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.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Oil majors acquire $164M of Alaska oil leases
Indonesia’s child‑rights watchdog KPAI is urging the government to rigorously enforce the upcoming PP Tunas online‑safety rules, slated for full effect in March 2026. The regulation will compel digital platforms to adopt age‑appropriate design, restrict users under 16 on high‑risk social media, and meet stricter reporting and moderation standards. Simultaneously, the “One Quality Hour with Family” campaign promotes daily gadget‑free time to reinforce parental oversight. Together, legal safeguards and household habits aim to curb exposure to harmful content and exploitation.
The EPA announced a proposal to extend the compliance deadlines for the 2024 TSCA risk‑management rules covering perchloroethylene (PCE) and carbon tetrachloride (CTC). For non‑federal entities, initial monitoring would move to June 21, 2027, with key milestones in September and December 2027. The...
the USPTO doesn't care how long you've been using your name. first come, first served for them. just saying.
In September 2025 Carl Zaglin was convicted of FCPA violations and sentenced to eight years in federal prison. He has filed a motion for a new trial, alleging that co‑defendant Aldo Marchena discussed lying about Zaglin while incarcerated at FDC...
Lawrence Tallon, the MHRA chief, is set to oversee the launch of the Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) (Amendment) Regulations 2025 on April 28, 2026. The amendment represents the most extensive overhaul of U.K. clinical‑trial rules in two decades, targeting faster approval,...
Kenya’s Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) asked the High Court to dismiss a petition seeking a pre‑2027 electoral boundary review. The commission argues a full delimitation needs at least two years and must be completed 12 months before elections,...
FKA Twigs has filed a new lawsuit against Shia LaBeouf, claiming the nondisclosure agreement (NDA) she signed to settle a 2020 sexual‑abuse case is illegal under California's STAND Act. The complaint seeks a court declaration that the NDA is unenforceable, without requesting...
Employers are increasingly confronted with requests for commuting accommodations under the ADA, a trend amplified after COVID‑19. Recent appellate decisions—Charter Communications (7th Cir., 2023) and Tudor v. Whitehall (2d Cir., 2025)—hold that schedule adjustments can satisfy disability‑related commute challenges. The EEOC’s February 2026...
The announcement of Trump's PCAST council looks like a who's who of Silicon Valley, Zuckerberg, Huang, Brin, Su. But the most surprising detail to me: Oracle has two seats at a 13-person table. Larry Ellison and Safra Catz give Oracle more...
California employers must now meet the California Consumer Privacy Act’s (CCPA) risk assessment mandate, which requires a systematic review of personal data practices. Law360 outlines seven practical steps, including data mapping, privacy impact analyses, vendor oversight, employee training, documentation, continuous...
Canada’s banking regulator OSFI has moved from informal concerns to formal legal warnings that major banks may be breaching the Bank Act by using stale, blanket appraisals for pre‑construction mortgages. The watchdog cites rising default risk as new‑home prices are...
The Trump administration has proposed repealing the Endangered Species Act’s definition of “harm,” effectively removing the federal prohibition on habitat destruction for listed species. A recent study by Berry Brosi and colleagues shows that 42.4% of known habitat patches for...
Congress passed the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful Commission bill, combining intensified law‑enforcement, immigration enforcement, and city‑wide beautification initiatives. The measure cleared the House 218‑206 along party lines and follows President Donald Trump’s executive order to spend roughly $2 billion...
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a Request for Information seeking feedback on proposed rules that would tighten ownership and identity verification for Medicare‑enrolled providers and suppliers. The agency is weighing a citizenship or permanent‑resident requirement for...
A Delaware court denied Meta coverage under its Commercial General Liability policy for thousands of lawsuits alleging that Facebook and Instagram were intentionally designed to foster addiction and mental‑health harms. The judge applied a narrow definition of “occurrence,” concluding that...
The Luxembourg regulator CSSF issued a revised FAQ on 4 February 2026, fully aligning its crypto‑asset rules with the EU Markets in Crypto‑Assets Regulation (MiCAR) and replacing the term “virtual assets” with “crypto‑assets.” For UCITS, indirect exposure to crypto‑assets remains allowed up...
In this WSJ "What's News" episode, Alex Oselev reports on a landmark California jury verdict finding Meta and YouTube negligent for designs that harm children, ordering $6 million in damages and highlighting the potential erosion of Section 230 protections. The show also...
Companies deploying AI-driven human resources tools face mounting legal exposure despite the Trump administration’s push for a federal AI regulatory framework. Even if Congress preempts state AI statutes, firms remain vulnerable to discrimination lawsuits under existing civil rights laws when...
The expansion of legal sports betting across U.S. states is turning player injury and lineup data into high‑value, nonpublic information. Teams and universities now face heightened legal and compliance scrutiny when handling that data, as regulators view leaks as potential...
The IRS imposes a failure‑to‑file penalty of 5% of unpaid taxes for each month a return is late, capping at 25% after five months, with daily‑compounded interest added on top. Filing even after the deadline stops the steeper failure‑to‑file clock,...
Scott McDonald explains that the enforceability of U.S. non‑solicitation agreements hinges on the employer’s goodwill investment in cultivating customer relationships and the confidential information surrounding those ties. Recent court decisions have sharpened scrutiny of vague or overly broad clauses, prompting...
A California jury found Meta and YouTube negligent for harming a young woman's mental health, ordering $3 million in compensatory damages. The verdict follows a similar New Mexico case that imposed $375 million on Meta. Both companies plan to appeal, and the rulings...
RE/MAX announced a settlement in the Batton antitrust lawsuit, agreeing to contribute $8.5 million to the settlement fund. The agreement releases the company, its affiliates, franchisees and agents from all claims, while explicitly denying liability. The settlement amount is substantially lower...
The FDA’s Regulatory Education for Industry (REdI) Annual Conference will take place May 19‑20, 2026, offering both virtual and in‑person sessions at the White Oak Campus in Maryland. The two‑day program features three dedicated tracks—drugs, devices, and biologics—allowing participants to...
The EU has adopted a Batteries Regulation that will require all electronic devices placed on the market after February 2027 to feature easily replaceable batteries. The rule, initially focused on electric vehicles and micro‑mobility, now extends to consumer gadgets such as...
The U.S. Department of Justice approved the Hewlett Packard Enterprise‑Juniper Networks merger, citing modest antitrust risk and clear national‑security benefits. Critics argue the consent decree was politically motivated, but the Tunney Act hearing highlights pro‑competitive remedies such as divestitures and...
A federal judge in Northern California granted Elon Musk’s request to bar questions about his alleged ketamine use in the ongoing Musk v. Altman lawsuit, deeming the evidence irrelevant and lacking supporting record. The court, however, denied Musk’s broader motion,...
Cyber attacks on industrial operations have highlighted the lag in OT cybersecurity compared with IT. The EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA), effective from December 2024, forces manufacturers to report vulnerabilities and obtain CE marking for new digital products by December 2027. Standards...
Today I learned about the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act In the United States, a manufacturer cannot legally void your warranty just because you used a third-party part or modification unless they can prove that your specific modification caused the failure you...
Meta and YouTube just lost a landmark social media case in which a jury found them negligent. Now the question is how, if at all, these platforms change? https://t.co/JAjzgzH2NM
The Financial Stability Oversight Council voted to issue guidance that pivots to an activities‑based framework for designating non‑bank firms as systemically important, reinstating the high‑threshold standards first used in 2019. The proposal rescinds the Biden‑era rule that lowered the bar,...
She's spot on about surveillance, but these massive invasions of privacy are not solely bc of lack of federal legislation to regulate AI, it's bc of lack of data privacy laws. AI is exacerbating all of this, but all the...
The Pentagon Press Association filed an amicus brief supporting the N.Y. Times's motion to strike down the Pentagon's interim media policy, alleging it violates Judge Friedman's order. https://t.co/7B2H05fqFp https://t.co/bDLCe723yt
Compliance officers are increasingly stepping into whistleblower roles, filing legal actions against their own firms for alleged misconduct. This shift reflects heightened regulatory scrutiny and expanded statutory protections for internal reporters. Employers must navigate the delicate balance between enforcing compliance...
Under the Hatch‑Waxman law, generic manufacturers must file a Paragraph IV certification asserting that a listed patent is invalid, unenforceable, or not infringed to obtain FDA approval. The first substantially complete ANDA with such a certification secures a 180‑day exclusivity period,...
A New York judge denied an injunction, allowing Maverick Real Estate Partners to resume foreclosure on the Gorham Building at 390 Fifth Avenue. The Schwalbe family, who owe a $41 million loan, claim Maverick demanded escalating fees—$400,000, then $750,000—beyond the original...
A federal judge in Tennessee dismissed a libel suit filed by Shannon Bitzer against WBIR and Tegna, ruling that the outlet’s article describing his alleged involvement in the Jan. 6 2021 Capitol events as an "insurrection" was substantially true and protected by...
California Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin introduced AB 1938 to establish state‑designated surfing reserves that protect iconic wave sites such as Malibu, Rincon, Trestles and Maverick’s. The bill seeks to recognize the cultural, historical, economic and ecological value of these surf zones and...
Elon Musk’s legal team has filed a motion asking Delaware Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick to recuse herself after a LinkedIn “support” reaction to a post celebrating a $2 billion jury verdict against Musk. The request intensifies the ongoing clash between Musk and...
Good example on how the child harm legislation (KOSA) that Facebook fought to block was so bipartisan. Hawley and Markey. One more colorful. Both experts on the issue and protecting children. https://t.co/GYnuEyZDrv
The Department of Labor’s proposed fiduciary rule for alternative investments in defined‑contribution plans has cleared the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs review and will soon be published for public comment. Adoption of private‑equity and other alternatives remains low—just 3.9%...
Thompson Hine unveiled SmartPaTH Plus, a generative‑AI upgrade to its legal service platform that now automates over 100 workflows. The enhancement adds AI‑driven contract analysis, predictive cost modeling, and real‑time compliance alerts, aiming to boost predictability and transparency for corporate...
Corruption is costly - Trump's antitrust choices are reshaping real estate, in a bad way. https://t.co/GTF4dsuUBb
The FDA announced new guidance that expands flexibility in chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC) for cell and gene therapies (CGTs) across their development lifecycle. Sponsors can now defer full cGMP compliance until later trial phases and make iterative manufacturing changes...
Recent developments highlight the growing tension between AI-driven copyright enforcement and the gaming industry, as Tracer.AI’s automated claim briefly removed the Minecraft‑style indie title Allumeria. Nintendo intensified its anti‑emulation campaign, issuing DMCA notices to GitHub to shut down Yuzu and...
Rapper Afroman successfully defended a $3.9 million defamation suit filed by Ohio officers after a police raid, with a jury rejecting the claim and reinforcing First Amendment protections. In parallel, the Department of Justice drew scrutiny for lowering hiring standards, internal...
Outside the LA courthouse parents who say social media addiction killed their children outline the policies they want to come as a result of this legal win: - Senate version of KOSA w/ strong duty of care - Reform/repeal Section 230 - Age...
A sudden $580 million rush of oil futures contracts hit the market minutes before President Donald Trump announced a five‑day cease‑fire on attacks against Iran, prompting the CFTC to launch an insider‑trading investigation. The spike coincided with a 10% drop in...
Mitratech Legal Solutions introduced ARIES™ AI, an advanced docket‑management add‑on for its TeamConnect platform. The governed AI engine claims to reduce manual docketing effort by as much as 66% and save roughly 30 minutes per scheduling order, promising faster, lower‑risk...
Attorney Pete Patterson’s recent essay on birthright citizenship repeats and expands on earlier errors, notably ignoring the 1952 Immigration and Nationality Act that defines citizenship for anyone born on U.S. soil. The critique highlights his misreading of the 14th Amendment’s...
