Expert Analysis

• Unpacking FDIC's Modernized Bank Merger Review Rules

  

  The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s proposed revisions to its Bank Merger Act review process are a shift from its more skeptical prior posture toward a more structured and transaction-facilitative approach, though some broader uncertainty remains concerning antitrust alignment with the U.S. Department of Justice, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

• FTC's BOTS Act Blitz Raises Stakes For Ticket Resellers

  

  Recent lawsuits and enforcement actions brought by the Federal Trade Commission under the Better Online Ticket Sales Act signal sustained ticket industry enforcement, but industry actors can reduce risk by screening practices and partnerships related to ticket purchasing, and evaluating the scale of their ticket operations, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

• AGs' Paramount Settlement Reflects States' Growing Influence

  

  The recent California federal court approval of the California v. Paramount Skydance settlement illustrates how state attorneys general are gaining new independence and influence, and companies must account for state enforcement when assessing merger risks ahead of a deal's closing, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

• Dissecting Dodd's, Gensler's Prediction Market Amicus Briefs

  

  Former Sen. Chris Dodd and former U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Gary Gensler's recent amicus briefs in support of New Jersey's petition for U.S. Supreme Court review of Kalshi v. Flaherty draw on legislative history to counter the CFTC's claim of federal preemption over the prediction markets, says Trace Schmeltz at Steptoe.

• 6th Circ. Spotlights Cannabis Contract Enforceability Risks

  

  The Sixth Circuit's recent reversal of a $31.8 million jury verdict against a subsidiary of cannabis giant Curaleaf highlights that state licenses do not necessarily provide the legal foundation needed to enforce contracts in federal court, which is a pattern that appears across many sectors, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

• 2nd Circ. Eases Employer Defense Of Dress Code Rules

  

  The Second Circuit recently sided with Starbucks in a ruling that makes it easier for companies to defend dress code policies against unfair labor practice challenges, but employers shouldn't read it as a license to ban union insignia, say attorneys at Shipman & Goodwin.

• Tracking The 2027 Va. Bills That May Tighten Data Center Regs

  

  Data center developers and operators should monitor Virginia legislation responding to the state's new data center accountability framework, local moratoria and the end of an electricity consumption tax, which could change review thresholds, impose new energy rules and slow the approval process, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

• How Bipartisan Permitting Reform May Boost Green Energy

  

  After years of false starts, Congress may finally be nearing a meaningful overhaul of the federal permitting process — and the proposed legislation could provide renewable energy developers with faster project reviews, more durable permits and greater protections from litigation, says Jon Micah Goeller at Husch Blackwell.

• OCC Plan May Bring Data Sharing Flexibility, Diligence Issues

  

  The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's recent proposal to overhaul its supervisory information sharing regime for the first time in decades would provide important flexibility to banks, but it could create new issues around confidentiality agreements, disclosure controls and diligence processes, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

• Where DOJ's Fraud Directive May Actually Affect Enforcement

  

  The U.S. Department of Justice’s recent directive outlining corporate fraud enforcement priorities is mostly a management document instead of a policy, but one part may actually undermine the directive's goals by leading to worse outcomes for organizational defendants and less corporate self-disclosure, says Zachary Warren at Williams & Connolly.

• Rebuttal

  North Carolina's Funding Ban Is An Outlier, Not A Model

  

  A recent Law360 guest article argues that North Carolina's litigation funding ban should be adopted by other states, but that analysis overstates what North Carolina did and misjudges how the law will travel, says Dai Wai Chin Feman at the International Legal Finance Association.

• Challenges On The Horizon For Illinois Data Center Projects

  

  Illinois has more data centers in operation or under construction than all but five other states — but such projects face growing litigation threats and a range of state and local legislative proposals that could hinder further development of these facilities in the Land of Lincoln, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.

• Planning For D&O Exclusions As Risks Mount For Banks

  

  Banks should scrutinize directors and officers exclusions for artificial intelligence, disclosure and cybersecurity risks during policy renewal negotiations to preserve coverage amid the current uptick in insurer scrutiny and related shareholder litigation, say attorneys at Jones Walker.

• Why The SEC Proposed Rescinding Its 'Pay-To-Play' Rule

  

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent proposal to nix its pay-to-play rule governing political contributions by investment advisers follows years of industry advocacy and commissioner criticism that it suppresses political speech and affects hiring, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

• Transfer Pricing Analyses May Apply To Tariff Refunds Claims

  

  Both plaintiffs and defendants in consumer class actions over tariff refunds should examine transfer pricing analyses, which can offer contemporaneous evidence as to how much of a tariff was borne in the U.S. by the importer or consumers rather than absorbed earlier in the supply chain, say economists at The Brattle Group.