Who Owns the Airwaves? FCC Compliance and the Fight for Free Expression

Posted on Categories Antitrust, Regulation

The struggle to balance government oversight, corporate power, and free expression has placed the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) at the heart of America’s media debate. The FCC plays a central role in U.S. media regulation, overseeing licensing, national ownership limits, and broadcasters’ statutory “public interest” obligations. The FCC’s national television ownership rule prevents any one company from controlling stations that reach more than 39% of U.S. households. This mandate was designed to ensure that no single corporation could dominate the public airwaves. Yet, as recent events surrounding FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, Nexstar Media Group’s proposed $6.2 billion acquisition of Tegna Inc., and the temporary suspension of Jimmy Kimmel Live reveal, these safeguards are under mounting pressure. What began as a technical question of regulatory compliance has evolved into a broader confrontation over free speech, political influence, and the fragility of democratic guardrails in American broadcasting.
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America’s Fractured Approach to AI Regulation

Posted on Categories Artificial Intelligence, Regulation

Federal efforts to promote artificial intelligence (“AI”) innovation by avoiding comprehensive regulation has prompted state legislatures to fill the regulatory void, creating a fractured regulatory landscape. This threatens the very innovation AI was meant to create in a global race towards general AI. Today’s AI systems are examples of Artificial Narrow Intelligence, trained to perform specific tasks but are unable to operate outside their defined parameters. In contrast, Artificial General Intelligence, or Strong AI, is a theoretical form of AI capable of apply prior knowledge and skills to new contexts, enabling it to learn and perform any intellectual task a human can without additional human training of the underlying models. This pursuit has driven unprecedented investment, technology corporations have poured billions of dollars into AI capital expenditures with this number only continuing to rise. Compliance teams are left scrambling to manage an increasingly complex regulatory environment that is evolving faster than legal departments and regulators can effectively manage.
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Unbalanced Collisions: NFL Concussion Protocols and Ongoing Compliance Challenges

Posted on Categories Sports

The NFL season is back! Fans are buzzing about new uniforms, preseason rankings, and highlight-worthy plays, and there’s plenty to get excited about. Yet amid all the excitement, one issue continues to remain a pressing concern – the health and safety of the players. Football delivers thrills on the field, but the physical toll on athletes often lasts long after the final whistle. This season offers a chance to take a closer look at how far the NFL has come and how much work remains when it comes to protecting its players.
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Large Law Firms v. Small: A Two-Tier Professional Responsibility System

Posted on Categories Ethics

The legal profession has long emphasized a standard of professional responsibility. These rules have been “uniformly” applied to all licensed attorneys in the country. In practice, however, the realities of firm size can create what appears to be a two-tier system of professional responsibility. Large law firms operate under intense regulatory, reputational, and insurance oversight, while small firms and solo practitioners are often equipped with fewer resources which can expose them to disciplinary scrutiny more easily. These dynamics shape the ethical landscape of the legal profession.
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More Life? Or More Death? How Abortion Regulation has Become the Angel of Death

Posted on Categories Journal of Regulatory Compliance, Uncategorized

A US Supreme Court decision that ignited national upheaval and stirred global reactions: the overturn of Roe v. Wade. On June 24, 2022, the decision in Dobbs v. Jackson, eliminated the constitutional right to an abortion and returned the power to regulate abortion to individual states. This ruling ended nearly 50 years of federal protection for abortion rights. Overnight, women and girls lost their right to choose, were stripped of the power to shape their own destinies and suddenly had fewer rights than their mothers before them. This ruling is one of the most fundamental infringes on one’s basic human rights.
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The Regulation of Cosmetics in the U.S.: Where It’s Been and Now Is Headed

Posted on Categories FDA

The cosmetics industry in the U.S. has fallen behind in safety regulations compared to its European counterparts. The European Union has banned roughly 1,300 different ingredients in personal care products while the U.S. has banned merely 11. The last major update to regulations in the U.S. was in 2022 with the Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act (MoCRA). However, there is still work that needs to be done to address the health and safety risks that the cosmetic industry poses. The “Safer Beauty Bill Package” is just one proposed regulation that would majorly alter how personal care products are regulated in the U.S.
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Continuity Across Administrations in Antitrust Law

Posted on Categories Antitrust

In April 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) decided to pursue an antitrust trial against Meta. This conflict was initiated back in 2020 during the Trump administration, which continued throughout Biden’s time in office, and is now being brought to fruition. This case involves the alleged monopoly of social networking services as a result of Meta’s acquisition of Instagram and, more recently, WhatsApp. Regardless of the administration, antitrust agencies remain committed to challenging harmful business practices in the tech sector.
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The IPO of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Could Provide Instability to an Already Weak U.S. Housing Market

Posted on Categories Finance & Banking

Last month, the Trump Administration announced that it is pursuing an initial public offering (IPO) of the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), both of which are currently under government conservatorship and overseen by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). While there is no guarantee that the deal will move forward, President Donald Trump, FHFA Director Bill Plute, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick believe the offering will take place soon, potentially later this year. While boasted as a great deal by the Trump Administration, given the size, risks, and the likely results that will follow the deals commencement, it is more likely to destabilize the mortgage market and further harm the currently sluggish U.S. housing market than to provide any benefit to U.S. citizens.

The Cost of Beauty: Chemical Compliance in Cosmetics

Posted on Categories FDA

Have you ever considered the cost of beauty? The health cost, not the financial one, although both are considerably pricey. A bonded lash, a swipe of nail polish, a hair straightening treatment, and many other cosmetic and personal care products may contain harmful chemicals, including formaldehyde – a colorless carcinogen – or formaldehyde-releasers, like methylene glycol or dimethyl hydantoin (DMDM).
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Navigating the Complex Landscape of Reproductive Healthcare Compliance

Posted on Categories Healthcare Compliance, HIPAA & Health Information

In the constantly evolving field of reproductive healthcare, compliance with regulatory standards is both challenging and vital. As legal frameworks shift and new technologies emerge, healthcare providers, law students, practitioners, and compliance professionals must stay informed to ensure adherence to the law. Several key compliance issues in reproductive healthcare, including privacy concerns raised by biometric technology as it is tied to employers, offer insights into the challenges and strategies for maintaining regulatory compliance.