The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) released an interim final rule on October 29, 2020, delaying the implementation of the information blocking rule under the 21st Century Cures Act (Information Blocking Rule) ...
On October 29, the OCC, the Federal Reserve, the FDIC, the NCUA and the CFPB (collectively, the “agencies”) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPR”) to clarify and make into a rule the prior Interagency Statement Clarifying the Role of Supervisory Guidance issued on September 11, 2018 (“2018 Statement”). Comments on the NPR are due within 60 days of the date the NPR is published in the Federal Register ...
Due to the dramatic increase in Covid-19 infection numbers, there were calls – once again – to postpone the social elections that are scheduled for the period between 16 and 29 November 2020. However, on 27 October 2020, the social partners reached an agreement not to do so, but to extend the opportunities for voting electronically or by post so that the elections can take place in Covid-proof circumstances ...
On 25 September 2020 Parliament approved new regulations for Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT).(1) The goal of this new legal framework is to further establish and increase Switzerland's reputation as a leading, innovative and sustainable location for fintech and DLT companies. DLT framework DLT allows shared data management and, in particular, shared accounting among participants that do not know or do not trust each other's identity ...
As Election Day quickly approaches in the highly anticipated presidential and congressional elections, employers are faced with a slew of questions about their employees’ rights on November 3 and beyond. Election Day is not a national holiday; therefore, federal law doesnotmandate employers provide employees with time off to vote ...
This is an overview of Supreme Court Administrative Order No. 251-2020 (Guidelines on the Implementation in the Philippines of the Hague Service Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial Documents in Civil and Commercial Matters)1 (the Hague Service Convention Guidelines). The guidelines became effective on October 1, 2020.2 A ...
The first anniversary of the entry into force of the new Canadian Patent Rules, which significantly changed certain practices surrounding the filing and prosecution of patent applications in Canada, is an opportunity to look back at the major changes that have had a significant impact on Canadian patent practice. Indeed, the past year has allowed us to observe the changes, which in certain aspects seem to be confusing for patent applicants, and to observe their effect in practical terms ...
Key Points The FDA will exercise enforcement discretion when Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels (a) exclude allulose from Total Sugars and Added Sugars declarations, and (b) use as low as 0.4 kcal/g for allulose calorie count; but allulose must be included as a Total Carbohydrate. Allulose is a basic form of carbohydrate that is naturally occurring in a variety of sweet foods, such as raisins, maple syrup, and brown sugar ...
On October 27, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a final rule that establishes a new standard for when a national bank or Federal savings association (“bank”) is the “true lender” in a lending arrangement with a third party. This rule may have significant impact on bank’s partnerships and other arrangements with non-bank third parties, including bank-FinTech partnerships ...
27.10.2020 –Emergency Ordinance no ...
Facing Australia's first recession in 30 years, Australian businesses are attempting to steer a course not only for survival but for the growth needed to be a viable long term. But alongside uncertainty comes opportunity. Our new report, prepared in partnership with Acuris, explores the key steps for companies and investors to take advantage of the opportunities – and decisive, informed and proactive action is critical ...
One of the key refrains of national politics recently has been that we need to address, repair, and replace aging infrastructure. Of course, this leads to the core problem of funding as the amount of infrastructure construction and maintenance currently needed in the U.S. is staggering. The federal government recently put off dealing with this growing problem by extending funding for federal highway and public transportation programs for one year ...
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP, the Central Bank of the Philippines) has issued Memorandum No. M-2020-0741 (Implementing Rules and Regulations and Frequently Asked Questions on Section 4(uu) of the R.A. No. 11494 or the “Bayanihan to Recover as One Act” (Bayanihan 2)) to guide BSP-Supervised Financial Institutions (BSFIs) on the implementation of the one-time 60-day grace period granted to debtors under Bayanihan 2 for loan payments falling due by December 31, 2020 ...
A. Introduction and sequence The final vote on Draft Law 41/XIV was held on 16 October and the new law establishes special public procurement measures and amends both the Public Procurement Code and the Code of Procedure in AdministrativeCourts. Given the number, releva nce a nd depth of the amendments introduced by the approval of the draft law, we are now assessing the new special public procurement measures and the amendments to the codes mentioned above will be addressed later on ...
The new legal framework applicable to the Angolan oil sector was approved by Presidential Decree 271/20 of 20 October (the "Decree"). The Decree makes a substantial change to the rules on local Angolan content applicable in the sector and it naturally repeals Order 127/03 of 25 November.The new legal framework now extends to service providers and suppliers of goods and services to the oil sector ("Providers") and not only which oil companies (i.e ...
In response to the ongoing disruption caused by COVID-19, OCIE issued a Risk Alert on Aug. 12, 2020. In the Risk Alert, OCIE makes various observations and recommendations which fall into six different categories: (1) protection of investors’ assets; (2) supervision of personnel; (3) practices relating to fees, expenses, and financial transactions; (4) investment fraud; (5) business continuity; and (6) the protection of investor and other sensitive information ...
On July 28, 2020, the SEC announced a pair of settled administrative actions against Houston-based VALIC Financial Advisors (VFA). In the first action, the SEC charged VFA with failing to disclose that its parent company paid a for-profit entity owned by a Florida teacher’s union to promote VFA to Florida teachers. The second action involved VFA’s wrap fee arrangements with clients ...
As a result of the unprecedented circumstances we are currently facing, a number of measures were adopted to ease the challenges that various businesses are facing. In this regard, the European Commission adopted the State aid Temporary Framework (the "Framework") on 19th March, 2020, which has subsequently been amended a number of times to reflect the ever-changing nature of how the coronavirus pandemic is affecting the economy ...
Key Points In ADA Title III cases, the plaintiff has the initial burden to show removing a barrier is readily achievable. The Court has yet to consider the complexities of naval architecture and the unique safety and seaworthiness issues on ships. If barrier removal is not readily achievable, alternative methods to barrier removal —or other facilitation for access to the service— should be considered. In Lopez v. Catalina Channel Express, Inc. (9th Cir ...
The current crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has already caused, and will continue to cause, significant liquidity problems for some businesses. Companies whose financial difficulties threaten their very existence will have to restructure in order to avoid bankruptcy, either by availing themselves of the protection of the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act1 (the "CCAA") or by using the proposal mechanism of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act2 (the "BIA") ...
INTRODUCTION There are several government agencies regulating various sectors of the Nigerian economy. Most of these regulatory agencies are creation of statutes which usually specify their functions, powers and general mode of operations. While some of these agencies are responsible for sensitising the citizens about government policies,[1]a good number are charged with the task of enforcing policies, programmes and laws enacted by the Government ...
Michigan’s Open Meetings Act (“OMA”) was officially amended this past Friday when Governor Whitmer signed SB 1108 (now Public Act 228 of 2020). The new law permits public bodies to conduct electronic meetings under certain circumstances and for a set period of time. The amendments to the OMA were prompted by a recent Michigan Supreme Court decision that effectively eliminated emergency executive orders issued by Governor Whitmer after April 30, 2020 ...
Effective Oct. 15, 2020[1], the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States’ (CFIUS) mandatory filing requirement will shift from a critical technology[2], industry-specific focus to one focused on export controls. It will focus on whether the U.S. regulatory authorization would be required to export the target U.S. business’ critical technology to the foreign person party to the transaction, including certain parties in the foreign person’s ownership chain ...
On Oct. 8, 2020 the SEC issued a joint statement on additional Form CRS guidance regarding firms’ disciplinary history. The statement was released in tandem with several new FAQs, which help clarify firms’ disclosure obligations as they relate to disciplinary history. The update guidance comes in response to the SEC’s early review of firms’ Form CRS filings ...
