Hunton Retail Law Resource

The California Consumer Privacy Act continues to drive significant enforcement activity—particularly when minors’ data is involved. In a recent action, the California Privacy Protection Agency imposed a $1.1 million fine on youth sports platform PlayOn Sports for alleged violations involving student data and inadequate opt-out mechanisms. The case highlights growing regulatory scrutiny around how companies collect, share, and provide transparency about personal information—especially when schools and students are involved. 

The post-COVID real estate market has seen a surge in luxury gyms and fitness spaces.  Members are willing to shell out several hundred dollars a month for memberships at popular high-end fitness chains. These modern luxury gyms offer more than just workout spaces.  Many offer holistic lifestyle services such as spas, hair salons, social amenities, co-working spaces, and daycare. These luxury gyms are gaining larger footprints and emerging as a unique retail asset.

The results are in: attorneys are filing more employment law cases in court.  Indeed, year-end reporting from legal databases like LexMachina confirm that the pace of filing new employment discrimination cases reached its highest level in 2025, surpassing 20,000 new filings nationwide.  Though overtime and minimum wage lawsuits under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) have continued to decline since 2015, discrimination cases under laws like Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disabilities Act are on the rise.

For years, the cost to mint a penny has exceeded its face value. In February 2025, President Trump instructed the U.S. Mint to cease penny production, calling the practice “wasteful” considering its cost. In May, the U.S. Mint confirmed that it placed its last order of pennies, which were minted in June. Although pennies remained in circulation, the Federal Reserve then began ceasing mechanisms to distribute pennies to banks, resulting in widespread shortages across the country. By November, 109 of the Federal Reserve’s 165 currency distribution locations no longer distributed pennies. The penny’s swift cancellation and sudden shortage came without substantive guidance to businesses and banks on how to handle transactions moving forward. Although limited guidance has since been issued, stakeholders remain left with uncertainty and ambiguity about how to comply with the laws amidst the shortage. The penny shortage poses several legal challenges for businesses and banks, who should stay abreast of these issues as the shortage persists.

On February 26, 2026, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) voted to adopt staff’s proposed initial implementing regulations for California’s climate emissions disclosure and climate‑related financial risk reporting statutes—Senate Bill 253 and Senate Bill 261—both enacted in 2023.

On Feb. 23, 2026, New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the New York Department of Financial Services (“NYDFS”) had published proposed rules implementing the state’s Buy Now, Pay Later (“BNPL”) law.  The proposal would establish the nation’s first comprehensive regulatory framework for the rapidly growing pay-over-time consumer market niche. 

In 2025, California, Massachusetts, New York, and Washington advanced fashion accountability legislation targeting supply chain due diligence and environmental disclosures from major fashion companies. Heading into the 2026 legislative session, most of these bills have lost momentum: California and Washington’s measures are now inactive, Massachusetts’ proposal remains in study with limited prospects, and only New York’s bill is still under committee review. While each state’s legislative process varies, the window for action on these bills in 2026 has largely closed. Businesses should continue to track these developments, as similar proposals could reemerge in 2027.