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U.S. oversight of Big Tech financial services is fragmented. The CFPB rule would toughen up supervision, requiring Big Tech to comply with its rules on privacy protections, executives' conduct and unfair and deceptive practices. Without regulatory scrutiny, they could leverage their growing dominance of consumer payments to capture other services like lending and card issuing, analysts said. 'LEG UP'Representatives for Big Tech have accused the CFPB of trying to protect traditional lenders. While Big Tech companies have deep pockets and plenty of resources to handle the new scrutiny, the rule could limit how they use and protect consumer data.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Rohit Chopra, Todd Phillips, Dodd, Frank, It's, Paige Pidano Paridon, Chopra, John Coleman, Hannah Lang, Stephen Nellis, Michelle Price, Richard Chang Organizations: Apple, REUTERS, Wall, Big Tech, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Google, Georgia State University, PayPal, Federal, McKinsey, Bank, BPI, Banks, Representatives, Big, Herrington, Thomson Locations: U.S, Washington

☆ At unicorn startup Carta, a culture of absolute fealty to an erratic and vindictive CEO, employees say
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Darius Rafieyan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +17 min

Both men remained valued employees at Carta, with the sales representative even getting promoted just weeks after the alleged "helicopter penis" incident, according to former employees. CEO Henry Ward cofounded Carta, originally called eShares, in 2012 as a service for startups to digitize their paper stock certificates. Today Carta helps startups track their investors, employees manage their equity awards, and venture capitalists administer their funds. The lawsuit says that 10 days after Rogers filed her complaint, Ward "began treating Ms. Rogers in an aggressive and demeaning manner during several meetings." Many of the employees who have spoken out publicly about Carta and Ward have found themselves embroiled in expensive legal battles.

Persons: Lisa Whittaker, Whittaker, Jerry Talton, David Kim, Andrea Lamari, Kim, Henry Ward, Andreessen Horowitz, Ward, Henry, Alex Kurland, Carta, Peter Thiel, Simon Cowell, Talton's, Suzanne Elovic, Elovic, Lamari, Jeff Perry, Perry, salespeople, JT Goodman, Goodman, Goodman didn't, Jeff Perrry, Allie Rogers, Rogers, Rodgers, Rachel Mayes, Ward doesn't, Mayes, Jeff, Jeff Perry countersued, Orrick Herrington, Sutcliffe, Kleiner Perkins, Ellen Pao, Amanda Sheets, Sheets, Pushback, Lindauer, Whitaker, Whittaker wasn't, Barbara Byrne, Byrne, Talton, Joe Osnoss, Osnoss, Heidi Johnson, Johnson Organizations: Carta, UBS, Gold Club, Lightspeed, California Civil Rights Department, Meritech, YouTube, Win, York Stock Exchange, San, San Francisco Superior, San Francisco Superior Court, Barclays, Lehman Brothers, Montana Human Rights Bureau Locations: San Francisco, Brazil, Silicon Valley, California, Palo, Iranian, Lindauer, Silver, Montana

☆ Ex-Tesla factory worker loses bid for new trial in race bias
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

An aerial view of the Tesla Fremont Factory on May 13, 2020 in Fremont, California. A Black former factory worker for Tesla lost his bid on Wednesday for a third trial in his race discrimination lawsuit against the electric carmaker, after a California federal judge rejected his claims that the company's lawyers had engaged in misconduct and tainted his trial. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission last week, to allege rampant racial harassment at Tesla's flagship Fremont, California assembly plant. The judge ordered the second trial to determine damages after Diaz turned down a lower payout of $15 million. Orrick barred both sides from presenting new evidence or testimony at the second trial, which took place in March.

Persons: Tesla, William Orrick, Owen Diaz, staving, Diaz, baselessly, Orrick Organizations: Tesla Fremont Factory, U.S, Commission Locations: Fremont , California, California, San Francisco, Fremont

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission last week, to allege rampant racial harassment at Tesla's flagship Fremont, California assembly plant. The judge ordered the second trial to determine damages after Diaz turned down a lower payout of $15 million. Tesla and lawyers for Diaz did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Orrick barred both sides from presenting new evidence or testimony at the second trial, which took place in March. Diaz claimed that Tesla's lawyers violated that directive by questioning him and other witnesses about alleged altercations between Diaz and other workers, which had not come up at the first trial.

Persons: Thomas Peter, Tesla, William Orrick, Owen Diaz, staving, Diaz, baselessly, Orrick, Daniel Wiessner, Lisa Shumaker, Alexia Garamfalvi Organizations: REUTERS, U.S, Commission, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, California, San Francisco, Fremont , California, Fremont, Albany , New York

☆ Supreme Court case may gut the CFPB: Consumer watchdog's ‘future is on the line,’ group says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Visitors walk across the U.S. Supreme Court plaza on the first day of the court's new session on Oct. 2, 2023. Bill Clark | Cq-roll Call, Inc. | Getty ImagesWhy the CFPB's funding may be unconstitutionalThe Consumer Financial Protection Bureau headquarters in Washington. Lawmakers created the federal agency to protect consumers from predatory financial practices. The Supreme Court ruled against the agency in a 2020 case, Seila Law v. CFPB, finding part of its structure to be unconstitutional but ultimately keeping the agency intact. Instead, the CFPB's funding isn't authorized by Congress each year.

Persons: Bill Clark, Washington . Samuel Corum, Dodd, Frank, —, John Coleman, Orrick, Coleman, Rohit Chopra, Tom Williams Organizations: U.S, Supreme, Cq, Inc, Getty, Financial, Bloomberg, Lawmakers, U.S ., Appeals, Circuit, Congress, Federal Reserve, 5th Circuit, Congressional Research Service, Mortgage Bankers Association, National Association of Home Builders, National Association of Realtors Locations: Washington .

A logo of Meta Platforms Inc. is seen at its booth, at the Viva Technology conference dedicated to innovation and startups, at Porte de Versailles exhibition center in Paris, France June 17, 2022. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier Acquire Licensing RightsCompanies Meta Platforms Inc FollowSept 8 (Reuters) - A U.S. federal judge said Meta Platforms (META.O) must face a lawsuit claiming that it violated the medical privacy of patients who were treated by hospitals and other healthcare providers that used its Meta Pixel tracking tool. According to the plaintiffs, Meta Pixel provided sensitive information about their health to Meta when they logged into patient portals, where the tracking tool had been installed, enabling Meta to make money from targeted advertising. When the litigation began in June 2020, lawyers for one plaintiff said they had found at least 664 hospitals and other healthcare providers that used Meta Pixel. The case is In re Meta Pixel Healthcare Litigation, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No.

Persons: Benoit Tessier, William Orrick, Meta, Orrick, John Doe, Jane Doe, Jonathan Stempel, Jason Neely Organizations: Meta, Inc, Viva Technology, Porte de, REUTERS, U.S, Facebook, Menlo, Healthcare, Court, Northern District of, Thomson Locations: Porte, Paris, France, San Francisco, California, Menlo Park , California, Northern District, Northern District of California, New York

☆ Norwegian AI startup Strise helps banks tackle financial crime. It just raised a $10.8 million Series A round with this 8-slide pitch deck.
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Norwegian AI startup Strise has raised $10.8 million in Series A funding. Strise will use the funding to expand its operations to the UK, where it plans to open an office. Strise, an AI startup that helps businesses deal with anti-money laundering (AML) and compliance issues, has raised $10.8 million in funding. Strise's Series A funding round was led by Atomico, with participation from existing investors including Maki.vc plus angels like Camilla Giesecke, COO at Klarna, and Riya Grover, CEO at Sequence. Check out Strise's Series A pitch deck below:

Persons: Orrick, It's, Marit Rødevand, Rødevand, Atomico, Camilla Giesecke, Riya Grover Locations: Oslo, Norwegian

☆ Affirmative Action Ruling May Upend Hiring Policies, Too
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Noam Scheiber | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

But “employment decisions are more often individualized decisions,” focusing on the fit between a candidate and a job, she said. The more meaningful effect of the court’s decision is likely to be greater pressure on policies that were already on questionable legal ground. Those could include leadership acceleration programs or internship programs that are open only to members of underrepresented minority groups. For example, a company’s policy may encourage recruiters to seek a more diverse pool of candidates, from which hiring decisions are made without regard to race. That is partly because of the growing attack from the political right on corporate policies aimed at diversity in hiring and other social and environmental goals.

Persons: ” Pauline Kim, Louis, ”, Mike Delikat, ” Mr, Delikat, “, ’ Organizations: Washington University Locations: St

April 26 (Reuters) - With more and more lawyers at major law firms using fast-advancing generative artificial intelligence tools, legal AI startup Harvey said Wednesday that it raised $21 million in fresh investor cash. Sequoia Capital, which is leading the Series A fundraising round, said more than 15,000 law firms are on a waiting list to start using Harvey. The company says it builds custom large language models for law firms. Technology companies and investors have rushed to embrace large language model-based generative AI since Microsoft-backed OpenAI's ChatGPT debuted in November. Casetext in March released its AI legal assistant product, CoCounsel, which uses GPT-4 to speed up tasks like legal research, contract analysis and document review.

A judge agreed with that jury that Tesla was liable but said the award was excessive. He ordered a new trial on damages after Diaz declined the reduced $15 million award. But it could be cut even further because punitive damages are typically capped at no more than nine times the amount of damages for emotional distress and other injuries, Saba said. The punitive damages awarded by the jury on Monday were nearly 20 times the damages for emotional distress. The first jury in 2021 awarded Diaz $7 million in damages for emotional distress and a staggering $130 million in punitive damages.

He opted for a new trial on damages after a judge agreed with that jury that Tesla was liable but significantly reduced the award to $15 million. Tesla and lawyers for Diaz did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the verdict. The first jury in 2021 awarded Diaz $7 million in damages for emotional distress and a staggering $130 million in punitive damages. On Friday, Orrick denied a motion by Diaz's lawyers for a mistrial. Orrick said those questions were related to other incidents discussed in the first trial, and that Diaz's lawyers had not shown that the questioning prejudiced the jury.

☆ Jury orders Tesla to pay more than $3 million to Black ex-worker who endured racist abuse
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Diaz, a Black man, was hired as a contract worker at Tesla in 2015 through a staffing agency. Diaz and Tesla sought a retrial to decide damages after Judge William H. Orrick reduced the amount to $15 million. "No Black man in 2015 should ever be subjected," Alexander said, "to this plantation mentality workplace." The plaintiffs asked the jury to consider punitive damages around $150 million for Tesla, and to award Diaz $6.3 million in past non-economic damages, and $2 million in future non-economic damages. As CNBC has previously reported, where it is legal to do so, Tesla has compelled employees to agree to mandatory arbitration.

U.S. District Judge William Orrick denied the motion during a pretrial conference, saying Diaz had not shown that comments by Tesla's lawyers had prejudiced the jury. A different jury in 2021 found Tesla liable for discrimination, which Orrick had upheld while finding that the $137 million the jury had awarded in damages was excessive. Diaz denied making those comments, and his lawyers claimed that Tesla had violated Orrick's order prohibiting new evidence. Tesla is likely to challenge any verdict awarding damages to Diaz. Tesla has said it does not tolerate discrimination and takes complaints by workers seriously.

☆ Inside a shake-up at the world's 'most feared law firm'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Casey Sullivan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +30 min

It's been a tumultuous period for Quinn and the storied law firm he built over the past 37 years — now the world's largest litigation firm with hourly rates that can be north of $2,000. But behind the scenes, a shift at QE has been the talk of elite law firm circles. Indeed, the firm – known as a singular, even freewheeling, institution that brands itself as the "#1 Most Feared Law Firm in the World" — may appear to be less in the image of its founder as a generational shift brings changes. "We all thought it was important that the world understands this is not a one generation law firm." One former firm partner in California says he believes Quinn's inner circle generally got better deals.

“It made me feel less than a man (and) it made me question my worth,” Diaz said. Diaz rejected the lower payout and opted for a new trial on damages before a different jury. Tesla has maintained that it does not tolerate workplace harassment and takes discrimination complaints seriously. The lawyer testified that while Tesla had adopted adequate anti-bias policies, the company failed to properly investigate and respond to complaints from Diaz and other Black workers. Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York Editing by Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The second day of Tesla's racial bias trial included testimony from a former worker who said he found feces on a factory cart
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

It was part of a retrial for an ex-contractor who filed a racial discrimination lawsuit against Tesla. Wheeler was one of a handful of former Tesla workers that testified on Tuesday regarding their experience as Black workers at Tesla's Fremont factory. Wheeler said that the incident occurred one evening during his night shift at the factory after he took a 30-minute break. Wheeler had testified about the alleged incident in the initial trial in 2021. His complaints echo similar lawsuits from other Tesla factory workers.

Diaz's lawyers rejected the lower payout and opted for a new trial on damages. Alex Spiro, a lawyer for Tesla, told the jury that any racist conduct at the plant was indefensible. As at the last trial, Diaz and several employees and managers at the Fremont plant are expected to testify. U.S. District Judge William Orrick last year reduced the compensatory damages to $1.5 million and the punitive damages to $13.5 million. The U.S. Supreme Court has said punitive damages typically should be no more than 10 times compensatory damages.

Last year, a judge slashed the $137 million verdict that the jury awarded in 2021 to plaintiff Owen Diaz, one of the largest ever in a U.S. workplace discrimination case. Diaz's lawyers rejected the lower payout and opted for a new trial on damages. After the 2021 trial, U.S. District Judge William Orrick agreed with a jury that Tesla was liable for race discrimination but cut the verdict to $15 million. As at the last trial, Diaz and several employees and managers at the Fremont, California plant are expected to testify. Orrick last year reduced the compensatory damages to $1.5 million and the punitive damages to $13.5 million.

☆ Four days of panic: How startup execs navigated SVB's meltdown and prepared for the worst
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Ari Levy | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

A Silicon Valley Bank worker talks with people lining up outside of the bank office on March 13, 2023 in Santa Clara, California. Refreshing GoogleOtter.ai founder and CEO Sam Liang spent Monday driving to SVB branches in Silicon Valley to try and retrieve millions of dollars of his company's money. "I checked Google like 20 times an hour, watched [Treasury Secretary Janet] Yellen talking about not bailing out Silicon Valley Bank." Silicon Valley Bank customers listen as FDIC representatives, left, speak with them before the opening of a branch SVBs headquarters in Santa Clara, California on March 13, 2023. "But at the moment, as long as Silicon Valley Bridge Bank is 100% federally guaranteed, there's no need to diversify.

☆ Meet the top 8 lawyers helping startups patent artificial intelligence and comply with rules on privacy and safety
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

AI startups must secure patents and manage concerns about bias, safety, and security risks. Artificial-intelligence startups are continuing to draw venture-capital support, pulling in some $72 billion in 2022, according to data from PitchBook. For one thing, AI poses questions around the kind of privacy and safety issues that can be subject to regulation and government oversight. Meanwhile, novel uses of AI technology have already brought unusual legal questions up to the courts. That kind of work also often leads to more work for regulatory, litigation and other attorneys with expertise in AI technology, who can advise on procurement contracts, risks involving software, and cybersecurity.

☆ U.S. judge grants preliminary approval to Juul consumer settlement
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 20 (Reuters) - Juul Labs Inc on Friday secured preliminary court approval of a $255 million settlement resolving claims by consumers that it deceptively marketed e-cigarettes, as the company seeks to resolve thousands of lawsuits. U.S. District Judge William Orrick in San Francisco said the proposed class action settlement resolving claims by consumers who said they overpaid for Juul's vaping products was "fair, reasonable, and adequate," according to a court filing. The settlement is part of a larger, global agreement by Juul to resolve thousands of lawsuits by school districts, local governments and individuals accusing it of contributing to a youth vaping epidemic. The company last month said it had reached settlements with about 10,000 plaintiffs covering more than 5,000 cases. It has not said how much it will pay, though the Wall Street Journal reported deal is valued at $1.7 billion.

☆ U.S. judge grants preliminary approval to Juul settlement
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 20 (Reuters) - Juul Labs Inc won preliminary approval of a settlement aimed at ending thousands of lawsuits alleging the company was a major cause of a youth-vaping epidemic in the United States, according to a court filing on Friday. U.S. District Judge William Orrick in San Francisco said Juul's deal to settle almost 10,000 lawsuits filed by local governments across the country seemed to be "fair, reasonable, and adequate." Juul did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The court document provided no details of the terms of the settlement. The company earlier said it had reached settlements with about 10,000 plaintiffs covering more than 5,000 cases in California.

Companies Costco Wholesale Corp FollowJan 17 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Tuesday said Costco Wholesale Corp (COST.O) must face a lawsuit claiming it falsely advertises and labels its canned tuna as "dolphin safe" despite using fishing methods that harm and kill dolphins. The Issaquah, Washington-based retailer said Wright only speculated about the risk to dolphins in tuna she bought, and that it made no promises about dolphin safety beyond using a "dolphin safe" logo on labels. He said this was particularly important because consumers "overwhelmingly" prefer tuna labeled dolphin-safe when given a choice. The case is Wright v Costco Wholesale Corp, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Additional reporting by Mehr Bedi in Bengaluru; Editing by Rosalba O'BrienOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Federal judge denies Tesla's retrial request in case involving worker's claims of racism at factory in Fremont, California
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A federal judge denied Tesla's request for a retrial over the verdict of a case involving a former worker's claims of racism. Last year, a jury determined that Tesla owed Owen Diaz $137 million over allegations of racism at its Fremont factory. US District Judge William H. Orrick halted Tesla's efforts to potentially overturn the racism verdict during a 20-minute motion hearing on Wednesday. Last year, a jury awarded former Tesla elevator operator Owen Diaz $137 million in his lawsuit against Tesla. Diaz was among the first of many Tesla workers at the Fremont factory to file a lawsuit against the company.

☆ As Big Law looks to tech to help draft legal briefs and log billing hours, top firms like Orrick and Shearman & Sterling are using AI to fast-track work on M&A deals
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Top Big Law firms like Shearman & Sterling, White & Case, and Orrick use artificial intelligence. AI tools by companies like Thomson Reuters, Litera, and Evisort are helping firms manage M&A work. Shearman & Sterling uses a wide variety of AI tools for different uses — one of the firm's go-tos for deals due diligence is Kira, a tool owned by Litera, a document-technology company that works with law firms. Even more said that over the next five years, they expected most M&A work at their firms to be supported by AI. The company uses tools such as Brainspace and Relativity, Janet Sullivan, the firm's global director of practice technology, said.

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