DROPLETS
In-house counsel for public companies, non-traded REITs, and BDCs must monitor this proposal, as it would eliminate state blue sky preemption for most registered offerings and rewrite core capital raise compliance rules.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has released its first major proposed overhaul of the registered offering framework since 2005, centered on preempting state “blue sky” securities registration requirements for most registered public offerings. The rule would eliminate the multi-state compliance gauntlet for covered offerings, including non-traded REITs and BDCs, that currently require separate state-level filings and reviews. In-house counsel for affected entities should review the proposed rule, submit comments during the SEC’s open comment period, and assess how the changes would streamline future capital raise processes.
Multinational product, compliance, and legal teams must map AI systems to the EU AI Act's risk tiers before regulators begin active enforcement.
The EU AI Act is moving from rulemaking to active enforcement, with national authorities preparing to classify systems by risk level and impose penalties for non-compliance. High-risk and general-purpose AI providers face documentation, transparency, and human-oversight obligations that diverge from US and UK approaches, creating conflict-of-laws exposure for global deployments. Companies distributing AI-enabled products in the EU should inventory model use cases, confirm provider-customer allocation of duties, and update internal governance to satisfy conformity assessments. Early alignment reduces the risk of fines, product withdrawal, and parallel investigations across jurisdictions.
Any business with existing or planned operations, trade, or financial ties to Iran must immediately reassess compliance obligations to avoid steep penalties for violating the reinstated strict sanctions regime.
On July 7, 2026, the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued General License X1, revoking its prior rollback of Iranian sanctions relief amid renewed regional conflict. The action reinstates full U.S. sanctions restrictions on all transactions, services, and trade with Iran, reversing the temporary relaxation that had been in place. Companies with existing Iran-related activities, supply chain links, or planned cross-border deals involving Iranian parties must immediately halt non-exempt transactions, review all pending contracts for compliance, and update internal sanctions screening protocols to align with the new strict regulatory requirements to avoid enforcement action.
Importers of steel, aluminum, cement, fertilizer, hydrogen, electricity, and downstream goods into the EU must prepare for a broader carbon border levy starting January 2028.
The EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, in force since January 2026, is moving toward significant expansion. The Commission proposed in December 2025 to extend CBAM to downstream products, add anti-circumvention measures, and create a Temporary Decarbonisation Fund. The Council adopted its position in June, adding roughly 200 metal-intensive goods (forklifts, conveyor machinery, electric motor components) to the Commission's 180-product list. The European Parliament's ENVI committee voted in July to expand scope further to 457 products, including solar panels, heat pumps, and washing machine components, with a plenary vote expected in September. Trilogue negotiations will follow, with final adoption likely late 2026 or early 2027. The Q2 2026 CBAM certificate price was set at EUR 75.28. Importers should map supply chains now, secure third-party emissions verification, and prepare for expanded reporting obligations effective 2028.
Energy and infrastructure operators must brace for turbine shortages and grid competition as hyperscale AI buildouts divert critical equipment and power capacity.
Explosive demand from AI data centers is reshaping adjacent industrial markets. A regulatory dispute in Georgia over new power loads and a turbine manufacturing bottleneck traced to Ohio illustrate how hyperscaler buildouts are pulling turbines, generators, and grid capacity away from oilfield services and traditional energy operators. Equipment lead times are lengthening, prices are firming, and project economics for upstream and midstream operators are tightening. Companies reliant on natural-gas-fired turbines for compression, drilling rigs, or field power generation face delivery uncertainty and rising capex. In-house counsel should review procurement contracts for force-majeure and supply-assignment clauses, audit capital plans against revised equipment timelines, and engage with utilities early on interconnection and load allocation. Expect continued regulatory friction as states balance data-center growth against incumbent industrial users.
In-house counsel for consumer-facing businesses that passed U.S. tariff costs to customers must act, as a growing wave of class actions seeks refunds for those price hikes, creating material litigation and reputational risk.
The publication analyzes a recent surge in consumer class actions targeting companies that passed U.S. tariff costs on to end purchasers, with plaintiffs seeking full refunds of all tariff-related price increases. It breaks down common plaintiff legal theories, including deceptive trade practice claims tied to undisclosed tariff surcharges, and provides actionable defense guidance for in-house counsel, including recommendations to audit past pricing disclosures, evaluate class settlement frameworks, and revise future tariff pass-through communication practices to reduce litigation exposure.
In-house counsel for Medicare Advantage organizations must track this ruling, as it confirms routine patient outreach and plan enrollment marketing activities do not meet the threshold for False Claims Act fraud liability, reducing enforcement risk for standard operations.
A sealed False Claims Act (FCA) case targeting Medicare Advantage marketing practices was recently dismissed, with the court ruling in favor of the defense’s argument that the plaintiff’s attempt to classify routine patient-acquisition and outreach activities as federal and state fraud was legally unsupported. The ruling establishes a key precedent for Medicare Advantage stakeholders, clarifying that standard marketing operations for plan enrollment do not constitute FCA fraud. In-house counsel for Medicare Advantage organizations should review existing marketing and outreach protocols to ensure alignment with the court’s reasoning, and maintain documentation validating the legitimate, non-fraudulent nature of these activities to mitigate future enforcement exposure.
Businesses that collect, process, or sell personal data of Connecticut residents must act, as the expanded law adds new compliance requirements, broadens covered entity scope, and raises noncompliance penalties.
Connecticut has amended its existing Connecticut Data Privacy Act (CTDPA) to dramatically expand its scope and regulatory requirements for covered businesses. Key changes include lowered thresholds for entity coverage, new consumer rights including opt-out rights for targeted advertising and personal data sales, additional data processing and security restrictions, and a quadrupling of maximum civil penalties for noncompliance from $5,000 to $20,000 per violation. In-house counsel for businesses that handle personal data of Connecticut residents, or operate in the state, should immediately review current data practices, update privacy policies and consumer request workflows, and conduct gap analyses to align with the new rules ahead of the effective deadline.
Businesses operating in New York City must update compliance protocols to address expected increased enforcement of consumer and worker protection rules from the newly led DCWP.
The New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) has indicated a marked rise in enforcement activity following the appointment of new agency leadership. The DCWP oversees compliance with a wide array of local regulations, including rules barring deceptive or unfair consumer business practices, as well as worker protection mandates covering minimum wage, paid sick leave, and scheduling requirements for NYC employers. Companies with operations, employees, or customers in the city should review their adherence to DCWP-regulated rules, update internal policies and training as needed, and prepare for a higher volume of agency audits and investigations.
In-house M&A and antitrust counsel must review the report to align transaction planning and risk mitigation with current agency enforcement priorities and procedural trends.
The FTC and DOJ have published their FY2025 HSR annual report, outlining key merger enforcement trends from the prior fiscal year. The agencies opened 41 Second Request investigations and contested 18 transactions, both figures down from FY2024. Agriculture, food, housing, electricity, and healthcare remain identified enforcement priorities. Consent orders and decrees have re-emerged as a viable pathway to closing transactions with negotiated remedies, while the trend of large deals exceeding $1 billion in value continued. Early Termination, reintroduced in February 2025, was granted for 29% of requests, a year-over-year increase but still well below the 70%+ pre-FY2021 grant rate.
In-house counsel overseeing consumer-facing AI, marketing automation, and customer service systems must monitor this proposal, as it would ban hidden AI output steering and require transparency disclosures, with noncompliance exposing organizations to FTC enforcement.
The FTC has issued a proposed rule targeting hidden 'output steering' in artificial intelligence systems, a practice where AI tools subtly direct users toward specific products, services, or viewpoints without clear disclosure. The proposal would require companies to disclose when AI generates or curates consumer-facing content, and prohibit manipulative steering that occurs without informed user consent. Open for public comment now, the rule would apply to customer service chatbots, product recommendation engines, and AI-powered marketing tools. In-house counsel should audit current AI deployment practices to identify gaps against the proposed requirements, and consider submitting comments if the rule impacts their organization’s operations.
In-house counsel overseeing Russia-related trade compliance must review the new OFAC general license and amended FAQs to confirm organizational administrative transactions and sanctions adherence align with updated U.S. requirements.
On July 8, 2026, OFAC issued Russia-related General License 13R, which authorizes certain administrative transactions previously prohibited by Directive 4 under Executive Order 14024, and amended two existing Russia sanctions FAQs (999 and 1118). The new general license expands permissible administrative activities for entities subject to U.S. Russia trade controls, while the amended FAQs clarify existing compliance expectations and enforcement parameters. In-house counsel and trade compliance teams should review the full text of GL 13R and revised FAQs to assess whether their organization’s Russia-related administrative activities qualify for the new authorization, update internal compliance policies accordingly, and train relevant staff to mitigate enforcement risk.
In-house counsel for public companies, non-traded REITs, and BDCs must monitor this proposal, as it would eliminate state blue sky preemption for most registered offerings and rewrite core capital raise compliance rules.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has released its first major proposed overhaul of the registered offering framework since 2005, centered on preempting state “blue sky” securities registration requirements for most registered public offerings. The rule would eliminate the multi-state compliance gauntlet for covered offerings, including non-traded REITs and BDCs, that currently require separate state-level filings and reviews. In-house counsel for affected entities should review the proposed rule, submit comments during the SEC’s open comment period, and assess how the changes would streamline future capital raise processes.
In-house M&A and antitrust counsel must review the report to align transaction planning and risk mitigation with current agency enforcement priorities and procedural trends.
The FTC and DOJ have published their FY2025 HSR annual report, outlining key merger enforcement trends from the prior fiscal year. The agencies opened 41 Second Request investigations and contested 18 transactions, both figures down from FY2024. Agriculture, food, housing, electricity, and healthcare remain identified enforcement priorities. Consent orders and decrees have re-emerged as a viable pathway to closing transactions with negotiated remedies, while the trend of large deals exceeding $1 billion in value continued. Early Termination, reintroduced in February 2025, was granted for 29% of requests, a year-over-year increase but still well below the 70%+ pre-FY2021 grant rate.
Businesses operating in New York City must update compliance protocols to address expected increased enforcement of consumer and worker protection rules from the newly led DCWP.
The New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) has indicated a marked rise in enforcement activity following the appointment of new agency leadership. The DCWP oversees compliance with a wide array of local regulations, including rules barring deceptive or unfair consumer business practices, as well as worker protection mandates covering minimum wage, paid sick leave, and scheduling requirements for NYC employers. Companies with operations, employees, or customers in the city should review their adherence to DCWP-regulated rules, update internal policies and training as needed, and prepare for a higher volume of agency audits and investigations.
Energy and infrastructure operators must brace for turbine shortages and grid competition as hyperscale AI buildouts divert critical equipment and power capacity.
Explosive demand from AI data centers is reshaping adjacent industrial markets. A regulatory dispute in Georgia over new power loads and a turbine manufacturing bottleneck traced to Ohio illustrate how hyperscaler buildouts are pulling turbines, generators, and grid capacity away from oilfield services and traditional energy operators. Equipment lead times are lengthening, prices are firming, and project economics for upstream and midstream operators are tightening. Companies reliant on natural-gas-fired turbines for compression, drilling rigs, or field power generation face delivery uncertainty and rising capex. In-house counsel should review procurement contracts for force-majeure and supply-assignment clauses, audit capital plans against revised equipment timelines, and engage with utilities early on interconnection and load allocation. Expect continued regulatory friction as states balance data-center growth against incumbent industrial users.
In-house counsel for Medicare Advantage organizations must track this ruling, as it confirms routine patient outreach and plan enrollment marketing activities do not meet the threshold for False Claims Act fraud liability, reducing enforcement risk for standard operations.
A sealed False Claims Act (FCA) case targeting Medicare Advantage marketing practices was recently dismissed, with the court ruling in favor of the defense’s argument that the plaintiff’s attempt to classify routine patient-acquisition and outreach activities as federal and state fraud was legally unsupported. The ruling establishes a key precedent for Medicare Advantage stakeholders, clarifying that standard marketing operations for plan enrollment do not constitute FCA fraud. In-house counsel for Medicare Advantage organizations should review existing marketing and outreach protocols to ensure alignment with the court’s reasoning, and maintain documentation validating the legitimate, non-fraudulent nature of these activities to mitigate future enforcement exposure.
Importers of steel, aluminum, cement, fertilizer, hydrogen, electricity, and downstream goods into the EU must prepare for a broader carbon border levy starting January 2028.
The EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, in force since January 2026, is moving toward significant expansion. The Commission proposed in December 2025 to extend CBAM to downstream products, add anti-circumvention measures, and create a Temporary Decarbonisation Fund. The Council adopted its position in June, adding roughly 200 metal-intensive goods (forklifts, conveyor machinery, electric motor components) to the Commission's 180-product list. The European Parliament's ENVI committee voted in July to expand scope further to 457 products, including solar panels, heat pumps, and washing machine components, with a plenary vote expected in September. Trilogue negotiations will follow, with final adoption likely late 2026 or early 2027. The Q2 2026 CBAM certificate price was set at EUR 75.28. Importers should map supply chains now, secure third-party emissions verification, and prepare for expanded reporting obligations effective 2028.
In-house counsel for consumer-facing businesses that passed U.S. tariff costs to customers must act, as a growing wave of class actions seeks refunds for those price hikes, creating material litigation and reputational risk.
The publication analyzes a recent surge in consumer class actions targeting companies that passed U.S. tariff costs on to end purchasers, with plaintiffs seeking full refunds of all tariff-related price increases. It breaks down common plaintiff legal theories, including deceptive trade practice claims tied to undisclosed tariff surcharges, and provides actionable defense guidance for in-house counsel, including recommendations to audit past pricing disclosures, evaluate class settlement frameworks, and revise future tariff pass-through communication practices to reduce litigation exposure.
Businesses that collect, process, or sell personal data of Connecticut residents must act, as the expanded law adds new compliance requirements, broadens covered entity scope, and raises noncompliance penalties.
Connecticut has amended its existing Connecticut Data Privacy Act (CTDPA) to dramatically expand its scope and regulatory requirements for covered businesses. Key changes include lowered thresholds for entity coverage, new consumer rights including opt-out rights for targeted advertising and personal data sales, additional data processing and security restrictions, and a quadrupling of maximum civil penalties for noncompliance from $5,000 to $20,000 per violation. In-house counsel for businesses that handle personal data of Connecticut residents, or operate in the state, should immediately review current data practices, update privacy policies and consumer request workflows, and conduct gap analyses to align with the new rules ahead of the effective deadline.
Any business with existing or planned operations, trade, or financial ties to Iran must immediately reassess compliance obligations to avoid steep penalties for violating the reinstated strict sanctions regime.
On July 7, 2026, the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued General License X1, revoking its prior rollback of Iranian sanctions relief amid renewed regional conflict. The action reinstates full U.S. sanctions restrictions on all transactions, services, and trade with Iran, reversing the temporary relaxation that had been in place. Companies with existing Iran-related activities, supply chain links, or planned cross-border deals involving Iranian parties must immediately halt non-exempt transactions, review all pending contracts for compliance, and update internal sanctions screening protocols to align with the new strict regulatory requirements to avoid enforcement action.
In-house counsel overseeing Russia-related trade compliance must review the new OFAC general license and amended FAQs to confirm organizational administrative transactions and sanctions adherence align with updated U.S. requirements.
On July 8, 2026, OFAC issued Russia-related General License 13R, which authorizes certain administrative transactions previously prohibited by Directive 4 under Executive Order 14024, and amended two existing Russia sanctions FAQs (999 and 1118). The new general license expands permissible administrative activities for entities subject to U.S. Russia trade controls, while the amended FAQs clarify existing compliance expectations and enforcement parameters. In-house counsel and trade compliance teams should review the full text of GL 13R and revised FAQs to assess whether their organization’s Russia-related administrative activities qualify for the new authorization, update internal compliance policies accordingly, and train relevant staff to mitigate enforcement risk.
In-house counsel for public companies, non-traded REITs, and BDCs must monitor this proposal, as it would eliminate state blue sky preemption for most registered offerings and rewrite core capital raise compliance rules.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has released its first major proposed overhaul of the registered offering framework since 2005, centered on preempting state “blue sky” securities registration requirements for most registered public offerings. The rule would eliminate the multi-state compliance gauntlet for covered offerings, including non-traded REITs and BDCs, that currently require separate state-level filings and reviews. In-house counsel for affected entities should review the proposed rule, submit comments during the SEC’s open comment period, and assess how the changes would streamline future capital raise processes.
Multinational product, compliance, and legal teams must map AI systems to the EU AI Act's risk tiers before regulators begin active enforcement.
The EU AI Act is moving from rulemaking to active enforcement, with national authorities preparing to classify systems by risk level and impose penalties for non-compliance. High-risk and general-purpose AI providers face documentation, transparency, and human-oversight obligations that diverge from US and UK approaches, creating conflict-of-laws exposure for global deployments. Companies distributing AI-enabled products in the EU should inventory model use cases, confirm provider-customer allocation of duties, and update internal governance to satisfy conformity assessments. Early alignment reduces the risk of fines, product withdrawal, and parallel investigations across jurisdictions.
In-house counsel overseeing consumer-facing AI, marketing automation, and customer service systems must monitor this proposal, as it would ban hidden AI output steering and require transparency disclosures, with noncompliance exposing organizations to FTC enforcement.
The FTC has issued a proposed rule targeting hidden 'output steering' in artificial intelligence systems, a practice where AI tools subtly direct users toward specific products, services, or viewpoints without clear disclosure. The proposal would require companies to disclose when AI generates or curates consumer-facing content, and prohibit manipulative steering that occurs without informed user consent. Open for public comment now, the rule would apply to customer service chatbots, product recommendation engines, and AI-powered marketing tools. In-house counsel should audit current AI deployment practices to identify gaps against the proposed requirements, and consider submitting comments if the rule impacts their organization’s operations.