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
Tick-Box Error Not Fatal to Costs Bill, Court of Appeal Rules
The Court of Appeal ruled that a £27,000 bill of costs remains valid even though the solicitor omitted the tick‑box confirming compliance with the indemnity principle. High Street Solicitors had signed and certified the bill, but left the specific box blank, prompting Birmingham City Council to challenge its form. Judges held the omission a minor defect, emphasizing that the solicitor’s signature provides implicit certification. The council can still seek a separate order to dispute the bill, but further litigation would increase its already high legal costs.
Robertson‑Patman Act Still Alive, Impact
The Robertson Patman Act,, sometimes rumored to be dead, alive and kicking Costco (or sellers to Costco) in California
The UK’s Global Leadership in Lawtech Is at Risk if Women Are Left Behind
Professor Mimi Zou warns that the United Kingdom’s rapid lawtech expansion could stall if women remain under‑represented. The sector has grown more than 90% since 2020, driven by AI tools like ChatGPT and large‑language‑model platforms such as Harvey. Yet only...
Nexstar, Scripps, Sinclair Express Regulatory Optimism
Broadcasters are buoyed by FCC Chair Brendan Carr’s hints of relaxed ownership rules and a Trump endorsement of Nexstar’s $6 billion Tegna acquisition. Nexstar, Scripps and Sinclair all highlighted this regulatory optimism in recent earnings calls, stressing strategic M&A and operational...
CRA International Inc (CRAI) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
CRA International reported record Q3 2025 revenue of $185.9 million, up 10.8% year‑over‑year, driven by strong growth across seven of its eleven practices and a 30.3% surge in international revenue. Non‑GAAP net income, EPS and EBITDA all rose double‑digits, while utilization...
UN Calls for Ocean Governance to Abide by International Law
UN experts urged that upcoming seabed governance regulations, including deep‑sea mining rules, be anchored in international human‑rights and environmental law ahead of the International Seabed Authority's 31st session. They stressed state obligations to protect the climate system, prevent human‑rights harms,...
Colorado Lawmakers Look to Require Public Defenders, Livestream Hearings at Municipal Courts
Colorado lawmakers advanced HB26-1134, the Fairness & Transparency in Municipal Court bill, to require public defenders, ensure attorney access to case files, and mandate livestreamed municipal court hearings. The legislation responds to cases like a 30‑day jail sentence for a...
Trump Officials Seek to Break Editorial ‘Firewall’ at U.S.-Funded News Agencies
The Trump administration is pushing a draft funding agreement that would let its political appointees veto hires for editors‑in‑chief, CEOs, and board members at two U.S.-funded overseas broadcasters, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks. The proposal...
Senate Commerce to Mark Up NASA, NOAA Bills March 4
Senate Commerce will mark up the NASA authorization bill and the NOAA Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act on March 4, 10:00 am ET. (The latter was introduced today by Cruz & Cantwell: https://t.co/SOlKIgluOl)
CMS Announces Actions Addressing Fraud
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a Request for Information on a prospective rule called Comprehensive Regulations to Uncover Suspicious Healthcare (CRUSH), opening a 30‑day comment period after its Feb. 27 Federal Register publication. Simultaneously, CMS announced a...
NYC’s Amended ESSTA: Expanded Employee Time Off Rights Businesses Need to Know
On February 22, 2026 New York City amended its Earned Safe and Sick Time Act (ESSTA) and the Temporary Schedule Change Act. The changes add 32 hours of unpaid protected leave, expand qualifying reasons for leave, and grant 20 hours of paid prenatal leave, while scaling...
Brooklyn Terror Trial Opens for Man Accused of Plotting to Kill Trump, Other US Officials
Federal prosecutors opened the Brooklyn trial of Pakistani national Asif Merchant, who faces terrorism and murder‑for‑hire charges for an alleged scheme to assassinate high‑profile U.S. officials, possibly former President Donald Trump. Prosecutors say Merchant tried to hire two undercover FBI...
ACUS Adopts Four New Recommendations at 84th Plenary Session
The Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS) adopted four new recommendations at its 84th plenary session. The recommendations provide best‑practice guidance on obtaining government records for agency proceedings, managing temporary rules, organizing adjudication offices, and collaborating with state, tribal,...
Rights Experts Warn Angola Must Reject Draft Law Restricting Civil Society
Human Rights Watch warned that Angola’s new civil‑society bill, passed on Jan. 22 with a 106‑77 vote, grants authorities sweeping powers to control NGOs. The draft imposes a vague licensing regime, permits monitoring of finances, and allows license suspensions of up...
White House Seeks Clean Extension on Controversial Spying Law
The White House is urging a “clean” reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which would extend the program without new warrant safeguards. Section 702 lets intelligence agencies collect foreign communications and incidentally sweep U.S. persons’ data, a practice...
Constitutional Challenge to Texas Law on "Prurient" Drag Shows Sent Back to District Court
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a district court injunction that had blocked Texas Senate Bill 12, a law restricting "sexually oriented performances" on public property and in the presence of minors. The appellate panel found the lower court...
FTC Says It Won’t Enforce COPPA Against Proper Use of Age Verification Tools
The Federal Trade Commission issued a policy statement saying it will not pursue enforcement actions against websites that use age‑verification tools, provided they follow strict safeguards. The exemption applies only when age data is used solely for verification, is not...
New York’s Attorney General Is Suing Valve for ‘Promoting Illegal Gambling’ with Loot Boxes in Games Like Counter-Strike
New York Attorney General Letitia James has filed a lawsuit against Valve, accusing the company of promoting illegal gambling through loot‑box mechanics in Counter‑Strike 2 and other Steam titles. The complaint seeks an injunction, disgorgement of profits and civil penalties, arguing...
Set and Enforce Clear Lines for Police Biometrics, UK Commissioner Tells Policymakers
UK Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner William Webster has submitted a 16‑page response to the Home Office’s consultation on a new legal framework for police use of facial recognition and other biometric technologies. He urges lawmakers to define “serious harm,”...
Hawaii District Court Upholds State 340B Contract Pharmacy Law
A Hawaii district court has upheld the state’s 340B contract‑pharmacy law, ruling that it is not preempted by federal regulations. The decision aligns with recent rulings in Minnesota and Louisiana that support state authority over 340B contract arrangements. The law...
Privilege Waived Because Pre-Production Measures Were Not Shown to Be Reasonable
In Wilson Aerospace LLC v. Boeing, the Western District of Washington held that Wilson waived attorney‑client privilege and work‑product protection by failing to demonstrate reasonable pre‑production safeguards. The court noted Wilson’s reliance on a vague “second‑layer” filter without specific search...
Who’s Watching for Human Trafficking in Aviation?
Former FAA rotorcraft director David Downey has petitioned the agency to amend Parts 121 and 135 so that airline and charter employees receive mandatory human‑trafficking recognition and response training, a requirement he says Congress already mandated but the FAA has not codified....
Center for Regulatory Ingenuity
The FAS Center for Regulatory Ingenuity (CRI) is launching a transpartisan effort to modernize stagnant government institutions, beginning with climate policy. It creates high‑trust brainstorming environments and a "network of networks" to help policymakers update outdated laws for the clean‑technology...
US Court Denies Illegal Search Challenge in Child Pornography Conviction
The Wisconsin Supreme Court upheld a child‑pornography conviction, finding that Google’s automated scan of a user’s Photos account did not constitute an illegal government search. The court applied the “totality of the circumstances” test and concluded Google acted for its...
Anti-"Queer" Speech Is Constitutionally Protected—But Not Parked in Multiple Spaces
In Wattenbarger v. City of Crossville, a Tennessee man displayed anti‑LGBTQ banners at a pride festival and was arrested after repeatedly parking his truck and horse trailer across multiple spaces in front of the courthouse. He sued the city for...
US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Could Lose 30% in One Ruling as Bitfinex Battle Intensifies
The U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve is reported to hold about 328,372 BTC, valued at roughly $21.6 billion. Approximately 94,643 of those coins are tied to the 2016 Bitfinex hack and are subject to a court‑ordered restitution that could remove about 30 %...
How to Find a Bankruptcy Attorney
Filing for personal bankruptcy is a federally‑mandated, deadline‑driven process that can be derailed by a single missed form or hearing. While individuals can represent themselves, data shows that pro se filers are less likely to achieve a full discharge than those...
Is Crypto Growing Up? Tether Risk, Stripe’s Stablecoin Play, and the GENIUS Act Explained
Crypto is re‑entering startup discussions, but the focus has shifted from hype to regulation and infrastructure. At ETH Denver, low attendance underscored a market pause, while Washington’s GENIUS and Clarity Acts promise clearer stablecoin rules. Stripe is quietly assembling a...
Legal Speak Presents "The Supreme Court Brief Spotlight" - Adam Unikowsky
In this episode of Legal Speak, Supreme Court litigator Adam Unikowski discusses the rapid adoption of AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude in high‑court advocacy. He describes experiments where AI generated oral arguments and answered justices’ questions, highlighting AI’s speed,...
Vesting Clause Asymmetry in Justice Thomas’s Learning Resources Dissent
Justice Thomas’s solo dissent in *Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump* argues that Congress’s legislative power is limited to a narrow “core” defined by the Fifth Amendment’s due‑process clause, while the remaining Article I powers are essentially presidential prerogatives. He contends that...
IRS, Treasury Plan Regulations on Foreign Currency Gains and Losses
The IRS and Treasury announced they will issue proposed regulations under Section 987 to modernize how foreign currency gains and losses are calculated for qualified business units. Notice 2026‑17 introduces an election for the equity‑and‑basis pool method, mirroring a 1991 proposal, and...
Wegmans Releases Statement on Facial Recognition Technology
Wegmans Food Markets released a statement clarifying that its facial recognition technology is deployed in only a small fraction of stores and is used exclusively for security purposes. The company emphasized that it does not collect retinal scans or voice...
Court Vacates BMI’s 138% Live Concert Licensing Rate Hike
The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a 2023 ruling that granted BMI a 138% increase in live‑concert licensing fees, deeming the 0.5% of gross revenue rate unreasonable. The court found BMI’s inclusion of secondary‑ticket sales, VIP packages, and...
ESMA Sets Out Clearing Thresholds Under EMIR 3
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has released draft Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) detailing new clearing thresholds under EMIR 3. The proposal retains five threshold categories, clarifies calculation timing, and enhances the trigger mechanism’s stability. ESMA also suggests higher thresholds...
Clearing the Haze: What Employers Should Expect as Proposed Loosening of Federal Marijuana Regulation Moves Forward (US)
President Trump signed an executive order on Dec. 18, 2025 directing the DOJ to reschedule marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III, acknowledging its medical use. The rulemaking process is still pending, so federal drug‑testing obligations remain unchanged for now....
NetDocuments Announces 7 New Pre-Built ndMax Apps
NetDocuments introduced seven new pre‑built ndMax applications designed to automate key legal workflows. The suite covers discovery response generation, contract analysis and review, and assistance with USPTO office‑action replies. By leveraging the low‑code ndMax platform, these apps can be deployed...
From SOTU to SCOTUS
The State of the Union saw only four Supreme Court justices—Roberts, Kagan, Kavanaugh and Barrett—attend, while others stayed away by choice. President Trump used his speech to denounce a recent Supreme Court ruling on tariffs as “unfortunate” and “disappointing,” echoing...
The End of the Magic Wand: Why 2026 Demands Resilience Prompting
Law firms have moved beyond chasing the perfect prompt and now face a deeper challenge: generative AI reasoning systems can produce fluent, persuasive answers that are subtly incorrect. The article argues that lawyers must treat every AI output as a...
FDA Rejects Europe‑approved Drug: What Shifted?
Interesting read: the thread and the story. A drug that was approved in Europe in 2022, which looked like it was on track for #FDA approval, instead is rejected. What changed at FDA? 🤔
How Recent Laws Impact Game Design, From In-Game Chat to Notifications
2026 marks a turning point as a wave of regulations—DMCCA, the EU Digital Services Act, the upcoming Digital Fairness Act, the AI Act and others—target core game mechanics. Dark‑pattern practices, UI prompts, loot‑box disclosures, virtual‑currency pricing and player‑generated communication are...
The Shifting SEP Litigation Landscape: How Changes in the Types of Litigated SEPs Can Affect Implementers
Standard‑essential‑patent (SEP) litigation grew about 15% between 2020 and 2025, moving away from traditional cellular (ETSI) disputes toward Wi‑Fi and video‑codec standards. Litigated video‑codec SEPs jumped 263% and Wi‑Fi SEPs rose 71%, while ETSI‑declared cellular SEPs fell 32%. The surge...
Bank Groups Oppose Crypto Charters, Spare World Liberty
Interesting that Bank Policy Institute and Independent Community Bankers of America pushed back to the OCC on trust charter apps from @coinbase @Ripple @circle -- but *NOT* from World Liberty Financial 🤔
Distress Deadline for GA Appeals Court August Term: March 16
The “distress” deadline for @AppealsCourtGA’s 2025 August Term cases is March 16th. You can learn more about the distress deadlines for Georgia’s appellate courts at this link. https://t.co/W4HXs4wZnZ
Aid Workers Face Expulsion From Gaza. They Hope EU Privacy Laws Can Save Them.
Humanitarian NGOs operating in Gaza face an imminent deadline to hand over detailed staff and donor data to Israeli authorities or lose access to the territories. The December‑issued registration rules, set to take effect as early as Sunday, affect about...
CourtPilot – Recover Money Through Small Claims Court Guided by AI
CourtPilot, an AI‑powered legal platform, enables UK e‑commerce sellers to file small‑claims cases without a solicitor. For a one‑off £97 fee, users receive AI‑generated court documents, evidence analysis, and step‑by‑step guidance for claims up to £10,000. The service begins with...
Minimum Wage for Certain Federal Contractors Will Increase May 11, 2026
On February 9 2026 the U.S. Department of Labor announced that the minimum wage for federal contractors covered by Executive Order 13658 will rise to $13.65 per hour effective May 11 2026, up from $13.30. EO 13658, issued in 2014, applies to contracts made, renewed or...
EU Consults on State Aid, Including for Hydrogen, CCS
The European Commission is consulting on revised state‑aid rules that will replace the current framework before it expires on 31 December 2026. The proposal, embedded in the General Block Exemption Regulation, streamlines approvals and exempts climate‑related aid under €30 million per firm or...
Meta’s AI Sending ‘Junk’ Tips to DoJ, US Child Abuse Investigators Say
Meta’s AI‑driven child‑abuse detection is flooding US ICAC task forces with low‑quality tips, doubling the volume from 2024 to 2025. Law‑enforcement officials describe many reports as “junk” because they lack essential evidence such as images or context. The surge follows...
X and XXX (but No XX): No Revenge Porn Liability for X Based on X User's Alleged Illegal Posting of...
A federal judge in Texas ruled that X (formerly Twitter) is not liable under the Non‑Consensual Intimate Image (NCII) statute for reposting a plaintiff's commercial pornographic material. The court emphasized that the NCII law expressly excludes commercial porn unless it...
DHS Wants More than Biometrics in US-EU Data Sharing Agreement
The United States and the European Union are negotiating the Enhanced Border Security Partnership (EBSP), which would grant visa‑free travel to EU citizens in exchange for access to European biometric databases. The latest draft does not explicitly prohibit the use...