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The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) released a shutdown plan dated September 29, 2025, outlining how it will operate during this lapse in appropriations.

FTC Commissioners are presidential appointees and are excepted from furlough during the shutdown. According to the shutdown plan, furloughs will be issued on a rolling basis for…

The rapid expansion of biometric technologies in sports has created both significant opportunities and complex legal challenges. The proliferation of wearable devices and data collection tools has ushered in what amounts to a “gold rush” for athletes, teams, universities, and companies seeking to use or commercialize biometric data. Heart rate variability, fatigue indicators, movement efficiency, and other performance metrics are increasingly captured in real time and treated as valuable commercial assets.

The California legislature’s efforts to streamline the discovery process, promote transparency and fairness in civil proceedings, and reduce discovery abuse began in 2019, when California Code of Civil Procedure (C.C.P.) § 2016.090 was amended to provide for initial disclosures, but only if the parties stipulated to such an exchange. Unsurprisingly, the rule change had little impact, as very few parties agreed to make the exchange. In 2023, legislation was passed to make the exchange potentially involuntary—now every party to the action must make initial disclosures so long as any other party demands them. 

The forum defendant rule normally bars removing a state case to federal court when there is a forum defendant, even if the parties are otherwise diverse. A rarely-used method is the exception to this rule. Using a procedure called snap removal, defendants can avoid the forum defendant rule by removing before the forum defendant is served.  

On July 9, 2025, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) commenced enforcement of its new Data Security Program (“DSP”) to prevent foreign adversaries from accessing sensitive U.S. data. Created earlier this year, the program seeks to prevent China (including Hong Kong and Macau), Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Venezuela (collectively, the “Countries of Concern”), as well as foreign entities or individuals with significant ties to these nations, from gaining access to U.S. government-related data and certain categories of U.S. sensitive personal data. Importantly, the rules apply “regardless of whether the data is anonymized, pseudonymized, de-identified or encrypted.” According to the DOJ, the threat of foreign adversaries collecting and weaponizing U.S. data had become “increasingly urgent, and ensuring prompt compliance with the DSP’s requirements is critical to addressing the administration’s priorities and stopping the flow of U.S. sensitive personal data and government-related data to countries of concern.” The seriousness of any infraction is reflected in the program’s steep civil and criminal penalties. Violators of the DSP could be subject to fines up to $368,136 per violation, or twice the value of each transaction in violation, whichever is greater. Willful violators could face imprisonment of up to 20 years and a $1 million fine.

Each year, upwards of 100,000 music fans pay up to $599 for the ticket price of weekend-long admission to the Coachella Music and Arts festival outside of Palm Springs, California. In 2025, however, nearly 60% of Coachella’s general admission ticket buyers turned to an increasingly ubiquitous short-term loan service to finance the steep cost of admission: Buy Now, Pay Later (“BNPL”). BNPL financial services typically allow consumers to split purchases into four or fewer interest-free installments, often without a traditional credit check. The organizers of Coachella, for example, partnered with a ticketing provider AXS to provide BNPL options allowing festival attendees to purchase tickets for as little as $49.99 up front with the remaining costs due in installments over the next several months.