Alerts

On December 19, New York Governor Kathy Hochul vetoed S8432/A8662, a bill to amend the New York LLC Transparency Act that would have decoupled it from the federal Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) definitions.

The past year has been unusually active on the health care antitrust front. Providers are pressing price-fixing and information-exchange theories against payers and claims intermediaries and a landmark class settlement moving into its implementation phase.

Many foreign nationals travel home during the holidays to visit family. Recent federal actions have significantly restricted international travel for some foreign nationals, creating a risk that some individuals could be stranded outside the United States for extended periods. These disruptions can affect both the individual and their US employer.

Headlines that Matter for Companies and Executives in Regulated Industries

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) to generate digital representations of real or fictional people — “AI avatars” — offers new ways to build brands, drive engagement, and grow revenue by accelerating content creation and lowering production costs. It also raises the following important legal considerations.

Adopting an “AI policy” is critical for managing an organization’s use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools. A targeted AI policy can provide clear guardrails that can then be incorporated into organization-wide training but be prepared to pivot quickly as these technologies evolve.

Public-facing debates over pharmaceutical drugs and life sciences products are as pronounced as ever. Although the ongoing scuffle over Tylenol has received the most attention, similar controversies abound. Just last month, Aurinia Pharmaceuticals filed a defamation complaint against a now-resigned US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) official over critical statements made about one of its drugs.

The US state-level privacy law landscape continues to evolve at a very rapid rate. On January 1, 2026, new state privacy laws take effect in Indiana, Kentucky, and Rhode Island. Cure periods sunset throughout the year for state privacy laws in Connecticut, Delaware, Kentucky, Minnesota, and Montana, with additional large language model (LLM) disclosure changes also effective this summer.

In recent months, three federal courts have refused to enforce expansive US Department of Justice (DOJ) administrative subpoenas issued to providers of gender-affirming care, concluding the subpoenas were issued for an improper purpose or exceeded the government’s statutory authority. These rulings are significant.

On December 12, the Eleventh Circuit heard the much-anticipated oral arguments in United States ex rel. Zafirov v. Florida Medical Associates LLC concerning the constitutionality of the False Claims Act’s (FCA) qui tam provisions.

Kevin Timson talks with Mercer Capital Vice President David Harkins, who shares insights into automotive dealership valuation.

On December 11, the White House issued a sweeping Executive Order (EO) that sets a national policy favoring a minimally burdensome federal framework for artificial intelligence (AI).

Cryptocurrency is creeping into the municipal market. This is an unusual development for a market known for its prudent fiscal practices. It is actually quite astonishing.

Welcome to the December 2025 issue of “As the (Customs and Trade) World Turns,” our monthly newsletter where we compile essential updates from the customs and trade world over the past month. We bring you the most recent and significant insights in an accessible format, concluding with our main takeaways — aka “And the Fox Says…” — on what you need to know.

Headlines that Matter for Companies and Executives in Regulated Industries

Federal regulators are taking a coordinated step to accelerate the responsible integration of digital health technologies into routine care.

Companies have long dreaded litigation filed by federal environmental regulators because such cases tended to last forever and posed financial and representational risk.

New York City employers should prepare to comply with additional changes to the Earned Safe and Sick Time Act (ESSTA) and the Temporary Schedule Change Act (TSCA).

In a closely watched consumer protection lawsuit, a federal court has ruled that Chipotle’s loyalty rewards points are not “gift certificates” or “gift cards” under either New York or California law.

A clear, well-written terms of use agreement is essential for e-commerce sellers and online service providers seeking to manage the risk of litigation through provisions such as arbitration clauses and class action waivers.

No need to bring a crib sheet, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Division of Examinations just revealed (some of) this year’s test.

For the first time in 15 years, the World Bank Group (WBG) has updated their Integrity Compliance Guidelines.

On April 23, President Donald J. Trump issued Executive Order (EO) No. 14281 entitled “Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy,” which qualifies “disparate-impact liability” as “pernicious” and concludes that disparate-impact liability violates the US Constitution.

On December 4, the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued a memorandum to the Patent Examining Corps reinforcing its existing subject matter eligibility framework under 35 U.S.C. § 101 and calling renewed attention to a voluntary evidentiary tool, Subject Matter Eligibility Declarations (SMEDs) under 37 C.F.R. § 1.132.

The Fourth Circuit reversed a district court’s dismissal of a trade secret misappropriation claim under the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) where the district court concluded that a company did not plausibly allege that it took reasonable measures to protect the secrecy of proprietary software.