Regulatory Compliance & Legal Risk Management

Regulatory compliance and risk management for technology companies — FTC enforcement, state regulators, sector-specific frameworks, and the operational systems that turn compliance into competitive advantage.

Practice Transitions

Selling Your Law Practice: Model Rule 1.17 Ethics Requirements Explained

Selling a law practice under ABA Model Rule 1.17 requires written client notice, licensed purchaser, no fee increases, and liability insurance. Texas rules differ — here's what solo and small-firm attorneys need to know.

Hardware Founders

Right-to-Repair Compliance for Hardware Startups: What Your Connected Device Company Must Provide Under New State Laws

New state right-to-repair laws in NY, CA, MN, and OR require hardware startups selling connected devices to provide parts, tools, firmware, and repair documentation to independent shops — for up to 7 years after discontinuation. Here is what your company must do before first shipment.

Podcasters

Sponsorship Disclosure for Podcasters: What the FTC Actually Requires in Audio

Most podcasters think a line in the show notes covers their sponsorships. The FTC says otherwise: if the ad is spoken, the disclosure must be too. What "clear and conspicuous" means for audio — host-read vs. produced spots, affiliate links, and gifted products.

Podcasters

Defamation Risk for Podcasters: What You Can Say, What Gets You Sued, and What Insurance Covers

The Dominion, Smartmatic, and Alex Jones verdicts are the extreme end — but the same rules apply to any podcaster who states a false fact about a person or company. Opinion vs. fact, public vs. private figures, the republication trap, why Section 230 won't save you, and what media insurance covers.

Regulatory Compliance & Legal Risk Management

Lootbox Compliance for Game Studios: What Regulators in the EU, UK, and US Actually Require

A jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction compliance roadmap for indie game studios shipping games with loot boxes, gacha mechanics, and randomized reward systems — covering Belgium ban, Dutch consumer protection rules, Germany age rating impacts, UK industry-led guidance, and US FTC enforcement.

Privacy Law

AI in EdTech: FERPA, COPPA, and State Student Privacy Laws When Your App Adds AI Features

When your EdTech app adds AI tutoring, grading, or content generation, three regulatory layers apply at once: FERPA, COPPA's updated 2026 rule, and 100+ state student privacy laws restricting profiling and automated decision-making.

Regulatory Compliance & Legal Risk Management

Telehealth Cross-State Licensing Compliance: The 2026 DEA and State Board Roadmap for Health Tech

Health tech founders assume their telehealth platform can operate nationally once the app ships. But every state has its own medical licensing, telehealth registration, and prescribing rules and the DEA controlled-substance telemedicine rules remain in regulatory limbo through 2026.

AI Law

AI Vendor Agreement Clauses: What In-House Counsel Must Negotiate Before Signing

AI vendor contracts shift risk in ways standard SaaS templates don't cover. Five clauses in-house counsel must negotiate: training data, output IP, hallucination liability, model deprecation, and indemnification gaps.

Health Tech

When Your Health App Becomes a Medical Device: FDA SaMD Regulation for AI Health Tech

When does your AI health app become an FDA-regulated medical device? This guide covers SaMD classification triggers, the CDS four-criteria exemption test, 510(k) vs De Novo vs PMA pathways, and the FDA's Predetermined Change Control Plan for adaptive AI models.

Founders

The GPL Trap: How Open-Source Licenses Can Force Your Startup to Open-Source Its Proprietary Code

GPL and AGPL-licensed dependencies can force your startup to publish proprietary source code. Here is how copyleft licenses work and what to do about them.

Game Studios

When Players Build: UGC Legal Compliance for Game Studios

Game studios hosting user-generated content face overlapping obligations under Section 230, DMCA safe harbor, COPPA 2025 amendments, and the EU DSA. Here is the compliance framework.

Founders

The Howey Test for Founders: When Your Token Is a Security

Most founders launching tokens don't have a clear framework for whether they're issuing a security. The Howey test has four prongs, and the SEC has applied each of them to token issuers in ways that would surprise most founders who think 'utility' is the safe word.

Game Studios

Game Engine Licensing After Unity's Runtime Fee: What Your Studio's Legal Exposure Actually Is

Unity's 2023 runtime fee revealed how engine makers can change the rules mid-project. Here's what Unity, Unreal, and Godot terms actually say — and how to evaluate your studio's engine dependency risk.

In-House Counsel

Building an AI Use Policy: What General Counsel Needs to Cover in 2026

Only 37% of organizations have a formal AI governance policy despite 69% suspecting unauthorized employee AI use. Here's the seven components every AI use policy needs, plus how to fold in TRAIGA and EU AI Act obligations.

Founders

Texas Non-Competes: What Employers Can Enforce After Recent Case Law

Texas non-competes are not unenforceable — but they are far more complicated than a form clause. This guide breaks down what the Texas Covenants Not to Compete Act actually requires, what recent case law says about reasonable restrictions, and how to draft agreements that hold up.

Founders

Starting a Business in Texas: Entity Types, Franchise Tax, and Structural Decisions

Texas-based founders who aren't on a VC fundraising path can save time and money by forming here. This guide covers entity types, the franchise tax's $2.65M threshold, operating agreement requirements, and annual compliance obligations.

Founders

Amazon Seller Agreement Red Flags: What You're Actually Agreeing To

Amazon's Business Solutions Agreement has real teeth: 90-day payment holds, perpetual IP licenses, de facto price parity enforcement, and immediate suspension with no appeal outside Amazon. Here's what's buried in the terms you already agreed to.

Founders

FTC Endorsement Rules for Product Sellers: Reviews, Affiliates, and Influencer Campaigns

Most DTC brands know they need disclosures. Fewer know that review gating is a federal violation, that #ad in a bio isn't enough, and that the FTC has levied multi-million-dollar penalties against fashion and beauty brands for exactly these mistakes.

Hardware Founders

FCC Certification and CE Marking for Connected Devices: The Hardware Startup Compliance Roadmap

Most hardware founders don't discover FCC and CE certification requirements until a purchase order is blocked at customs or a retailer won't stock the product. Here's what connected device makers need to know about the certification process, timeline, cost, and how to plan it from day one.

Founders

The State Privacy Law Patchwork in 2026: Which Laws Apply to Your App and What They Require

Twenty states now have active privacy laws. This guide maps which ones apply to your app based on your user base, explains the California/Texas/other enforcement tiers, and covers the five elements every privacy notice must include.

Health Tech

Mental Health App Data Privacy: What Therapy and Wellness Apps Must Do Beyond HIPAA

Most wellness and therapy app founders assume HIPAA is the only privacy framework they need to worry about. It isn't. Mental health data sits under a stricter federal layer, state confidentiality statutes, and FTC enforcement actions that apply even when you're not a covered entity.

Founders

Employee vs. Independent Contractor in 2026: The Tests Every Startup Must Pass Before Classification

The DOL's 2024 rule reinstated a multi-factor economic reality test that puts most startup contractor arrangements under real scrutiny. Here's what the tests actually require and where the misclassification risk is highest.

Founders

At-Will Employment in Texas: The Doctrine, the Exceptions, and the Termination Mistakes That Create Exposure

Texas founders rely on at-will more than the law justifies. This guide covers the five state-law exceptions, federal overlays like the NLRA and FMLA, what employment agreements do to at-will status, and the documentation that limits termination exposure.

Founders

Non-Compete Agreements After the FTC Rule Litigation: What Texas Startups Can Enforce

The FTC’s sweeping non-compete ban is on hold after a Texas federal court enjoined it. While the legal battle continues, Texas has its own enforceable framework—and most startup non-competes still fail it. Here’s what the law actually requires.

Founders

DAO Liability: Are Members Personally Exposed? Lessons from the CFTC's Ooki DAO Enforcement

The CFTC's 2023 judgment against Ooki DAO established that decentralized structures don't prevent regulatory enforcement—and three courts have since confirmed that governance token holders face unlimited personal liability as general partners. Here's what that means for your protocol.