Category Archives: Trump Administration

SEC’s Newest Task Force Takes Cross-Border Aim

by Jina L. Choi, Gabriela Li, David Woodcock, and Emily Rumble

From left to right: Jina L. Choi, Gabriela Li, David Woodcock, and Emily Rumble (photos courtesy of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP)

In line with the Trump Administration’s America First Investment Policy and perhaps in response to entreaties from Congress and state regulators to protect the U.S. capital markets from unscrupulous foreign actors, the SEC announced the formation of a Cross-Border Task Force within its Division of Enforcement on September 5, 2025.[1] The task force will focus on investigating foreign-based issuers for potential market manipulation, such as pump-and-dump and ramp-and-dump schemes, and will increase scrutiny of gatekeepers, particularly auditors and underwriters, who help foreign issuers access the U.S. capital markets. The statement notably singles out China as a jurisdiction where governmental control and other factors pose unique investor risks.

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DOJ Announces First FCPA Enforcement Activity After Months-Long Pause

by Kimberly A. Parker, Jay Holtmeier, Erin G.H. Sloane, and Christopher Cestaro

Left to Right: Kimberly A. Parker, Jay Holtmeier, Erin G.H. Sloane, and Christopher Cestaro (photos courtesy of WilmerHale)

Over the past week, the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) unsealed its first Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) enforcement action and issued its first declination since the pause in FCPA enforcement mandated by President Donald Trump’s February 10, 2025 Executive Order (“February Executive Order”)[1] and the subsequent issuance of updated FCPA enforcement guidelines, the Guidelines for Investigations and Enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) (“June Guidelines”).[2]

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White House’s AI Action Plan: Winning the Race in a Patchwork Regulatory Era

By Joshua Ashley Klayman, Ieuan Jolly, Jeffrey Cohen, and Caitlin Potratz Metcalf

Left to right: Joshua Ashley Klayman, Ieuan Jolly, Jeffrey Cohen, and Caitlin Potratz Metcalf (photos courtesy of Linklaters)

On July 23, 2025, the White House published Winning the AI Race: America’s AI Action Plan (the AI Action Plan), a comprehensive effort aimed to solidify United States leadership in artificial intelligence. The AI Action Plan acknowledges the U.S.’ uniquely complex—and, at times, conflicting—regulatory landscape, including the patchwork of state-level laws that impact innovation, compliance, and policy predictability. The Action Plan calls for national leadership and seeks a unified, pro-innovation regulatory approach, with an understanding that states will continue to develop their own laws. Businesses should prepare for both the opportunities and the compliance challenges that will arise as the Action Plan is implemented.

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Antitrust Insights from the Administration’s First Six Months

by Ilene Knable Gotts, Nelson O. Fitts, Damian G. Didden, Christina C. Ma, and Emily E. Samra

Left to right: Ilene Knable Gotts, Nelson O. Fitts, Damian G. Didden, Christina C. Ma, and Emily E. Samra (photos courtesy of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz)

As predicted, antitrust merger enforcement under the second Trump Administration exhibits a return to a more restrained approach at both the Federal Trade Commission and the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice. Most refreshingly, the agencies appear committed to good faith engagement with merging parties. The FTC lifted its four-year “temporary” suspension of early terminations of the HSR waiting period, and a senior Division official recently stated that the DOJ will “not send ‘scarlet’ letters warning parties that they ‘close at their own risk’”—a practice adopted under the prior administration. In recent orders, the FTC highlighted the importance of Commission staff and merging parties working together in “good faith” during merger reviews. In public statements, both the FTC and DOJ have eschewed “turning the HSR review into an extortion racket.” These commitments reflect a welcome return to established patterns of antitrust practice, where proactive engagement with regulators can lead to efficient outcomes for lawful transactions.

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Whistleblowers Receive New Pathway for Reporting as DOJ Announces Antitrust Whistleblower Reward Program

by Max Rodriguez and Bianca Beam

Left to right: Max Rodriguez and Bianca Beam (photos courtesy of Law Office of Max Rodriguez PLLC)

As discussed in a prior post,[1] last year the Department of Justice announced new pilot programs for whistleblowers in the following U.S. Attorney’s Offices: the Southern District of New York[2]; Eastern District of New York[3]; Northern District of California[4]; Central District of California[5]; District of New Jersey[6]; District of Columbia[7]; Southern District of Texas[8]; Northern District of Illinois[9]; Southern District of Florida[10]; Eastern District of Virginia[11]; and the Western District of Virginia.[12]

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The AI Whistleblower Protection Act Is Critical for Enhancing Corporate Compliance

by Stephen M. Kohn and Sophie Luskin

Stephen Kohn and Sophie Luskin (photos courtesy of authors)

On May 15, 2025, Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) introduced the bipartisan AI Whistleblower Protection Act (AIWPA). Co-sponsored by senators Chris Coons (D-DE), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Brian Schatz (D-HI), it creates clear channels for AI industry employees to make lawful disclosures about safety issues with protections from retaliation.

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DOJ Civil Division Prioritizes Illegal DEI

by Jennifer Loeb, Austin Evers, Grace Bruce, and Young Park

From left to right: Jennifer Loeb, Austin Evers, Grace Bruce, and Young Park (photos courtesy of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP)

Combatting “illegal” Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) remains a “Day One” priority in Washington. President Trump issued executive orders on DEI on his first day in office. Attorney General Bondi likewise issued her own memos on her first day at the Department of Justice. And now, the new head of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division has followed suit and issued his own memo on his first day, marking DEI-related topics as two of the Division’s top five priorities. This is yet another indicator that the administration appears to be shifting into the enforcement phase of its DEI reset. Health care and life sciences companies have particular reason to take note.

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Board Priorities in a Geopolitical Landscape: Risk, Compliance, and Supply Chain Resilience

This post comes from a webinar with Bets Lillo, Edward Knight, Will A. Clarke, and Jana del-Cerro delivered on May 22, 2025. They offered a clear-eyed view of how boards and executive management must adapt to effectively lead amid a world where national security, economic policy, and supply chain resilience are deeply intertwined. Five key takeaways from their discussion are outlined below, alongside practical implications for boardroom oversight and planning.

From left to right: Bets Lillo, Edward Knight, Will A. Clarke, and Jana del-Cerro (photos courtesy of authors).

As the impact of global interdependencies becomes increasingly complex, boards and executive management are guiding and governing their companies in an unpredictable environment. That was the central theme of the recent May 2025 webinar, Geopolitical Issues Impacting Global Supply Chains and National Security, hosted by the Nasdaq Center for Board Excellence and the Program on Corporate Compliance and Enforcement at NYU School of Law.

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Supreme Court Rejects Heightened Test for “Reverse Discrimination” Claims Under Title VII

by Matthew M. Yelovich, Jennifer Kennedy Park, Christopher R. Kavanaugh, and Ethan Singer

From left to right: Matthew M. Yelovich, Jennifer Kennedy Park, Christopher R. Kavanaugh, and Ethan Singer (photos courtesy of Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP)

On June 5, 2025, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services that plaintiffs who belong to a majority group do not face a heightened burden to establish a disparate treatment claim under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”). The Court’s holding resolves a significant circuit split and affirms that Title VII’s protections apply equally to all individuals. This decision arrives as the Trump Administration has launched significant new initiatives to bring Title VII and civil rights investigations and claims against employers with diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DEI”) programs that the Administration views as unlawful. In light of this decision and the various DEI-related Executive Orders, employers should consider the following:

Employers should continue to carefully scrutinize human resource related programs that consider demographic characteristics in any way.
Employers should review their whistleblower programs, policies, and practices to ensure they are robust around discrimination-related issues.
Notably, the Ames decision considered a disparate treatment claim, and the Administration has ordered the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) and other agencies to cease pursuing disparate impact investigations and claims.[1]

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DOJ Announces Civil Rights Fraud Initiative: Department Will Seek To Use The False Claims Act To Enforce Civil Rights Laws Against Universities And Government Contractors

by Debo P. Adegbile, Christopher Babbitt, Brian Boynton, Lisa Brown, Kevin Lamb, and Brenda E. Lee

Top left to right: Debo P. Adegibile, Christopher Babbitt, Brian Boynton, Lisa Brown, Kevin Lamb, Brenda E. Lee (photos courtesy of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP)

On May 19, 2025, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced a new Civil Rights Fraud Initiative within the Department of Justice to “utilize the False Claims Act to investigate and, as appropriate, pursue claims against any recipient of federal funds that knowingly violates federal civil rights laws.”

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