Federal Trade Commission Protects Worship Location Data Shannon Britton Hartsfield and Bess Hinson-Greenspan Recent Federal Trade Commission (FTC) enforcement activity signals that companies need to protect consumer location...more
5/5/2025
/ Data Brokers ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Gay Conversion Therapy ,
Location Data ,
Mental Health ,
Popular ,
Privacy Laws ,
Protected Class ,
Religious Institutions ,
Reproductive Healthcare Issues ,
RLUIPA ,
Standing
In December 2022, Consumer Reports published a study on lead and cadmium in dark chocolate. Dark chocolate came into vogue when studies showed antioxidants in it may have health benefits. Consumer Reports discovered something...more
Most deceptive labeling claims are challenged in the first instance under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) for failure to state a claim for relief. Another strategy deserves consideration premised upon Federal Rule of...more
10/11/2023
/ Advertising ,
Article III ,
Defense Strategies ,
Dismissals ,
Failure To State A Claim ,
Federal Rule 12(b)(1) ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Magnuson-Moss Act ,
Product Labels ,
Standing ,
Subject Matter Jurisdiction ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
A federal district court on Aug. 17, 2023, declined to enjoin Florida's law limiting select persons from "foreign countries of concern" from directly or indirectly owning, having a controlling interest in or acquiring by...more
8/22/2023
/ CFIUS ,
China ,
Equal Protection ,
Fair Housing Act (FHA) ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
New Legislation ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Real Estate Investments ,
Residence Status ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Standing ,
Supremacy Clause ,
Visas
A trio of recent cases challenging disparate food and beverage labels offers a few common substantive and procedural lessons for companies. First, the back panels – when considered in light of U.S. Food and Drug...more
3/16/2023
/ Advertising ,
Article III ,
Beverage Manufacturers ,
Class Action ,
Consumers Legal Remedies Act ,
Defense Strategies ,
False Advertising ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Labeling ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Marketing ,
FRCP Rule 23(b)(2) ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Judicial Notice ,
Residency Requirements ,
Slack-Fill Suits ,
Standing ,
Unfair Competition ,
Whole Foods
Maine Scholarship Program Excluding Sectarian Schools Unconstitutional. In Carson v. Makin, 142 S.Ct. 1987 (2022), the U.S. Supreme Court struck a tuition assistance program that requires school districts to transmit payment...more
7/21/2022
/ CARES Act ,
Churches ,
Establishment Clause ,
First Amendment ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Free Speech ,
Government Speech Doctrine ,
Jurisdiction ,
Military Service Members ,
Ministerial Decisions ,
Prayer ,
Private Schools ,
Religious Exemption ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Standing ,
Summary Judgment ,
The Lemon Test ,
Tuition ,
Vaccinations
Insurers have prevailed in several lawsuits filed by restaurants in connection with losses related to COVID-19. For example, in Emerald Coast Restaurants, Inc. v. Aspen Specialty Ins. Co., No. 3:20cv5898-TKW-HTC, 2020 WL...more
3/18/2021
/ Article III ,
Business Interruption ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Data Breach ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Labeling ,
Insurance Claims ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Standing ,
Unfair Competition ,
Wage and Hour
In Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, N.Y. v. Cuomo, No. 20A87, 2020 WL 6948354 (U.S. Nov. 25, 2020) (per curiam), the U.S. Supreme Court enjoined enforcement of the 10- and 25-person occupancy limits on churches in New York...more
12/23/2020
/ Article III ,
Churches ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Establishment Clause ,
Executive Orders ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Governor Cuomo ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Private Schools ,
Public Funds ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Public Schools ,
Religious Exemption ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Religious Institutions ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Standing ,
Title VII
In recent years, the healthcare industry has been turning greater attention to the need to engage or involve patients in developing new technologies and systems to improve healthcare delivery. These patient engagement...more
10/15/2019
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Article III ,
Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Criminal Convictions ,
Dismissals ,
Disproportionate Share Adjustments ,
Draft Guidance ,
Enforcement Actions ,
European Medicines Agency (EMA) ,
False Advertising ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Lanham Act ,
Medical Devices ,
Medicare ,
Patient Engagement Advisory Committee (PEAC) ,
Patient Referrals ,
Physicians ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Standing ,
Stark Law
Key Cases -
Covert Surveillance Due to Religious Identity is Actionable -
Government surveillance of individuals due to their religious identity is actionable under federal law. In Fazaga v. Federal Bureau of...more
6/19/2019
/ Churches ,
Due Process ,
Emotional Distress Damages ,
Establishment Clause ,
FBI ,
Fourth Amendment ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
IRS ,
Local Ordinance ,
Muslims ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Standing ,
Subject Matter Jurisdiction ,
Tax Exempt Entities ,
Wage and Hour
Courts continue to grapple with the scope and meaning of the ministerial exception doctrine. In Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church & Sch. v. EEOC, 565 U.S. 171 (2012), the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed that a...more
1/4/2019
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Churches ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Contraceptives ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employment Contract ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Establishment Clause ,
Federal Funding ,
First Amendment ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hostile Environment ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Muslims ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Private Schools ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Institutions ,
Religious Schools ,
School Districts ,
School Policies ,
Standing ,
Summary Judgment ,
Teachers ,
Title VII ,
Universities
Labor and Employment -
Jimmy John's Avoids Joint-Employer Finding in Worker Overtime Litigation -
In In re: Jimmy John's Overtime Litigation, 2018 WL 3231273 (N.D. Ill. June 14, 2018), a federal district court ruled that...more
9/14/2018
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Beer ,
Beverage Manufacturers ,
Brand ,
Breach of Warranty ,
Comment Period ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Dietary Guidelines ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
False Advertising ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Labeling ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Franchisee ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Joint Employers ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Mayor de Blasio ,
Minimum Wage ,
Misrepresentation ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
New Rules ,
Organic ,
Over-Time ,
Product Labels ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Standing ,
State Taxes ,
Subpoenas ,
Summary Judgment ,
Terms and Conditions ,
Tip-Pooling ,
Tipped Employees ,
Wage and Hour
Regulation -
CMS Contemplating Telemedicine Changes -
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently published what it described as a "major proposed rule" that covers a number of topics that could have...more
9/7/2018
/ Advisory Opinions ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Comment Period ,
Common Ownership ,
Creditors ,
Debt Collection ,
Debtors ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Failed Legislation ,
Failure To State A Claim ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
FDCPA ,
Former Employee ,
GPOs ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospitals ,
Medicaid ,
Medical Reimbursement ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Shared Savings Program ,
OIG ,
Patients ,
Physician Fee Schedule ,
Physician Medicare Reimbursements ,
Physicians ,
Popular ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Quality Payment Program (QPP) ,
Qui Tam ,
Safe Harbors ,
Self-Referral ,
Standing ,
Stark Law ,
Summary Judgment ,
Technology Sector ,
Telehealth ,
Telemedicine ,
Whistleblowers
Wage and Hour -
Decision Upholds Class Action Waivers in Arbitration Clauses, Resolves Circuit Split -
The U.S. Supreme Court issued a long-awaited decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis on May 21, 2018, holding that...more
6/12/2018
/ Age Discrimination ,
Agricultural Sector ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Baby Products ,
Banks ,
Beverage Manufacturers ,
Breweries ,
Business Torts ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Competition ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Security ,
Debit and Credit Card Transactions ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Dismissals ,
Distributors ,
Economic Loss Doctrine ,
Epic Systems Corp v Lewis ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Failure To State A Claim ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
False Advertising ,
False Statements ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Financial Institutions ,
Food Labeling ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Former Employee ,
FTC Act ,
Grocery Stores ,
Hackers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Lanham Act ,
Menu-Labeling ,
Misleading Statements ,
Negligence ,
Nutrition Facts Labels ,
Organic ,
Over-Time ,
Personal Information Protection Act ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Popular ,
Preemption ,
Product Packaging ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Remand ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Retailers ,
Reversal ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Savings Clause ,
SCOTUS ,
Standing ,
State Law Claims ,
Summary Judgment ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
USDA ,
Wage and Hour
Timely Topics -
Serious data breaches have become routine in the United States, yet a recent survey shows that the majority of religious institutions do not have a full-time IT professional, have no system to detect a...more
11/30/2017
/ Churches ,
College Admissions ,
Colleges ,
Contraceptive Coverage Mandate ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Employee Housing ,
Equal Protection ,
Establishment Clause ,
Executive Orders ,
FEMA ,
Fifth Amendment ,
First Amendment ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Hackers ,
Historical Rehabilitation ,
Information Technology ,
Motion for Summary Judgment ,
Public Accommodation ,
Public Funds ,
Ransomware ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Religious Institutions ,
Religious Schools ,
Retaliation ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
Standing ,
Title VII ,
Trademarks ,
Trump Administration ,
Trump v International Refugee Assistance Project ,
Vaccinations ,
Videographers
Wage and Hour -
Tenth Circuit Aligns with Cumbie on Tip Credits -
In Marlow v. New Food Guy, Inc., No. 16-1134, 861 F. 3d 1157 (10th Cir. June 30, 2017), the court affirmed the district court's ruling, consistent with...more
8/11/2017
/ Alcohol Beverage Control ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Arbitration ,
Beverage Manufacturers ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Disparagement ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Evaporated Cane Juice ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Labeling ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Joint Employers ,
Likelihood of Confusion ,
Medical Marijuana ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Pattern or Practice ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Staffing Agencies ,
Standing ,
Tip Credit ,
Trademarks ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour
Timely Topics -
The final rule implementing Section 1557 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) was issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) on May...more
10/27/2016
/ ADEA ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Age Discrimination ,
Allocation of Funds ,
Article III ,
Burwell v Hobby Lobby ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Clergy Members ,
Contraceptive Coverage Mandate ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Discrimination ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Gay Conversion Therapy ,
Gender Identity ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
LGBTQ ,
Mental Health ,
National Origin Discrimination ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
Nonprofits ,
OCR ,
Pregnancy Discrimination ,
Religious Expression ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Religious Institutions ,
Religious Schools ,
Retaliation ,
RLUIPA ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Standing ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
When was the last time your organization reviewed your insurance policies? Not all policies are equal. Many religious organizations are underinsured. Most should have general liability, property, professional liability,...more
8/19/2016
/ Abortion ,
Breach of Contract ,
Church Plans ,
Churches ,
Commercial Insurance Policies ,
D&O Insurance ,
Declaratory Judgments ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Contract ,
Equal Protection ,
Establishment Clause ,
Exemptions ,
FDUTPA ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
First Amendment ,
Fraud ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Free Speech ,
Funeral Homes ,
Grants ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Insurance Industry ,
IRS ,
LGBTQ ,
Prayer ,
Professional Liability Insurance ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Displays ,
Religious Institutions ,
Scholarships ,
Standing ,
Subject Matter Jurisdiction ,
Tax Credits ,
Title VII ,
Transgender ,
Universities ,
Wage and Hour