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Principals Hans Weemaes and Dr. Luke Wainscoat coauthored a whitepaper on the economics of charging consumer fees against the backdrop of cost pressures and regulatory scrutiny over fees in Australia. The authors found that charging a separate fee is not inherently undesirable from an economic perspective.

A new Brattle report finds that prosecutions brought by the DOJ Criminal Fraud Section and SDNY have declined in recent years, while enforcement attention has shifted toward national security, public funds, and consumer protection matters. The report analyzes white-collar enforcement trends from 2016–2025, including: • Changes in corporate and financial fraud prosecutions • The impact of DOJ leadership and staffing shifts • The DOJ’s new “America First” enforcement priorities, introduced in 2025 Authored by Principal Paul Hinton and Senior Associate Dr. Adrienna Huffman, the report offers a data-driven look at how DOJ priorities are reshaping the white-collar enforcement landscape.

In a new report, Brattle experts analyze SEC enforcement activity in the first half of FY26, comparing trends to historical patterns from FY18–FY25. They find that enforcement activity remains well below historical averages, with just 92 actions filed – continuing the sharp slowdown that began in the second half of FY25. Their findings suggest a sustained shift in enforcement priorities under current leadership, including a greater focus on individual accountability.

How are courts responding to challenges to the predominance at the class certification stage? A new Brattle report systematically analyzes federal rulings from 2025 to examine how defendants challenged the fraud-on-the-market presumption of reliance as well as damages – and how courts responded. The report also explores how evolving appellate guidance (including from FirstEnergy) may shape how courts evaluate economic arguments at the class certification stage going forward.