Courts Financial News

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.DARIO AMODEI, the boss of Anthropic, says he is sorry. In his first interview since the Pentagon labelled the AI lab a supply-chain risk—the first American company to receive that designation—he offered a mea culpa for the way he handled a crisis that he described as one of the most “disorienting” in Anthropic’s history. Yet he also said he would challenge the Pentagon’s designation in court in order to avoid a “chilling” impact on Anthropic’s business.The Department of War’s designation has come as a heavy blow to Anthropic, one of America’s leading model-makers with a valuation of $380bn.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.A COURT IN Hangzhou, AI capital of China, ruled in late April that companies cannot fire their staff and replace them with artificial intelligence. This may come as a relief to plenty of people in a metropolis that is home to Alibaba, one of Chinese tech’s mightiest titans, with a total payroll of 128,000 employees. It is also good for Hangzhou’s commercial landlords, who have little use for AI agents and are desperate for human desk jockeys.China’s dazzling skylines are worryingly lifeless.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.NEW DELHI: Next week, the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant will start hearing arguments for and against India’s first-ever data privacy law. After five separate public interest litigation petitions filed in February challenged the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, these hearings starting 13 May could determine the future of what companies and government bodies can do with the personal data of 1.4 billion people.Both the Centre and the litigators have deployed batteries of top lawyers.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.MUMBAI: The copyright dispute between the Reliance-Disney joint venture and Zee Entertainment has been referred to mediation after both sides agreed to explore an amicable settlement.Mint has seen the 5 May order passed by Justice Tejas Karia, which stated that “with the consent of the Parties, they are referred to mediation before the Delhi High Court Mediation and Conciliation Centre (DHCMCC), where they shall appear on 20 May”. Both sides have sought the appointment of a senior mediator.Mint’s queries sent to Zee Entertainmentremained unanswered till press time.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.President Trump’s threat to raise tariffs on European cars is a warning for investors and U.S. trading partners that the Iran war hasn’t dissuaded him from his trade agenda or his willingness to strong-arm allies through economic pressure.Trump said Friday that the U.S. would increase tariffs on European cars and trucks to 25% from the 15% level that was agreed to as part of a preliminary trade deal last summer.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.BENGALURU/MUMBAI: Blackstone-owned Mphasis Ltd has filed a lawsuit in a US court against rival Coforge Ltd, accusing the Noida-based IT services firm of hiring its employees in violation of contractual restrictions and gaining access to confidential client information.The Bengaluru-based company, which reported $1.8 billion in revenue last year, has also named its former vice president Brijesh Khergamker as a party in the case filed in a Colorado court.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.India’s securities enforcement framework has long faced a contradiction. Parliament has progressively introduced minimum penalties to strengthen deterrence. At the same time, it has retained broad adjudicatory discretion through mitigating factors.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.New Delhi: The shrill emergency alerts that lit up millions of phones across India on Saturday brings the spotlight on an ongoing legal battle on the award of this critical public safety network project.Germany-headquartered Utimaco Technologies has alleged irregularities in government’s selection of the implementation agency for the cell broadcast system to roll out a nationwide disaster alert mechanism, according to people in the know and a copy of the company's petition seen by Mint.A case on the matter has been pending before the Delhi high court since 2024, with the next hearing slated for 11 May 2026.Utimaco, which owns Israel-based emergency alert solution provider Celltick, said India's decision to assign the project to the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) lacked fairness and transparency. Citing the absence of an open tender, the petition said the move violated the principle of natural justice and fair competition.C-DOT is a research and development wing of the department of telecommunications (DoT).

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.WASHINGTON—The antiabortion lobby expected to be more triumphant by now: A conservative Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Republicans control both chambers of Congress, and the self-styled “most pro-life president in history” again occupies the Oval Office.But abortions are up in the years after the overturning of Roe, and the antiabortion lobby has a new locus for blame.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.A viral narrative on social media last week casts Sam Bankman-Fried as “a genius at picking generational winners.” The figures cited are eye-catching. An 8% stake in Anthropic, acquired for $500 million, is now said to be worth over $30 billion.A $200,000 investment in a tiny AI startup, Cursor, is framed as having grown into a multibillion-dollar stake. Add in Solana, SpaceX, and Robinhood.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.The 2028 Democratic presidential primary race won’t begin in earnest until after November’s midterm elections. But speed dating is already well under way among prospective candidates and major donors on Wall Street and elsewhere.Sen.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.The top private and state-owned defence companies are looking at a ₹15 trillion revenue opportunity over the next five fiscal years, according to brokerage Dam Capital on 27 April, as rising government capital expenditure and an export push combine to reshape the country's arms sector into a global supplier.The windfall is being spread across five big firms, Hindustan Aeronautics, Bharat Electronics, Bharat Dynamics, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders, and Larsen & Toubro's Precision Engineering & Systems division, with exports projected to be over ₹72,000 crore for the period, according to industry projections and company disclosures. Defence exports already hit ₹38,424 crore in FY26, as per defence ministry data, and the government has set a target of ₹50,000 crore by FY29 at a compounded annual growth rate of 9%.The exports are being driven by two key points: increasing localized production of light to heavy artillery, and the latter leading to exports of India-made defence equipment to regions such as West Asia, central and south-east Asia, and Africa as well.This is a change for the country.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Reliance Industries Ltd’s recent sale of a second-level step-down subsidiary to a little-known company may test the limits of regulation on related-party transactions even while technically keeping to the rules, said legal and governance experts.On 13 April, Reliance Retail Ltd sold its subsidiary, Reliance Projects & Property Management Services Ltd (RPPMSL), to Jaipur Enclave Pvt. Ltd for ₹ ₹274 crore, according to a stock exchange filing.The sale consideration is small compared to the scale of the sold unit.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.A public feud that played out on social media for years is now having its day in court. Tech billionaire Elon Musk took the stand this week and described OpenAI as a “stolen charity”, escalating a legal battle that is at the heart of the global artificial intelligence (AI) race.The lawsuit, filed by Musk against OpenAI and its chief executive, Sam Altman, also a billionaire, seeks damages of around $150 billion and challenges the company’s shift from a non-profit research lab to a commercial AI powerhouse.The case comes at a time when OpenAI is updating its guiding principles, reworking key partnerships, and expanding its footprint across cloud platforms.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Two major films – Salman Khan’s Maatrubhumi and Vijay’s Jana Nayagan have been delayed indefinitely over the past few months as political pressures hold off certification and theatrical showcasing, adding to the inventory of unreleased films in India.The former film, previously titled Battle of Galwan, was to have been released in April, and is fighting a China angle as the government softens its stand towards the neighbouring country. Lead actor-turned-politician Vijay’s film was to have been released in January but has faced intense scrutiny and certification issues ahead of assembly elections in Tamil Nadu.Such delays for films have been seen earlier, adding to costs and expenses, disrupting OTT showcasing, and even having to be majorly re-edited or not released at all.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Real estate bankruptcies may be resolved project by project, and healthy projects of stressed builders spared the bankruptcy court, if a top committee's suggestions bear fruit. The two suggestions are among the committee's 155 recommendations aimed to make real estate rescues more efficient, consistent, predictable and effective, two people aware of the matter said.The committee, set up by the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI), recommended that the ministry of corporate affairs, department of financial services and real estate regulatory bodies jointly lay down the framework for project-wise real estate debt resolution.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Kapal Mehra once went head-to-head with Dhirubhai Ambani in the ruthless synthetic textile wars of the 1980s. In a battle fought over polyester yarn and government licences, Mehra would ultimately lose everything.As a serious contender, he should have secured a place in corporate folklore. Instead, remarkably little is known about him today.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.A few days ago, the law firm Sullivan & Cromwell apologized to the chief judge of Manhattan’s US Bankruptcy Court for a court filing with AI-hallucinated citations. Andrew Dietderich, co-head of the firm’s global restructuring group, wrote the judge that the firm’s “comprehensive policies and training requirements governing the use of AI tools” had not been followed. A secondary review process also failed.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Law firms are closely watching a potentially precedent-setting case before India’s bankruptcy courts that could have far-reaching implications for companies dealing with entities facing international sanctions.At the heart of the dispute lies a key question: can companies legitimately withhold payments to a sanctioned supplier, or can the supplier initiate insolvency proceedings over non-payment? Whichever way this question is ultimately settled is likely to reshape bankruptcy disputes in India.The issue has surfaced after the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) Ahmedabad, in a 26 March order, held that foreign sanctions cannot be used as a defence to avoid payment of dues to operational creditors such as suppliers and vendors.The case involves an insolvency plea by Mumbai-based petrochemical supplier CJ Shah & Co. against Flint Group India Pvt.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.If Vedanta’s challenge to lenders’ approval of Adani Enterprises’ ₹15,000-crore resolution plan for Jaiprakash Associates Ltd (JAL) succeeds, it could redefine lenders’ wide powers under the “commercial wisdom” doctrine in the country’s bankruptcy regulation, lawyers said.Lawyers say the Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta's challenge is serious and, if successful, could force lenders to better explain their decisions, especially when choosing a lower-value plan based on factors like upfront cash and faster payments.“If Vedanta succeeds, the case would represent a reconsideration of the commercial wisdom doctrine,” said V. Aneesh, partner at CMS IndusLaw.Vedanta is challenging the committee of creditors' (CoC) approval for Adani’s plan before the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), saying its higher bid was unfairly rejected."Commercial wisdom” is a court-developed legal principle, not expressly defined in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Tata Trusts on Sunday said it plans to amend restrictive clauses that currently limit eligibility for trustee positions at an affiliate trust to Zoroastrians, even as it affirmed confidence in chief executive officer (CEO) Siddharth Sharma. This follows public questions raised by vice chairmen Venu Srinivasan and Vijay Singh, after Sharma asked them if they would consider stepping down as trustees at the affiliate trust.“In order to correct anomalies in the trust deed and to align it with the values that the Tata Trusts have always epitomised, the trustees have decided to adopt proceedings before the appropriate authority for alteration of restrictive clauses in respect of eligibility of trustees.