He also noted that CNN, under David Ellison, will continue to challenge Fox News as a strong competitor....
System Glitch Hides Form D—Perfect Filing Window
Good time to file a Form D that you don't want seen, since the system has been returning "file not found" all day.
First Solar Asks US to Review Alleged TOPCon Patent Infringement by 10 Competitors
First Solar has filed a Section 337 investigation with the U.S. International Trade Commission against ten crystalline‑silicon panel makers, alleging infringement of its tunnel‑oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) patent (U.S. 9,130,074). The patent was validated by the USPTO at the end of 2025...
IEEPA Refund Delays Cost Taxpayers $700 Million Monthly
Friday, the Trump administration began stalling IEEPA tariff refunds in court. In a new @CatoInstitute blog post, we review US regs on customs duty refunds & find that IEEPA delays will cost taxpayers ~$700M/month (~$23M/day) in additional interest payments owed...
Where Life Science Meets Litigation
In this episode of Inside Biotech, host Karish Manchugani chats with Tim Dabrowski, a Berkeley‑trained patent attorney at Mintz, about his unconventional path from a physiology degree to biotech IP law. Tim explains how his scientific background informs his work...
Age‑Verification Laws Threaten Free Speech, Empower Government Control
“All lawmakers will claim that they are [enacting age verification] to protect youth from some harm, but they fail to mention the convenient power it hands to government to control and chill speech they oppose, and even punish their critics,”...
413. THE HUMAN RESOURCES (HR) RACKET: HOW EMPLOYMENT LAW BECAME A GROWTH INDUSTRY AT EVERYONE ELSE'S EXPENSE
The episode dissects how U.S. employment law and the HR compliance industry have evolved from civil‑rights legislation into a $250 billion sector that burdens businesses, especially small firms, with costly bureaucracy and litigation risk. It traces the historical buildup of federal...
Readers Speak: What Could Derail the Hapag-Lloyd–ZIM Merger?
Industry watchers are focused on the pending merger between Hapag‑Lloyd and ZIM Integrated Shipping Services. Readers of Container News flag regulatory approval and Israel’s “golden share” as the most likely obstacles, while labor unrest is viewed as a secondary concern....
HSR Waiting Period Expired; U.S. Deal Can Close Today
David Ellison today: "As we've said, the HSR waiting period has expired. Obviously, domestically, which means that there is no reason if we had cleared globally why we couldn't close in the U.S. today legally."
Lawsuit Targets TotalEnergies over Fossil Fuel Expansion and Paris Agreement Goals
French courts have begun hearing a lawsuit against TotalEnergies, filed by 14 French cities and five NGOs, alleging the company’s portfolio of new fossil‑fuel projects breaches the 1.5 °C target of the Paris Agreement. The complaint, grounded in France’s 2017 duty...
Dish Sued by Major Tower Owners over Unpaid Rentals
SBA has joined American Tower and Crown Castle in filing suits against Dish Wireless over tower rental payments. EchoStar's 10-K shows that Dish faces similar suits from Comcast Business, Harmoni Towers, Diamond Towers & Zayo https://t.co/XNYmKyy2yp
Group With Global Ties to EPR Legislation Chosen to Implement California’s Responsible Textile Recovery Act
California’s CalRecycle has appointed Landbell USA as the Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) to implement SB 707, the Responsible Textile Recovery Act. Landbell, a subsidiary of the global Landbell Group, brings three decades of extended producer responsibility experience and operates 42 PROs...
Scotland Becomes First UK Country to Legalise Water Cremations
Scotland has become the first part of the United Kingdom to legalise hydrolysis, also known as water cremation or aquamation. The process uses a pressurised alkaline solution to break down a body in three to four hours, leaving only bone...
Catching Up on Some Social Media Addiction Rulings
Three recent rulings sharpen the legal battle over social‑media addiction. The Nevada Supreme Court affirmed personal jurisdiction over Snap, critiqued its age‑verification design, and sidestepped a feature‑by‑feature Section 230 analysis. In Delaware, a court denied Meta’s insurers a duty to defend,...
UK Government Opens Consultation on Social Media Age Restriction, Curfews and Games Crackdown
The UK government has launched a consultation, running until May 26, 2026, to explore stricter controls on children’s access to social media, AI chatbots and online games. Proposals include minimum age thresholds, nighttime curfews, and bans on addictive design elements...
Investor Lawsuits Push Back on SEC Changes That Gave Firms More Power
In November the SEC altered its proxy‑vote rule, shifting approval from staff reviewers to company executives, giving firms broader discretion to exclude shareholder proposals from proxy statements. The change has sparked at least three high‑profile lawsuits—against AT&T, Axon Enterprises and...
Justices to Consider Breadth of a Federal Defendant’s Waiver of Appeal
The Supreme Court will hear Hunter v. United States on March 3, examining how far a federal defendant can waive appellate rights in a plea agreement. Munson Hunter pleaded guilty to wire fraud, received a 51‑month sentence and a broad waiver...
Who’s Working for Whom?
The article argues that generative AI tools often hand users a polished draft that masks deeper errors, forcing professionals to spend more time correcting than they would have created the content themselves. This inversion turns the user into an administrative...
Admin Bundles Crypto Charters with Tailored Regulation
A reminder that this admin is a package deal. Regulatory "tailoring," but also a bunch of new crypto, stablecoin, and ILC charters
MWC26 Highlights Global Telecom Regulation Over Spectrum
Very interesting to listen into the #MWC26 session on global regulation and policy Featured @GSMAPolicy regulatory chief John Giusti with @ITU and @OECD directors Again, discussion was general telecoms (& AI), not mobile specific No banging on about more 5G / 6G...
Nexo Is Back in the US: What Changed After the 2023 Crypto Lending Crackdown?
Nexo has returned to the U.S. market after paying a $45 million settlement for alleged unregistered securities. The company abandoned its direct Earn Interest Product and now delivers crypto‑backed loans and yield services through licensed U.S. partners, notably a partnership with...
Two New Features Make LexBlog Content More Findable, Shareable and Citable
LexBlog launched two features aimed at making its legal commentary more discoverable and citable. The first adds automatic anchor links to every subheading and an optional table of contents, enabling deep‑linking to specific sections. The second upgrades JSON‑LD structured data,...
Condo Owners Fight Demolition of Miami’s 1964 Tower
How a see-thru bldg came to be on some of America's hottest #realestate. 10 #condo owners sued the teardown of a 1964 tower on #Miami waterfront+neither side looks ready to budge. #multifamily #SoFla #litigation #TwoRoads #Marriott #Biscayne21 https://t.co/3FoaZTV7hq via @WSJ
When Compliance Works and Nothing Happens
Natasha Pardasani argues that true compliance success is invisible, measured by decisions that stop problems before they surface. Organizations focus on incidents and investigations, overlooking the quiet interventions that prevent issues. She highlights that a mature governance framework relies on...
Carr’s FCC Hands Historic Regulatory Victory to African-American TV Station Owner
The FCC granted a waiver allowing DuJuan McCoy’s Circle City Broadcasting to purchase Indianapolis ABC affiliate WRTV from Scripps for $83 million, exceeding the agency’s two‑stations‑per‑market rule. Media Bureau Chief Erin Boone ruled the exception would not harm competition and would protect local...
Turkey's Ruling Party Unveils 10% Crypto Income Tax Proposal
Turkey’s ruling AK Party has tabled a bill to formalize cryptocurrency taxation, introducing a 10% quarterly withholding tax on gains from regulated platforms and a 0.03% transaction levy on service providers. The president would retain authority to adjust the withholding...
FMCSA Reinstates Field Warrior ELD to Registered Device List
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has reinstated Forward Thinking Systems’ Field Warrior ELD to its official registered device list as of February 25 2026, after the model was removed in December. The device (model FW‑BYOD, identifier FTSFW1) can again be...
Payments, Fraud and AI: Why Retailers Can’t Afford to Ignore AML in 2026
In 2026 online retailers must broaden payment options—from e‑wallets and BNPL to crypto—while confronting a surge in money‑laundering and fraud. UK data shows £337 million in AML losses last year, with retail accounting for 49 % of fraud value. Criminals are leveraging...
2025 in Review: What Future for Intra-EU Investment Arbitration?
2025 saw a stark divergence between EU and non‑EU jurisdictions on intra‑EU investment arbitration. The German Constitutional Court and the Amsterdam Court of Appeal effectively nullified arbitration clauses and ordered termination of pending arbitrations, while the Swedish Supreme Court required...
Hedge Funds Warn UK Non-Compete Ban Could Prompt Talent Exodus
The Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) has warned that the UK government’s proposal to restrict or ban non‑compete clauses could erode the country’s competitive edge as hedge funds vie for talent. AIMA’s chief executive Jack Inglis called the plan “radical,”...
Shutdown Stalls Compliance Plans for Cyber Breach Reporting Rule
A partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security is delaying the finalization of the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act rule, which would impose stricter breach‑notification requirements on critical‑infrastructure firms. The agency announced in February that it was...
California Sets August 2026 Deadline for First Corporate Climate Reports
The California Air Resources Board approved the Greenhouse Gas Reporting and Climate Financial Risk Disclosure Initial Regulation, setting an August 10, 2026 deadline for the first‑year corporate emissions filing. SB 253 obliges companies with more than $1 billion in revenue to report Scope 1 and 2...
Prediction Markets, Insider Trading, and the Return of First Principles — Anderson Insights
On February 25, 2026 the CFTC’s Division of Enforcement issued Advisory No. 9185-26 after two enforcement actions against KalshiEX for misuse of nonpublic information and fraud in event contracts. The advisory clarifies that insider‑trading principles rooted in misappropriation theory apply...
The TPA’s Role in Avoiding Unnecessary ERISA Litigation
Third‑party administrators (TPAs) must ensure that a self‑funded health plan’s formal document and its Summary Plan Description (SPD) are perfectly aligned. Gaps or missing clauses—especially around subrogation—can expose both the TPA and plan sponsor to ERISA class‑action lawsuits costing tens...
How ‘Tipper X’ Helped Bring Down Wall Street’s Insider Trading
The FBI’s Operation Perfect Hedge used hedge‑fund manager Tom Hardin, known as “Tipper X,” as a covert informant to infiltrate a sophisticated insider‑trading network. Hardin was instructed to abort meetings if suspects altered plans, but he persisted, even attending a...
Radiology Artificial Intelligence Firm Asks FDA to Exempt Certain Devices From Premarket Review
Harrison.ai filed a citizen petition asking the FDA to grant optional pre‑market exemption for radiology computer‑aided detection (CAD) devices, allowing manufacturers with an existing cleared product to launch similar tools without a new 510(k). The agency must issue a rapid...
Samsung Blocks Galaxy S26 Pre‑order Cancellations, May Violate Consumer Law
Samsung India isn't allowing easy cancellation of Galaxy S26 Ultra pre-orders. There's no cancellation button on the order page. Pretty sure this amounts to "unfair trade practice" under the Consumer Protection Act, especially since the product hasn't shipped yet @SamsungIndia