On May 18, 2023, the United States Supreme Court issued a ruling in Gonzalez v. Google LLC (No. 21-1333), a Ninth Circuit case that the technology industry has followed closely, due to its potential implications for the immunity provided by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, 47 U.S.C. § 230, for platforms that host digital content provided by its users. Since its passage in 1996, Section 230 consistently has shielded platforms from liability for claims relating to user content on a variety of websites and more recently, applications. In its ruling, the Supreme Court declined to address Section 230, thereby providing a favorable outcome for the technology industry because the immunity provided by Section 230, as applied by courts throughout the country, will remain in place.

Atlanta Partner Steven H. Lee recently spoke with Law360 for two articles, each covering current, high-profile criminal matters. The first article discusses a potential affirmative defense that FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) may assert. The second article addresses whether Donald Trump’s personal aide may strike a deal with prosecutors over charges filed against him. 

On June 1, 2023, Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law CS/SB 7052 (the Act), increasing consumer protection and insurer accountability in Florida. The newly enacted and amended statutes under CS/SB 7052 bolster policyholder protections and impose greater insurer oversight, including heightened penalties for insurer misdeeds in the state under a new law that will take effect on July 1, 2023 (this legal alert does not address all of the statutory revisions associated with the Act). As House Speaker Paul Renner noted, “The insurance legislation signed by Governor DeSantis today . . . not only empowers homeowners, but also cultivates market-driven competition, ultimately leading to lower costs.”

The world of name, image, and likeness (NIL) continues to change with forces beyond federal law, state law, or NCAA bylaws: enter the IRS. The Office of the Internal Revenue Service’s Chief Counsel has announced, citing numerous supporting revenue rulings and tax cases, in a non-precedent setting memo that non-profit NIL collectives are not tax exempt because they fail to satisfy IRS regulations.

Fort Lauderdale Partner Sean P. Shecter recently spoke with Law360 for an article titled “5 Evolving White Collar Enforcement Trends To Watch,” which discusses “key trends” in the white collar enforcement arena that are expected to emerge during the second half of 2023. 

New York Partners Nicholas P. Hurzeler and James M. Strauss will present an appellate law webinar, titled “New York General Liability Appellate Updates for June 2023,” on June 27 at 3:00 p.m. ET.

On Wednesday, June 6, 2023, the New York State Senate passed the Amended Grieving Families Act (A6698). The bill will now be sent to Governor Hochul for signature or veto. It is unclear whether the amended bill will alleviate the governor’s concerns that prompted her to veto the original version in January of this year.

On May 16, 2023, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Russian national Mikhail Matveev for his role in launching cyberattacks on U.S. law enforcement, businesses, and critical infrastructure. In addition to his placement on OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list, District Courts in New Jersey and the District of Columbia have unsealed several indictments against Matveev, and the Department of Justice announced that it is offering a $10 million reward for any information that leads to his arrest or conviction.

Reno Partners John Boyden, Brandon Wright, and Sarah Molleck, Las Vegas Partner Joel Schwarz, and Las Vegas Associate Tamara M. Cannella were recently named to Nevada Business Magazine's 2023 list of "Top Rank Attorneys." Formerly known as "Legal Elite," this annual list represents the top talent in the legal industry across the State of Nevada.

Welcome to the inaugural edition of the Lewis Brisbois CyberCapsule. Each month, the CyberCapsule will highlight newsworthy events that occurred during the preceding month.

Last week, the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) General Counsel, Jennifer A. Abruzzo, issued a memorandum to all regional directors, officers-in-charge, and resident officers detailing her position that, except in very limited circumstances, most traditional non-competition agreements violate Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).

Northwest Indiana Managing Partner Renee J. Mortimer will join a panel discussion litigating trucking accident injury claims, hosted by Strafford Publications on July 26 at 1:00 p.m. ET.

Ukraine Conflict Response Practice Chair Andrew Pidgirsky will moderate a webinar, titled “The Russia-Ukraine Conflict: A Legal Review,” on June 28 at 12:00 p.m. CT. He will be joined by speakers Jane C. Luxton, Justin Carl Pfeiffer, Rafael X. Zahralddin, Thomas A. Brooks, and Anastasiya Menshikova.

Atlanta Partner Steven H. Lee recently spoke with Law360 about the recent U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuit filed against Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the country. 

Washington D.C. Partner and Chair of Lewis Brisbois’ SEC Enforcement & Litigation Practice Paul W. Kisslinger recently spoke with Bloomberg Law for an article titled, “SEC Sues Binance and CEO Zhao for Breaking Securities Rules.” The article discusses the lawsuit that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed against the world’s biggest crypto exchange and its CEO.