The Firestorm: Civil Litigation and Class Actions Following a Cyber Incident As soon as your company has tangible evidence of a data breach, you must start thinking about what a lawsuit would entail, especially in light of the complexity of electronic evidence. In this installment of our special series, A Desk Guide to Data Protection and Breach Response, we discuss the firestorm of litigation that can arise following a breach and provide practical guidance for preparing for the worst ...
Criminal Referrals When a company falls victim to a damaging cyber attack or suffers a theft of sensitive data or intellectual property, the incident very well may fall within the ambit of one or more criminal statutes designed to deter and punish perpetrators with the prospect of jail time, financial penalties and restitution. Under appropriate circumstances, the company should give serious consideration to making a referral to law enforcement as part of its response strategy ...
In an opinion that could substantially affect future controlling-shareholder buyouts, the Delaware Supreme Court on Friday affirmed the Chancery Court’s decision that the business judgment standard of review, rather than entire fairness, should apply to controlling-party takeovers where it is established before trial that certain protections exist. Background The suit stemmed from Ronald Perelman’s going-private buyout of M&F Worldwide Corp. (“MFW”), a company he controlled ...
On February 21, 2014, the Federal Circuit’s 6-4 majority en banc ruling in Lighting Ballast Control vs. Philips Electronic North America retained the standard of de novo appellate review of district court claim construction rulings, whereby the scope of the patent grant is reviewed as a matter of law ...
Breaking the News: Disclosing Data Breaches and Withstanding Regulatory Scrutiny Breached companies are often crime victims, but they are also potential targets for regulatory actions (and, as we will discuss in future installments, potential parties to a wide range of litigation) ...
The Clock is Ticking: Investigating and Responding to a Breach Once your company becomes aware of a suspected data breach, time is of the essence. Losses from the breach are likely mounting, the clock is running on your organization’s legal rights and obligations, and the potential liability to claims by regulators and plaintiffs begins to expand ...
The Fourth Circuit recently held that selling contaminated drugs in violation of FDA regulations does not give rise to False Claims Act liability where compliance with the regulations is not a condition of federal reimbursement. See United States ex rel. Barry Rostholder v. Omnicare, Inc., No. 12-2431 (4th Cir. Feb. 21, 2014) ...
Insurance Coverage for Cyber Attacks: What Do You Need in a Cyber Liability Policy?With more and more businesses suffering costly data breaches and cyber attacks, companies should utilize every tool they have to shift the potentially enormous expenses associated with those breaches and attacks. That’s where insurance comes in ...
On February 26, 2014, the Supreme Court held that state-law fraud class actions brought against attorneys, insurance brokers and others arising from Ponzi-scheme claims involving R. Allen Stanford could proceed. In a 7-2 decision in Chadbourne & Parke LLP v. Troice, 571 U.S ...
Tailor-Made: Designing and Implementing a Bespoke Data Security Plan When you hear the term “bespoke,” you may think suits or dresses, but you should be thinking data security plans. Savvy organizations realize that there is no “one size fits all” approach to data security ...
In a decision issued on February 13, the New York Court of Appeals ruled that a policy’s contractual limitations provision requiring suit to be filed within two years of a loss is “unreasonable and unenforceable” when the insured’s property cannot be reasonably replaced (as necessary to fulfill a separate condition of coverage) within the two-year limitations period ...
The news has been filled with stories of high-profile data breaches, exposing breached companies to intense and negative scrutiny from lawmakers, regulators, media, customers, and plaintiffs’ attorneys. Other companies that handle personal information have been asking us how they can avoid a similar fate. In the coming weeks, we will be exploring that issue through our special series, "A Desk Guide to Data Protection and Breach Response ...
On January 17, 2014 the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware issued a ruling in Fisker Automotive Holdings, Inc., et. al., Case No. 13-13087 (KG), which highlights potential risks to both secured creditors and purchasers of claims in bankruptcy section 363 sales. The facts in Fisker are straightforward ...
On January 17, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced increased jurisdictional thresholds for premerger notification filings under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (HSR Act). The FTC adjusts the thresholds annually to reflect changes in the gross national product. The revised thresholds will apply to any transaction closing on or after the effective date, which is 30 days after formal notice is published in the Federal Register ...
On Friday, January 17, 2014, the Texas Supreme Court issued its opinion in Ewing Construction Company v. Amerisure Insurance Company - holding that “a general contractor who agrees to perform its construction work in a good and workmanlike manner, without more, . . . does not ‘assume liability’ for damages arising out of its defective work so as to trigger the Contractual Liability Exclusion ...
Effective January 1, 2014, the International Chamber of Commerce (“ICC”) replaced its Amicable Dispute Resolution rules with new Mediation Rules. The new ICC Mediation Rules (the “Rules”) set clear parameters for mediating disputes, while also providing for additional flexible procedures that allow the parties to resolve their disputes privately and confidentially ...
Haynes and Boone, LLP’s Immigration Practice Group reminds employers with a need for Cap-Subject H-1B petitions – those applications that are subject to the annual numerical limit – that the filing window for Fiscal Year 2015 is about to open. Over the last three years, the Cap has been reached at a much earlier date. For Fiscal Year 2014, the Cap was reached within the first week of the filing period, which ended on April 5, 2013 ...
Based on a review of recent district court cases, uncertainty remains regarding the proper standard for certifying a Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) collective action in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. The absence of a definitive test remains because the Fifth Circuit, in March 2013, avoided the opportunity to apply a stricter certification standard than the one the courts have been using. Apparently, the district courts are holding out for more definitive guidance ...
On December 17, 2013, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (the “FFIEC”) issued the Social Media: Consumer Compliance Risk Management Guidance for financial institutions. The Guidance does not impose any new obligations but “is intended to help financial institutions understand and successfully manage risks in this area ...
A federal jury in Nevada recently convicted 22-year-old David Ray Camez of violating the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”) for his association with a “carder” website, Carder.su. The Department of Justice is touting this conviction as the first RICO conviction arising from computer-related crimes, and we anticipate that RICO will become an effective tool for prosecutors and private businesses to use in combatting cybercrime going forward. RICO (18 U.S.C ...
This past December 12, the Mexican congress finally approved a constitutional energy reform (the “Energy Reform”). As of today, the required majority of state congresses have also ratified it. What now remains is a declaration from the Permanent Commission of the Mexican congress, which is expected shortly ...
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) has issued interpretive guidance regarding which Dodd-Frank1 requirements apply to certain non-U.S. swap transactions (the “Cross-Border Rule”).2 In order to facilitate parties’ compliance with the Cross Border Rule, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (“ISDA”) has published the ISDA 2013 DF Agreement for Non-U.S. Transactions (the “Non-U.S ...
Physician-owned distributorships (PODs) and other physician-owned entities (POEs) have emerged as a favored vehicle to reduce costs, but the popularity of PODs and POEs has led to increased scrutiny by federal regulators. In June 2011, the United States Senate called on the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (OIG) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to investigate the proliferation of PODs and corresponding utilization practices ...
On October 23, 2013, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) issued proposed rules to effect Title III of the Jumpstart Our Business Startup (JOBS) Act, enacted on April 5, 2012. Title III and the proposed rules provide the framework for companies to raise capital through securities offerings using crowdfunding. Below is a summary of the proposed rules ...
Purchasers and lessees of commercial or industrial properties know to obtain Phase I environmental site assessments to identify the presence of contamination - so-called recognized environmental conditions (RECs) - because of the very substantial liabilities these conditions may create. And their lenders generally require them. The industry standard for Phase I’s is based on EPA regulations that flesh out Superfund’s “all appropriate inquiry (AAI)” standard ...
