Monday, May 29, 2023, marked the official end of the 88th regular session of the Texas Legislature. It was an especially active session for the energy industry, which saw the passage of several bills that, if signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott, will have significant and long-term impacts on the oil and gas, renewable energy and power sectors in Texas ...
On June 1, 2023, the United States Supreme Court issued an important decision addressing the intent element of the False Claims Act (“FCA”) in United States ex rel. Tracy Schutte v. SuperValu Inc. and United States ex rel. Thomas Proctor v. Safeway, Inc. The FCA imposes liability on anyone who “knowingly” submits a false claim to the federal government and defines “knowingly” to include actual knowledge, deliberate ignorance, or recklessness ...
On 16 March 2023, in Joined Cases C‑438/21P to C‑440/21P, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) interpreted the concept of a ‘global marketing authorisation’. It held that Article 6(1) of Directive 2001/83 (the Community Code) sets out exhaustively the line extensions for which the marketing authorisations (MAs) will fall under the same global MA as the initial MA ...
On May 30, 2023, National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo took yet another step to ban restrictive covenants in the employment context. In a memo issued to all regional offices, she set forth her view that nearly all non-compete provisions, with very limited exceptions, violate the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) ...
I. INTRODUCTION The post-Soviet states, including the Russian Federation, are mired in corruption across all levels of government-the judiciary, parliament, executive and executive agencies.' Naturally, a "culture of corruption" within government distorts several necessary components that make up the rule of law. Corrupt parliament members will not be responsive to the citizenry ...
May 31, 2023 By: Stephanie Shea The California Unruh Act (specifically, California Civil Code § 51) prohibits “all business establishments of every kind whatsoever” from discriminating based on citizenship or immigration status, among other things. That protection applies to all persons within the jurisdiction of California. At the federal level, (simply put,) the federal civil rights statute (specifically, 42 U.S.C. § 1981), prohibits alienage discrimination ...
On May 30, 2023, the Expert Commission concluded the vote on the preliminary draft of the New Constitution, sending it to the Constitutional Council for discussion. After having reached cross-party agreements on most of the proposed amendments to the first draft, the Expert Commission approved in Plenary Session the text of the preliminary draft, which consists of 14 permanent Chapters, with their respective transitory provisions. The structure of the draft would be the following: Chapter I ...
In November 2021, the New York City Council passed a bill requiring that artificial intelligence (“AI”) tools used by employers to make or assist in hiring decisions or internal promotions undergo bias audits to screen for discriminatory effects. Under the City Charter, the bill became law a month later after it was returned unsigned to the Council by then-mayor Bill DeBlasio ...
On 7 April 2023, the Belgian Cour de Cassation reversed its long standing case law and decided that (from now on) disputes concerning the termination of exclusive distribution agreements are eligible to be settled by arbitration. 1. The legal background The Belgian Economic Code (previously known as the 1961 Distributorship Act – the “Act”) provides special protection against the unwarranted termination of an exclusive distribution agreement ...
Introduction Last week, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced that American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) and Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States (TECRO) had concluded the negotiation of the first trade agreement under the U.S.-Taiwan Initiative on 21st Century Trade.1 This is the first bilateral trade agreement since the promulgation of the Taiwan Relations Act in 1979 ...
The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (“Clery Act”) is a federal consumer protection law that provides campus members and the public with information about campus safety ...
The Crowdfunding Service Providers Bill reached First Reading stage in Parliament on the 17th of May, 2023. This proposed Act aims to implement provisions of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 on European crowdfunding service providers for business and it provides for the establishment of a regulatory framework for crowdfunding service providers (hereinafter referred to as “CSPs”) for business, including the organisation, authorisation and supervision of CSPs ...
May 24, 2023 By: Peter McGaw When Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs) settle CERCLA cases, they want finality. They don't expect to be asked to pay a second time for a claim they have already resolved by settlement. However, a concurring opinion in a recent Ninth Circuit decision casts doubt on the ability of a PRP to achieve finality through settlement. The Ninth Circuit’s decision in GP Vincent II v Beard was issued on May 17, 2023 ...
The much-awaited Renters (Reform) Bill received its first reading in the House of Commons last week, on Wednesday 17 May 2023. After five years of consultation and refinement, the reforms aim to improve the leasehold system through increased regulation, digitisation and standardisation. The Bill seeks to provide greater flexibility and security for residential tenants by imposing additional restrictions on private landlords ...
As we gear up for the UK Covid-19 Inquiry’s first full public hearing on 13 June, here is a reminder of what has been covered to date, followed by a list of issues to be covered within the scope of the first (Module 1) investigation. Inquiry to date the Inquiry was formally established by the Chair (Baroness Heather Hallett) on 28 June 2022, at which time the final Terms of Reference were published by the Government (UK COVID-19 Inquiry: terms of reference - GOV.UK (www.gov ...
We recently reported1 on the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) decision in AttainX ...
The hemp industry's explosive growth following the 2018 Farm Bill has produced a number of consequences, some intended and many more almost certainly never considered by lawmakers. The development of THC acetate ester (THCO), a synthetic substance created from hemp, almost certainly falls within the latter category. Recently, THCO has gained substantial popularity. In a Feb ...
Overview The Law on Trusts promulgated on 2 January 2019 provides the legal framework for the creation, registration and inspection of trusts in Cambodia. To facilitate the implementation of the Trust Law, the Trust Regulator on 3 November 2022 issued Prakas 051 on the Formalities and Procedure for Inspection of Trusts (“Prakas 051”). Prakas 051 applies to the inspection of activities and operations related to the trust sector in Cambodia ...
In the last few months, the UAE authorities have introduced a number of measures intended to increase the number of UAE nationals who are employed in the private sector. The Emirati Cadres Competitiveness Council (Nafis) program, originally established in 2016 with the aim of attracting UAE nationals to the private sector, has been reinvigorated ...
By: Christopher M. Mason "Amongst the flurry of other recent executive orders and administrative directives during his first 30 days in office, President Joseph R. Biden signed an executive order seeking to eliminate gender identity and sexual orientation discrimination, and various overlapping forms of discrimination on the basis of multiple protected classes, in federal government departments and agencies ...
On May 9th, 2023, Law No.21,565 of the Ministry of Women and Gender Equity was published in the Official Gazette, which establishes a regime of protection and integral reparation for victims of femicide and femicide suicide and their families. The objective of this law is the creation and strengthening of effective and necessary actions by the State for the attention and integral reparation of the damage of the victims of femicide and femicide suicide ...
Why is ESG of importance to charities when they already make such a positive difference to society? Because there is still much to be done about how charities undertake their valuable work, and many do not yet communicate to stakeholders all the things they do well, in a systematic and measurable way. And because two thirds of millennials consider the social and environmental commitments of an organisation when deciding where to work ...
