Today's Legal Pulse
UK pushes commonhold reform to boost housing supply
The Draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill proposes abolishing leasehold and mandating new homes be sold as commonhold, tying the change to a target of delivering 1.5 million homes annually—the highest since 1968. The model remains untested, with fewer than 25 developments and unresolved issues around dispute resolution.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Hogan Lovells and Cadwalader clear final merger hurdles
Rebuttal to “Delaware Law Permits Companies to Adopt Mandatory Arbitration Clauses”
Mohsen Manesh argues that Delaware General Corporation Law §115(c) bars mandatory arbitration clauses for federal securities claims in corporate charters and bylaws. He cites the statute’s legislative synopsis, its parallel structure with §115(a), and the unanimous interpretation by the Delaware corporate bar and courts, including the Salzberg decision. While Freshfields lawyers claim the Federal Arbitration Act could preempt the bar, Manesh contends that the FAA presupposes consent, which a state‑crafted charter cannot waive. Market data since the SEC’s 2025 policy shift show no Delaware‑incorporated public company adopting such clauses, with only non‑Delaware firms like Zion Oil & Gas and the planned SpaceX provision testing investor tolerance.
Delaware Supreme Court Affirms Dismissal of Premature Challenges to Advance Notice Bylaws
The Delaware Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal of two stockholder suits challenging advance‑notice bylaws adopted by The AES Corporation and Owens Corning, finding the claims premature and unripe. The Court reiterated that such bylaws undergo a two‑step test—legal authorization followed by...
Most Law Firms Are Watching a Competitive Shift Happen. Some Are Building a Strategy Around It.
A new Thomson Reuters report shows 78% of law firms still lack a formal AI strategy, while a Wolters Kluwer survey finds 61% of legal professionals believe their firms can adapt. The gap isn’t about awareness—most firms are watching the shift—but...
Mississippi Passes 50/50 Custody Bill, Expanding Good Dad Act Momentum
Mississippi lawmakers approved House Bill 1662, creating a rebuttable presumption of 50/50 joint custody and marking the latest state to adopt the shared‑parenting framework championed by Florida’s Good Dad Act. The move adds to a wave of similar bills in...
Wixen Doubles Damages Demand to $102M in Expanded Copyright Lawsuit Against Meta
Wixen Music Publishing filed an amended complaint against Meta, doubling its statutory damages demand to $102.15 million and expanding the catalog at issue from 331 to 681 works. The suit now adds $20 million in defamation damages and trade‑libel claims, accusing Meta...
Paramount-WBD Deal Raises Questions over SkyShowtime Future
Paramount’s pending acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery could upend the SkyShowtime joint venture, as the deal would place HBO Max—already active in most of SkyShowtime’s 22 European markets—under the same corporate umbrella. Lawyers are reviewing the partnership’s shareholder agreement, which...
Zillow Loses Access to Over 4,000 Chicago Listings Amid MLS Legal Fight
Zillow Group’s two consumer sites lost access to roughly 4,300 Chicago homes after Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) cut its data feed. The move follows a federal antitrust lawsuit accusing MRED and Compass of colluding to hide private listings, sparking...
Nexstar Appeals Judge’s Injunction Halting $6.2 B Tegna Merger
Nexstar Media Group filed an expedited appeal with the Ninth Circuit on Wednesday, challenging a federal judge’s preliminary injunction that freezes its $6.2 billion acquisition of Tegna. The company argues the order overreaches, threatens local journalism and inflicts unrecoverable harm while...
Eflow-Iress Tie-Up Targets Market Abuse and Transparency
eflow has partnered with global trading technology firm Iress to embed its trade surveillance and compliance tools directly into Iress' trading platform. The integrated solution aims to simplify market‑abuse detection, best‑execution monitoring and transaction reporting for buy‑side and sell‑side firms...
Your Whistleblower’s Old Retaliation Claims Aren’t Necessarily Dead. A NJ Court Just Showed How.
A New Jersey appellate court reversed a lower‑court dismissal of a whistleblower lawsuit against a major pharmaceutical company, finding that the employee’s retaliation claims under the New Jersey Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA) were not time‑barred. The court held that...
SpaceX Bylaws Ban Class Actions, Enforce Arbitration
🚀 Space X - Governance #2 Arbitration / Jury trial waiver / Class-Action ban provisions (will build this thread in inverse order to keep all thoughts, bear with me. Hope is to sum it up as an article at the end of day/week/month...
Courtroom Attendance as a Forum Conveniens Factor in Hamilton v Barrow
In Hamilton v Barrow, the High Court ruled that England and Wales remain the appropriate forum for a fraud claim involving a collapsed currency‑club scheme that cost investors between £2,930 and £410,969 (≈ $3.7k–$522k). The judgment dismissed champerty and abuse‑of‑process...
Deal Lawyers Download Podcast: SRS Acquiom Annual M&A Deal Terms Study
The Deal Lawyers Download Podcast featured Kip Wallen discussing SRS Acquiom’s 2026 M&A Deal Terms Study. In a 20‑minute episode, the hosts highlighted emerging patterns such as the rise of “jumbo” transactions, evolving earnout structures, and shifts in purchase‑price adjustments....
AI in Compliance Recording: Five Questions Firms Need to Answer Now
Capital‑markets firms now face a sprawling communications landscape that includes voice, chat, collaboration tools and mobile channels, forcing them to rethink compliance recording beyond simple retention. A‑Team’s whitepaper outlines five critical questions, from full‑channel capture and AI‑ready architecture to moving...
Malaysia Demands TikTok Explain Failure to Block Fake Account Using AI to Insult King
Malaysia’s Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) issued a statutory demand to TikTok after a fake account used AI to post defamatory content about King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, including false claims he ate pork and manipulated images. The regulator says TikTok...
UK Law Commission Publishes Recommendations on Law Changes to Drone/eVTOL Autonomous Operations
The UK Law Commission has issued its final report on aviation autonomy, proposing a suite of regulatory reforms for drones and electric vertical‑take‑off‑and‑landing (eVTOL) vehicles in England and Wales. It recommends keeping the existing remote‑pilot definition while allowing a single...
The Global Legal Post Unveils 2026 Law Over Borders Commercial Litigation Guide
The Global Legal Post has released its 2026 Law Over Borders Commercial Litigation guide, edited by McDermott Will & Schulte partner Hilton Mervis. The 58‑chapter volume surveys litigation, arbitration and alternative dispute resolution across 39 jurisdictions and includes a unique case study on...
Claude for Legal and Access to Justice: The Good, the Bad, and the Unknown
Anthropic unveiled a major upgrade to its Claude AI, adding over 20 legal‑specific connectors and 12 practice‑area plugins that integrate directly with Microsoft Word, Outlook, Excel and PowerPoint. The rollout targets law firms, corporate legal departments, and legal‑tech providers seeking...
An MCP Connection to Claude May Soon Be a Necessity for Legal Tech Companies and Their Customers
Trellis Law, an AI‑driven legal research platform focused on state trial courts, has launched an integration with Anthropic’s Claude using the Model Connectivity Protocol (MCP). The service aggregates trial‑court data from 45 U.S. states, structuring judges, opposing counsel, dockets and...
Justima Spins Out of Osborne Clarke
Osborne Clarke has spun out Justima, a Germany‑based AI‑driven regulatory monitoring platform, marking the firm’s first international spin‑off. Justima’s AI agents scan more than 200 legal and regulatory sources each day, delivering tailored updates to corporate compliance teams. The new...
Trade Court Rejects Section 122 Tariffs, Appeal Pending
The US Court of International Trade ruled in a split decision that the Trump administration’s 10% global tariff imposed under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 is invalid and exceeds statutory authority. The court issued a permanent injunction that...
Walk Through: SpotDraft – AI-Powered CLM
Artificial Lawyer’s AL TV featured a walkthrough of SpotDraft, an AI‑powered contract lifecycle management (CLM) platform. The demo highlighted automated contract upload, AI‑driven data extraction, issue‑spotting guides, version comparison, and metadata querying. Product manager Jaskaran Bhatia explained how the system...
NCLAT Says NCLT Cannot Directly Order SFIO Investigation
The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) ruled that the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) lacks authority to directly order a Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) probe, reserving that power for the Central Government under Sections 212 and 213 of the Companies...
Obelix Conquers Luxembourg
Polish firm WORKS 11 MICHAŁ LUBIŃSKI secured an EU word mark “Obelix” for weapons in 2022. Les Éditions Albert René, holder of the “OBELIX” mark for comics and related merchandise, sought cancellation, arguing reputation and likelihood of confusion. The EUIPO’s Board of Appeal dismissed the claim,...
Revolut CLO Outlines Plan to Overhaul Legal Panel Approach
Revolut’s chief legal officer Tom Hambrett announced a revamp of the bank’s external counsel model, replacing its static law‑firm panel with a dynamic, performance‑based ecosystem called “Revolut Partners.” Firms will be assessed against short‑term metrics such as billing discipline, responsiveness...
There Is No Equitable Constitutional Cause Of Action To Challenge The Presidential Record Act Policy
The American Historical Association sued over a new Presidential Records Act (PRA) policy, and Judge Bates ruled the policy likely unconstitutional while inventing an equitable constitutional cause of action. The decision leans on Youngstock and Armstrong cases, despite the article’s argument...
Washington State Under Federal Investigation For Housing Men In Women's Prisons
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on May 19 that it has opened a federal investigation into Washington State’s practice of housing male inmates who identify as transgender in women’s prisons. The probe alleges violations of the Eighth Amendment and...
Ontario Court of Appeal Overturns $5,000 Cost Order, Blocks 400 LAT Records Production
The Ontario Court of Appeal set aside a Superior Court order that required Tribunals Ontario to turn over roughly 400 internal Licence Appeal Tribunal records. The appellate court ruled the production was unnecessary, irrelevant and unfair, and ordered the plaintiffs...
SEC Rescinds 50-Year “Gag Rule” On Enforcement Settlements, Boosting Transparency
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission formally repealed Rule 202.5(e) on May 18, 2026, ending the “gag rule” that prevented settled defendants from publicly denying SEC allegations. The move, framed as a constitutional correction, opens the door for greater transparency...
One Company Dominates NZ’s Live Music Scene – How Do We Encourage Competition?
Live Nation and its Ticketmaster subsidiary have entrenched control over New Zealand's live‑music ecosystem, owning venues, festivals and the primary ticketing platform. A recent U.S. federal jury found the pair liable for antitrust violations, reigniting scrutiny of their market power...
Pulte Homes Loses Fall Protection Appeal as Washington Court Pierces Contractor Defense
A Washington Court of Appeals affirmed a $6,000 safety citation against Pulte Homes, ruling the builder liable for a fall‑protection violation by its subcontractor on the 275 Degrees Project. The court rejected Pulte’s argument that contractual language shifted all safety responsibility...
Sixth Circuit Lowers Bar for Employers Chasing Engineers over Trade Secrets
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reversed a district‑court denial of a preliminary injunction against a former engineer who left Ohio‑based PCC Airfoils for a rival. The appellate panel clarified that courts apply a sliding‑scale test to...
HIKE2 Teams with Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney to Deploy Governed AI Legal Assistant for Enterprises
HIKE2 and Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney announced a strategic partnership to launch a governed AI legal assistant built on the firm’s BuchananArtifex platform. The solution offers centralized policy enforcement and role‑based access, aiming to ease enterprise‑scale AI adoption while protecting...
Nexstar Says Injunction Protects Big Tech, Harms Local News
Nexstar has filed its argument against States and Directv in 9th Circuit regarding deal w Tegna. Here is their statement: The plaintiffs’ claims reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of the modern media landscape in which companies like Nexstar and TEGNA are...
Harvey Opens Paris Office, Expands EU Footprint Amid Heightened Tech Scrutiny
Harvey, the U.S. legal‑AI startup, opened a Paris office this month and aims to add about 15 employees by September. The move comes as the EU tightens scrutiny of American tech firms over data privacy and AI transparency, putting the...
Court Awards Newspaper Fees, Deters Frivolous Defamation Suits
Have a problem I genuinely would love input on. My wife and I own a local newspaper. In our town the police arrested a member of the community for having what they thought were naked pictures of a juvenile on...
Kazakh Special Economic Zone Court Rules in Favor of Ukraine over Russia
A Kazakhstan court in the Astana International Finance Center (AIFC) upheld a 2025 ICC arbitration award for Ukraine's Naftogaz against Russia's Gazprom, ordering the Russian gas giant to pay $1.13 billion plus $300 million in interest and roughly $5.4 million in court costs....
US Unseals Superseding Indictment Charging Raul Castro and 5 Castro Regime Co-Defendants for 1996 Shoot-Down of Brothers to the Rescue...
The U.S. Department of Justice unsealed a superseding indictment charging former Cuban Vice President Raul Castro and five alleged co‑defendants for the 1996 shoot‑down of two Brothers to the Rescue aircraft that killed four men, including three U.S. citizens. The...
Big City Law Firms “Continuing to Fuel the Climate Crisis”
A new report by Law Students for Climate Accountability reveals that 20 UK law firms facilitated $706 bn in fossil‑fuel transactions between 2021 and 2025, with the five Magic Circle firms responsible for nearly 70 % of that volume. The LSCA Climate...
Solicitor Struck Off for Asking Client to Pay Fees Into His Bank Account
A criminal‑defence solicitor in County Durham diverted £5,510 (≈$6,888) of client fees into his personal bank account, accepting four payments ranging from £10 to £2,500 between November 2023 and February 2024. He never opened a case file or transferred the...
The SRA’s Strict Liability Gamble Has Failed. Good
The Court of Appeal overturned the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s strict‑liability stance on Money Laundering Regulations breaches in the Dentons case, ruling that misconduct requires a test of “sufficient seriousness.” The High Court had previously held any breach, however minor, amounted...
Mandatory Retirement for New York Judges Hits Top State Court
New York voters approved adding age as a protected civil‑rights category in 2024, prompting three senior judges to challenge the state’s mandatory retirement rule that forces judges out at 70, with extensions only to 76. The judges argued the amendment...
Appeals Court Eases Disability Retirement Rules for Feds
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that federal employees’ disability retirement applications cannot be denied solely on the absence of objective medical evidence. The decision mandates that subjective evidence, such as psychiatrist diagnoses, must be considered,...
Latest Federal Court Cases: Actelion Pharms. Ltd. V. Mylan Pharms. Inc.
The Federal Circuit affirmed a district court ruling that Mylan’s generic hypertension drug does not infringe Actelion’s patents covering Veletri® because the claim term “pH of 13 or higher” must be measured at a standard temperature of 25 ± 2 °C. The court...
Jewish Parents Ask Ninth Circuit to Reboot Lawsuit over ‘Antisemitic’ Curriculum
A coalition of Jewish parents and teachers petitioned the Ninth Circuit to revive a lawsuit against Los Angeles Unified School District, alleging the district is covertly introducing an antisemitic ethnic‑studies curriculum. A district court dismissed the case for lack of...
Edward Jones Faces Race Bias Suit From Six Black Advisors
Six Black financial advisors have filed a proposed class‑action lawsuit in Missouri alleging that Edward Jones systematically pays Black advisors less, offers fewer promotions, and terminates them more often than white peers. The complaint cites salary‑setting rules that base new‑advisor...
Bayer Revises Loyalty Program Requirements Following DOJ Scrutiny
Major seed producer Bayer has eliminated the sales‑target condition in its Premier Performance loyalty program for independent corn and soybean seed licensees. The change decouples corn and soybean incentives for the 2025 planting season and commits Bayer not to reinstate...
Senators Were Fired Up About Prediction Markets In Wednesday's Hearing
The Senate Commerce Subcommittee held a hearing titled “No Sure Bets: Protecting Sports Integrity in America,” which quickly turned into a bipartisan debate over prediction markets. Senators from both parties warned that platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi are offering sports...
Appeals Court Judges Appear to Be Divided over Pentagon’s Legal Dispute with AI Company Anthropic
The Pentagon labeled AI startup Anthropic a supply‑chain risk, prompting the company to sue over alleged retaliation for raising ethical concerns about autonomous weapons. A three‑judge panel of the D.C. Circuit heard Anthropic’s appeal, with judges split on whether the...
Lawsuit Filed by 25 States, D.C. Claims New Federal Student Loan Limits Would Harm Health Care Workforce
A coalition of 25 states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit on May 19 challenging the Department of Education’s April 30 final rule that raises federal student loan limits for professional and graduate students. The rule sets a $50,000 annual...