On September 29, 2025, Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 53, the Transparency in Frontier Artificial Intelligence Act (“the Act”) into law, establishing a regulatory framework for developers of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) systems. The law imposes new transparency, reporting, and risk management requirements on entities developing high-capacity AI models. It is the first of its
USPTO Issues “Reminders” Supporting AI and Software Patenting and instructing Patent Examiners on the Limits of Section 101 Patent Eligibility
PatentNext Summary: The USPTO issued “Reminders” for examiners in Tech Centers 2100/2600/3600 addressing §101 eligibility for software and Artificial Intelligence(AI) / Machine Learning (ML)-related inventions; while not changing the MPEP, the guidance is meant to sharpen examination practice. It clarifies Step 2A, Prong One by limiting “mental process” to what can be practically performed in
Law Firm Ordered to Reimburse $24,000 in Legal Fees for AI Generated Cite Hallucinations
In the ongoing saga of lawyers who are sanctioned for AI generated hallucination citations in pleadings , FIFA (and other defendants) in an antitrust lawsuit filed by the Puerto Rico Soccer League in Puerto Rico, recently obtained an order from Chief U.S. District Judge Raul M. Arias-Marxuach requiring counsel for the plaintiff defunct league to pay
Searching for Civility in U.S. Trademarks
After more than a hundred years of settled U.S. trademark policy, an interesting problem has developed for the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). How to square the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decisions striking down parts of the federal Lanham Act with the USPTO’s historical rejection of immoral, scandalous, or disparaging trademarks? Whether by
A Plain-English Guide to Protecting Your Educational Content
Courses rarely live in one place. A video on your platform, slides in a folder, worksheets in a download, templates you keep improving. If you create a course, you own the rights to the words, images, and structure you made. Registering those rights creates a public record and unlocks stronger remedies if someone reuses your
The Briefing: Anthropic Settles AI Training Case for $1.5 Billion +
The Anthropic settlement shows just how costly copyright missteps can be in AI development. Anthropic has agreed to a $1.5B settlement after a court found that keeping a permanent library of pirated books was not fair use—even though training its AI model on those same works was.
FTC Bureau Director’s Remarks Highlight Approach to Privacy and AI
The National Advertising Division’s (NAD) annual conference continued on Wednesday with further insights from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on its priorities under the Trump administration. Following Commissioner Mark Meador’s keynote earlier in the conference, we also had the opportunity to hear from Christopher Mufarrige, the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection. If you
Technology Lawyer: Software, Data, AI, and Commercial Deals
Technology Lawyer: Software, Data, AI, and Commercial Deals by Elena Rogers
Technology Lawyer: Software, Data, AI, and Commercial Deals
September 17, 2025
If you are leading a technology company as a founder, CEO, department head, or in-house counsel, you know how much of your business moves through contracts. Every software license, cloud service agreement, and
Court Halts Anthropic’s Historic AI Copyright Settlement
Judge William Alsup expressed broad concerns about a proposed $1.5 billion settlement deal between Anthropic PBC and a number of author-plaintiffs, questioning whether the agreement adequately protects class members and Anthropic. At a September 8 preliminary hearing, Judge Alsup denied the parties’ motion for approval without prejudice, later issuing an order postponing approval until more
Law Firms Better Be Ready for Private Equity
Private equity has entered legal services with force. Investors now see law firms not as untouchable guilds but as scalable businesses. Alternative Business Structures (ABS) and Managed Services Organizations (MSOs) open the gates to a whole different world of delivery of legal services to clients. These models dismantle the ban on outside ownership and create