Business Law and Corporate Law

International restaurant expansion often generates legal problems before anyone believes there is much legal work to do. A team finds a location and negotiates the lease before confirming that the hours, the liquor service, and the patio are permitted at that address. An executive chef flies in to train the kitchen on a visitor stamp.

On July 9, 2026, the United States District Court for the Central District of California issued its decision in So Cal Storage, LLC et al. v. UNITS Franchising Group, Inc., 2026 WL 2045621 (C.D. Cal. July 9, 2026), granting a franchisor's motion to dismiss the franchisees’ claims arising from alleged misrepresentations, software failures, vendor restrictions, and misuse of advertising fund contributions.

Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of Arthur M. Blank Sports and Entertainment, Nick Brown, discusses his transition from private practice to the business side of sports, sharing insights on overseeing operations for an ownership group with franchises spanning multiple professional leagues. The conversation explores the skills that shaped his career, the unique challenges of working in a multi-team sports organization, and the evolving legal and business landscape of professional sports.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed Regulation Crypto Assets, establishing tailored registration exemptions and disclosure requirements for crypto asset offerings involving investment contracts. This landmark rulemaking creates two new exemptions—a Startup Exemption for offerings up to $5 million and a Fundraising Exemption for offerings up to $75 million—while introducing a conditional safe harbor allowing covered investment contracts to cease when essential managerial

The Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed Regulation Crypto Assets, establishing a comprehensive regulatory framework for investment contracts involving crypto assets. This landmark proposal introduces two new exemptions from Securities Act registration requirements—a Startup Exemption for offerings up to $5 million over four years and a Fundraising Exemption for offerings up to $75 million annually—while also providing a conditional safe harbor from the investment contract definition

The Securities and Exchange Commission has submitted three significant draft proposed rules to the White House for review, targeting executive compensation disclosure requirements, proxy solicitation procedures, and shareholder proposal regulations. These proposals signal a potential shift toward streamlining compliance burdens and refocusing disclosure...

Partners Laura Cicirelli and Eric Weiner explore the critical elements founders need to understand when entering their first priced preferred stock financing round. From liquidation preferences and governance rights to founder re-vesting and drag-along provisions, this discussion reveals how these initial equity decisions establish the power dynamics that will shape all future funding rounds.

California is going through a record-breaking venture capital surge, fueled mostly by the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence. Companies based in the state have attracted approximately $366 billion in venture capital since the beginning of 2026, nearly twice California’s previous annual record and more than three times the amount raised by companies in the other 49 states combined, according to PitchBook data reported by The Wall Street Journal.

CF Private Equity President and CEO Mark Hoeing discusses how persistence of returns, disciplined manager selection, and rigorous diligence define success in today's private markets. He shares insights on continuation vehicles, the power law dynamics driving venture capital returns, and identifies founder-owned businesses and AI infrastructure as key sources of future growth.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has submitted three significant draft proposed rules to the White House for review, targeting executive compensation disclosure requirements, proxy solicitation procedures, and shareholder proposal regulations. These proposals signal a potential shift toward streamlining compliance burdens and refocusing disclosure...

The SEC has submitted a comprehensive rule proposal on executive compensation disclosure reform to the White House for review, following a June 2025 roundtable that examined the complexity and effectiveness of current disclosure requirements. Stakeholders debated whether to maintain prescriptive rules or shift toward principles-based disclosure, with particular focus on challenges posed by Dodd-Frank Act requirements including pay versus performance tables, clawback provisions, and CEO pay ratio disclosures

Four major policy developments in 2026 have reshaped the landscape of employee benefits and executive compensation, involving significant regulatory changes from the Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration and the Securities and Exchange Commission. These changes affect 401(k) plan fiduciaries, enforcement priorities, disclosure requirements, and the treatment of Trump accounts under ERISA.