Technology Update Authors Brian D. Barnard Randall E. Colson M. Ann Newton Related Practice Groups Intellectual Property A new California Law (Assembly Bill No. 700, Chapter 1054) went into effect on July 1, 2002 that requires companies who conduct business in California to notify their California-resident customers if their unencrypted personel information may have been stolen as a result of a security breach ...
On May 28, 2003, the U.S. Department of Labor ("DoL") issued proposed regulations on COBRA continuation coverage notice requirements. The proposed regulations include content standards for each type of required notice and provide sample forms for certain of the required notices. This Alert focuses on the significant changes applicable to single employer health plans. Even though they are only proposed, the regulations are important for a number of reasons ...
Five years ago your CEO told you that your company had to have a “web” strategy. So, you learned everything about the Internet. You hired specialty law firms, bought software, and entered into web development and hosting agreements. You mastered all the web lingo. Now, all of that is passé ...
The Internet is a rather young, but a very popular source of information for Ukrainian businesses and consumers. The Internet segment of the market has been actively developed recently and has acquired a high level of commercialization. According to the Ukrainian mass media, the number of Internet users in the Ukraine increased by over 70 % in 2002 ...
As seen in the Houston Business Journal
A recent U.S. Court of Appeals decision underscores the importance to plan administrators of maintaining proper procedures for the distribution of summary plan descriptions (SPD’s) under ERISA. Each participant in a plan which is subject to ERISA must be furnished an SPD satisfying ERISA’s content requirements within 90 days after he or she becomes a participant ...
Now that the 60-day deadline for filing new legislation without suspension of the rules has passed, for all practical purposes all legislation that will be offered this session has now been filed. Bills that could impact Texas employers generally, are listed by bill number and contain author, the committee the bill has been referred to, and any action that has been taken. House of Representatives H.B ...
The Department of Labor (“DoL”) has issued final rules that implement the pension blackout provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the “Act”). These rules require plan administrators of individual account plans to deliver advance notice of blackout periods and will be effective for blackouts which begin on or after January 26, 2003 ...
Today – more than ever – corporate management is under attack. In the wake of the Enron debacle, corporate decisions are more carefully scrutinized, and the conduct of the company’s directors and officers are now constantly under the watchful eyes of investors, creditors, and government regulators ...
Florida West Coast Employee Benefits Council This outline looks at the privacy regulations as modified by the August 14, 2002, final modifications and how they apply to group health plans. This outline also considers the impact of the guidance issued by the Office of Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human Services on December 4, 2002 ...
Florida West Coast Employee Benefits Council The following chart attempts to summarize some of the types of group health plans and which of the HIPAA privacy notice and administrative requirements apply to the plan. No one should rely on this as legal advice. In every situation, the application of the rules requires careful analysis of one's own counsel who is familiar with your particular situation ...
I. Why now? The rapidly increasing cost of health care, with the resulting increase in the cost of employer-provided health benefit plans, has caused employers to search for ways to contain their health plan expenses. Rising costs, along with general employee dissatisfaction with the lack of choice of health care providers under many plans and the perceived lack of quality within many of the networks available to employees, has created an environment ripe for new ideas ...
The Internal Revenue Service previously announced that in order for qualified retirement plans to be in compliance with the requirements of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (“EGTRRA”), those plans must make the necessary good faith amendments by the later of (i) the last day of the plan year in which the EGTRRA changes apply, or (ii) the end of the GUST remedial amendment period for the plan. For most plans, the EGTRRA changes apply for the 2002 plan year ...
The Department of Labor (“DoL”) has issued rules that implement the pension blackout provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the “Act”). These rules require plan administrators of individual account plans to deliver advance notice of blackout periods and will be effective for blackouts which begin on or after January 26, 2003 ...
ALI-ABA Pension, Profit-Sharing, Welfare, and other Compensation Plans; Washington, DC Many of the defined contribution health plans being marketed involve a higher deductible indemnity type of coverage either with or without a network of managed care providers (the “Policy”) accompanied by a “personal care account” or “PCA” which is funded either by employer, employee or both contributing to the PCA ...
A SUMMARY OF THE FINAL REGULATIONS ON THE STANDARDS FOR PRIVACY OF INDIVIDUALLY IDENTIFIABLE HEALTH INFORMATION ISSUED DECEMBER 28, 2000 AS MODIFIED BY THE FINAL REGULATIONS ISSUED ON AUGUST 14, 2002 CAVEAT: This outline summarizes the HIPAA Privacy Regulations as modified. No one should rely on this as legal advice. In every situation, the application of the rules requires careful analysis of a counsel who is familiar with your particular situation. I ...
The deadline for compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 final regulations regarding standards for electronic claims transactions, October 16, 2002, is quickly approaching ...
Most of the attention about the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (Act), signed into law by President Bush on July 30, 2002, has been focused on the reform of public accounting firms and the financial reporting obligations of publicly held companies. However, the Act has other provisions that potentially impact a much broader range of employers ...
Most of the attention about the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (Act), now awaiting President Bush’s signature, has been focused on the reform of public accounting firms and the financial reporting obligations of publicly held companies. However, the Act has other provisions that potentially impact a much broader range of employers. The legislation will be implemented at various times following the President’s signature, but employers should begin preparing for the following changes: 1 ...
Dallas Bar Association Tort and Insurance Practice Section Today-more than ever-corporate management is under attack. In the wake of the Enron debacle, corporate decisions are more carefully scrutinized, and the conduct of the company’s directors and officers are now constantly under the watchful eyes of investors, creditors, and government regulators ...
Dallas Bar Association Franchise and Distribution Law Section A publication and corresponding Powerpoint presentation covering the following: The Franchisor-Franchisee Relationship Shifts Certain Liability Risks from the Franchisor to the Franchisee Insurance Is Typically A Contractually-Negotiated Element of the Franchisor-Franchisee Relationship The Difference between First Party and Third Party Coverage The Basic Anatomy of an Insurance Policy What You Should Know About Comm
State Bar of Texas Insurance Law Section Annual CLE Program Introduction For the last several years, a dark cloud has hung over Texas policyholders seeking coverage for claims made against them for negligence but arising from the intentional conduct of others. Perhaps no other group has endured this storm more than employers who by their “deep pocket” status have routinely been hailed into court for the intentional acts of those they employ ...
In the buzzword-compliant society that we live in, one of the loudest buzzes these days is Privacy. Start-up companies trumpet their privacy protecting software. Privacy consultants are starting to dot the landscape. Companies are employing Chief Privacy Officers. The Federal Trade Commission is bringing charges and levying fines against companies for privacy violations ...
Earlier today, the Texas Supreme Court gave a green light to company required arbitration programs. In Re Halliburton Company And Brown & Root Energy Services, No. 00-1206 (Tex. May 30th, 2002). The underlying case arose when both the district court and court of appeals refused to order a case brought under the Texas Commission on Human Rights Act to arbitration ...
On April 29, 2002, the United States Supreme Court decided that the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA") does not require non-union employers to make an exception to their seniority system as a reasonable accommodation for a disabled employee. US Airways, Inc. v. Barnett, No. 00-1250 (April 29, 2002). This is the latest in a series of Supreme Court decisions narrowing the reach of the ADA ...
