The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), an independent U.S. government agency that regulates the U.S. derivatives markets, including futures, options, and swaps, has announced a new policy for mitigating potential...more
The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee’s recent finding that a National Collegiate Athletic Association’s (NCAA) rule limiting the years of eligibility for college athletes who previously attended a...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) brought more actions targeting regulated entities for recordkeeping violations related to employees using noncompany communications platforms, and both the SEC and the U.S....more
9/23/2024
/ Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Credit Rating Agencies ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Electronic Communications ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Corporations ,
Fraud ,
Instant Messaging Apps ,
Pilot Programs ,
Qui Tam ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
On July 24, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued guidance putting financial regulators and employers on notice that requiring employees to sign broad confidentiality or nondisclosure agreements that...more
8/5/2024
/ CFTC ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has joined the list of federal agencies targeting employment nondisclosure agreements and other restrictive covenants that allegedly restrict employees from making reports to...more
7/26/2024
/ CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Commodities Traders ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Material Nonpublic Information ,
Misappropriation ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Oil & Gas ,
Popular ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) will stop enforcing rules restricting Division I athletes from transferring from one institution to another under a consent judgment filed in an antitrust lawsuit brought by...more
6/11/2024
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Violations ,
College Athletes ,
Colleges ,
Consent Order ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Name and Likeness ,
NCAA ,
Residency Requirements ,
Student Athletes ,
Transfers ,
Universities
On April 15, 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Criminal Division launched a new pilot program to enable whistleblowers to avoid prosecution when they voluntarily report new information to federal law enforcement...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other financial regulators are targeting regulated entities over their employees’ use of personal messaging apps and other off-channel electronic communication platforms,...more
On March 7, 2024, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) will test out a program to pay whistleblowers if they provide information on serious financial crimes and foreign and...more
3/14/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Biden Administration ,
CFTC ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Due Diligence ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
FinCEN ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
IRS ,
Mergers ,
Pilot Programs ,
Safe Harbors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Reporting ,
Successor Liability ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
On February 8, 2024, the Supreme Court of the United States issued a decision holding that whistleblowers are not required to show “retaliatory intent” to be protected under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, differentiating the...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in recent years has taken an aggressive stance against employers over employment agreements that the agency believes impede its whistleblower program—as highlighted by a $10...more
1/29/2024
/ Confidentiality Agreements ,
Contract Terms ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Violations ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently settled charges alleging that a company’s employee separation agreements restricted former employees from receiving monetary awards for reporting securities law...more
11/1/2023
/ Contract Terms ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Fines ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Separation Agreement ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is offering more lenient treatment to companies that voluntarily self-disclose misconduct of a company being acquired that comes to light during a mergers and acquisitions (M&A)...more
10/18/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Due Diligence ,
Enforcement ,
Mergers ,
Policy Statement ,
Safe Harbors ,
Voluntary Disclosure
A New Jersey federal court has ruled that a company’s self-disclosure of potential Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) violations did not render the company a state actor, allowing evidence obtained by its internal...more
9/14/2023
/ Admissibility ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Executives ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employee Misconduct ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Former Employee ,
Internal Investigations ,
Self-Disclosure Requirements ,
Yates Memorandum
U.S. attorneys for the Southern District of New York and for the Eastern District of New York Damian Williams and Breon Peace recently announced a new policy that sets national standards for when corporations will receive...more
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards recently signed into law Act 336 of the 2020 Regular Session, which was filed in the Louisiana State Legislature as House Bill 826. The new act limits the liability to which Louisiana...more
On March 30, 2020, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards orally announced that he will be extending the state’s March 22, 2020, stay-at-home order, Proclamation 33-JBE-2020, at least until the end of April 2020. The...more
On March 22, 2020, the State of Louisiana issued a “stay at home” order directing all residents to stay home, except for essential activities, essential government functions, or to participate in the certain permitted...more