Posts by blrme

By: Sara Galloway The leading legislation on copyright law in the United States, the Copyright Act of 1976, protects “original works of authorship.”[1]  Amidst the current artificial intelligence (“AI”) renaissance, creators are attempting to stretch the boundaries of what qualifies as an author.[2]  In Thaler v. Perlmutter,[3] a computer scientist sought to copyright an image…

By: Gabriel Papadopoulos On Monday, September 29th, President Trump doubled down on an idea he originally suggested in May to place a 100% tariff on foreign-made films to stop the American movie industry from “dying a fast death.”[1] This announcement comes as a response to an increase in American blockbuster films being shot overseas to…

By: Manuel Legaspi On September 4th, 2025, Federal Homeland Security agents brandishing firearms raided a Georgia factory and detained hundreds of workers.[1] This raid has been one of many under the current administration, with federal agents targeting workplaces across the country.[2] These workplace raids have instilled fear into workers and employers, as they threaten the…

By: Rose Soltani The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), joined by several states, recently filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against Ticketmaster and its parent company, Live Nation, for engaging in illegal ticket retail tactics.[1] The lawsuit alleges that Ticketmaster enables large-scale ticket scalping, allowing tickets to go…

By: Nicholas Yun Under 35 U.S.C. § 101, patentable subject matter covers processes, machines, and compositions of matter, while excluding laws of nature, natural phenomena, and abstract ideas.[1] These judicially recognized exceptions have long guided courts and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) in determining what counts as an invention.[2] As AI technology continues…

By: Sarah Elliott On May 5, 2025, President Donald J. Trump signed Executive Order 14,292: Improving the Safety and Security of Biological Research.[1] The order, published in the Federal Register three days later, directed federal agencies to pause or end funding for projects that meet the definition of “dangerous gain-of-function” until new safeguards are in…

By: Guest Author The Ninth Circuit decision in Doe I v. Cisco Systems, Inc.[1] breathed new life into the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”) as a means of holding U.S. companies accountable for human rights violations overseas.[2] The case involves allegations that Cisco Systems assisted the government of China in developing the “Golden Shield,” a network…

By: Jack Di Masi Over the past several years, U.S. merger control has shifted from routine clearance toward a litigation-forward enforcement posture, and that shift has produced a string of high-profile deal defeats and withdrawals.[1] In the 2023 Merger Guidelines, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) formalized an expanded analytic framework…

By: Ryan DePirri The Supreme Court will soon decide whether a president can use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose tariffs.[1] Congress enacted IEEPA in 1977 to allow presidents to act quickly in a true national security or foreign policy crisis.[2] In the past, presidents have mostly used it to freeze assets…

By: Lauren E. Smith In Braham v. National Collegiate Athletic Ass’n,[1] the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada granted a preliminary injunction, allowing a former Junior College (“JUCO”) football player to continue playing Division I (“D1”) football despite the National Collegiate Athletics Association’s (“NCAA”) Five-Year Rule.[2] This dispute unfolds against the backdrop of…