Legal

Lawsuits, bans, privacy fights, and the case law being written around drones.

611

Articles

Beats covered

Reporters on beat

Oct 27

Last updated

View from a Russian drone camera looking down on a paved road in Kherson, with pedestrians walking along it and a recording overlay showing REC, 1.5x zoom and a running timer

Legal

Yale Expert: Civilian Drone Builders Risk Losing Legal Protection

Two drone experts warn that civilians who build and move attack drones may forfeit noncombatant status, and the texts deciding it date to 2009.

Haye KestelooSep 15

A DJI Mavic 4 Pro hovering between pine trees, the class of consumer drone Beijing residents must give up before November 15

China

Beijing Bans Owning A Drone, Then Offers To Buy Yours Back

Beijing bans drone possession citywide on November 15, voiding the May registration deal and paying owners subsidies to sell at designated buyback sites.

Haye KestelooSep 13

Army Brig. Gen. Matt Ross, in camouflage uniform, gestures toward a large projection screen headed Community of Action that lists dozens of federal agency names and seals, with a JIATF 401 crest on the stage below.

Counter-Drone

1,500 US Agencies Are About To Get Counter-Drone Powers

A new federal rule lets certified local agencies detect and disable drones. The government expects about 1,500 of them to sign up within two years.

Haye KestelooSep 10

Leipzig-Halle Airport check-in terminal exterior

Leipzig Drone Bomb

Germany Plans To Let Utilities Fight Off Drones After Leipzig Bomb

Germany plans nine-city counter-drone units and a law letting power and water companies actively fend off drones, five weeks after the Leipzig bomb.

Haye KestelooSep 7

DJI Matrice 4T quadcopter on a white display table with its thermal and visual camera gimbal and top-mounted accessory, at DJI Enterprise Booth 903 at Commercial UAV Expo in Las Vegas.

FCC Ban

DJI Tells FCC Its 'Military-Grade' Drone Ban Was Invented In-House

DJI's 26-page filing, signed by a former U.S. Solicitor General, says no security agency ever endorsed the FCC's seven military-grade drone categories.

Haye KestelooSep 3

DJI Mavic 4

DJI Mavic 4 Pro Shot Out of Alabama Sky, Shooter Risks 20 Years

A gunshot brought down a real estate photographer's DJI Mavic 4 Pro camera drone over Athens, Alabama. Federal law calls that destroying an aircraft.

Haye KestelooSep 2

White House

DOJ Indicts Rocklin Felon From White House Drone Plot, Not For Drones

A Rocklin felon tied to the UFC Freedom 250 drone plot is indicted on gun and evidence-destruction charges. No conspiracy count, and still no drone.

Haye KestelooAug 29

A DJI Mini 5 Pro hovering above a field of goldenrod

State Law

Washington Commercial Drone Fees Jump 10x to $150 After Jet Tax Repeal

Washington will charge commercial drone operators $150 per aircraft a year from January 2027, up from $15, in the bill that repealed its luxury jet tax.

Haye KestelooAug 25

Legal

The drone industry moves fast. Stay ahead of it.