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On 22 May 2025, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a Joint Statement of Interest in a lawsuit led by the State of Texas against three large investment companies. The lawsuit, led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, has been joined by 10 other states and accuses the asset managers of using their positions in climate-focused investment initiatives to manipulate coal markets, driving up the cost of energy and resulting in higher energy prices for American consumers. This action, as the DOJ publicly notes, is the first formal statement by the Agencies in federal court on the antitrust implications of common shareholdings

In an era of intensifying geopolitical tensions, companies with operations in the U.S. must navigate an increasingly fragmented and national security-driven regulatory landscape governing cross-border transfers of many different types of data, including personal data and technical information used in R&D and patent filings. The US Department of Justice’s new Data Security Program (DSP) essentially prohibits US persons from making certain volumes of Americans’ personal data available to entities headquartered or residing in China (including Hong Kong and Macau), Russia, Venezuela, Iran, Cuba, or North Korea, or their subsidiaries in other countries, unless an exception applies.

On 12 May 2025 the newly issued Criminal Division White-Collar Enforcement Plan, the Head of the US Department of Justice (DOJ)’s Criminal Division, Matthew R. Galeotti, set out the Department’s priorities for corporate criminal enforcement under the new Administration and issued a number of updated policy documents.
These changes affect the Criminal Division’s Corporate Enforcement and Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy, its policy on the Selection of Monitors (memorialized in the Memorandum on Selection of Monitors in Criminal Division Matters, and the Whistleblower Awards Pilot Program.

On 6 May 2025, the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) announced an enforcement action against clothing designer Todd Snyder, Inc. to pay a fine of USD 345,178 and adopt new practices to resolve violations of the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). The CPPA alleged that the retailer violated the CCPA by: (i) imposing excessive hurdles for consumer requests to opt out of third-party tracking technologies; (ii) failing to honor these requests because of misconfigurations; and (iii) failing to monitor its consent management platform.

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 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.