SEC Proposes Long-Awaited Crypto Offering Exemptions

By Aislinn Keely

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday unveiled plans to exempt some cryptocurrency offerings from its registration requirements, and a safe harbor for some projects to eventually shed securities law obligations altogether.

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10th Circ. Revisits Banks' Challenge To Colo. Opt-Out Law

By Rachel Konieczny

The Tenth Circuit on Tuesday reconsidered a challenge from banking groups to a Colorado law intended to curb high-cost lending by out-of-state banks, pressing counsel on the practicality of Colorado's law and the history of a federal interest rate law.

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Coinbase Must Face Investor Suit Over SEC, Bankruptcy Risks

By Jessica Corso

A New Jersey federal judge on Tuesday denied Coinbase's latest bid to escape a proposed class action accusing it of misleading investors about risks tied to regulatory action and potential bankruptcy, ruling that it is "not difficult to infer" that the company and its leadership were financially motivated to deceive shareholders.

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Nexo Sanctioned Over Purge Of Emails, Slack Messages

By Katryna Perera

Nexo Capital Inc. has been sanctioned and ordered to pay roughly $439,000 in attorney fees by a federal magistrate judge in California who found that the crypto lender intentionally destroyed electronic evidence relevant to a customer's suit about allegedly forced liquidations of his crypto assets.

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BakerHostetler Launches Crypto Asset Disputes Team

By Rose Krebs

BakerHostetler announced Tuesday that it has a new crypto asset disputes team that will focus on advising clients about matters involving crypto assets, blockchain technology and emerging digital markets.

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Rising Star: Cleary's Brandon Hammer

By Aislinn Keely

Brandon Hammer of Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP advised Depository Trust & Clearing Corp. through the launch of a groundbreaking securities tokenization service, earning him a spot among the fintech practitioners under age 40 honored by Law360 as Rising Stars.

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Kalshi Invades NM Tribes' Exclusive Gaming Turf, Amici Say

By Crystal Owens

The first tribes to sue Kalshi alleging it violated the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act are backing four New Mexico Indigenous nations' efforts to block the prediction market from offering sports-related contracts on their lands, contending U.S. Supreme Court decisions dating back to 1832 recognize Indian political independence and self-governance.

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Feds Bring New Charges Over $3.4B Iran-Backed Cybertheft

By Stewart Bishop

Manhattan federal prosecutors on Tuesday announced new charges against a group of Iranians accused of running a global, state-backed hacking campaign against private companies, government agencies and universities, in a wide-ranging cybertheft conspiracy that stole at least $3.4 billion in academic data and intellectual property.

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Texas Court Wipes Ex-GloriFi CEO's Claims Against Investor

By Spencer Brewer

A Texas appellate court tossed counterclaims brought by the former CEO of defunct conservative fintech company GloriFi against an erstwhile investor, saying he failed to show the investor defamed him.

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Intuit Hid AI, Mailchimp Woes From Investors, Suit Says

By Sydney Price

TurboTax distributor Intuit Inc. has been hit with a shareholder's proposed class action accusing it of falsely telling investors that it was well-positioned to integrate generative artificial intelligence tools even though the technology was actually diminishing Intuit's primary businesses.

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Orrick, Kirkland Steer Weave's $650M Take-Private

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Patient engagement platform and payment services company Weave Communications Inc., led by Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, on Tuesday revealed it will become a private company after it was acquired by Kirkland & Ellis LLP-advised private equity shop Francisco Partners in a $650 million deal.

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Upping Fed, FDIC's Insider Loan Cap May Ease Bank Burdens

Coordinated Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Federal Reserve proposals to raise the 1970s-era cap for bank executives borrowing from their institutions represent a long-needed regulatory recalibration that would lighten compliance obligations caused by the outdated ceiling without diminishing the original protections against conflicts of interest, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.

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How Does In-House Pay Compare? Take The Law360 Survey

How do in-house salaries vary across industries, roles, and organizational revenue? What compensation tools are companies using to lure top talent? Help Law360 Pulse answer these questions and more in this year's In-House Compensation Survey.

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White House Aims To Shield Advisers Behind Law Firm EOs

By Emily Sawicki

The Trump administration and Justice Department "strongly object" to an Aug. 3 discovery order requiring them to name individuals involved in drafting and approving executive orders targeting law firms, amid their repeated refusal to hand over certain communications in a suit brought by the American Bar Association.

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Ex-DOJ Atty Says Trump's University Probes Were Political

By Hailey Konnath

Trump administration officials forged ahead with investigations into Harvard, Columbia and other universities despite its own lawyers raising legal concerns and, in some cases, finding "little to no factual predicate justifying opening them," according to a whistleblower disclosure from a former U.S. Department of Justice lawyer made public Tuesday.

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Troutman Sidelined Associate After Heart Attack, Suit Says

By Patrick Hoff

Troutman Pepper Locke LLP derailed an associate's career because he took medical leave to recover from a heart attack and spoke up about senior attorneys' fraudulent billing practices, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in New Jersey federal court.

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Trump Names 9 Judicial Picks Across 6 States

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump announced nine nominees Tuesday for judicial spots in Florida, Texas, Louisiana, Kentucky, Oklahoma and Alaska. 

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Bot Errors Doom Expert's Credibility In Tainted-Supplement Suit

By Rachel Riley

A Washington federal judge Tuesday disposed of a U.S. Army nurse's lawsuit claiming supplement maker Thesis Nootropics sold products tainted with amphetamines, concluding that a key expert destroyed his credibility by submitting a report containing bot-generated false citations — much like errors for which the plaintiffs' counsel was recently sanctioned.

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Big Tech, PTAB Attys Urge Justices To Fix USPTO Power Grab

By Dani Kass

The Federal Circuit's refusal to curb the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office director's power over instituting Patent Trial and Appeal Board challenges has allowed leaders to "wreak havoc" without accountability, top tech companies have warned the U.S. Supreme Court.

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Quill & Arrow Says Ford Can't Rehash Lemon Law Fee Fights

By Linda Chiem

Quill & Arrow LLP has asked a California federal judge to dump a "retaliatory" lawsuit alleging the personal injury firm saddled Ford Motor Co. with high-priced legal bills for work purportedly handled by virtual assistants overseas or nonlawyers, saying the automaker is trying to chill product liability litigation.

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​​​​​​​Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court last week tackled disputes involving multibillion-dollar mergers, corporate oversight, founder control, SPAC litigation, commercial contracts and attorney fees.

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