Expert Analysis

• Breaking Down Article 12 Of The Uniform Commercial Code

  

  Thirty-two states and the District of Columbia have enacted Article 12 of the Uniform Commercial Code, providing the alternative to perfection by control of assets like cryptocurrency and nonfungible tokens, but before accepting these assets as collateral, lenders and creditors should consider how to best maintain priority, say attorneys at Miller Nash.

• What Narrower FinCEN Reporting Spells For Industry

  

  As compliance costs soar, the potential slimming down of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism regime is welcome news for banks, and would allow a shift in resources to ever-evolving cybercrime threats, say attorneys at Quarles & Brady.

• How Nasdaq, SEC Proposals May Transform Listing Standards

  

  Both Nasdaq and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission have increasingly focused their recent regulatory efforts on small and foreign issuers, particularly those from China, reflecting an intention to strengthen the overall quality of companies accessing U.S. markets, but also potentially introducing a chilling effect on certain issuers, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

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  Building With Lego Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Building with Lego has taught me to follow directions and adapt to unexpected challenges, and in pairing discipline with imagination, allows me to stay grounded while finding new ways to make complex deals come together, says Paul Levin at Venable.

• How Banks Can Safely Handle Payments For Gambling Biz

  

  As the betting market continues to expand, it's crucial for banks and fintechs to track historical developments in wagering and ongoing prediction markets litigation that can factor into a risk analysis for payment processing with respect to gambling operators, says Laura D'Angelo at Jones Walker.

• SEC Focused On Fraud As Actions Markedly Declined In 2025

  

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's enforcement activity in its fiscal year 2025 was its lowest in 10 years, reflecting not only a significant decline in the commission's workforce, but also Chairman Paul Atkins' stated focus on fraud and individual wrongdoing and a new approach to crypto regulation, say attorneys at Covington.

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  Law School's Missed Lessons: Networking 101

  

  Cultivating a network isn't part of the law school curriculum, but learning the soft skills needed to do so may be the key to establishing a solid professional reputation, nurturing client relationships and building business, says Sharon Crane at Practising Law Institute.

• Defeating Estoppel-Based Claims In Legal Malpractice Actions

  

  State supreme court cases from recent years have addressed whether positions taken by attorneys in an underlying lawsuit can be used against them in a subsequent legal malpractice action, providing a foundation to defeat ex-clients’ estoppel claims, says Christopher Blazejewski at Sherin and Lodgen.

• A Look At State AGs' Focus On Earned Wage Products

  

  Earned wage products have emerged as a rapidly growing segment of the consumer finance market, but recent state enforcement actions against MoneyLion, DailyPay and EarnIn will likely have an effect on whether such products can continue operating under current business models, say attorneys at Quinn Emanuel.

• Digital Asset Treasury Trend Signals Wider Crypto Embrace

  

  While digital asset treasuries are not new for U.S. public companies, the recent velocity of capital deployment in such investments has been notable, signaling a transformation in corporate treasury management that blurs the lines between traditional finance and the broader crypto ecosystem, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

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  The Biz Court Digest: How It Works In Massachusetts

  

  Since its founding in 2000, the Massachusetts Business Litigation Session's expertise, procedural flexibility and litigant-friendly case management practices have contributed to the development of a robust body of commercial jurisprudence, say James Donnelly at Mirick O’Connell, Felicia Ellsworth at WilmerHale and Lisa Wood at Foley Hoag.

• What To Note In OCC, FDIC Plan To Standardize Supervision

  

  The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s recent proposals to standardize the meaning of "unsafe or unsound practice" and revise the process for issuing matters requiring attention could significantly narrow the scope of activities that spawn enforcement actions, says Brendan Clegg at Luse Gorman.

• How The SEC May Overhaul Its Order Protection Rule

  

  Attorneys at Skadden trace the evolution of the controversial Rule 611 of Regulation National Market System, examine the current debate surrounding its effectiveness, and consider how the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's emerging Project Crypto initiative could reshape Regulation NMS for a tokenized, on-chain market environment.

• Why Appellees Should Write Their Answering Brief First

  

  Though counterintuitive, appellees should consider writing their answering briefs before they’ve ever seen their opponent’s opening brief, as this practice confers numerous benefits related to argument structure, time pressures and workflow, says Joshua Sohn at the U.S. Department of Justice.

• Questions To Ask Your Client When Fraud Taints Financing

  

  As elevated risk levels yield fertile conditions for fraud in financing transactions, asking corporate clients the right investigative questions can help create an action plan, bring parties together and help clients successfully survive any scam, says Mark Kirsons at Morgan Lewis.