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 ...
Over the last few years as tax revenues have decreased and budgets have tightened, states across the country have aggressively pursued out-of-state retailers that may owe sales or use tax. From ticket sellers like StubHub, online retailers like Amazon, and mail-order companies like Scholastic Books, states are asserting that a wide variety of businesses once thought to be exempt have the substantial nexus necessary to require that they collect sales and use tax from their customers ...
The scope of additional hypothecs was examined by the Superior Court of September 6, 2011 in the case of Banque Nationale Du Canada v. Larouche. At issues in this case was whether the additional hypothec provision contained in the deed of hypothec granted by Mr ...
President Obama has renewed his proposal to cut over $40 billion in tax breaks for oil, gas and coal producers over the next decade in an attempt to spend more for alternate energy and conservation. The $3.8 trillion budget proposal represents a 29% increase in renewable energy funds in 2013, as compared to 2012 ...
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 ...
Most of our clients are aware that Congress dramatically increased the individual gift tax exemption from $1,000,000 to $5,120,000 in 2012, and that the exemption is scheduled to revert to $1,000,000 on January 1, 2013 unless Congress takes some action. If this reduction in the gift tax exemption occurs, clients may lose an opportunity to remove a substantial amount of assets from their estates, and, with it, the opportunity to reduce estate taxes payable by their children ...
You are the general counsel of a public company, and your board and your CEO are considering the company’s strategic acquisition options. Your input is needed on the different forms that such a strategic transaction can take ...
The new abbreviated regulatory approval pathway for “biosimilar” and “interchangeable” types of biologic drug products was implemented in the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act of 2009 (BPCI Act) as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010. The details about the use of this pathway were left for further development through Food & Drug Administration (“FDA”) action ...
On November 15, 2011, existing facilities subject to the federal Spill Pollution Control and Countermeasure Rule (“SPCC Rule”), 40 C.F.R. Part 112, were required to finalize and implement a plan—known as an “SPCC plan”—detailing the equipment, workforce, procedures and steps to be taken to prevent, control and provide adequate countermeasures to a discharge of oil to navigable waters of the United States or adjoining shorelines ...
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has begun the pilot phase of HIPAA privacy and security audits of health care providers, health insurers and health care clearinghouses (“covered entities”) to assess HIPAA compliance efforts. Up to 150 covered entities will be subject to the initial audits, to be conducted by KPMG, LLP, the OCR audit contractor ...
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has confirmed that lower courts may use their discretion in choosing either of two methods - the "percentage method" or "lodestar method" - to calculate attorneys' fees in class action suits. The decision, in Union Asset Mgmt Holding A.G. v. Dell, Inc., 2012 WL 35249 (5th Cir. Feb. 7, 2012), affirmed a district court's use of the percentage method to calculate a $7.2 million fee award ...
Article 41 of the Queretaro Treasury Law for Municipalities regulates the procedure to calculate the real estate tax and providesan annual rate based on the following criteria: Under such Article, the municipalities will determine which of the two rates may apply each year, incorporating the relevant rateto their respective Revenue Law ...
In the recent decision of Giza v. Sechelt School Bus Service Ltd., 2012 BCCA 18 (“Giza”), the Court of Appeal for British Columbia (the “Court of Appeal”) held that an employee who quit his job after being given working notice of termination of employment was nevertheless entitled to sue for damages for wrongful dismissal for the period of reasonable notice in excess of the notice given.Mr ...
In just a few years, the Federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1984 (the “CFAA,” 18 U.S.C. § 1030) - a sweeping statute that criminalizes the unauthorized access of protected computers - has evolved into a broad and powerful weapon in computer-related criminal and civil litigation. Originally enacted to target hackers, the statute now reaches almost any imaginable malfeasance that involves a computer. Two recurring categories of cases arise in an employment context ...
The National Labor Relations Board has had a busy few weeks. First, over the dissent of its sole Republican Member, Brian Hayes, it issued a final rule implementing new procedures for union elections. Second, it issued a decision in D.R. Horton, 357 NLRB No. 184 (January 3, 2012), a much-anticipated case involving class action waivers in collective bargaining agreements. Third, on the heels of the D.R ...
In connection with the recent changes in legislation in the field of health, the Federal Commission for protection against health risks ("Cofepris") has taken various actions against the sale, distribution and advertising of the so-called "miracle products," which are distributed without scientific evidence to demonstrate its therapeutic properties ...
Pursuant to the 2011 General Rules on Foreign Trade, since January 2, 2012, holders of trademarks that have been registered with the Mexican Industrial Property Institute (“IMPI”) may request the listing of their trademarks at the Mexican Customs Office (“AGA”), through a database developed by AGA ...
The Supreme Court of Canada confirms that only those modern practices that maintain a reasonable degree of continuity with the practices, customs or traditions that were integral to an Aboriginal group’s pre-contact dist inctive culture will be protected as an Aboriginal right under section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. On November 10, 2011, in the case of Lax Kw’alaams Indian Band v ...
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced its annual revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (HSR Act) jurisdictional thresholds. The revised thresholds will become effective 30 days after publication in the Federal Register and will apply to all transactions closing on or after such date. The new thresholds will remain in effect until the next annual adjustment, expected in the first quarter of 2013 ...
2011 saw steady increases of production throughout the Marcellus Shale play, a heavy emphasis on strengthening and expanding pipeline infrastructure, and a boom in the level of activity in the Utica Shale play ...
On January 9, 2012, the IRS issued a news release announcing that the IRS is opening a third Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program for taxpayers who come forward (including taxpayers who have come forward since the 2011 disclosure program closed last September) to report previously undisclosed foreign accounts and assets ...
You’re the general counsel of a public company and your CEO calls you to tell you that he is interested in acquiring another public company. He’s already asking you how quickly this can get done and what the company needs to do. What are the first steps you should take? Board of Directors Generally, the CEO should call each of your board members individually to gauge their initial reaction toward the acquisition and schedule a special board meeting to discuss a potential transaction ...
The honourable justice Louis-Paul Cullen of the Superior Court rendered a judgment on September 23, 2011 which dismissed a motion for authorization to exercise a class action instituted by Mr. Kerfalla Toure (hereinafter "Toure") against Brault & Martineau (hereinafter "B & M) . (1) In order for a class action to be authorized by the Superior Court, the Code of Civil Procedure sets out the four conditions which must be fulfilled ...
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