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FTC’s Scrutiny of Non-Compete Agreements Provides Key Lessons for Businesses
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August 3, 2026
FTC’s Scrutiny of Non-Compete Agreements Provides Key Lessons for Businesses
By: Jordan Briggs
Recently, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced it finalized a consent order with pest control company Rollins, Inc. that requires Rollins to stop enforcing its existing non-compete agreements with over 18,000 employees.[1] This consent order signals that although the FTC stopped pursuing an outright ban on employee non-compete agreements,[2] the agency is still poised to limit the anticompetitive effects of these non-competes. The Rollins Complaint gives insight into certain common non-compete pitfalls to avoid. Non-compete agreements are a relatively common tool used by companies in specialized industries to minimize the harm to the company if an employee joins a competitor. These agreements allow the company to restrict an employee’s ability to work for or start a competing business after leaving…
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Ready, Set, Go: More States Adopt Privacy Laws
July 15, 2026
Ready, Set, Go: More States Adopt Privacy Laws
By: Nicole Kardell
Note the below chart was updated on July 15, 2026 to reflect recent developments. The number of U.S. states that have adopted privacy laws grows regularly. Fortunately, there seems to be quite a bit of crossover, at least when it comes to thresholds that companies must meet in order to trigger compliance requirements. We provide below a chart that summarizes these thresholds by state, including…
From Paper to Blockchain: How Tokenized Collateral Could Transform Finance
July 1, 2026
From Paper to Blockchain: How Tokenized Collateral Could Transform Finance
By: John Mikuta
Our financial system is on the verge of a groundbreaking transformation that could rival the shift from film to digital photography. Just as smartphones made it instantaneous to capture and share pictures, blockchain-based tokenization of traditional assets could make financial transactions just as seamless. Even though we are now over a quarter of the way through the 21st century, today’s financial infrastructure hasn’t caught up…
Deadline Fast Approaches for Final DMCA Registration
November 7, 2017
Deadline Fast Approaches for Final DMCA Registration
By: Steven Eichorn
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) provides a safe harbor from copyright infringement liability for online service providers. While not a particularly famous law, it is a critical law because it enables websites to accommodate user-generated content without being concerned for copyright infringement claims by hosting that content. However, in order to preserve their safe harbor qualification, online service providers must submit an online registration…
Congress Saves Consumer Arbitration
October 25, 2017
Congress Saves Consumer Arbitration
By: Ifrah Law
In July 2017, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (“CPFB”) announced a new rule broadly barring arbitration provisions in a wide swath of consumer contracts. See 12 CFR part 1040. To go into effect next Spring, the final rule would have prohibited providers of certain consumer financial products and services from using an agreement with a consumer that provides for arbitration of any future dispute…
GDPR D-Day: If Not Prepared, It Could Cost You Europe
September 26, 2017
GDPR D-Day: If Not Prepared, It Could Cost You Europe
By: Nicole Kardell
GDPR D-Day: May 25, 2018. If you are not prepared, the results could cost you Europe. In the U.S., we’ve had a pretty business-friendly approach to consumer data protection. And while federal and state authorities have their respective consumer protection laws, there is no single federal law that clearly defines U.S. policy on how consumer data may be collected and used. Businesses have come to…
A Giant Demanding Piece of … Restrictiveness: Do you need to pay attention to the coming GDPR?
August 28, 2017
A Giant Demanding Piece of … Restrictiveness: Do you need to pay attention to the coming GDPR?
By: Nicole Kardell
GDPR. If you see those letters and think it is an acronym for Gosh Darned Pain in the Rear (or an edgier equivalent) you are in large-part correct. But if you don’t know any more than that, and you are a company with any ties to Europe, then you need to read further. GDPR, the General Data Protection Regulation, is an extensive and broad-reaching regulation…
ICOs: Proceed with Caution
July 25, 2017
ICOs: Proceed with Caution
By: Steven Eichorn
Today, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued an investor bulletin and an investigative report. The investigative report found that companies involved in sales of digital assets via distributed ledger or blockchain technology may be engaged in conduct subject to federal securities laws. While this report is the first of its kind to address initial coin offerings (“ICO”) or token sales and securities regulation, companies…
