Expert Analysis

• What New Packaging Waste Laws Mean For Franchisors

  

  With states ramping up laws establishing extended producer responsibility programs for packaging materials, paper products and single-use food service ware, restaurant and hospitality franchisors face special compliance challenges as they navigate a delicate balance between conflicting priorities, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

• Series

  Playing Piano Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Playing piano and practicing law share many parallels relating to managing complexity: Just as hearing an entire musical passage in my head allows me to reliably deliver the message, thinking about the audience's impression helps me create a legal narrative that keeps the reader engaged, says Michael Shepherd at Fish & Richardson.

• Considering The Prospects Of A Robinson-Patman Act Revival

  

  Following a flurry of activity under the Biden administration, Federal Trade Commission price-discrimination cases under the Robinson-Patman Act are at a crossroads, and state-level enforcement could become the next frontier in this area, say attorneys at Hogan Lovells.

• NYC Energy Storage Guidance Clarifies Compliance Pathways

  

  The New York City Department of Buildings’ recently issued bulletin provides long-awaited clarity on how battery storage systems may generate greenhouse gas emissions deductions, materially expands compliance pathways for building owners and creates new opportunities for providers, say attorneys at Hodgson Russ.

• What 4th Circ.-Approved DEI Ban Means For Employers

  

  The Fourth Circuit’s recent lifting of the injunction against two executive orders banning recipients of federal funds from conducting diversity, equity and inclusion programs means employers should conduct audits to minimize their risk of violating federal antidiscrimination laws or the False Claims Act, says Jonathan Segal at Duane Morris.

• NY RAISE Act Raises The Bar For Frontier AI Developers

  

  For organizations developing or substantially modifying highly capable artificial intelligence models, the New York Responsible AI Safety and Education Act represents a meaningful escalation beyond California's S.B. 53, even though it applies to a narrower group of developers, so companies should expect additional obligations, particularly around accelerated incident reporting, say attorneys at Kilpatrick.

• Takeaways From CFPB's Retreat On Immigrant Fair Lending

  

  Practices discouraged under the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Justice Department's 2023 statement on the treatment of immigration status under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act may now be permissible following its recent withdrawal, making it crucial for lenders to follow unfolding fair lending developments in this area, say attorneys at Steptoe.

• What DOJ's New Trade Fraud Push Means For Cos.

  

  The U.S. Department of Justice's announcement this week that it is elevating trade fraud to an economic and national security imperative sends an unmistakable message to multinational corporations, importers, compliance professionals and supply chain managers that the days of laissez-faire enforcement are over, says Markus Funk at White & Case.

• How New Texas Law Streamlines Eviction Proceedings

  

  A recent legislative change to the Texas Property Code overhauls the state's eviction process and makes it more difficult for nonpaying tenants to challenge evictions, likely yielding a faster and cheaper procedure that will encourage timely rent payment and lease compliance, says Maddison Craig at Munsch Hardt.

• Bank Action Items For FDIC Digital Display Rule Compliance

  

  Recently finalized Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. rules enhance the flexibility of signage requirements for bank websites, digital banking applications and ATMs, but new compliance hurdles will require cross-functional resources to avoid risk ahead of next year's compliance deadline, say attorneys at Winthrop & Weinstine.

• Opinion

  A TVPRA Safe Harbor Would Boost Antitrafficking Efforts

  

  Adding a well-thought-out safe harbor measure to the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, which is currently up for amendment and reauthorization, would motivate proactive cooperation from hotels and other businesses to combat sex trafficking, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.

• AI-Generated Doc Ruling Guides Attys On Privilege Risks

  

  A New York federal court's ruling, in U.S. v. Heppner, that documents created by a defendant using an artificial intelligence tool were not privileged, can serve as a guide to attorneys for retaining attorney-client or work-product privilege over client documents created with AI, say attorneys at Sher Tremonte.

• How To Turn EU AI Act Disclosures Into Patent Assets

  

  As the Aug. 2 deadline approaches to comply with provisions of the EU Artificial Intelligence Act governing high-risk AI systems, intellectual property and AI leaders should consider steps to leverage documentation requirements to surface patentable subject matter, reinforce inventive-step narratives and align regulatory timelines with patent filing strategy, say Lestin Kenton, Roozbeh Gorgin and Ananth Josyula at Sterne Kessler.

• The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Leadership Strategy After Day 1

  

  For law firm leaders, ensuring a newly combined law firm lives up to its promise, both in its first days of operation and well after, includes tough decisions, clear and specific communication, and cheerleading, says Peter Michaud at Ballard Spahr.

• The Challenges Of Detecting Event Contract Manipulation

  

  While concerns about possible manipulation and insider trading in event contracts have increasingly been raised by market observers, distinguishing a speculative position from a hedge and effective surveillance make regulation difficult, particularly as the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission argues for exclusive jurisdiction to do so, say economic consultants at the Brattle Group.