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Expert Analysis

• Policy Shifts Bring New Anti-Money Laundering Challenges

  

  In the second half of 2025, the U.S. anti-money laundering regulatory landscape is poised for decisive shifts in enforcement priorities, compliance expectations and legislative developments — so investment advisers and other financial institutions should take steps to prepare for potential new obligations and areas of risk, say attorneys at Linklaters.

• 8 Ways Lawyers Can Protect The Rule Of Law In Their Work

  

  Whether they are concerned with judicial independence, regulatory predictability or client confidence, lawyers can take specific meaningful actions on their own when traditional structures are too slow or too compromised to respond, says Angeli Patel at the Berkeley Center of Law and Business.

• Assessing New Changes To Texas Officer Exculpation Law

  

  Consistent with Texas' recent modernization of its corporate law, the recently passed S.B. 2411 allows officer exculpation, streamlines certificate of formation amendments, authorizes representatives to act on shareholders' behalf in mergers and makes other changes aimed toward companies seeking a more codified, statutory model of corporate governance, say attorneys at Bracewell.

• Is SEC Moving Away From Parallel Insider Trading Cases?

  

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's apparent lack of follow-up in four recent criminal cases of insider trading brought by the Justice Department suggests the SEC may be reconsidering the expense and effort of bringing parallel civil charges for insider trading, say attorneys at Dentons.

• Series

  Law School's Missed Lessons: Communicating With Clients

  

  Law school curricula often overlook client communication procedures, and those who actively teach this crucial facet of the practice can create exceptional client satisfaction and success, says Patrick Hanson at Wiggam Law.

• Prepping For SEC's Changing Life Sciences Enforcement

  

  By proactively addressing several risk areas, companies in the life sciences sector can position themselves to minimize potential exposure under the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's return to back-to-basics enforcement focused on insider trading and fraud, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• Series

  Adapting To Private Practice: From US Rep. To Boutique Firm

  

  My transition from serving as a member of Congress to becoming a partner at a boutique firm has been remarkably smooth, in part because I never stopped exercising my legal muscles, maintained relationships with my former colleagues and set the right tone at the outset, says Mondaire Jones at Friedman Kaplan.

• Opinion

  FCPA Shift Is A Good Start, But There's More DOJ Should Do

  

  The U.S. Department of Justice’s new Foreign Corrupt Practices Act guidelines bring a needed course correction amid overexpansive enforcement, but there’s more the DOJ can do to provide additional clarity and predictability for global companies, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

• Del. Ruling May Redefine Consideration In Noncompetes

  

  The Delaware Court of Chancery's conclusion in North American Fire v. Doorly, that restrictive covenants tied to a forfeited equity award were unenforceable for lack of consideration, will surprise many employment practitioners, who should consider this new development when structuring equity-based agreements, say attorneys at Morrison Foerster.

• Spinoff Transaction Considerations For Biotech M&A

  

  Amid current market challenges, boards and management teams of biotech companies can consider several strategies for maximizing value should a spinoff opportunity arise, but not without significant advance planning and careful implementation, particularly in cases that might qualify as tax-free, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.

• 2025's First Half Brings Regulatory Detours For Fintechs

  

  The first half of the year has resulted in a bifurcated regulatory environment for fintechs, featuring narrowed enforcement in some areas, heightened scrutiny in others and a policy window that, with proper compliance, offers meaningful opportunities for innovation, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

• Opinion

  Senate's 41% Litigation Finance Tax Would Hurt Legal System

  

  The Senate’s latest version of the Big Beautiful Bill Act would impose a 41% tax on the litigation finance industry, but the tax is totally disconnected from the concerns it purports to address, and it would set the country back to a time when small plaintiffs had little recourse against big defendants, says Anthony Sebok at Cardozo School of Law.

• Comparing Stablecoin Bills From UK, EU, US And Hong Kong

  

  For multinational stablecoin issuers, navigating the differences and similarities among regimes in the U.K., EU, Hong Kong and U.S., which are currently unfolding in several key ways, is critical to achieving scalable, compliant operations, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• What Baseball Can Teach Criminal Attys About Rule Of Lenity

  

  Judges tend to assess ambiguous criminal laws not unlike how baseball umpires approach checked swings, so defense attorneys should consider how to best frame their arguments to maximize courts' willingness to invoke the rule of lenity, wherein a tie goes to the defendant, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

• Tips For Litigating Apex Doctrine Disputes Amid Controversy

  

  Litigants once took for granted that deposition requests of high-ranking corporate officers required a greater showing of need than for lower-level witnesses, but the apex doctrine has proven controversial in recent years, and fights over such depositions will be won by creative lawyers adapting their arguments to this particular moment, say attorneys at Hangley Aronchick.