Expert Analysis

• Opinion

  Large Meta Penalties Shouldn't Shape State AG Playbook

  

  Meta Platforms' $17.1 billion settlement in California federal court and two New Mexico verdicts against the company resulting in large penalties are drawing renewed attention to the question of how state attorneys general should calculate civil penalties, but regulators and companies should treat the decisions as outliers, not a template, say attorneys at Troutman.

• Data Center Injury Claims Require Broader Investigations

  

  Due to the complexity of data center construction projects, plaintiffs attorneys representing workers injured at such worksites need to look beyond immediate hazards and examine the chain of decisions and constraints that may support an injury claim, say attorneys at Kherkher Garcia.

• DOJ's Deloitte, Lockheed DEI Deals Stress Whistleblower Role

  

  The U.S. Department of Justice's recent settlements with Deloitte and Lockheed Martin over their diversity, equity and inclusion practices, launched by private whistleblowers, demonstrate to government contractors that federal enforcement can start from within, say attorneys at Hinckley Allen.

• Planning Personal Phone Collections Before Discovery Begins

  

  For counsel planning a personal phone collection as part of the litigation discovery process, it's important to take early steps to ensure that necessary information will be obtained without exposing unrelated information or running into access issues, says Jeremy Horowitz at MARA Forensics.

• Conn. Financial Cos. Must Make AI Plans Exam-Ready

  

  Connecticut's new artificial intelligence guidance for covered financial institutions is notable for its specificity and its broad inclusion of any AI system that materially influences business operations or risk management, detailing the need for written plans covering risk tiering, human oversight and vendor controls, says James Williams at Venable.

• How Power Grid Delays Are Reshaping Data Center Deals

  

  Texas' pause on permits while it studies data centers' effect on its electrical grid highlights the nationwide problem of yearslong interconnection delays, where the ways developers, investors and customers bridge that gap — and decide who bears the risk when it widens — increasingly determine whether a deal works, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

• Del. Dispatch: No Safe Harbor For Another Conflicted Deal

  

  The Delaware Court of Chancery's recent decision preliminarily enjoining a planned recapitalization of Cloudflare that would preserve the control of the company by its founder-controlling stockholders highlights that Delaware's new safe harbor statute for conflicted transactions doesn't protect founders or independent directors from liability, say attorneys at Fried Frank.

• Character.AI Ch. 11 Tests New Model For Preserving AI Value

  

  Character.AI's bankruptcy is charting a path for preserving value in an artificial intelligence business that depends on retaining unfinished technology and the employees who know how to develop it, while accounting for the firm's failure and its consequences for creditors, says Diane Dick at University of Iowa College of Law.

• Meta, TikTok Cases Show How AGs May Redefine Governance

  The Meta Platforms settlement and TikTok lawsuit addressing social media harms to minors highlight that state attorneys general are not merely extracting payments, but are also using litigation and settlements to impose durable product, institutional and policy change, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.

• How NYC Consumer Bill Could Expand Private Claims

  

  New York City's proposed Power Act could expose companies to sweeping private claims under its prohibition on unfair, deceptive, and abusive acts and practices, making regulatory compliance reviews and litigation-risk planning essential for businesses serving city residents, says Brian Turetsky at Hinshaw.

• What FTC Publicis Deal Means For Data Infrastructure M&A

  

  The Federal Trade Commission's recent proposed resolution to its concerns over Publicis' $2.2 billion acquisition of LiveRamp shows how the FTC may treat deals involving important data infrastructure layers, even when the parties operate at different levels of the technology stack, say attorneys at Wilson Sonsini.

• Key Themes In State Bank Supervisors' AI Exam Framework

  

  The Conference of State Bank Supervisors' artificial intelligence supervisory framework introduces a set of optional questions and procedures for examiners, and it may bring meaningful consistency in how financial institutions' AI use and integration will be examined, say attorneys at Cooley.

• How Feds' Shifting Guidance Hits Bank-Fintech Partnerships

  

  A slew of recent Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency reforms will ultimately give banks and fintechs more flexibility in third-party oversight and supervisory information sharing, but institutions still must document risk-based decisions and engage proactively with regulators, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

• What To Watch As Florida Stablecoin Framework Takes Shape

  

  As Florida's new payment stablecoin licensing framework enters its second month, requiring issuers to map applicable state and federal obligations and account for certification and rulemaking uncertainty, businesses should build core controls while keeping launch plans and contracts flexible, says Rob Brighton at Becker.

• 2 Del. Rulings Show Postclosing Earnout Arrangement Risks

  

  Two recent Delaware Court of Chancery decisions illustrate the contractual and fiduciary duty risks associated with earnout provisions in M&A transactions, offering lessons on allocating postclosing control, drafting enforceable earnout covenants and managing executives whose pay depends on the outcome, says Chris Brown at Taft.