Laws

• Santa Clara county beweert dat Meta Platforms de wetten van de staat op het gebied van misleidende reclame en oneerlijke zakelijke praktijken heeft geschonden. • De Californische county Santa Clara heeft Meta Platforms aangeklaagd met de bewering dat het bedrijf heeft geprofiteerd van advertenties op Facebook en Instagram die scams promoten, in strijd met de wetgeving van Californië tegen misleidende reclame en oneerlijke zakelijke praktijken. • De rechtszaak – maandag ingediend bij de superieure rechtbank van Santa Clara county namens alle inwoners van Californië – beschuldigt de social mediereus ervan frauduleuze advertenties op wereldwijde schaal te tolereren.

• De rapper, bekend als Ye, moet een bedrag van zes cijfers betalen aan vier eisers die succesvol hebben aangetoond dat hij auteursrechten heeft geschonden. • Kanye West heeft een rechtszaak verloren waarin werd gesteld dat hij inbreuk maakte op het auteursrecht van andere artiesten door een niet-geclearde sample van hun werk te draaien tijdens een live-evenement. • In juli 2021 draaide de artiest, nu wettelijk bekend als Ye, zijn toen nog niet uitgebrachte album Donda voor 40.000 fans tijdens een luisterfeest in het Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

De Cultural Landscape Foundation probeert de vervanging van het 'grijze steen'-uiterlijk van de vijver tegen te houden

• Apple settled a class-action lawsuit for $250 million after accusations of falsely marketing non-existent Apple Intelligence AI features to iPhone owners. • The agreement, detailed in a recent court filing, paves the way for payouts to affected consumers who purchased devices based on the promotions. • This case highlights growing scrutiny on Big Tech's AI hype, potentially impacting how companies advertise emerging technologies amid regulatory pressures.

• Apple will pay $250 million to settle a class action lawsuit accusing the company of failing to deliver its promised AI-powered Siri features on time. • The lawsuit, filed in a U.S. federal court, stems from Apple's 2017 marketing of advanced Siri capabilities that were not released as advertised, affecting millions of iPhone users. • This settlement underscores growing legal scrutiny on Big Tech's AI promises amid delays in product rollouts, potentially setting precedent for similar cases.

• A federal judge in New York dismissed Blake Lively's sexual harassment claims against Justin Baldoni over their roles in the film "It Ends With Us," while preserving a retaliation claim that remains active in the case. • The two sides reached a surprise settlement earlier this week, ending the long-running legal dispute between the actors and production team. • Justin Baldoni was spotted in Nashville this week appearing relaxed and smiling with his wife Emily Baldoni in his first public sighting since the settlement was announced.

Settlement details were not revealed in the agreement that put an end to a highly anticipated trial before it beganSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni have settled their legal dispute from the acrimonious production of their 2024 film It Ends With Us, just weeks before a highly anticipated scheduled trial.In a joint statement on Monday, legal representatives of both parties said: “The end product – the movie It Ends With Us – is a source of pride to all of us who worked to bring it to life. Raising awareness, and making a meaningful impact in the lives of domestic violence survivors – and all survivors – is a goal that we stand behind.” Continue reading...

Exclusive: amid unrest, President William Ruto promised to give all Kenyans access to healthcare. But the algorithm favours the rich, an investigation has found An AI system used to predict how much Kenyans can afford to pay for access to healthcare, has systemically driven up costs for the poor, an investigation has found.The healthcare system being rolled out across the country, a key electoral promise of President William Ruto, was launched in October 2024 and intended to replace Kenya’s decades-old national insurance system. Continue reading...

Watchdog says legal challenges from Consumer Voice and three lenders ‘create fresh uncertainty for millions of consumers’Business live – latest updatesThe UK financial watchdog is facing four legal challenges against its £9.1bn compensation scheme for victims of the motor finance scandal.The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said that it will defend the scheme “robustly” as the “fastest, simplest route for consumers and the most efficient way for firms to put things right”. Continue reading...

EnComm Aviation says the firm’s action has cut off vital support for crisis-hit countries including South Sudan and the DRCBritain’s biggest weapons manufacturer, BAE Systems, is facing a £120m lawsuit after scrapping support for aircraft used to deliver aid to some of the world’s neediest countries.EnComm Aviation, a Kenya-based aid cargo operator, claims the decision forced the cancellation of humanitarian contracts and reduced supplies to South Sudan, now threatened by famine, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), among others. Continue reading...

• A federal judge dismissed a Justice Department lawsuit seeking access to Arizona voter registration data, ruling in favor of the state. • The case involved claims of inaccurate voter rolls, but the court found insufficient evidence to proceed with the Trump administration's demands. • This ruling protects state voter data privacy and may impact ongoing election integrity debates ahead of 2026 midterms.

California regulators settled a lawsuit that claimed a state agency showed political bias against the rocket company and its chief executiveCalifornia regulators apologized to the SpaceX CEO, Elon Musk, this week as they settled a lawsuit that claimed a state agency showed political bias against the rocket company and its chief executive.As part of the settlement, the California Coastal Commission acknowledged its members made “improper” statements about Musk’s political beliefs at a 2024 hearing on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 launch program. Continue reading...

• Maurice 'Mopreme' Shakur, Tupac's stepbrother, filed a wrongful death lawsuit Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court against Duane 'Keffe D' Davis and unnamed defendants involved in the 1996 murder. • The suit claims 'for the first time in nearly 30 years, threads are starting to come together' amid new developments as Davis's first-degree murder trial approaches. • Tupac was fatally shot four times on September 7, 1996, in Las Vegas when a white Cadillac pulled alongside his BMW near MGM Grand and Caesars Palace.

Albanese defends plan forcing Meta, Google and TikTok to make deals with Australian news publishers through a levy The Trump administration has described Australia’s moves to make big tech companies pay for news online as “extortion” but Anthony Albanese defended the plan by saying it was about protecting and rewarding media outlets for the work they produce.Labor’s plan to encourage Meta, Google and TikTok to make deals with Australian news publishers, or face a 2.25% levy, is likely to be supported by the Coalition and Greens in parliament. But a bigger problem may be the ire of Donald Trump, who has strongly opposed extra regulation being imposed on US-based tech companies. A major tech industry lobby group on Wednesday urged the White House to consider retaliatory trade measures. Continue reading...

The NSW premier, who was unequivocal in the wake of the Bondi terror attack, has now linked the fate of his state’s laws with those of the Queensland legal challengeFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe New South Wales premier, Chris Minns, has said he will only ban the slogan “globalise the intifada” if a potential constitutional challenge to a similar ban in Queensland is unsuccessful, the strongest indication yet that the state government may not seek to proscribe the contested phrase at all.Minns was unequivocal about his intention to ban what he described as “hateful, violent rhetoric” following the Bondi terror attack in December, but sent the issue to a parliamentary inquiry, which he said would enable legislation to be introduced when parliament returned in February. Continue reading...

After she had to travel out of state to access care, Rachel Fulton joined the Center for Reproductive Rights’ suit, which an appeal has now halted indefinitelyIt was the worst day of Rachel Fulton’s life. She stood outside her doctor’s office, reeling with the news that her dearly wanted pregnancy needed to end. But her day would, somehow, become even worse: Fulton lives in Tennessee, where abortion is banned except for very narrow threats to the patient’s life. She had to travel hours to another state to receive care from an unfamiliar doctor far from home.Fulton joined a lawsuit, along with five other patients, in 2023 against the state of Tennessee for violating their right to life. The American Medical Association and two doctors also joined the lawsuit because they say they have been prevented from providing the standard of care for their patients. Continue reading...

Trump officials use incident at correspondents’ dinner to pitch case for $400m project, arguing it will be ‘safe space’US politics live – latest updatesThe US Department of J (DoJ) has used the weekend shooting in Washington DC to pressure a preservation group to drop a lawsuit seeking to halt the construction of Donald Trump’s White House ballroom.Several Trump administration officials, including the president, seized on the incident at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner to advance their case for the completion of the controversial $400m project, for which the White House’s East Wing was suddenly demolished, arguing the new ballroom was needed as a “safe space”. Continue reading...

Climate experts and advocates warn House and Senate bills will protect polluters at the cost of the climate Republican lawmakers are attempting to shield big oil from having to pay for its contributions to the climate crisis, alarming environmental advocates.New House and Senate bills, led by Harriet Hageman, a Wyoming representative, and Ted Cruz, a Texas senator, respectively, would give oil and gas companies broad legal immunity from policies and lawsuits aimed at holding the industry accountable for damages caused by its emissions. Continue reading...

Food delivery services say the proposed laws will affect their workers, while shared e-vehicle schemes claim the laws could make them uninsurableFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastLegislation that would crack down on ebikes and e-scooters in Queensland could curtail food delivery services and potentially end shared e-vehicle schemes, industry figures warn.The proposed laws would set an age limit of 16 on ebikes and e-scooters, require users to obtain a driver’s licence, and set a limit of 10km/h on almost all cycle lanes. Continue reading...

Section of state’s electoral act that introduced caps on political donations but carved out an exemption for major parties ruled unconstitutional The high court has ruled Victoria’s political donation laws are unconstitutional, in a move that has been described as “enshrining a level playing field”.The unanimous decision, handed down by Australia’s highest court on Wednesday, struck out an entire section of Victoria’s electoral act that introduced caps on political donations but carved out an exemption for major parties. Continue reading...

Suit alleges the billionaire’s AI company is illegally spewing toxic pollutants from its datacenter in the Memphis areaA new lawsuit accuses Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company of illegally spewing toxic pollutants into the Black neighborhoods on the border of Tennessee and Mississippi.The suit, filed Tuesday in Mississippi federal court, alleges xAI is violating the Clean Air Act due to emissions from its enormous datacenter in Southaven, Mississippi. The plaintiff – storied civil rights group the NAACP, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center – says xAI has been polluting the surrounding historically Black communities by using dozens of methane gas generators without permits. The organization is seeking to force the company to stop operating its unpermitted turbines in Southaven. Continue reading...

TMTG drops defamation claim over report that prosecutors were investigating payments received as possible money launderingDonald Trump’s media corporation has dropped a defamation claim against the Guardian and two other defendants over a report that federal prosecutors were investigating $8m in payments the company received from entities with ties to Vladimir Putin as possible money laundering.A filing in the 12th judicial circuit in Sarasota county, Florida, on Friday confirms that Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG), the parent company of the president’s Truth Social platform, was withdrawing its claims without prejudice, meaning it could refile the lawsuit at a later date. Continue reading...

Judge rules complaint fails to outline malice after Trump argued lewd drawing allegedly sent to Epstein at heart of story was fakeA Florida judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed last summer by Donald Trump over a Wall Street Journal report that he had sent a “bawdy” letter to the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein in 2003, though the judge has given the US president two weeks to re-file the case.Trump, who has had a habit of suing media companies both inside and outside the White House, had argued that a lewd drawing at the heart of the story was fake. The lawsuit was especially notable because one of the defendants was Rupert Murdoch, one of Trump’s top media allies, whose News Corporation media empire owns the Journal. Continue reading...

Human rights lawyers say NDIS workers and their clients remain at risk despite newly bolstered whistleblower protectionsGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastWhen Susan* came across wrongdoing at her disability support provider, she faced a choice.Say nothing, and allow her highly vulnerable clients to be put at serious risk. Continue reading...

• Resistance groups have filed multiple lawsuits targeting President Trump's executive orders early in his second term. • The legal actions focus on policies enacted since his January 20, 2025, inauguration. • This wave of litigation could delay implementation and test judicial responses to executive actions.

The former soldier’s previous defamation trial presents the rare situation of there being hours of evidence of his alleged crimes already on the public record For almost every day of his marathon defamation trial, Ben Roberts-Smith VC, sat in the same spot in the federal court. A chair by the window, bathed in sunshine, from where he could glare at witnesses giving evidence.He sits now in a very different position. Continue reading...

• A New York federal judge dismissed Blake Lively's sexual harassment claims against Justin Baldoni related to the film It Ends With Us on April 3, 2026. • The ruling comes amid ongoing disputes from the movie's production. • This decision impacts Hollywood's #MeToo era accountability efforts.

Abdullah Baig alleged Meta ignored flaws putting billions at risk, but a US judge ruled he lacked sufficient evidenceA US court has dismissed a lawsuit from WhatsApp’s former security chief, who alleged that parent company Meta ignored internal flaws he flagged about the messaging app’s digital defenses.Abdullah Baig, who claims he was fired in retaliation for raising these concerns, had alleged that billions of users had been put at risk because of these vulnerabilities. Thousands of employees could view sensitive user data, including profile photos and location, Baig claimed in the lawsuit filed in September. A judge ruled he had not presented enough evidence to move forward. Continue reading...