New York Attorney General Letitia James and a coalition of 11 other attorneys general secured enforceable commitments from Paramount Skydance Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. to protect entertainment industry workers during their merger. Paramount must release at least 30 films per year, invest $1.5 billion in domestic film production, and create an independent editorial board for CNN and CBS. The consent decree also requires Paramount to sell Miramax and pay penalties if it fails to meet production requirements.
Paramount must release at least 30 films every year, including 20 wide-release films, with 20% being big-budget 'tentpole' films; invest $1.5 billion more in domestic film production over five years; negotiate cable channel licensing fees separately from Warner Bros.; and create an independent editorial board for CNN and CBS. If Paramount fails to meet production requirements, it must sell Miramax and pay $30 million per film shortfall. Paramount must also sell certain cable channels if it fails to abide by licensing commitments.
In-house legal teams at entertainment companies should review their film production and distribution agreements to ensure compliance with minimum production and release commitments, including annual film output and wide-release obligations. They should also examine cable channel licensing agreements to ensure separate negotiation of fees for Warner Bros. channels, and review any agreements related to editorial oversight of news divisions to ensure independence. Additionally, contracts with tax credit recipients and unionized workers should be reviewed to align with the $1.5 billion domestic production investment commitment.
Entity
Paramount Skydance Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc.
Industry
Media & EntertainmentOfficial Press Release
https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2026/attorney-general-james-secures-critical-protections-entertainment-industry
california et al v paramount skydance corp warner bros disco
https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/settlements-agreements/california-et-al-v-paramount-skydance-corp-warner-bros-discovery-inc-consent-decree-2026.pdf
New York Attorney General Enforcement Page
https://ag.ny.gov/press-releases
"September 21, 2026"
"Paramount Skydance Corp. (Paramount) and Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (Warner Bros.)"
"a coalition of 11 other attorneys general"
"Paramount will release at least 30 films every year"
"pay $30 million in penalties for every film that falls short"
$352K
New York Attorney General Letitia James settled with Brooklyn High Rise LLC for illegally denying housing to prospective tenants based on housing court records, a practice known as tenant blacklisting. The company also charged non-refundable 'good faith' deposits. Brooklyn High Rise will pay $352,250 in penalties and restitution and must end its unlawful tenant screening practices.
New York Attorney General Letitia James issued an industry alert urging workers with knowledge of unsafe or illegal conduct in AI development to file confidential complaints through the OAG's secure whistleblower portal. The alert cites the OAG's monitoring of cybersecurity, economic, and other safety risks from emerging AI, and highlights the RAISE Act (effective January 1, 2027), which will require large AI developers to publicly disclose safety measures and report security incidents, as well as the SHIELD Act's data security requirements. No company was named, charged, or penalized; the alert signals impending OAG enforcement authority over AI developers.
$700.0M
New York Attorney General Letitia James, leading a bipartisan coalition of 39 other states, the District of Columbia, and Hawaii's Office of Consumer Protection, secured a $700 million settlement from Credit Acceptance Corporation (CAC), a subprime auto lender, resolving allegations of deceptive and abusive lending. The lawsuit alleged CAC pushed tens of thousands of consumers into unaffordable loans with average interest rates above 38 percent, bundled with expensive add-on products consumers were told were mandatory or never told about, causing widespread defaults and vehicle repossessions. Note: this is a consumer-lending enforcement action rather than a privacy matter, so no privacy violation categories from the taxonomy apply.
$700K
New York Attorney General Letitia James secured a settlement with two Mt. Kisco car dealerships, DARCARS Lexus and DARCARS BMW, that deceptively charged a two percent 'sales commission' fee that was optional, provided no consumer benefit, and was never paid to the salesperson, and that misleadingly bundled a low-value aftermarket product ('DARCARS Assurance') into sales and lease agreements as if it were mandatory. The dealerships will pay more than $1.17 million in consumer refunds (with potentially millions more through a claims process) plus $700,000 in penalties. They must clearly disclose all future fees and add-ons, are banned from selling DARCARS Assurance or similar junk bundles at any New York dealership, and must conduct annual fair-business-practices training for all employees.
New York Attorney General Letitia James led a bipartisan coalition of 17 other state attorneys general in sending a letter to Congress opposing the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, warning that the bill would preempt state attorneys general authority to combat cryptocurrency fraud and scams. This is a legislative advocacy action, not an enforcement action against any company, and no penalties or remedies were imposed. The coalition urged Congress to preserve state enforcement power over both tokenized and non-tokenized securities and state crypto registration regimes.
$8.0M
New York Attorney General Letitia James secured an $8 million settlement from VGW Holdings Pty. Ltd. and its affiliates for unlawfully operating online sweepstakes casinos — Chumba Casino, Global Poker, and Luckyland Slots — that allowed New Yorkers to play casino games with virtual coins exchangeable for cash or prizes. The OAG's June 2025 cease and desist letter stopped the company from offering virtual coin gambling in New York, and Governor Hochul signed a formal ban on sweepstakes casinos into law in December 2025. Under the settlement, VGW will pay $8 million in disgorgement, penalties, and costs; note this is an illegal-gambling enforcement action rather than a privacy matter, so no privacy violation taxonomy categories apply.