Rob Bonta

Money Moves

Settled the 12-state antitrust suit September 21, 2026; the judge approved the settlement September 30, clearing the way for the merger to close October 6.

On October 6, Paramount Skydance completed its $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, creating a combined company named Skydance and ending a 13-month bidding war that survived federal and state antitrust challenges. The deal closed after a federal judge approved a settlement with 12 states on September 30, and shares of Skydance began trading on the NYSE under the ticker SKYD.

Updated 3 days ago

Rule Changes

Leading California's October 2 lawsuit challenging the CAFE rollback

The Transportation Department published its final fuel-economy rule on September 28, cutting the 2031 fleetwide target to 34.9 miles per gallon from 50.4 mpg under Biden. The rule resets standards to model year 2022 levels and arrived as average U.S. gas prices sat just under $4.50 a gallon.

Updated 3 days ago

Money Moves

Leads the 12-state coalition suing to block the merger

The Federal Communications Commission approved a plan that lets the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar hold nearly half the equity of the company that owns CBS and is buying Warner Bros. Discovery. The investors receive only non-voting shares; the Ellison family keeps full voting control.

Updated Oct 3

Money Moves

Helped negotiate the settlement

Lyft has agreed to pay $272.5 million to settle claims it misclassified California drivers as independent contractors, denying them minimum wage, overtime, and other protections. It's the largest wage-and-hour settlement in California history.

Updated Oct 1

Rule Changes

Co-led the state coalition; negotiated settlement

Teens on Facebook and Instagram will face a two-hour daily usage cap, midnight-to-6-a.m. lockouts, and no push notifications during school hours. Meta agreed to those changes and up to $18 billion in payments to settle lawsuits from 47 US states over teen social media addiction.

Updated Aug 27

Rule Changes

Defending California's open-carry ban before the full Ninth Circuit en banc panel (argued June 3, 2026); Baird and Rhode decisions pending

The Supreme Court issued two Second Amendment rulings in June 2026, both expanding gun rights. On June 25, Wolford v. Lopez struck down Hawaii's rule barring licensed gun carriers from entering businesses without advance property-owner permission—a decision that also applies to similar laws in California, New York, Maryland, and New Jersey.

Updated Jun 26

Money Moves

Leading multi-state lawsuit to block the merger

For two decades, federal law has barred any single company from owning television stations that reach more than 39% of American households. On March 20, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) waived that rule for the first time, clearing Nexstar Media Group's $6.2 billion acquisition of rival broadcaster Tegna. The combined company now owns 265 stations in 44 states, reaching roughly 80% of U.S. TV households — more than double the legal cap.

Updated May 30

Rule Changes

Overseeing California's expanding privacy enforcement apparatus

California passed the first comprehensive state privacy law in 2018. Eight years later, twenty states have followed, creating a regulatory patchwork that now covers roughly half the American population. Indiana, Kentucky, and Rhode Island's laws took effect January 1, 2026, joining a wave of amendments and enforcement actions that force every consumer-facing app to reckon with data collection practices.

Updated May 27

Rule Changes

Pursuing civil enforcement against xAI over Grok

French prosecutors raided X's Paris offices on February 3, 2026, and summoned Elon Musk for questioning—a first for a major social media platform owner in Europe. What began as a complaint about biased algorithms in January 2025 has expanded into a criminal probe. The investigation covers child sexual abuse material, sexually explicit deepfakes, Holocaust denial, and X's artificial intelligence chatbot Grok.

Updated May 26

Rule Changes

Leading California investigation into xAI

For decades, Western democracies debated whether to regulate social media platforms. The UK just stopped debating—and now the United States is joining the fight. After Grok, Elon Musk's AI chatbot, generated an estimated one nonconsensual sexualized image per minute posted directly to X, regulators on both sides of the Atlantic took action. On January 15, X announced it will geoblock Grok from creating images of people in revealing clothing in jurisdictions where it's illegal. This came one day after California Attorney General Rob Bonta opened an investigation into xAI, calling the platform 'a breeding ground for predators.' Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer told Parliament that X is 'acting to ensure full compliance,' having removed over 600 accounts and censored 3,500 content items. The alternative: fines up to 10% of global revenue or a complete platform ban.

Updated May 21

Rule Changes

Preparing legal defense of state AI laws

The DOJ's AI Litigation Task Force began operations January 10, 2026 with one mission: kill state AI laws in federal court. Attorney General Pam Bondi's team, consulting with AI czar David Sacks, will challenge comprehensive AI regulations from California, Texas, and Colorado that President Trump's December executive order called unconstitutional burdens on interstate commerce.

Updated May 20

Rule Changes

Leading 20-state lawsuit against $100,000 H-1B fee

On December 29, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security published its final rule replacing the H-1B lottery with wage-weighted selection. It takes effect February 27, 2026.

Updated May 16

Rule Changes

Co-lead plaintiff; publicly leading the state coalition challenge

The Trump administration imposed a $100,000 fee on new H‑1B visa petitions. Now twenty states are suing to overturn that fee in federal court, calling it an illegal end-run around Congress.

Updated May 15