In case C-323/17 People Over Wind and Peter Sweetman v Coillte, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that mitigation measures could not be taken into account at the screening stage of an appropriate assessment. Facts This case focused on proposed works that were necessary to lay a cable connecting a wind farm to the electricity grid and the potential effects that this would have on two special areas of conservation ...
Now that the holidays are in the rearview and business as usual has begun to pick up where it left off, it’s time for public companies to do a deep download of key securities law updates and business developments of the past year so they are positioned for success in 2019. Below is a review of the 2018 proxy season, along with a summary of new and anticipated changes that may impact reporting and disclosure requirements for the 2019 proxy season ...
Fossil fuels are under attack in the legislative, regulatory, and judicial arenas, and in the market place—driven by environmental concerns, especially global warming and associated climate change. The Sierra Club, for example, has launched a “Beyond Dirty Fuels Initiative,” seeking to “push back against the construction of dirty fossil fuel infrastructure that would lock America into decades more of climate-polluting oil and gas production ...
The next 60-day regular session of the West Virginia Legislature commences on Wednesday, January 9, 2019. While much of the nation seemed transfixed by the recent electoral changes, the most significant political change in the West Virginia Legislature actually preceded the 2018 general election. Indeed, the House of Delegates elected a new Speaker, Roger Hanshaw (R-Clay), in August 2018 to replace Tim Armstead who resigned to accept an appointment to the Supreme Court of Appeals ...
Why is April 1, 2019 Important? April 1, 2019 is the first day U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may accept H-1B specialty worker petitions for the next fiscal year, which begins October 1, 2019 ...
Law No. 21,121 (the “Law”), which came into force on November 20, 2018, amends the Criminal Code, Law No. 20,393 on Criminal Liability of Legal Entities, and Law No. 19,913 on Money Laundering, in connection with various criminal conducts relating to corruption and conflicts of interest. The following is a summary of the main aspects of the Law: 1.Domestic Passive and Active Bribery ...
Background The UK invoked the exit procedure under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union in March 2017. Unless the UK's decision is withdrawn or the period is extended, this will become effective in a little over 80 days ...
Should States Embrace Telehealth Parity? Parity in telehealth is the notion that health services provided via telehealth technology should be treated equally as health services provided face-to-face. This is consistent with coverage parity, which requires payors to provide the same level of insurance coverage for patient encounters and services, while payment parity (a.k.a ...
As one of the final acts of its 99th Legislative Session, the Michigan Legislature passed amendments to the Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act (MMFLA), as well as changes to the Marihuana Tracking Act. These amendments were signed by outgoing Governor Rick Snyder on December 28, 2018, with the MMFLA amendments effective January 1. The Tracking Act amendments took effect immediately ...
On the last day of the legislative session, the Michigan Legislature passed House Bills 6330, 6331, and 6380 to create the Industrial Hemp Research and Development Act (IHRDA). If signed by the Governor, IHRDA will require the registration of industrial hemp growers and processors as a prerequisite to grow or sell industrial hemp. Oversight authority is given to the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) ...
In the latest development in an eventful year, Federal Decree-Law 24 of 2018 introduces amendments to the Federal Penal Code, originally enacted as Federal Law 3 of 1987. The amendments are designed to make the Penal Code consistent with other recent federal legislation and current federal enforcement policies. Only ten provisions of the statute have been affected, out of the more than 400 total articles contained in the statute ...
In December of 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) released their much-anticipated draft proposed rule to re-write the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) (“2018 Rule”). The definition of WOTUS establishes the scope of agency jurisdiction over waters and wetlands under the Clean Water Act (CWA) ...
In two decisions on Friday, the Federal Circuit clarified the law of obviousness-type double patenting (ODP) and provided certainty to biopharma patent owners. In Novartis AG v. Ezra Ventures LLC, the court held that ODP does not invalidate an otherwise valid patent term extension (PTE) granted under 35 U.S.C. § 156 (extending the term of a pharmaceutical patent to compensate for regulatory delays). And in Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. v. Breckenridge Pharmaceutical Inc ...
Capturing lightning in a bottle: As fast-growing San Francisco concludes its largest rezoning in 10 years, will its novel new urban-planning guidelines for South of Market represent what the city's downtown needs in a fast-moving business, cultural and economic environment? In early December 2018, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors gave final approval of the "Central SOMA Plan," (the Plan) resulting in the largest rezoning of the commercial heart of the city since the renowned Downt
"What are the 'waters of the United States'? As it turns out, defining that statutory phrase—a central component of the Clean Water Act—is a contentious and difficult task." This observation, recently made by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, understates the difficulty in answering what should otherwise be an anodyne question: Does my project require a Clean Water Act permit? At this moment, answers to this question may be far from certain ...
Last week, State Senator Scott Weiner (D-San Francisco) announced new legislation intended to immediately encourage more residential construction in areas near public transit and job centers. Entitled the More Housing, Opportunity, Mobility, Equity and Stability (More HOMES) Act, SB 50 is essentially version 2.0 of SB 827, a similar housing bill proposed by Senator Weiner that failed in committee earlier this year ...
Michigan voters approved Proposal 1 and made Michigan the twelfth U.S. jurisdiction to legalize recreational marijuana. The Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act (MRTMA) went into effect December 6. What has been lost in all the smoke from the past several weeks is how MRTMA impacts the regulation of industrial hemp ...
Institutional Shareholder Services, Inc. (“ISS”) and Glass, Lewis & Co. (“Glass Lewis”) recently released their 2019 proxy voting policy updates. ISS and Glass Lewis are two of the leading proxy advisory services worldwide, and each evaluates and updates their proxy voting policies annually. The key ISS and Glass Lewis updates for the 2019 proxy season are summarized below. ISS ISS published its 2019 Proxy Voting Guidelines Updates on November 19, 2018 ...
Under the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”), large employers (generally those with 50 or more full-time employees or full-time equivalents) must report annually to the IRS information about the health coverage offered to their full-time employees during the prior year using IRS Form 1095-C. The IRS uses the forms to assess whether an employer "shared responsibility" penalty applies. Employers also must provide copies of the forms to their full-time employees ...
Often, board of education members believe what happens in executive session, stays in executive session. However, you and your board’s members, both new and old, are well-served to remember that many issues, including those involving personnel, discussed in executive session are communications that may be subject to discovery in a deposition or other legal proceeding by an affected employee ...
The Supreme Court has handed down one of the most anticipated Endangered Species Act (ESA) rulings in recent years. In Weyerhaeuser Co. v. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Serv., the Supreme Court unanimously overruled the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, holding that the Fish and Wildlife Service can only designate property that is “habitat” as critical habitat under the ESA ...
On November 20, 2018, the IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) unit issued a memorandum to IRS Division Commissioners on voluntary disclosure practice following the end of the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP). How Did We Get Here? For the last 7 years, the IRS maintained a consistent, robust program for taxpayers with exposure to potential criminal liability or substantial civil penalties due to a willful failure to report foreign financial assets ...
The UAE federal government has recently issued a raft of important legislation. The raft addresses and updates areas of law that are key to businesses in the jurisdiction. Amongst this legislation is Federal Decree-Law 14 of 2018 concerning the central bank and the organisation of financial institutions and activities (the New Banking Law) ...
The SEC’s Division of Enforcement recently issued itsannual reportdetailing enforcement activities, statistics, and changes made in the past fiscal year (“FY 2018”). The report discusses several significant developments in the SEC enforcement landscape, including the creation of new task forces, first-of-their kind enforcement actions, and the impact of the Supreme Court’s decision inKokesh v. SEC, 137 S. Ct. 1635 (2017) ...
