In a unanimous opinion issued this week, Matrixx Initiatives, Inc. v. Siracusano, 563 U.S. __ (2011), the Supreme Court declined to adopt a proposed bright-line rule for materiality and reaffirmed the Basic “total mix” test. Specifically, the Court rejected Matrixx’s argument that adverse incident reports are never material unless they are statistically significant - overturning several lower court decisions to the contrary, including one written by then-Judge Alito ...
Since the passage of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, with its heightened pleading standards for shareholder plaintiffs, it has become routine for plaintiffs’ lawyers to load their federal securities class action complaints with allegations purportedly obtained from “confidential witnesses” (or “CWs”) ...
AVOID A $15,000 FINE FOR A FIRST OFFENCE UNDER THE ACT RESPECTING OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY. KNOW YOUR RIGHTS! * MANAGEMENT OF TAX-RELATED DOCUMENTS * DIRECTOR AND… LIABLE AVOID A $15,000 FINE FOR A FIRST OFFENCE UNDER THE ACT RESPECTING OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY. KNOW YOUR RIGHTS! On March 31, 2004, the federal legislature amended the Criminal Code (R.S.C., 1985 c ...
The Québec mining industry is currently at the forefront of discussion, particularly in light of:* the publication of a study on the mineral industry cluster’s contribution to socio‑economic development in Québec, which occurred during the Mining Week (April 26th to May 2nd) organized by, among others, the Québec Mining Association and the Québec Mineral Exploration Association; a copy of this study is available on their website;(1)* the Fraser Institute A
The situation is this: you represent a manufacturer in a tort dispute. During discovery, plaintiffs notice a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition of your client’s representative, but elect to forgo the deposition in exchange for negligible admissions filed by your client. Discovery has closed. The trial date is looming ...
Article 219 of the Loi sur la protection du consommateur (Consumer Protection Act -hereinafter: “LPC”) states that no merchant may, by any means whatsoever, make a false or misleading representation to a consumer. Article 238 states that no merchant may falsely declare that they possess a status or identity ...
Corporate documents provided to the government as part of an investigation of the company are not excepted from disclosure for “personal privacy” purposes under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). In Federal Communications Comm. v. AT&T Inc., the Supreme Court held AT&T did not have a personal privacy interest in documents the company provided to the FCC during an investigation ...
In an action filed this week, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged three outside directors of a public company with securities fraud based on their alleged failures to fulfill their roles and responsibilities as Board members. The SEC contends that by their actions and inaction, the outside directors – Jerome Krantz, Cary Chasin, and Gary Nadelman – facilitated and assisted in a massive accounting fraud at DHB Industries, Inc., a body armor supply company ...
Alternative dispute resolution benefits the public no matter what the outcome Attorney-General Robert McClelland continues to pus alternative dispute resolution after launching the report A Strategic Framework for Access to Justice in the Federal Civil Justice System late last year. One of its main recommendations is to encourage Commonwealth agencies to use ADR ...
The majority of disputes are settled before trial, and an increasing number are settled before proceedings are issued. The Civil Procedure Rules that provide the framework for litigation in England and Wales encourage parties to consider alternative ways to resolve their differences. There are a variety of techniques that can be utilised to achieve an early and cost effective settlement. Collectively, these are known as ADR ...
by Ronald W. SchulerAccording to insiders, with regard to a Pennsylvania severance tax, Governor Corbett will be holding firm on “no state tax, no local fee,” although it is likely that the legislature will nevertheless offer up a “local impact assessment” bill ...
by Andrew B. McCallisterAs the West Virginia Legislature passes the midway point of the 2011 Regular Session, oil and gas issues remain hot topics with several bills having the potential to directly impact Marcellus Shale operators. Perhaps most significantly are two bills (SB 258/HB2878 and SB 424/HB 3042) that would substantially alter the current regulatory regime for Marcellus Shale permitting in West Virginia ...
by Allyn G. TurnerOn February 8, 2011, the EPA sent a draft copy of its plan for studying the impact of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water to the Science Advisory Board for review and comment. As proposed, EPA’s plan would involve a “cradle to the grave” study of the practice, from the impacts of the withdrawals of water used to fracture a well to the ultimate disposal of the frac water flowback ...
Pooling. This word is on the lips of almost every operator working in the Marcellus Shale. Depending on where you stand on the issue, pooling is either a necessity to allow for the efficient recovery of the resource or a dastardly scheme meant to allow big operators to run roughshod over small operators and small mineral owners ...
A overview of natural Gas Sector and a brief outline of Nigeria’s natural gas sector, including a general description of: natural gas reserves; natural gas production including the extent to which production is associated or non-associated natural gas; import and export of natural gas, including liquefied natural gas (LNG) liquefaction and export facilities, and/or receiving and re-gasification facilities (“LNG facilities”); natural gas pipeline
Creditors and debtors often enter into agreements with respect to the repayment of indebtedness. These forbearance agreements or “standstill agreements” are useful tools whereby both creditors and debtors can work together to reach a common goal without the immediate need for realization of assets in a formal insolvency proceeding. In contrast, a settlement agreement is designed to bring finality to all or some part of the credit arrangement with the debtor ...
Effective September 1, 2010, the Texas Railroad Commission issued new regulations for oil and gas operators related to inactive onshore wells and associated equipment pursuant to House Bill 22591 which dramatically changed requirements for extension of plugging obligations for inactive wells. Certain aspects of the regulations and the original law currently are under review, and amendments to HB 2259 are expected to be introduced in the current legislative session ...
The Business Corporations Act (Quebec) (the “QBCA” or the “Act”) comes into force on February 14, 2011. Described as innovative by many, the Act provides a new regime for legal persons currently governed by Parts I and IA of the Companies Act (the “QCA”). The last significant amendments to the QCA dating back to the early 1980s, the QBCA has been eagerly awaited by the legal and business communities ...
In a welcome bit of good news for lenders, U.S. District Court Judge Gold (Southern District of Florida) reversed the portion of the 2009 bankruptcy court decision in the TOUSA, Inc. bankruptcy cases that had ordered the disgorgement of $403 million plus interest based on the holding that the amounts were received by certain lenders to the TOUSA parent in connection with a pre-petition transaction that constituted a fraudulent transfer ...
On February 8, 2011, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion that will have a major impact on Chapter 11 plan confirmation. In consolidated appeals stemming from the In re DBSD North America, Inc ...
Straight dealing ...
As required under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank), the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted rules regarding shareholder approval of executive compensation and “golden parachute” arrangements on January 25, 2011. See Release Nos. 33-9178 and 34-63768 ...
Earlier this month, the Court of Appeals of Texas, Third District, Austin, reinstated a “control person” claim under the Texas Securities Act (“TSA”) against Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith Inc. related to a former broker’s allegedly fraudulent outside sales transactions. David Fernea v. Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith, Inc., No. 03-09-00566-CV (Tex. App. –Austin, Jan. 7, 2011). Allegations ...
On January 24, 2011, the Commissioner of Competition (Canada) filed a notice of application with the Competition Tribunal for dissolution of a merger (or divestiture of assets or control) resulting from the completed merger of CCS Corporation and Complete Environmental Inc., the latter of which owns Babkirk Land Services Inc ...
