Troutman Pepper State Attorneys General Monitor — December 19, 2024

State attorneys general increasingly impact businesses in all industries. Our nationally recognized state AG team has been trusted by clients for 20 years to navigate their most complicated state AG investigations and enforcement actions.

State Attorneys General Monitor analyzes regulatory actions by state AGs and other state administrative agencies throughout the nation. Contributors to this newsletter and related blog include attorneys experienced in regulatory enforcement, litigation, and compliance.

Contact our State AG Team at StateAG@troutman.com.

Podcast Updates

The 12 Days of Regulatory Insights

We are excited to share our special holiday series, “The 12 Days of Regulatory Insights,” as part of our Regulatory Oversight podcast. This 12-part series covers a variety of critical regulatory topics, offering concise and insightful discussions from members of our Regulatory Investigations, Strategy + Enforcement practice group and State Attorneys General team. We feature guest commentary from several esteemed colleagues across various areas of the firms, as well as attorneys from Locke Lord.

Latest episodes:

• 12 Days of Regulatory Insights: Day 6 – Regulatory Shifts in Consumer Financial Services

• 12 Days of Regulatory Insights: Day 7 – New Rules in Advertising

• 12 Days of Regulatory Insights: Day 8 – Inside the Texas AG’s Office

• 12 Days of Regulatory Insights: Day 9 – Trends in the Tobacco Industry

• 12 Days of Regulatory Insights: Day 10 – Understanding Local Government Dynamics

State AG Updates

Eighteen State AGs and DeFi Education Fund Sue SEC for Approach to Digital Asset Regulation

By Troutman Pepper State Attorneys General Team

On November 14, a coalition of 18 states, led by Utah Attorney General (AG) Sean Reyes, the outgoing chairman of the Republican AGs Association, filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and its chair, Gary Gensler. DeFi Education Fund, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, also joined the states in this legal action. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, challenges the SEC’s regulatory approach toward digital assets, asserting that the agency has overstepped its authority and infringed upon state sovereignty.

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AGs Take Action Regarding Medicaid Fraud

By Troutman Pepper State Attorneys General Team and Nick Gouverneur

This month, two attorneys general (AGs) have settled False Claims Act investigations with two separate companies in the health care industry. Both settlements were notable in their own right.

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Two Courts Block Kroger-Albertsons Merger

By Barbara Sicalides and Julian Weiss

Within hours of each other, an Oregon federal district court followed by a Washington state court enjoined the $24.6 billion merger of the Kroger and Albertsons grocery chains. The Oregon court adopted the controversial 2023 Merger Guidelines’ market concentration presumption and largely accepted the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) and its expert’s arguments for a narrow grocery market. In a loss for the FTC, the Oregon court declined to find that the proposed transaction was likely to substantially harm competition in the labor market alleged.

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AG Of the Week

Matthew Platkin, New Jersey

Matthew J. Platkin was appointed by Governor Phil Murphy to serve as the state’s 62nd attorney general (AG) on February 3, 2022, and confirmed to that role with bipartisan support by the New Jersey Senate on September 29, 2022.

Before becoming AG, Platkin served as chief counsel to Murphy from January 2018 to October 2020. As chief counsel, he oversaw an office of attorneys that advised the governor on all legal matters, including legislation, executive orders, administrative regulations, and litigation.

In addition to his work in public service, Platkin also worked in private practice, having served as a partner at Lowenstein Sandler in the White-Collar Criminal Defense and Business Litigation practice groups.

Previously, he worked as an associate at Debevoise & Plimpton in New York City, where he focused on internal investigations and civil and criminal matters before the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, the U.S. Department of Justice, the New York Department of Financial Services, and various regulatory agencies.

Before law school, Platkin began his career as a policy advisor at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., working with members of Congress on job growth and economic recovery. He also served as an organizer in San Antonio, TX.

Platkin was born and raised in New Jersey, grew up in Morris County, and graduated from Madison High School. He received his bachelor’s degree from Stanford University, and his J.D. from Stanford Law School, where he was an editor of the Stanford Law Review.

He lives in Montclair with his wife, Sophia, and children, Robert and Maya.

New Jersey AG in the News:

• On December 17, Platkin and the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development jointly announced a $300,000 settlement with a newspaper delivery company that misclassified its workers as independent contractors instead of employees.

• On December 16, Platkin shared the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement’s November total gaming revenue results.

• On December 10, Platkin announced the director of the Division of Law, Michael T.G. Long, is returning to private practice and Deputy Director Michael C. Walters will become acting director.

Upcoming AG Events

• January: RAGA | Winter National Meeting | Austin, TX

• February: DAGA | Los Angeles Policy Conference | Los Angeles, CA

• February: RAGA | Victory Fund Ski Retreat | Big Sky, MT

For more on upcoming AG Events, click here.