Specialist news and analysis on legal risk and regulation

US judge says Google must intend to record without consent to face CIPA burden

SpaceX's xAI may face Virginia action over Grok creation of sexualized images

Character.AI bankruptcy showcases high stakes of competition in AI markets

Heineken to pay €111m to Greek rival after Dutch court rethinks interest

US DOJ clarifies basis for forced labor tariffs

Latest News

Top News

Trade

October 23, 2026 | Zack Budryk

North America

Sen. Collins says multiple US tariffs on Canada will be lifted as midterms loom

Technology

October 23, 2026 | Xu Yuan

North America

NetChoice sues California to halt social media warning label law
White water tower with blue logo depicting stars over a mountain, with green hills and the Hollywood sign in the background

DealRisk®, Mergers and Acquisitions

October 23, 2026 | Flavia Fortes

North America

Calif.'s Blizzard rejects resource explanation for Paramount–Warner settlement
Sen. Collins says multiple US tariffs on Canada will be lifted as midterms loom
NetChoice sues California to halt social media warning label law
Calif.'s Blizzard rejects resource explanation for Paramount–Warner settlement

Antitrust View More

Schwab-TD Ameritrade class action settlement probed by US appeals court judge

October 23, 2026 | Chris May

North America

Charles Schwab and plaintiffs’ attorneys faced extensive questioning from a US federal appeals court judge Friday over claims that a lower court improperly approved a settlement of class action claims challeng... (more story)

CDK market power questioned as US judge sees AI disrupting dealer software

October 23, 2026 | Khushita Vasant and Alex Wilts

North America

Tekion faced questions at a court hearing about the evidence supporting its allegations that CDK Global holds market power, with a California federal judge noting that artificial intelligence could disrupt the... (more story)

US House Democrat proposes ban on pharma ‘pay-for-delay’ deals

October 23, 2026 | Nick Robertson

North America

A bill introduced in the US House on Thursday would prohibit, with some exceptions, branded drug manufacturers from compensating generic and biosimilar drugmakers to delay market entry through patent settlemen... (more story)

Artificial Intelligence View More

Third Circuit ROSS ruling peppers news outlets' opposition to ChatGPT fair use defense

October 23, 2026 | Emma Whitford

North America

News outlets suing OpenAI and its investor Microsoft are highlighting a recent appellate decision that training artificial intelligence on copyrighted works is not fair, as they push back on their adversaries’... (more story)

Generative AI a transformative tool, Microsoft tells US court

October 23, 2026

North America

MLex Summary: Microsoft responded to a summary judgment motion from book authors in coordinated US copyright cases in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, saying the authors are ignorin... (more story)

OpenAI, Altman broke consumer protection, child safety, privacy laws, Texas AG says

October 23, 2026

North America

MLex Summary: OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman violated two Texas laws by developing ChatGPT as "a dangerous online product" and failing to warn consumers about its dangers. In a complaint filed in a Texas state ... (more story)

Mergers and Acquisitions View More

Saipem, Subsea7 met with three CADE councilors as Brazilian review nears deadline

October 23, 2026 | Maria Júlia Baumert

Latin America

Saipem and Subsea7 lawyers have met separately with the lead councilor reviewing the companies' proposed merger, another Tribunal member and the Brazilian competition authority's acting president as the transa... (more story)

Intesa-MPS may need behavioral remedies on Generali stake, Italian enforcer says

October 23, 2026 | Anna Ferrari

Europe

Italian banking group Intesa Sanpaolo may need behavioral remedies to keep its prospective indirect Generali stake purely financial under its proposed MPS takeover, the Italian competition authority's presiden... (more story)

Don’t expect ‘tsunami’ of Towercast-type cases, French and Belgian regulators say

October 23, 2026 | Jean Comte

Europe

Using the antitrust rules to probe M&A deals that have closed is likely to remain an exception, top officials at the French and Belgian competition authorities told a panel on Friday. Both authorities have bee... (more story)

Data Privacy and Security View More

Google wins final approval of $8.25 million class-action child privacy settlement

October 23, 2026

North America

MLex Summary: A federal judge has granted final approval for Google's $8.25 million settlement resolving claims that Google and AdMob collected personal information from children under 13 through Google Play a... (more story)

Meta’s multi-billion US bills weaken Trump's broadside against EU tech fines

October 23, 2026 | Lewis Crofts and Matthew Newman

Europe, North America

President Donald Trump's argument that EU technology enforcement amounts to taxing successful US companies has become harder to sustain following Meta Platform’s multibillion-dollar legal setbacks at home. Bru... (more story)

Subsea cable providers face tougher security duties, fines under UK plans

October 23, 2026 | Imogen Howse

Europe

Subsea cable providers could face tougher security duties and fines of up to £10 million or 10 percent of qualifying worldwide revenue, whichever is higher, under new UK government proposals. The plans would r... (more story)

Intellectual Property View More

US needs dataset registry for research, licensing, LES president says

October 23, 2026 | Steve Scherer

Asia, North America

The US should establish rules for recording and licensing datasets that support both open research and business applications, Michael Perham, the outgoing president of the Licensing Executives Society in North... (more story)

Meta delays revised terms until Nov. 20 amid EU, UK antitrust complaints

October 23, 2026 | Anna Lauwereys and Lewis Crofts

Europe

Meta Platforms has postponed an update of commercial terms from next week to Nov. 20 following a backlash from publishers, advertisers and activists over provisions they say would give it sweeping rights to us... (more story)

OpenAI, Microsoft's summary judgment arguments fail, US news outlets say

October 23, 2026

North America

MLex summary: News outlets including the New York Times disputed the logic in recent summary judgment motions by OpenAI and Microsoft in pending copyright lawsuits in US District Court for the Southern Distric... (more story)

Financial Crime View More

British pair see £50m in assets frozen under 'unexplained wealth' order

October 23, 2026

Europe

MLex Summary: Two unidentified UK nationals have seen around £50 million of assets, including a yacht and a number of overseas properties, frozen after prosecutors secured an "unexplained wealth order" against... (more story)

Another UK plea deal reprieve for Güralp keeps fraud enforcers’ hands tied

October 23, 2026 | Martin Coyle

Europe

A seismic testing company that's the first to have breached the terms of a UK plea deal was granted a few more weeks to pay its £2 million bill on Thursday, but the UK fraud agency has made it clear that it is... (more story)

Six Annex 1 firms face UK restrictions over money laundering concerns

October 23, 2026

Europe

MLex Summary: Six unregulated UK lenders, known as Annex 1 firms, have had restrictions placed on them after the Financial Conduct Authority raised concerns about their anti-money laundering policies, controls... (more story)

Financial Services View More

Domestic digital infrastructure should be connected or face risks, nonprofit warns

October 23, 2026 | Neil Roland

Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, Middle East, North America

Dozens of countries — including those as diverse as India, the UK, Estonia and Brazil — are successfully developing digital infrastructure that isn't connected with each other, leaving gaps that may pose finan... (more story)

Černaja-Mežmale elected vice-chair of European Banking Authority

October 23, 2026

Europe

MLex Summary: Kristīne Černaja-Mežmale has been elected vice-chair of the European Banking Authority for a two-and-a-half-year term, starting on Nov. 1. The Latvian central bank official will succeed Helmut Et... (more story)

EU derivatives transparency rules published in Official Journal

October 23, 2026

Europe

MLex Summary: EU rules aimed at boosting transparency in exchange-traded and over-the-counter derivatives were published in the bloc’s Official Journal on Friday. The measures revise trade transparency and def... (more story)

Trade View More

As Russian diesel flows to US, EU holds tough line and preps more sanctions

October 23, 2026 | Louis de Briant

Europe

Russia's ability to deliver on its new freedom to deliver diesel to the US remains uncertain amid refinery disruptions and bipartisan opposition in Washington. The agreement also raises questions about how the... (more story)

EU plastics sector is closest to new safeguards, Šefčovič says

October 23, 2026 | Cynthia Kroet

Asia, Europe

The EU's plastics sector is the closest to possible new safeguard measures against surging imports, the trade commissioner said on Friday. Maroš Šefčovič said the European Commission was assessing the legal an... (more story)

US trade court amends prior rulings on South Korean steel after appeals court case

October 23, 2026

North America

MLex Summary: US Court of International Trade Judge Jennifer Choe-Groves has amended prior rulings involving a challenge to the Commerce Department's 2022-2023 review of an antisubsidy review of corrosion-resi... (more story)

State Aid View More

Iberian power-price aid approval survives Spanish manufacturers’ EU appeal

October 22, 2026 | Lewis Crofts and Anna Lauwereys

Europe

Five Spanish industrial manufacturers saw their challenge of a state aid measure for power prices dismissed at the EU top court on Thursday. PGI Spain, Berry Superfos Pamplona, Promens Packaging, RPC Envases a... (more story)

PGI Spain, others, lose appeal over Iberian power at EU top court

October 22, 2026

Europe

MLex Summary: PGI Spain, along with companies including Berry Superfos and RPC Envases, failed to challenge a previous court defeat over a Spanish and Portuguese measure to back the input costs of fossil-fuel ... (more story)

Romanian port pilotage monopoly isn’t state aid, EU court rules

October 22, 2026

Europe

MLex Summary: Romania's decision to reserve mandatory port pilotage services for public entities is not state aid where those services are inseparable from public duties involving maritime safety and environme... (more story)

Energy View More

EU methane reporting requirements delay should be three years, lawmakers agree

October 22, 2026 | Louis de Briant

Europe

Fossil-fuel importers would get three additional years to meet EU methane requirements rather than one year as proposed by the European Commission, under a position adopted by the European Parliament on Thursd... (more story)

‘Be more robust’ to tackle cost of living, UK energy minister urges regulators

October 22, 2026 | Jon Menon

Europe

The UK's energy minister has urged regulators to have a “more robust” approach, as part of broad efforts to tackle the cost of living. The challenge across all the regulators is to be “a bit more intentional,”... (more story)

EU, Vietnam seek closer energy, trade ties, critical raw materials cooperation

October 22, 2026

Asia, Europe

MLex Summary: The EU and Vietnam agreed to deepen cooperation on energy, trade and critical raw materials, following talks in Brussels on Thursday between Vietnamese President Tô Lâm, European Commission Presi... (more story)

Technology View More

UK plans new route for SMEs to flag regulatory barriers

October 23, 2026

Europe

MLex Summary: Small and medium-sized UK businesses will get dedicated regulatory support, under plans published by the UK government on Friday. A new website will initially connect businesses with existing ser... (more story)

Online platforms face gap between new UK extreme porn duties and enforcement

October 23, 2026 | Patricia Figueiredo

Europe

Online platforms face new UK duties to tackle extreme pornography from Nov. 6, but regulator Ofcom has yet to announce a consultation timetable to be able to enforce the requirements. The new Online Safety Act... (more story)

Google, Meta, TikTok, X among companies invoiced for UK online safety fees

October 23, 2026

Europe

MLex Summary: Google, Meta Platforms, TikTok and X are among 45 companies that have been invoiced for UK online safety fees for the 2026/27 charging year, according to a list published on Friday by the communi... (more story)