New York City Bar Association Podcast

Environmental lawyer and Animal Law Committee member Robin Happel hosts a discussion on noise pollution and noise law with Jamie Banks of Quiet Communities and ocean noise researcher Vanessa ZoBell. Jamie explains how chronic leaf-blower and land-care noise led her to found Quiet Communities. She describes gaps in federal, state, and local noise regulation, focusing on the 1972 Noise Control Act, the rise and 1982 defunding of EPA’s Office of Noise Abatement and Control, and Quiet Communities’ lawsuit to reactivate the program. Vanessa outlines major ocean noise sources (commercial shipping and seismic air-gun surveys) and impacts on marine life, including stress, masking, behavioral changes, and examples such as post-9/11 stress hormone reductions in right whales and sonar-linked beaked whale strandings. They discuss challenges of relying on A-weighted averages, low-frequency noise, communication barriers, voluntary and incentive-based programs, electrification of equipment, vessel speed reduction benefits, and long-term California soundscape findings tied to economic events and marine heatwaves, plus vulnerable human populations and environmental justice concerns.

00:42 Jamie on Quiet Communities
04:17 Vanessa on Ocean Acoustics
06:19 Major Ocean Noise Sources
08:34 Noise Control Act History
13:30 How Noise Harms Marine Life
18:23 Ecological Impacts on Land
20:34 Rethinking Noise Metrics
27:14 Shipping Slowdown Success
33:48 Incentives and Federal Tools
40:31 Decadal Soundscape Study
46:29 Vulnerable Groups and Justice

In this episode, a panel of legal experts discusses the different approaches taken by the Second and Ninth Circuits on two key areas of copyright law: substantial similarity and the Server Test.

Presented by the New York City Bar Association’s Copyright & Literary Property and Entertainment Law Committees, the panel explores recent and emerging case law and the Second and Ninth Circuits’ divergent approaches to analyzing substantial similarity, a key element of copyright infringement, as well as the ongoing debate surrounding the Server Test, which addresses whether the posting of online content constitutes a “display” within the meaning of the Copyright Act.

Moderated by Dwayne Amos, Associate at Kasowitz LLP, the episode features a panel of leading copyright litigators and experts, including:

• Barry Werbin, Counsel, Herrick Feinstein LLP
• Aaron Moss, Partner, Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP and author of the Copyright Lately blog
• Marc Lebowitz, Principal, Lebowitz Law Office
• James Bartolomei, Of Counsel, Duncan Firm

The wide-ranging discussion covers the practical implications of these divergent approaches for copyright owners, litigators, content creators, online platforms, forum selection, free speech, and the application of copyright law nationwide.

This episode was produced by Jose Landivar, Senior Associate at Coates IP LLP, with contributions from Philippa Loengard, Executive Director, Kernochan Center for Law, Media and the Arts and Lecturer in Law at Columbia Law School, and support from the New York City Bar Association Communications Team.

Copyright Lately: Creative Law for Curious People – www.copyrightlately.com

Tiffany Smith (WilmerHale) speaks with Beth Haddock (Warburton Advisers) and Boaz Goldwater (Davis Polk) about Treasury’s notice of proposed rulemaking implementing the Genius Act’s framework for regulating payment stablecoins, focusing on guidance for state regimes to qualify as “substantially similar” to the federal approach.

This podcast episode from the City Bar’s Presidential Task Force on AI and Digital Technologies compares the dual federal/state structure to banking and securities regulation, and describes “uniform” requirements versus areas with limited state calibration (e.g., capital, liquidity, supervisory procedures). We discuss the inter-agency stablecoin certification review committee’s discretion, challenges from evolving OCC standards, and the ten billion outstanding issuance threshold that triggers transition to OCC supervision while retaining state oversight, with possible waivers for certain pre-existing state regimes. We highlight key ambiguities for issuers, including moving federal benchmarks, supervisory capacity, and unresolved capital/liquidity measurement issues.

01:38 Genius Act Rulemaking Overview
03:08 Dual Federal State Framework
04:17 Why a State Pathway
09:31 State Discretion in Practice
11:31 Managing Moving Goalposts
13:34 Certification Review Committee
15:56 Reserve Capital Liquidity Rules
19:05 Crossing the 10 Billion Threshold
23:42 Supervision and Enforcement Capacity
25:33 Choosing State vs Federal Oversight
28:20 Open Questions and Comment Priorities

In this episode, beloved City Bar figure Richard Tuske reflects on his remarkable 50-year journey with the City Bar Law Library, from starting as a page in 1972 to serving today as Senior Director of Library Operations on the eve of retirement.

Along the way, he shares vivid stories with Legal History Committee Chair Abigail Nitka on the library’s transformation into one of the most prominent legal libraries in the world—from towering stacks to the dawn of digital research and early Westlaw and Lexis—along with behind-the-scenes anecdotes on the history of City Bar membership, unusual research requests, the auction of a remarkable rare-books collection, a failed merger attempt, and the library’s technological evolution.

00:00 Podcast Welcome 

01:03 Early Page Years 

07:30 From Stacks To Screens 

14:53 Computer Revolution Begins 

19:05 Unusual Research Request 

25:24 Famous City Bar Members Spotlight 

30:18 Salt Mines Preservation 

33:36 What Remains Today 

36:59 Computers Transform Research 

41:08 Library Merger Attempt 

43:52 Rare Books Collection & Auction 

51:30 Future Library After Retirement 

58:29 Legacy and Farewell

The City Bar’s Presidential Task Force on AI and Digital Technologies dives deep into the six pillars of President Trump’s March 2026 Cyber Strategy for America: Shape Adversary Behavior; Promote Common Sense Regulation; Modernize and Secure Federal Government Networks; Secure Critical Infrastructure; Sustain Superiority in Critical and Emerging Technologies; and Build Talent and Capacity.

Task Force co-chair Jerome Walker joins Sabeena Ahmed Liconte (Head of Legal & Chief Compliance Officer, Americas at ICBC Standard Bank Group) and Alex Southwell (Partner, McDermott Will & Schulte) to discuss the “aspirational” strategy in its totality, including its offensive, defensive, and future-minded qualities, as well as its challenges and the surrounding requirements for the strategy to be successful and ensure global compliance.

If you are interested in learning more about emerging AI developments and policy, join us for the 2026 Artificial Intelligence Conference on June 18 to hear from industry experts and connect with leading legal professionals across the field.

00:00 Welcome and Cyber Strategy Overview
02:07 Meet the Panelists
04:44 Big Picture Reactions
12:30 Pillar One - Shape Adversary Behavior
28:28 Pillar Two - Promote Common Sense Regulation
42:19 Pillar Three - Modernize and Secure Federal Government Networks
52:22 Pillars Four & Five - Secure Critical Infrastructure & Sustain Superiority in Critical and Emerging Technologies
01:01:23 Pillar Six - Build Talent and Capacity
01:06:11 Closing Thoughts