Dems Push SEC To Pursue Crypto Case Against Justin Sun

By Aislinn Keely

Three House Democrats on Thursday pressed the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to reinvigorate its paused enforcement case against Tron founder Justin Sun and address their concerns that the agency's wave of crypto case dismissals coincided with considerable industry donations to President Donald Trump.

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NY Bill Criminalizes Unlicensed Cryptocurrency Businesses

By Frank G. Runyeon

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and New York State Sen. Zellnor Myrie on Thursday announced a proposed law to criminalize operating a cryptocurrency business without a license, saying crypto has become an "ideal vehicle for money laundering."

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NCAA Urges Feds, States To Rein In College Sports Wagers

By Tom Lotshaw

The NCAA has urged a federal regulator to suspend prediction market trades based on college sports until appropriate safeguards are in place and called on state gambling commissions to restrict certain types of wagers, saying it knows they are being manipulated.

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SEC Taps Ex-BlackRock, GSA Atty To Be General Counsel

By Sarah Jarvis

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced Thursday a former BlackRock senior attorney and U.S. General Services Administration top lawyer will be its next general counsel, as the agency gets underway with a regulatory agenda that prioritizes easing administrative burdens and facilitating capital formation.

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Crypto Lender Nexo Fined $500K For Unlicensed Loans

By Sydney Price

The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation announced that crypto-backed loan company Nexo Capital Inc. will pay a $500,000 penalty to settle claims it did not have a valid license when making its high-risk loans to California residents.

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Visa, Mastercard Defend Swipe-Fee Deal Amid Objections

By Katryna Perera

Visa and Mastercard have again urged a New York federal judge to grant the first green light to a new settlement between the card issuers and a class of potentially millions of merchants to resolve two decades of antitrust litigation, pushing back against objections from Walmart and other merchant industry groups.

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Simpson Thacher Guides New Mountain's $1.2B Fund Close

By Isaac Monterose

New Mountain Capital LLC, guided by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, has closed its second noncontrol private equity fund with $1.2 billion raised, aiming to use the funds to target companies in industries such as healthcare technology and life sciences, the alternative investment firm announced on Thursday.

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Carlyle Among Bidders For Lukoil Assets, Plus More Rumors

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Private equity giant Carlyle is among a group of bidders reportedly looking to grab hold of $22 billion worth of Russia's Lukoil assets; Canadian oil and gas company Canadian Natural Resources is looking to acquire Tourmaline Oil Corp.'s $1 billion portfolio of natural gas properties; and Nvidia rival Cerebras eyes a $22 billion valuation after a planned $1 billion funding round.

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4 Ways GCs Can Manage Growing Service Of Process Volume

As automation and arbitration increase the volume of legal filings, in-house counsel must build scalable service of process systems that strengthen corporate governance and manage risk in real time, says Paul Mathews at Corporation Service Co.

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Series

Calif. Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q4

The regulatory and litigation developments for California financial institutions in the fourth quarter of 2025 were incremental but consequential, with the Department of Financial Protection & Innovation relying on public enforcement actions to articulate expectations, and lawmakers and privacy regulators playing a role as well, says Stephen Britt at Stinson.

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Series

Fly-Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Much like skilled attorneys, the best anglers prize preparation, presentation and patience while respecting their adversaries — both human and trout, says Rob Braverman at Braverman Greenspun.

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As Goldstein Trial Begins, Gov't Points To 'Lavish' Lifestyle

By Jared Foretek

An accountant for billionaire investor Alec Gores said that Thomas Goldstein had suggested he open a foreign account for Gores' poker-related transactions or even classify him as a professional player for tax purposes, although Gores was just getting started in the high-stakes poker world.

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Simpson Thacher Offers Stipend To Lure Summer Associates

By Tracey Read

In an effort for Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP to attract top students who want to pursue public interest work, the firm said it will pay a stipend of $42,500 for the 2026-2027 cycle for those who opt to spend their 1L summer in a qualifying public service, government, academic, in-house legal or nonprofit role.

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Calif. Justices Order Prosecutors To Explain Alleged AI Errors

By Dorothy Atkins

The California Supreme Court has ordered Nevada County prosecutors to explain to a lower court why they shouldn't be sanctioned for "apparent serial submission" of artificial intelligence-generated briefs with nonexistent legal citations in multiple criminal proceedings.

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Judiciary AI Rule Draws Fire As Judges Get Deepfakes Survey

By Jeff Overley

Federal judiciary policymakers heard extensive concerns Thursday regarding high-profile plans to formally screen evidence generated with artificial intelligence, and they set the stage for more feedback by preparing an AI survey for every federal trial judge.

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ICE Detention Facilities Nearly Doubled Last Year, Report Says

By Tom Lotshaw

An American Immigration Council report said the Trump administration detained record numbers of noncitizens last year, most without criminal records, and held them in a rapidly expanding network of facilities that could soon rival the federal criminal prison system.

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Fla. High Court Opens Door To Non-ABA Accrediting Entities

By Carolina Bolado

The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday changed the bar exam admission requirements to allow graduates of law schools accredited by entities other than the American Bar Association to sit for the Florida bar exam.

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5th Circ. Revives Allstate's Fraud Suit Over Car Crash Billing

By Gina Kim

The Fifth Circuit on Wednesday revived Allstate's racketeering suit alleging doctors and personal injury lawyers unleashed a barrage of unnecessary treatments for car accident patients and caused Allstate to pay $4.7 million in claims, finding the insurer sufficiently pled details about the conspiracy and specifics surrounding each allegedly fake medical billing.

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Sens. Advance Indiana Judge Nominee Grilled Over Sermons

By Courtney Bublé

A federal judicial nominee for Indiana who came under scrutiny by a Republican senator for his past sermons as an ordained elder was voted out of committee Thursday alongside five other judicial nominees.

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Trump US Atty Pick In NM Bumped To First Assistant

By Emily Sawicki

A New Mexico federal judge has ruled the Trump-appointed interim U.S. Attorney for New Mexico is not validly serving in the role but declined to disqualify the prosecutor from a slate of cases pending in the district, instead determining the lawyer may continue to work in the federal prosecutor's office as first assistant.

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Wash. Judges To Pick US Atty As Floyd's Term Set To Expire

By Gina Kim

The chief judge for the Western District of Washington on Wednesday announced the court's intent to select a U.S. attorney to serve on a temporary basis if President Donald Trump's pick, Charles Neil Floyd, who has been serving on an interim basis, isn't confirmed by the Senate by next month. 

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