Civil Law

Let’s Talk FCA: Gender-Affirming Care and Anti-DEI Executive Orders

Hosts Jason Crawford and Agustin Orozco are joined by special guests Alice Hall-Partyka and Savanna Williams to discuss the administration’s novel use of the False Claims Act to advance social policy goals. The episode takes a specific look at the issues of gender-affirming care and anti-discrimination laws and discusses the recent announcement of the the new DOJ Division for National Fraud Enforcement. “Let’s Talk FCA” is Crowell & Moring’s podcast covering the latest developments with the False Claims Act.

Click below … Read the rest

Civil Law

Lessons from a Hawaiian Queen about Governance, Public Health and Ambition

On February 28, 2026 I joined a friend to see “Emalani,” a newly commissioned play at Arena Stage, inspired by the life Emm Na’ea Rooke, who became Queen when she married into the Kamehameha royal family, and who became known as a humanitarian, health care crusader, and advocate for native Hawaiians in the years before the United States took over the islands.

I had the good luck to chat with the playwright, Lee Cataluna, before the event started, which … Read the rest

Civil Law

Nothing New and Likely to Be Ineffective: The New Proposed Independent Contractor Rule Issued by the Labor Department

Today the U.S. Department of Labor in the second Trump administration issued a proposed regulation regarding the classification status of independent contractors (ICs). As we noted three days ago in a blog post written in anticipation of the issuance of the proposed new rule, we expected it to be almost a carbon copy of the 2021 regulation issued by the first Trump administration, which was replaced by a 2024 regulation issued by the Biden administration — and it is precisely that, … Read the rest

Civil Law

Upcoming Reporting Requirements for Venture Capital Companies with a Nexus to California

Venture capital companies with a nexus to California should be aware of new reporting requirements that become effective on March 1, 2026.  The reporting requirements stem from California’s Fair Investment Practices by Venture Capital Companies Law, and are intended to help the state gather demographic information about the business in which these venture capital companies invest, as well as data about the size of such investments.

Specifically, the new requirements will apply to venture capital companies meeting the definition of … Read the rest

Civil Law

FDA Continues to Ease Regulatory Hurdles for Wearable Health Products

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently updated two guidance documents applicable to wearable devices and guidance for clinical decision support tools, continuing the agency’s efforts to ease regulatory hurdles for digital health tools and potentially the use of artificial intelligence. The updates expand the type of digital health tools, including certain general wellness wearable devices and clinical decision support software, that are either exempt from medical device requirements or will be subject to enforcement discretion by FDA.

Key … Read the rest

Civil Law

Guest Post: The State of ERISA Fiduciary Litigation in 2025

Justin Bove

In the following guest post, Justin Bove, Chief Revenue Officer and Fiduciary Lead at Encore Fiduciary, reviews and analyses the ERISA fiduciary class action lawsuits filed in 2025. A version of this article previously was published on Encore’s Fid Guru Blog (here). My thanks to Justin for allowing me to publish his article on this site. Here is Justin’s article.

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2025 saw a near-record high 155 fiduciary class lawsuits filed by plaintiff firms alleging violations of ERISA … Read the rest