Alerts

On July 22, 2015 the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) amended the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to reflect the May 29, 2015 removal of Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism.

The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently ruled that a suspension with pay generally does not constitute an “adverse employment action” under the substantive discrimination provision of Title VII. Jones v. Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority.

On August 3, 2015, the New York Attorney General announced settlements with five retailers who violated state law that prohibits the sales of realistic-looking toy guns. As part of the agreement, the retailers will halt sales of the violative products and pay more than $300,000 in penalties.

On Monday, a federal district court judge in New York issued a ruling that, if adopted broadly, will have a significant – and potentially nightmarish – impact on any provider who receives an overpayment from Medicare or Medicaid.  Kane v. Healthfirst, Inc. and U.S. v. Continuum Health Partners Inc. 

On July 28, 2015, Mead Johnson Nutrition Company, an Illinois-based pediatric food producer, settled FCPA charges brought by the SEC for over $12 million.

Major US credit card associations including Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover have set October 1, 2015, as the deadline for merchants to implement the Europay, MasterCard, and Visa (EMV) standards.

On July 30th, the Department of Justice petitioned the US Supreme Court to reverse United States v. Newman, 773 F.3d 438, 438 (2d Cir. 2014), a high-profile insider-trading decision by the Second Circuit that curtailed tipper-tippee liability.

The Fourth Circuit has recently made it more difficult for false advertising plaintiffs to survive a motion to dismiss where their claims are based on an allegation of “literal falsity.”

A recent court ruling is a good reminder to health care providers that bankruptcy may not (as is sometimes suggested) be a safe harbor for providers in danger of being forced out of business by the loss of their Medicare and Medicaid provider agreements.

On July 27, 2015, the Food and Drug Administration published a Supplemental Proposed Rule (SPR) that amends its Proposed Rule on Nutritional Labeling published on March 3, 2014.

The following alert is the fifth installment from Birgit Matthiesen for a planned series of cross-border trade updates. 

On July 20, 2015, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois certified a liability-only class of Illinois plaintiffs in a nearly ten-year-old case involving allegedly defective, moldy Kenmore-manufactured Whirlpool Corporation (Whirlpool) washing machines.[1] 

Following the lead of the Illinois Supreme Court in In re Pension Reform Litigation, 2015 IL 118585, Judge Rita Novak of the Circuit Court of Cook County has ruled that an Illinois law modifying provisions of Chicago’s pension statute violated the Illinois Constitution.

The Iran Nuclear Agreement is 159 pages and there are a lot of steps and dates involved.  We asked ourselves, “what exactly happens when?” and came up with the following practical roadmap.

In an unexpected development, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently proposed several changes that will generally add greater flexibility to Stark Law regulations in the proposed physician fee schedule for calendar year 2016, which was published on July 15, 2015.

In an unexpected development, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently proposed several changes that will generally add greater flexibility to Stark Law regulations in the proposed physician fee schedule for calendar year 2016, which was published on July 15, 2015.

Earlier today, the Senate Finance Committee approved legislation which would resurrect roughly 50 expired tax incentive provisions that lapsed on December 31, 2014. 

On July 7, 2015, the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit overruled a 23-year-old False Claims Act precedent, relaxing its test for deciding when a whistleblower can overcome a motion to dismiss because the allegations in the complaint were publicly disclosed. 

On July 15, 2015, the Department of Labor (the DOL) issued guidance to employers about misclassification of workers as independent contractors instead of employees.

On June 10, 2015, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights, announced that it had entered into a resolution agreement with St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, a Massachusetts hospital, to resolve potential HIPAA violations.

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is in the final stages of seeking input from business, government, and civil society on a new work program known as the Accountability and Remedy Project.

Earlier today, the United States, China, France, Russia, UK, and Germany (the “P5+1” nations) reached a historic final agreement with Iran to limit its nuclear program in exchange for sanction relief: the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action Agreement (JCPOA).

A federal judge in the Eastern District of Virginia recently upheld the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board’s (TTAB) decision to cancel six trademark registrations held by Pro Football, Inc. related to the Washington Redskins football team.

Montgomery County, Maryland became the most recent jurisdiction to sign a paid sick leave law onto the books. County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) signed Bill 60-14 into law after the County Council unanimously approved the legislation on June 23, 2015. The law takes effect on October 1, 2016.