The September 2025 issue of ABA Law Practice Magazine has a finance theme. Mark Robertson and I wrote the lead story for it, Value Billing in an Age of Artificial Intelligence. Since AI specifically, and office automation tools generally, impact many aspects of the future of billing for legal services, I’m going to immodestly
Next Signals of TEDAI SF: Capital Raising, Secondaries & Exits
Excited to be co-hosting the next Signals of TEDAI salon in partnership with Obvious Ventures and Canopy on September 17th!Our theme this time around is: “Fueling the Next Wave: From First Raise, to Secondaries and Exits.”This intimate gathering will bring together founders building AI-native companies, investors fueling the next wave of innovation, and operators scaling teams
Business & Legal Developments | September 2025
Friends,In last month’s newsletter, we explored how recent policy shifts and strategic market activity were beginning to restore momentum across the venture landscape, offering early signs of recovery in the innovation economy.This month, we examine two forces testing the boundaries of venture capital (VC): the fundraising challenges facing emerging managers and the growing enthusiasm
State AG News: Consumer Protection, Fraud, AI August 14-20, 2025
Each week, Crowell & Moring’s State Attorneys General team highlights significant actions that State AGs have taken. See our State Attorneys General page for more insights. Below are the updates from August 14-20, 2025:
Illinois
- Attorney General Raoul filed a lawsuit to prevent unlawful federal funding cuts that threaten Illinois’ state energy programs. The litigation
July 2025 Cybersecurity Developments Under the Trump Administration
This is the sixth blog in a series of Covington blogs on cybersecurity policies, executive orders (“EOs”), and other actions of the Trump Administration. The fifth blog is available here and our initial blog is available here. This blog describes key cybersecurity developments that took place in July 2025.
Trump Administration Issues AI Action
July 2025 AI Developments Under the Trump Administration
This is part of an ongoing series of Covington blogs on the AI policies, executive orders, and other actions of the Trump Administration. This blog describes AI actions taken by the Trump Administration in July 2025, and prior articles in this series are available here.
White House Issues AI Action Plan
On July 23,
Will the Late Summer M&A Rebound Continue into Fall?
The lazy days of summer seem to be behind us as merger and acquisition (M&A) activity is getting a jump start. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal cites late July/early August as having “the highest-volume week for mergers and acquisitions for U.S. companies since 2021, according to LSEG.” This is an unexpected,
The Rise of “Acquihiring” in a Post-Layoff Tech Sector
As a practicing M&A attorney representing both strategic acquirers and venture-backed targets, I have had a front row seat to the fundamental transformation of Silicon Valley’s exit landscape. The rise of acquihiring represents more than a market trend, it’s an evolutionary response to capital scarcity, talent wars, and regulatory uncertainty that demands sophisticated legal frameworks
Forging a Modern Strategic Production Base: Senate Proposes Stand-Alone Defense-Production Powers for the Pentagon
The Defense Production Act (DPA) has long been viewed as the primary federal mechanism for managing and supporting defense production. Since it was enacted in September 1950—just months after the Korean War began—the DPA has armed the President with wartime-style powers to prioritize contracts, allocate scarce materials, and finance surge defense production capacity. These DPA
Business & Legal Developments | August 2025
Friends,In last month’s newsletter, we discussed how investor expectations for initial public offerings (IPOs), mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and fundraising were shifting amid heightened volatility, geopolitical tension, and a surprise tax overhaul, signaling a new paradigm for venture capital (VC) in 2025.This month, we explore early signs of recovery in the innovation economy, as recent