Your Weekly dose of Legal, Technology and Risk Insights
TOP STORY OF THE WEEK
Deployment of Agentic AI in Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM)
In 2026, the legal tech trend has matured from mere "AI adoption" to "AI augmentation." Agentic AI systems are now being deployed to proactively track contract deadlines, flag risks, and route approvals based on business context, rather than just answering reactive prompts. Gartner predicts that 40% of enterprise apps will feature these AI agents by the end of this year.
LEGAL & TECH
Billionaire Gautam Adani Moves To US Court For Dismissal Of SEC Fraud Case
Billionaire Gautam Adani has asked a U.S. court to dismiss a securities fraud case filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, arguing it overreaches U.S. jurisdiction. The SEC had accused him and Sagar Adani of bribery linked to Adani Green Energy and non-disclosure in a Usd 750 million bond offering. The defense claims all actions occurred in India, the bonds weren’t listed in the U.S., and investors suffered no losses. They also deny wrongdoing and say Gautam Adani wasn’t involved in approving the bond documents.
Passage of Jan Vishwas (Amendment) Bill, 2026
The Lok Sabha passed the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2026, aimed at decriminalising minor offences and simplifying laws to improve ease of doing business and living. The Bill amends 79 Central Acts, with over 700 provisions being decriminalised and penalties rationalised. The government stated it promotes trust-based governance and reduces unnecessary legal action, while opposition members raised concerns that it could weaken accountability and potentially increase corruption.
CORPORATE COMPLIANCE
Launch of Shram Suvidha 2.0 & Labour Code Enforcement
As of April 1, 2026, the four new Labour Codes (Wages, Social Security, Industrial Relations, and OSH) are now under active enforcement.
Update: This week, the Ministry of Labour finalized the rollout of Shram Suvidha 2.0, a unified portal that replaces over 100 state-level labor licenses with a single registration.
Compliance Note: Companies must link their Udyam Registration and PAN to the new portal to remain compliant. The first 10,000 registrations are being offered for free.
SEBI's ESG Value Chain Mandate
In a major push for sustainability transparency, SEBI has tightened its ESG disclosure standards this week, requiring the top 250 listed entities to report on the sustainability performance of their entire value chains. This "BRSR Core" framework shifts ESG reporting from voluntary intent to an enforceable, audit-level standard that demands precision in tracking environmental and social impact beyond internal operations. To manage administrative strain, the regulator is allowing firms to focus on key partners accounting for 75% of their total purchases or sales by value.
Risk Intelligence
Fake trading apps, shell firms: Rs800 cr investment scam busted by UP cops
The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force uncovered two large fraud rackets that cheated investors of hundreds of crores through schemes promising guaranteed returns in IPOs, crypto, and forex trading. These scams closely mimicked legitimate investment opportunities, making them difficult to identify. In one case, Rupesh Bhardwaj from Ghaziabad was arrested in Gurugram for luring investors with false promises of high stock market and IPO returns. The action followed a complaint filed by SEBI. The case highlights the growing risk retail investors face from sophisticated financial scams.
RBI’s Digital Payment Security Overhaul
The risk intelligence landscape has been reshaped by the Reserve Bank of India’s new mandate for Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) across all digital transactions, which became compulsory at the start of this month. This framework introduces a "risk-based" approach, where security measures are tailored to the transaction—meaning routine payments on familiar devices remain seamless while high-value or unusual transactions trigger additional verification layers.