THE FACTS In January 2001, Synertech established two individual pension plans for two of its executives, that is the individual pension plan for Mr. François Bérard (the “Bérard Plan”) and the individual pension plan for Mr. Michael Pons (the “Pons Plan”). In November 2008, Synertech amended these two pension plans, effective as of January 1, 2001 ...
In Greek mythology, Prometheus stole fire from Zeus to give to mankind. It seems that Zeus is now reclaiming some of that fire in the guise of Mayo Collaborative Servs. v. Prometheus Labs., Inc., No. 10-1150 (U.S. Mar. 20, 2012), the Supreme Court’s latest decision addressing patent-eligible subject matter. But a practical analysis of Prometheus reveals strategies one can use in drafting patent claims to keep those claims burning ...
The U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed a $44 million judgment against Tuomey Hospital in Sumter, South Carolina that arose from Tuomey’s employment arrangements with physicians that allegedly violated the federal Stark Law.1 The Stark Law prohibits hospitals from submitting claims to Medicare for designated health services that were referred by physicians with whom the hospital has a financial relationship, unless the relationship fits within an exception ...
On April 5, 2012, President Obama signed into law the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (the “JOBS Act”) ...
After three days of historic oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court, the fate of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the momentous 2010 health reform law, is uncertain, given robust questioning of the ability of Congress to force individuals to purchase health insurance ...
On Monday, March 26, 2012, the United States Supreme Court issued a decision in Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC v. Simmonds. The Court held that an alleged failure by a corporate insider to file a short-swing profit disclosure under Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 does not indefinitely toll the two-year statute of limitations on another party’s claim for recovery of such profits under Section 16(b) ...
Law no.11/2012 of 8 March establishes new rules for prescription and dispensing of medicines. Prescriptions for medicines must now include the International Nonproprietary Name (INN) of the active substance,its pharmaceutical form, the dosage, the presentation and the posology. The prescription may also include a trade name by brand or indication of the name of the holder of the marketing authorisation ...
In a decision issued this week, Roland v. Green, -- F.3d --, 2012 WL 898557 (5th Cir. Mar. 19, 2012), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit addressed an issue of first impression—the scope of the preclusion provision of the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act (“SLUSA”). Recognizing the current split among circuits, the court adopted the “tangentially related” test ...
The Powers Of CSST Inspectors ConfidentialityAgreements:The Importance Of Protecting Your Secrets; Your First Financial Institution. Various statutes impose obligations on employers to take the necessary measures to protect the health and safety of workers, including An Act respecting Occupational health and safety (R.S.Q., c. S‑2.1) (hereinafter referred to as the “AROHS”) ...
Class Action and Consumer Law: The Court of Appeal Excludes Non-Consumers from the Approved Class in an Authorized Class Action CONSUMER PROTECTION LAW AND THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT (“CPA”) APPLY FIRST AND FOREMOST TO ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES IN THE RETAIL SECTOR. EXPENDITURES ASSOCIATED WITH THIS SECTOR REPRESENT MORE THAN SIXTY-FIVE PERCENT OF ALL EXPENDITURES IN THE PROVINCE. IT IS ALSO AN AREA OF THE LAW WHICH FREQUENTLY COMES BEFORE THE COURTS ...
You are the general counsel of a public company and expect M&A activity to increase in the United States during 2012. Do you know if your company looks like a good target to potential acquirors? It is important to understand whether you could be a target before getting that first overture from an acquiror ...
On 17 November 2011, the Minister of Manpower and Transmigration (“MOM”) issued Regulation No. PER.16/MEN/XI/2011 on the Preparation and Legalization of Company Regulations and the Preparation and Registration of Collective Labour Agreements (“PER 16”). In principle, the provisions on the preparation and legalization of CR are not different from previous regulations ...
On 28 November 2012, the Capital Market – Financial Institutions Supervisory Board (Badan Pengawas Pasar Modal – Lembaga Keuangan or “BAPEPAM - LK”) issued a new regulation on Changes to Material Transactions and Main Business Activities, ie Decree of the Head of BAPEPAM-LK No. KEP-614/BL/2011 (“Regulation IX.E.2”) which revoked Decree of the Head of BAPEPAM-LK No. KEP-413/BL/2009 (“Previous Regulation”) on the same matter. Regulation IX.E ...
Please enjoy this edition of The Employer, a bi-monthly newsletter prepared by the members of Waller Lansden's Labor and Employment Law Practice Group. Designed to provide readers with useful and timely guidance on a variety of labor and employment issue, The Employer offers short articles on interesting topics ...
On March 2, 2012, a federal district court in Washington, D.C. upheld the National Labor Relations Board’s authority to adopt a proposed regulation requiring employers to post a notice informing employees of their federal labor law rights ...
The anti-retaliation provision in Section 215(a)(3) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) makes it unlawful for an employer to “discharge or in any manner discriminate against any employee because such employee has filed any complaint or instituted or caused to be instituted any proceeding under or related to this chapter, or has testified or is about to testify in any such proceeding.” On March 22, 2011, the Supreme Court of the United States decided Kasten v ...
Home Care Service providers may need to review how they pay many of their employees as a long-standing overtime exemption is slated to be eliminated by the Department of Labor (“DOL”). The DOL has published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to revise the regulations pertaining to companionship and live-in domestic workers, with a 60-day public comment period set to close in the near future ...
This year promises to bring even more headlines than 2011 regarding workplace safety and the agency empowered to regulate it - OSHA. Given the increased scrutiny that regulators feel with election-year politics, the agency will have to pick its battles carefully when pursuing changes through new or updated regulations ...
The Stage 2 Meaningful Use requirements proposed last week by CMS as part of the Medicare and Medicaid incentive programs to expand the use of Electronic Health Record (EHRs) maintain the same core and menu structure as the Stage 1 criteria. The proposed rule, however, gives providers an additional year, until 2014, to implement Stage 2 criteria ...
Hot off the presses from our United States Supreme Court is a decision decided February 21, 2012 affirming a broad construction of the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”). While the decision, Marmet Healthcare Center, Inc. v. Clayton Brown, 565 U.S. – (2012) No. 11391, would appear to be a case of narrow import – it reverses a decision of the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals that held arbitration provisions in nursing home contracts to be invalid – the language is far reaching ...
In this day and age it is commonplace for employers to issue communication devices such as Blackberries, iPhones and Androids (collectively “PDAs”) to employees. These devices allow employees to work and respond to emails and other communications without being tethered to their desks. They are beneficial to both the employer and employee – PDAs help the employer by increasing employee productivity and help the employee by allowing greater work flexibility ...
President Obama announced on January 4, 2012, that he would use his power of recess appointment to fill three vacancies on the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). All three appointees had been formally nominated by the President for their positions but the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee had not yet acted on any of the nominations. The new members are Sharon Block (D), Terence F. Flynn (R), and Richard Griffin (D) ...
The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division is proposing changes to the regulations that govern the Family and Medical Leave Act (the “FMLA” or the “Act”). The proposed changes include provisions relating to an employer’s ability to opt to use different increments of FMLA under certain circumstances and clarify an employer’s responsibility to reinstate an employee after FMLA leave in situations where it may be impossible, as opposed to inconvenient, to reinstate an employee mid-shift ...
Healthcare providers and other HIPAA covered entities have until Wednesday, February 29, 2012 to submit notice of breaches of unsecured Protected Health Information which affected fewer than 500 individuals during 2011. Notice must be submitted electronically to the Secretary of Health & Human Services, and separate forms are required for each data breach occurring in the course of the calendar year ...
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on February 16, 2012 proposed rules1 implementing Section 6402(a) of the Affordable Care Act,2 requiring persons to report and return Medicare overpayments by the later of 60 days after an overpayment is identified or the date any corresponding cost report is due. Twice in the past, CMS had proposed rules requiring the return of Medicare overpayments, but did not finalize the regulations ...
