All banks rely upon their critical vendors, including law firms that handle sensitive, complicated, and high-risk matters. And yet vendor oversight of law firms has been awkward for all parties involved – fitting square pegs into round holes. We believe opportunities exist to ameliorate this awkwardness and enhance law firm oversight ...
If there is anything to be learned from the FAA’s distribution of the $10 billion in funds allocated to airports in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, it is that allocating billions of dollars in just a few weeks is more difficult than it sounds. On March 27, 2020, the CARES Act was signed into law as Public Law No. 116-136 ...
Thirteen years after the filing of the initial complaint, the First Circuit recently revived a False Claims Act (FCA) suit, reversing the district court and holding a relator can be an “original source” without participating in or having contemporaneous knowledge about the alleged fraud. See United States ex rel. Banigan v. PharMerica, Inc., 950 F.3d 134 (1st Cir. 2020) ...
On May 13, 2020, the Small Business Administration ("SBA") issued FAQ # 46 dealing with its plan to review certain PPP loans (in response to COVID-19) to determine if the “necessity” certification was made in good faith by the borrower at the time of application ...
On 8 April 2020, the Government announced a HK$137 billion package of anti-epidemic measures to be rolled out, including the Employment Support Scheme (ESS) with a proposed budget of HK$81 billion. The ESS aims to provide financial subsidies to employers in two tranches against their undertaking to spend all the wage subsidies on paying wages to their employees and keep them in employment during the COVID-19 epidemic ...
As a result of the COVID-19 crisis, the social partners have decided to suspend the current social election procedure and postpone the continuation of this procedure until after the summer. On 24 March 2020 the National Labour Council (NLC) issued an opinion that highlighted the implications of this postponement for companies. This NLC opinion has been transposed into a law which was voted in Parliament on 23 April 2020. This article outlines the most important consequences for employers ...
Lawmakers and citizens across the country are engaged in disputes over the breadth and duration of shutdown orders intended to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. Pennsylvania was the first state, however, to have a case reach the U.S. Supreme Court where, despite a setback for the petitioners when their application for stay was denied, it remains pending. And, Pennsylvania may have the distinction of the most contentious dispute, as well ...
The Act to Mitigate the Consequences of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Civil, Insolvency and Criminal Procedure Law (“COVID-19 Act”) provides for the option of online general meetings (“virtual general meetings”) for AGs [stock corporations], which numerous small and large stock corporations, including DAX-listed corporations, are already frequently using ...
The COVID-19 pandemic is paralysing the global economy, but it is not the virus itself preventing businesses from operating. States seeking to protect their citizens against danger are introducing unprecedented limitations on civil rights and freedoms, rendering operations in some sectors of the economy impossible. In other sectors, business has become more burdensome, costly or risky ...
The law is one of the main instruments of social impact, which is particularly evident in the midst of aglobal health crisis, when the situation and applicable regulations are changing every day. New statutes and regulations are key to maintaining the delicate balance between order and chaos, public and private interests, and the common good and individual rights ...
On 5 May 2020 the German Federal Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht or BVerfG) issued amuch-noted ruling in a case involving the Public Sector Asset Purchase Programme of the European Central Bank. The judgment has caused agreat stir, as the BVerfG expressly refused to comply with aruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union ...
It is a common concern among commentators on international relations that the COVID-19 pandemic will lead to deglobalisation. Indeed, the havoc wrought by the pandemic in the global economy raises some unsettling questions about the fragility of global supply chains, especially in critical industries, and about the interdependency of national economies. It is nudging sentiment towards reshoring, promoting domestic production and protectionism ...
In March, the European Commission recommended that member states introduce temporary restrictions on travel to the European Union (through 15 May 2020). The vast majority of European countries coordinate border control measures at the EU level. States are again fencing their territories, suspending the free movement of persons also between regions ...
Phase 1 of the ‘scaling-down’ process, third tranche of guarantees, extension of ERTE temporary layoffs, potential delay in the application of VAT directives and of DAC6, and measures to support the cultural sector For another week running, Garrigues summarizes the key issues that companies need to be aware of over the coming days ...
This sixth edition of Unprecedented, our weekly update on COVID-19 litigation, sees us reporting on many of the same types of cases. Consumers continue to seek refunds for goods and services that have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with colleges and universities being a particular target. Consumers also have targeted retailers for alleged price-gouging behavior ...
This is a briefing on the following issuances as of May 10, 2020 in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic: A. Suspension of Periods to File Applications and Other Documents with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) B. Issuances Supplementing the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases’ (IATF) Omnibus Guidelines on Community Quarantine (Omnibus Guidelines) C ...
Phased reopening of the economy is beginning all over the country. Unfortunately, there is no consistent or uniform way in which reopening is being handled. Every business should closely review not only state-level restrictions as they reopen but also local-level restrictions and federal guidance as well. Compliance with these requirements is not only important from a regulatory standpoint but also may help limit liability ...
What is the Public Service Obligation (PSO)? Whose obligation is it? What is the realization of the PSO? Some of us may not be familiar with the PSO and what actually means for a country. This article provides a general understanding of the PSO and particularly, how the PSO can affect us directly. First things first, what is the PSO? The PSO is a concept commonly adopted by all nations and as you might guess, it is the obligation of the government to serve the public ...
Effective March 27, 2020, the Ohio Legislature passed House Bill 197 as a direct response to Governor Mike DeWine’s executive order earlier that month. How has HB 197 changed Ohio workers’ compensation? Two main ways: permitting public meetings and “tolling” deadlines. PUBLIC MEETINGS Section 12 of HB 197 permits government agencies to convene via video conference through Dec. 1, 2020 (unless the COVID-19 emergency ends prior to that date) ...
As the White House and state and local governments begin to assess business re-opening measures in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, employers are evaluating how to transition employees back to the physical workplace. As a threshold matter, employers must assess applicable state and local governmental orders for restrictions, timing, and guidelines regarding business re-opening, as the lifting of shelter-in-place orders and re-opening measures will vary by region and industry ...
Amendments to the Operating License Framework Act and the General Administrative Procedure Act are approved Today, May 10, Legislative Decree No. 1497 has been published, a standard that approves measures to promote and facilitate regulatory conditions that contribute to reduce the impact on the economy due to the health emergency caused by COVID-19, for which the Operating License Framework Act and the General Administrative Procedure Act have been amended accordingly ...
In addition to proceeds from the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (“SBA”) Payment Protection Program and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (“CMS”) Accelerated and Advance Payment Program, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (“HHS”) recently deposited $80 billion into health care providers’ bank accounts as part of its Provider Relief Fund ...
Among the many extraordinary measures taken by the federal government in response to the COVID-19 pandemic is the issuance of blanket waivers of certain provisions of the federal self-referral prohibition commonly known as the Stark Law. The waivers loosen significant restrictions on physician financial relationships in an effort to provide health care providers with greater flexibility to meet the challenges of the pandemic ...
Marijuana’s legal status has flummoxed industry observers for more than a decade. Several current proposals could provide clarity at the federal level. And Alabama appeared to be on the brink of implementing a medical marijuana regime just before the COVID-19 pandemic ground the legislative process to a halt ...
