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SEC No-Action Letter Regarding Investments in Credit Risk Transfer Securities
On October 16, the SEC Division of Investment Management granted no-action relief in response to a request by Orrick on behalf of Redwood Trust. The Redwood request and the SEC staff response impact the way in which investments in… more
Kickback Arrangements – Cause for Alarm Beyond Federal Healthcare Programs
Few, if any, in the medical industry are unfamiliar with the federal Anti-Kickback Statute (“AKS”). Under AKS, those giving or receiving compensation for referrals for items or services reimbursed by the federal healthcare programs… more
Stored Communications Act Does Not Prohibit Disclosure of Deceased’s Yahoo Account
In what appears to be a case of first impression in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) has ruled that Yahoo may disclose the contents of a deceased’s Yahoo email account to his personal representatives… more
Projects and Energy Weekly Snippets
New electricity generation: Eskom outlines transmission spending plans - Eskom plans to spend ZAR174.5 billion on its transmission and distribution network over the next 10 years, largely to improve reliability and accommodate new… more
If Pain, Yes Gain—Part XXXVII: NYC Set to Expand Earned Sick Time Act
Seyfarth Synopsis: On October 17, 2017, the New York City Council passed an amendment to the city’s Earned Sick Time Act that, if signed by Mayor Bill de Blasio as expected, would allow eligible employees to use paid sick time for… more
FOIL Follies- Draft Plans Once Submitted Must Be Made Available
New York’s Freedom of Information Law (“FOIL”) mandates that agencies make all “records” available for public inspection and copying, subject to certain exemptions. See, Public Officers Law… more
Massachusetts Court Upholds Record $2.6M Fine against Beer Distributor
Earlier this month, a Massachusetts state trial court judge issued a decision in the matter of Craft Beer Guild LLC d/b/a Craft Brewers Guild v. Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission. The court upheld a decision by the Alcoholic… more
Healthcare Cyber: House Inquiry Targets Medical Software
In its latest inquiry into cybersecurity risks in the healthcare sector, the House Energy and Commerce Committee last week requested a “formal briefing” from medical transcription vendor Nuance Communications, Inc. concerning its… more
[Video]Estate Planning & Family Law: How To Protect Your Assets For Future Generations
Norma Stanley and Derren Ciaglia explain the similarities of estate planning and family law, and give some examples of how to protect your assets in complicated planning matters… more
President Trump Signs New Executive Order To Loosen Insurance Regulations
Following multiple failed attempts by the Republican-led Congress to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), on October 12, 2017, President Trump took unilateral action signing an executive order aimed at expanding choices and… more
Should we regulate artificial intelligence?
Hogan Lovells partner Winston Maxwell spoke on October 12, 2017 at a conference on artificial intelligence organized by the French think tank “Le Club des Juristes”. What follows is an English version of his prepared remarks… more
AML Information Sharing in the U.S. – Section 314 of the Patriot Act
As we recently blogged, the Royal United Services Institute (“RUSI”) for Defence and Security Studies — a U.K. think tank – has released a study: The Role of Financial Information-Sharing Partnerships in the Disruption of Crime (the… more
Amazon’s Scanning Technology for Package Delivery
If you haven’t yet heard about it, Amazon is on the forefront of package delivery. And if you think that is old news (which it is!), have you heard about Amazon’s scanning technology capable of scanning the homes down below its… more
The UK Care Sector | Problem or Opportunity for Investors?
For investors considering the UK care sector, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) State of Care report released 10 October 2017 again raises alarm bells. Beds in nursing homes declined meaningfully, and funding pressures are causing a… more
Food & Beverage Litigation Update | October 2017 #3
FDA Warns Snyder’s-Lance About Iron Content Labels - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has sent a warning letter to Snyder’s-Lance, Inc. about the iron content of its Lance Toast Chee Crackers. The letter indicates that… more
U.S. House Of Representatives To Continue Legislative Push To Regulate The Internet Of Things
Representative Robin Kelly (D-IL), the Ranking Member of the Information Technology Subcommittee of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is planning on introducing legislation to bolster cybersecurity surrounding the… more
[Video]Accelerator Attorneys and Advisors Can Help Through Tough Situations
JT Peters, co-founder and CEO of Truck Driver Power, describes how the advice he received from attorneys and advisors at his accelerator helped to avoid a potentially devastating situation… more
[Video]Entrepreneur Minute: Accelerator Attorneys and Advisors Can Help Through Tough Situations
JT Peters, co-founder and CEO of Truck Driver Power, describes how the advice he received from attorneys and advisors at his accelerator helped to avoid a potentially devastating situation. See more videos in Baker Donelson's… more
Return of the Living Dead: Could Unsuccessful California Bills Haunt Employers in 2018?
As discussed in our prior article, Governor Jerry Brown recently signed several significant labor and employment measures into law in California, including a statewide ban-the-box provision and an expansion of parental leave… more
UCC Update – Don’t Space Out on UCC-1s
It is impossible to understate the importance of using the correct name (and we mean the exact, correct name!) of the debtor on a UCC Financing Statement, and the dire consequences of getting that name wrong. A recent case from… more
CMS Clarifies Streamlined Submission to Self-Referral Disclosure Protocol for Physician Organizations
In an apparent effort to reduce redundancy, CMS issued an FAQ clarifying a simplified process for submissions to the CMS Voluntary Self-Referral Disclosure Protocol (SRDP) involving financial relationships with physicians who are… more
SB 396 Expands Sexual Harassment Training and Posting Requirements
The FEHA generally prohibits discrimination and harassment in the workplace. Among the FEHA’s existing provisions, employers with 50 or more employees must provide at least 2 hours of prescribed training and education regarding sexual… more
Federal Jury Returns $140 Million Punitive Verdict Against AbbVie In Second AndroGel Trial
As my colleague Andy Frey and I reported in an earlier post, an Illinois federal jury in July returned a $150 million punitive verdict against AbbVie without awarding the plaintiff any compensatory damages. That verdict is likely to… more
Advisors Need To Offer Education
Advisors ask me all the time of the role of education in participant directed 401(k) plans and it’s an important question. Participant directed 401(k) plans that are governed under ERISA §404(c) offer the plan sponsors liability… more
Whistleblower Protections
On 14 September 2017, the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services reported to the Senate its recommendations for reform to Australia's whistleblower protections in the corporate, public and not-for-profit… more
Negligence in Preserving ESI Warrants Monetary Sanctions
N.M. Oncology & Hematology Consultants v. Presbyterian Healthcare Servs., No. 1:12-cv-00526 (D.N.M. Aug. 16, 2017). Because the defendant was merely negligent in producing discoverable information, the magistrate judge recommended… more
Is it a drug, device, biologic, or combination product? FDA issues final guidance on classification
On September 26, 2017, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published a final guidance document providing further clarity on how FDA classifies a product as a drug, device, biological product, or a combination product, entitled… more
Possession May Be Nine-Tenths of the Law - but Watch out for the Other One-Tenth
Prudential Insurance Company of America issued a life insurance policy on the life of Russell. Russell’s wife, Sherry, was the beneficiary. The policy contained $332,000 of term life coverage and $332,000 of accidental death coverage… more
New obligation to declare beneficial owner(s)
The Ordinance of 1 December 2016 (which implemented the European Anti-Money Laundering Directive of 20 May 2015) and the so-called "Sapin II Law" of 9 December 2016 introduced new obligations for companies. Companies must now identify… more
Cautionary tales from attempting to pierce the corporate veil – Two recent appellate decisions
In September 2017, both the Court of Appeal for Ontario and the Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) released decisions that affirm established principles about the separate legal personalities of corporations: Yaiguaje v. Chevron Corporation… more
AB 1008 Broadens Current "Ban-the-Box" Law to Apply to Private Employers
In 2013, California passed AB 218, the so-called “ban the box bill,” to impose certain limits on a public employer’s ability to consider or rely on criminal conviction histories of job applicants in hiring decisions. AB 1008 broadens… more
Court Rules LLC Members May Be “Fiduciaries In Fact”
U.S. District Court Judge Tena Campbell’s ruling in Strong v. Cochran, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 170073, is a reminder that sometimes what you do matters more than what you say. The case involved claims by the liquidating trustee for a… more
Retaliation 101
A recent opinion from the U.S. Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals involving Tulsa’s American Airlines facility serves as a reminder of the kind of evidence required to establish retaliation… more
Bridging the Week - October 2017 #4
CFTC Issues ABC’s on Virtual Currencies – Actually the Bitcoin, Ether and Ripple: Last week, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s LabCFTC issued a helpful overview of digital currencies, discussing what a virtual currency is and… more
New California Laws Prohibit Employers From Asking About Salary History
In a continuing effort to combat pay discrimination, Governor Jerry Brown recently signed AB 168 into law. Beginning January 1, 2018, all California employers are prohibited from seeking, by any means, salary history from an applicant… more
The New CFPB Consumer Protection Principles
On October 18, 2017, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a set of Consumer Protection Principles regarding the sharing and aggregation of consumers’ financial data. The timing of the announcement in light of last… more
Oregon OSHA Proposes to Increase Penalties
August 1, 2016, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration significantly increased the maximum penalties for violation citations. As a result of these changes, Oregon OSHA has proposed to increase the minimum and maximum… more
Trump Track: Test for EPA’s Sue and Settle Process
As noted previously on this blog, on October 16, 2017, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt issued a memorandum announcing new policies to avoid what he considered inappropriate approaches to resolving litigation, commonly referred to by the… more
EMA senior officer: pharmaceutical companies encouraged to prepare for Brexit
Agnès Saint-Raymond, MD, Head of International Affairs at the European Medicines Agency (“EMA”), recently urged pharmaceutical companies to be “proactive” in preparing for Brexit, as there is still uncertainty around a potential Brexit… more
PTAB Designates as Precedential the General Plastics Decision on Follow-On Petitions
On October 18, 2017, the PTAB designated as “precedential” a major portion of its prior decision in General Plastic Industrial Co., Ltd. v. Canon Kabushki Kaisha. The decision was previously designated “informative,” but now, as a… more
US Persons and Financial Institutions: Beware when engaging financially with Venezuela
On 8/25/17, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) restricting and prohibiting certain transactions between US Persons and Venezuela. The transactions that are prohibited by US Persons apply wherever a US Person is… more
CMS Advisory Opinion 2017-01 Approves Pop-up Alerts to Physicians Through Online Laboratory Portal
A clinical laboratory has received a green light from CMS to offer pop-up notifications alerting physicians of various potential issues (Laboratory Alerts) through its web-based portal for ordering and reporting results of diagnostic… more
Perspectives on the PTAB Newsletter - October 2017
The PTAB Newsletter is designed to be a valuable resource for all stakeholders in the global patent arena throughout the patent life cycle. To that end, articles will provide perspectives from both sides of the “v” with an eye toward… more
AB 450 Imposes New Requirements Regarding Responding to Government Immigration Worksite Enforcement Actions
Effective January 1, 2018, AB 450 imposes new legal requirements on employers in regards to responding to government immigration worksite enforcement actions… more
Developments in Antitrust Capacitor Investigation: Eighth Capacitor Manufacturer Charged
On October 18, 2017, a federal grand jury sitting in San Francisco indicted capacitor manufacturer Nippon Chemi-Con for participating in a multi-decade conspiracy to fix prices for electrolytic capacitors. Nippon Chemi-Con is the… more
CFTC Staff Aligns with SEC Position on Initial Coin Offerings: Tokens May be Commodities
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) LabCFTC office on October 17, 2017 issued A CFTC Primer on Virtual Currencies (Primer) indicating, among other things, that certain initial coin offerings (ICOs) within the United… more
Ninth Circuit Affirms Application Of Arbitration Clause Found In Amazon’s Conditions Of Use
Applying Washington law, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a California federal court’s ruling that Amazon’s Conditions of Use (COU) created a valid contract between Amazon and its customers, and there was no procedural… more
CMS Requests Industry Feedback on "New Direction" for the Innovation Center
CMS is seeking comments through a Request for Information (RFI) on a "new direction" for the CMS Innovation Center. The RFI includes focus areas identified by CMS, but the RFI welcomes all stakeholder input on "additional ideas and… more
Children's Products and the "Internet of Things": Data Privacy Beyond COPPA
In this internet age, "smart" children’s products—those that collect, transmit or store electronic data—are on the rise. By some estimates, the smart toy market will reach $11.3 billion in sales by 2020. Manufacturers of smart… more
Lorenzo's a Schemer, Not a Maker; Dissent Blasts SEC ("Not Fair," "Stinks")
Cut, paste and forward ? just as the boss instructed. But Lorenzo’s email to two clients was misleading, so the SEC filed an enforcement action. The ALJ held Lorenzo liable for violating anti-fraud provisions and imposed a C&D plus a… more
