Alerts

After months of negotiations, it’s official: the EU-US Privacy Shield has been formally approved on both sides of the Atlantic, by the EU Commission and the US Commerce Department, despite concerns surrounding the adequacy of its earlier version.

Two China-based clothing manufacturers, Motives Far East and Motives China Limited, and their affiliated US importer, Motives, Incorporated, agreed to pay nearly $13.4 million for engaging in a double invoicing scheme designed to defraud the US out of millions of dollars in customs duties.

The House of Representatives has voted 306-117 to approve the bipartisan GMO disclosure bill to amend the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 and to establish a mandatory National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard.

Although the United States has had effective economic sanctions on North Korea for many years, the temporary softening of US sanctions in 2000 has given way to ever-increasing sanctions since 2008.

On July 6th, CMS released a proposed rule (expected to appear in the Federal Register on July 15th) that, if it takes effect, could be devastating to hospital off-campus outpatient department reimbursement – an effect not intended by Congress, and certainly unwelcome to the healthcare industry.

Late Thursday night, the Senate voted 63-30 to approve a bipartisan GMO disclosure bill hammered out earlier by Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow (D-MI). 

In a good outcome for employers, the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit ruled that a standalone non-compete agreement can be assigned to an asset purchaser without the employee’s consent.

In St. Paul Mercury Insurance Company v. Tessera, Inc., the federal court held that a lawsuit against an insured alleging a breach of a license agreement did not constitute a violation of an intellectual property right.

Last week, bipartisan legislation was introduced in the US Senate and the House of Representatives to amend the Controlled Substances Act and ease federal obstacles for medical researchers to conduct clinical studies on the medical benefits of marijuana.

Data breaches continue to complicate the interpretation and understanding of commercial insurance policies. But even as courts confront thorny questions presented by cyber security policies, they continue to rely on long-standing principles of insurance and contract law.

On June 16, 2016, the Virginia Employment Commission (VEC) became the 31st state agency to sign a Partnership Agreement with the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor (DOL) regarding the misclassification of independent contractors.

Manufacturers were reminded recently why resale price maintenance policies can be risky.

On May 4, 2016, Quebec’s government published proposed regulations which would require businesses using signage bearing trademarks in languages other than French to incorporate a “sufficient presence of French” on their signs.

On Monday, the US Supreme Court ordered the Ninth Circuit to reconsider whether Service Advisors are exempt from overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

An interesting case involving the patentability of database models came out of the Federal Circuit in Enfish, LLC v. Microsoft Corp. where the Court held that two patents covering a new type of database model were not invalid.

In a highly anticipated decision, the United States Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in Universal Services, Inc. v. United States ex rel. Escobar that threw out existing law related to the implied certification theory of liability under the False Claims Act.

On June 14, 2016, the US Department of Labor adopted a final rule updating sex discrimination regulations for federal contractors.

Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, employers must pay employees overtime based on their “regular rate.”

Another investor-State arbitration tribunal has dismissed a claim for abuse of process.

On June 7, 2016, the DC Council unanimously voted to increase the City’s minimum wage from the current level of $10.50 per hour to $15 per hour by 2020.

The concept of standing – that a plaintiff must have suffered a concrete injury in order to bring a lawsuit – is a bedrock legal principle. But, like so many other fundamental legal concepts, the rise and importance of the internet and digital commerce has consistently complicated its application.