When New York State legislators passed the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) in March of 2021, the legislative intent of the bill was clear—“generate significant new [tax] revenue” and “make substantial investments in… more

Gambling is an industry that, like it or not, is inherently associated with risk. In fact, its very existence is based on participants willing to take chances with (usually) their own hard-earned money. These truths, as well as the… more

Asking questions is the simplest thing to do, but the hardest thing to do well. Last week, a jury in San Jose, California found Elizabeth Holmes guilty of conspiracy and wire fraud following her breath-taking scheme to accept… more

From January 11 to 13, K2 Integrity’s experts participated in several panels at the ABA/ABA Financial Crimes Enforcement Conference. Below is an overview of insights delivered by Ray Dookhie in a session on Post-COVID Financial Crimes… more

California employers are required to post their annual summary of work-related injuries and illnesses, including COVID-19 illness, in a visible and easily accessible area at every worksite from February 1st through April 30th… more

Effective January 27, 2022, the United States is implementing wide-ranging changes to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). These changes conform the HTSUS with the new, 2022 version of the Harmonized System, the… more

On January 25, 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced its withdrawal of the Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) following the Supreme Court’s January 13, 2022 decision. The… more

Third-Party Review Services are a Focus- On January 25, the Federal Trade Commission announced that Fashion Nova LLC will be prohibited from suppressing customer reviews of its products and required to pay $4.2 million to settle… more

On October 20, 2021, Delaware Governor John Carney signed into law House Bill 8, which is enacted as Delaware’s Drinking Water Protection Act (29 Del. C. §§ 8090-8094). The Act contains two primary directives requiring: (1)… more

What You Should Know •Governor Murphy recently signed an Executive Order requiring healthcare providers and others working in New Jersey healthcare settings to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by specific dates..… more

New York Enacts Comprehensive Insurance Disclosure Act- On December 31, 2021, New York’s Governor Hochul signed into law the Comprehensive Insurance Disclosure Act, that requires defendants, third-party defendants, and defendants on… more

The federal court that issued a nationwide injunction of Executive Order (EO) 14042, “Ensuring Adequate COVID Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors,” has issued a new Order stating that it enjoined only the vaccine requirement of… more

In the midst of the winter COVID-19 surge, Governor Newsom and California legislative leaders have agreed to fast-track a plan to provide emergency COVID-19 relief. As part of that package, another allotment of Paid Sick Leave for… more

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration officially withdrew its COVID-19 vaccination Emergency Temporary Standard, effective today. The government has also asked that the ETS litigation (NFIB v. U.S. Department of Labor)… more

On January 14, 2022, the Supreme Court granted certiorari to determine whether a school district was within its rights in telling a coach not to continue to kneel and pray at the 50-yard line after his team’s games..… more

With a record number of Californians missing work due to the Omicron variant, Governor Newsom has reached a deal with state lawmakers to require employers with more than 25 employees to provide special supplemental Covid-19 sick… more

The UK's new Plastic Packaging Tax will begin soon. Tune in to the Compliance Podcast Network for more details… more

The role of payroll in compliance is not often considered in operationalizing your compliance program, yet the monies to fund bribes must come from somewhere. Unfortunately, one of those places is out of payroll. All CCOs need to sit… more

Loren Steffy and Tom Fox have another conversation as The Enron Trial series nears the end. In episode 4, Loren Steffy recalls the aftermath of the guilty verdict. The Verdict and Counts of Conviction Jeffrey Skilling was… more

Welcome to the only roundtable podcast in compliance. The entire gang was also thrilled to be honored by W3 as a top talk show in podcasting. In this episode, we have the quintet of Karen Woody, Jonathan Armstrong, Tom Fox, Matt… more

In today’s edition of Daily Compliance News: 1. Intel overturns a $1.2 EU anti-trust fine. (WSJ) 2. PED users kept out of HOF (or not). (ESPN) 3. TI-CPI released. (Compliance Week) 4. J&J attempt to punish whistleblowers quashed… more

The federal government became the most recent employer to adopt a “Ban the Box” policy when The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act became effective December 20, 2021. The law prohibits federal contractors and most federal agencies… more

Earthjustice sent a January 20th letter to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) alleging violations of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality and Louisiana… more

The United States Supreme Court has agreed with participants in two 403(b) plans sponsored by Northwestern University that their lawsuit, alleging that plan recordkeeping and investment fees were excessive, should not have been… more

On January 20, the FTC issued an advisory opinion clarifying that the Holder Rule does not prevent state law from providing costs or attorneys’ fees against loan holders, contrary to the conclusions drawn by some courts. The FTC… more

Just when you didn’t think things could get any weirder, on Friday, January 21, 2022, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia issued a ruling clarifying its prior EO 14042 injunction (currently on appeal to the… more

On January 19, 2022, the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services (OIG) issued a favorable Advisory Opinion regarding an online retailer’s proposal to make its discount programs available to Medicaid… more

On Friday, January 21, 2022, Judge Jeffrey V. Brown of the Southern District of Texas issued a nation-wide injunction, blocking enforcement of President Biden’s Executive Order 14043. Executive Order 14043 requires vaccination for… more

Female Special Education Teachers and School Psychologist Paid Less Than Male Colleagues, Federal Agency Charges - CHICAGO – Verona Area School District (VASD), which serves Verona and parts of Fitchburg and Madison, Wisconsin… more

Christmas never will be the same for Texas woman Trista Hamsmith. One week before the most wonderful time of the year – Dec. 17, 2020 – Hamsmith’s 18-month-old daughter died a terrible death. Reese, a blond, rosy-cheeked baby… more

More than one business owner this week has wondered aloud: “Why is my lawyer spending so much time (and, therefore, money) on the minutiae of the Operating Agreement? Does any of that matter, anyway?” In response to that question… more

Last year, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York addressed an issue of first impression concerning what constitutes “misappropriation” under the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) in a decision potentially relevant… more

The United States Supreme Court (“SCT”) issued an order on January 24th granting a petition for a writ of certiorari to address the following question: Whether the Ninth Circuit set forth the proper test for determining whether… more

In the case of RCC Wesley Chapel Crossing, LLC et al. v. Forrest Allen et al., the Georgia Supreme Court addressed whether a common-law right exists to allow a private property owner to boot a vehicle parked on its property without… more

In September 2021, the Washington Supreme Court issued its decision in Lake Hills Investments, LLC v. Rushforth Construction Co., Inc., 198 Wash.2d 209 (2021). This case is significant because it establishes a comparative fault rule… more

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act assigned the U.S. Department of Treasury Office of Inspector General (OIG) responsibility for compliance monitoring and oversight of the receipt, disbursement, and use of… more

An online panel offered workable solutions for addressing the scourge of online sexual exploitation & abuse described in a new report from Equality Now - Of all the social ills the internet has spawned, perhaps the most noxious is… more

As of December 27, 2021, new “expungement” and “reexamination” proceedings are available for third parties to request the cancellation of an active U.S. trademark registration that is not being used in connection with some or all of… more

Last year was nothing short of a rollercoaster ride for the SPAC market. While SPACs have long been a feature of financial markets, 2021 began with explosive growth in new listings, followed by a rapid cool-off in the second half of… more

On January 6, 2022, the Tax Exempt and Government Entities (TE/GE) released its Fiscal Year 2021 Accomplishments Letter. Here is a summary below..… more

FHA recently announced a second extension to the review and feedback period for the proposed draft HECM sections in its Single Family Housing Policy Handbook (SF Handbook 4000.1)..… more

Takeaways - Shareholder activism continues to gain momentum in Japan as domestic institutional investors become increasingly receptive to shareholder proposals and board nominees. Even when activist proposals are ultimately… more

On January 15, 2022, his first day in office, Governor Glenn Youngkin promulgated Executive Order 6 which directs the Virginia Safety and Health Codes Board (the Board) “to convene an emergency meeting of their (sic) membership to… more

VA issued Change 1 to Circular 26-19-31 extending the rescission date from December 31, 2021, to January 1, 2024.  VA Circular 26-19-31 (Circular) provided, among other things,  guidance that explained..… more

Takeaways - The SEC plans to propose an array of new disclosure requirements relating to ESG matters. A record number of shareholder proposals involving environmental and social issues won majority support in… more

I did a podcast interview with Josh Itzoe, who is a terrific fiduciary and his Fiduciary U Broadcast is fun… more

The attractiveness of the United Kingdom as a business location is unabated. There are many advantages to doing business in the UK. Investors can draw on a skilled workforce and access a large market; costs of labour and production are… more

Takeaways - Litigants will ask the Court to rule on an array of matters growing out of the COVID-19 pandemic, beyond challenges to Biden administration’s vaccine policies. The preemption of state employment laws by… more

SCOPE - On 2 August 2021, The European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”) published the Guidelines on Marketing Communications (the Guidelines) under the regulation on cross-border distribution of funds, which applies new… more

Each month, we host a 30-minute webinar outlining the month's key announcements and takeaways from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) for financial services providers to consider. In this month's article, we share some of… more

This volume marks the 12th edition of The Technology, Media and Telecommunications Review, which has been fully updated to provide an overview of evolving legal and policy activity in this arena across 25 jurisdictions around the… more

This volume marks the 12th edition of The Technology, Media and Telecommunications Review, which has been fully updated to provide an overview of evolving legal and policy activity in this arena across 25 jurisdictions around the… more

Takeaways - Redlining enforcement will be a significant priority for the CFPB, DOJ and other agencies. Loan servicers should expect increased scrutiny to prevent unnecessary defaults. Credit bureau reporting will be an area… more

Data integrity is broken down into three attributes: accuracy, completeness, and consistency. Issues with any of these attributes reduce the overall confidence of reports run on this data. Recognizing data integrity issues early in the… more

Colombia entró a regir la Ley 2195 "por medio de la cual se adoptan medidas en materia de transparencia, prevención y lucha contra la corrupción y se dictan otras disposiciones" (la Ley) el 18 de enero de 2022. En ese sentido, lo… more

You are an associate professor at an esteemed college, which you always thought of as your dream job. Of late, however, you feel as though you are spending less time doing what you came here to do. Instead, you can barely keep your… more

When entering into any merger or acquisition (both a stock deal and an asset deal), there are numerous privacy and data security issues that must be evaluated and addressed from the beginning. Most companies in today’s online world… more

Effective January 26, 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has withdrawn its Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) that would have required employers with 100 or more employees to ensure that their employees were… more