On April 16, 2026, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (the SEC) Office of Mergers and Acquisitions in the Division of Corporation Finance (the Division) issued an exemptive order (the Order) permitting certain tender offers for equity securities to remain open for a minimum of 10 business days rather than the standard 20 business days, subject to strict conditions designed to preserve investor protections.

On March 24, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois decided that federal grantees can challenge grant terminations by the Administration if at the time of termination the grantees were compliant with Administration policies that were in place at the time the grant was awarded, as opposed to new rules or policies subsequently imposed by the Trump Administration. This decision could aid federal contractors and grantees in their legal challenges to the numerous contract and grant terminations, which have occurred since January 2025, based on alleged failure of the contracts or grants to align with or effectuate new Administration programs, policies, goals, and/or priorities, including, but not limited to, those relating to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs and policies. 

On February 24, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) jointly announced that the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago would be a lead prosecutorial partner on the recently launched interagency Trade Fraud Task Force. Originally launched on August 29, 2025, the Trade Fraud Task Force aims to aggressively pursue importers, purchasers, supply chain actors, and other entities engaged in customs fraud, including duty evasion, misclassification of goods, and smuggling of prohibited items. In this article, we evaluate DOJ’s continued commitment to designate substantial resources to its initiative to combat customs and trade fraud.