Retailers are increasingly adopting electronic shelf labels (ESLs) to streamline pricing updates and enhance operational efficiency. ESLs offer quick price adjustments, improved accuracy, and reduced labor. However, concerns about price gouging, demographic-based pricing, and technical glitches have emerged. Lawmakers and regulators are scrutinizing the technology, emphasizing the need for businesses to consider legal risks before deployment.
Over the past week there have been two significant announcements by US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and the US Department of the Treasury with respect to the filing of beneficial ownership information (BOI) reports under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). Based on these announcements, foreign reporting companies should technically continue complying with the BOI requirements, though there will be no consequences for failing to do so until new regulations are issued. As to domestic reporting companies, there should not be any enforcement of the CTA against such companies or consequences if such companies fail to file BOI reports.
The Canadian Competition Bureau (“Bureau”) recently published the Consultation on Artificial Intelligence and Competition: What We Heard (“Report”), which summarizes feedback it received from its 2024 public consultation about how AI is impacting competition in Canada. The Bureau will use the insights from the submissions summarized in the Report to inform how it will protect and promote competition in Canada’s AI market.
On February 10, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order (“Order”) directing a 6-month moratorium on the enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), while the Attorney General revises Department of Justice (DOJ) policies and guidelines governing FCPA enforcement. The Order instructs that these changes be made in the interest of promoting US companies’ ability to compete in foreign markets. While the Order introduces uncertainty for the future of FCPA enforcement, companies are advised to stay the course on compliance and exercise caution when considering any shifts in compliance practices and resourcing in the near term.
A Legal Tightrope for Government Contractors In brief President Trump’s Executive Order 14173 calls for the elimination of…
A recent memorandum from Attorney General Pam Bondi signals a potential shift in the Department of Justice’s FCPA enforcement priorities. According to the memorandum, FCPA enforcement should prioritize foreign bribery linked to Cartels and Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs), potentially altering the landscape of white-collar corporate enforcement. While traditional FCPA cases will likely continue, the new directive grants local US Attorneys’ Offices greater latitude in conducting FCPA investigations touching on Cartels and TCOs.
The new premerger filing form and rules for complying with the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act (HSR Act) are now effective. While a legal challenge to the changes remains pending, any revisions or recissions by a federal court or the Trump Administration’s Federal Trade Commission or Antitrust Division leadership have not stopped today’s implementation.
As such, parties to all M&A transactions that require an HSR Act filing must use the new notification forms, which require the submission of substantially more information and documents. Parties should be prepared to spend additional time and to incur increased costs associated with HSR Act compliance.
In the first two days of his presidency, President Trump signed a series of executive orders aimed at dismantling diversity programs across the federal government, revoking longstanding DEI and affirmative action requirements for federal contractors, and directing public and private entities to end policies that constitute “illegal DEI discrimination”.
President Trump has taken quick action to ramp up immigration enforcement in his first days in office. While Trump’s early focus on deportations and border security is not new, the swift and aggressive enforcement approach represents a significant change as compared to prior administrations. These actions have led to arrests and heightened concerns among employers and employees alike.
On 23 January 2025, the US Supreme Court granted the US government’s application to end the nationwide preliminary injunction against enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) issued by the District Court in Top Cop Shop on 3 December 2024. This injunction is currently on appeal with the Fifth Circuit. However, a separate nationwide order that also stayed the CTA beneficial owner reporting deadline remains in place. This order was issued by a different federal judge in Smith v. US on 7 January 2025.