THE FACTS In January 2001, Synertech established two individual pension plans for two of its executives, that is the individual pension plan for Mr. François Bérard (the “Bérard Plan”) and the individual pension plan for Mr. Michael Pons (the “Pons Plan”). In November 2008, Synertech amended these two pension plans, effective as of January 1, 2001 ...
The global financial crisis which began in 2008 elevated the prosecution of crimes affecting federally insured financial institutions to near the top of the Justice Department’s priority list. Directors and officers of those institutions, already under scrutiny from the regulators and law enforcement agencies traditionally charged with examining their actions (e.g ...
The Fourth Circuit has just released its highly anticipated keyword advertising decision in Rosetta Stone Ltd. v. Google Inc., No. 10-2007 (4th Cir. Apr. 9, 2012), vacating much of a district court order favorable to Google ...
The U. S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the JOBS (Jumpstart Our Business Startups) Act Tuesday, March 27, after receiving it from the Senate. The President signed the bill April 5, 2012. The JOBS Act is best known for its crowdfunding provisions, which I will address shortly, but it also is a boon to many community banks. Community banks often are formed with many investors ...
In Greek mythology, Prometheus stole fire from Zeus to give to mankind. It seems that Zeus is now reclaiming some of that fire in the guise of Mayo Collaborative Servs. v. Prometheus Labs., Inc., No. 10-1150 (U.S. Mar. 20, 2012), the Supreme Court’s latest decision addressing patent-eligible subject matter. But a practical analysis of Prometheus reveals strategies one can use in drafting patent claims to keep those claims burning ...
The U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed a $44 million judgment against Tuomey Hospital in Sumter, South Carolina that arose from Tuomey’s employment arrangements with physicians that allegedly violated the federal Stark Law.1 The Stark Law prohibits hospitals from submitting claims to Medicare for designated health services that were referred by physicians with whom the hospital has a financial relationship, unless the relationship fits within an exception ...
On April 5, 2012, President Obama signed into law the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (the “JOBS Act”) ...
After three days of historic oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court, the fate of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the momentous 2010 health reform law, is uncertain, given robust questioning of the ability of Congress to force individuals to purchase health insurance ...
In response to a court order, EPA has announced proposed rules that would establish new source performance standards (“NSPS”) applicable to greenhouse gas emissions from new, fossil fuel-fired power plants (“power plants”). The proposal is a highly controversial one, which will effectively prohibit the construction of coal-fired power plants that do not capture carbon ...
With the spotlight recently cast upon it by the burgeoning Marcellus and other shale reserve developments, the oil and gas (“O&G”) industry has found itself increasingly the object of regulatory scrutiny ...
On March 26, 2012, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals (“the Court”) vacated and remanded EPA’s disapproval of Texas’s request for approval of the minor source standard permit for pollution control projects (“PCP”) as part of its air quality state implementation plan (“SIP”). The Court’s reasoning may also affect other pending disputes between EPA and Texas regarding air quality permitting and other issues ...
On Wednesday, March 22, the United States Supreme Court ruled that a compliance order issued under EPA’s Clean Water Act enforcement authority to individuals for allegedly filling part of their property without the necessary “dredge and fill” permit could be challenged in federal district court. The ruling marks a major loss for EPA’s enforcement practices under the Clean Water Act ...
In the 2012 regular session of the West Virginia Legislature, several resolutions were passed with potential future impact on the shale gas industry. Below is a summary of those significant resolutions. Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 52 This resolution requests the Joint Committee on Government and Finance to study the viability of increasing severance tax rates on shale gas ...
On Monday, March 26, 2012, the United States Supreme Court issued a decision in Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC v. Simmonds. The Court held that an alleged failure by a corporate insider to file a short-swing profit disclosure under Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 does not indefinitely toll the two-year statute of limitations on another party’s claim for recovery of such profits under Section 16(b) ...
Bankers confront the bankruptcy world regularly. It can be a world of somewhat unfamiliar, if not confusing, concepts and terms. Unfortunately, it can also be a world fraught with risk associated with taking actions (or not taking actions) that run afoul of the rules or jeopardize the bank’s rights against the borrower. Here are a few of the “truths” that bankers need to keep in mind in the bankruptcy world. 1. The automatic stay is, well, automatic ...
A creation of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, Pub. Law 111-203 (“Dodd-Frank Act”), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) is charged with regulating consumer lending activities of financial institutions and, in partnership with state attorneys general, enforcing numerous federal consumer protection laws ...
In a decision issued this week, Roland v. Green, -- F.3d --, 2012 WL 898557 (5th Cir. Mar. 19, 2012), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit addressed an issue of first impression—the scope of the preclusion provision of the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act (“SLUSA”). Recognizing the current split among circuits, the court adopted the “tangentially related” test ...
On March 13, 2012, the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development issued recommendations for improving the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act (CEAA) process (click on Print Format for the complete report). The recommendations focus on: improving timeliness; decreasing duplication with provincial processes; improving aboriginal consultation processes; and improving outcomes ...
On March 21, 2012, the United States Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision in the much-publicized case of Sackett v. EPA (No. 10-1062), less than three months after oral argument, holding that the Sacketts were not precluded from judicially challenging EPA’s issuance of an administrative compliance order ...
On March 16, 2012 the President declared the Tennessee counties of Bradley, Claiborne, Cumberland, DeKalb, Hamilton, Jackson, McMinn, Monroe, Overton and Polk federal disaster areas because of the severe storms and tornadoes that hit those counties on March 2, 2012.If you suffered an uninsured or underinsured loss of property due to the March 2, 2012 storms in a county included in the federally declared disaster areas, you could qualify for assistance from FEMA ...
The Powers Of CSST Inspectors ConfidentialityAgreements:The Importance Of Protecting Your Secrets; Your First Financial Institution. Various statutes impose obligations on employers to take the necessary measures to protect the health and safety of workers, including An Act respecting Occupational health and safety (R.S.Q., c. S‑2.1) (hereinafter referred to as the “AROHS”) ...
Class Action and Consumer Law: The Court of Appeal Excludes Non-Consumers from the Approved Class in an Authorized Class Action CONSUMER PROTECTION LAW AND THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT (“CPA”) APPLY FIRST AND FOREMOST TO ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES IN THE RETAIL SECTOR. EXPENDITURES ASSOCIATED WITH THIS SECTOR REPRESENT MORE THAN SIXTY-FIVE PERCENT OF ALL EXPENDITURES IN THE PROVINCE. IT IS ALSO AN AREA OF THE LAW WHICH FREQUENTLY COMES BEFORE THE COURTS ...
You are the general counsel of a public company and expect M&A activity to increase in the United States during 2012. Do you know if your company looks like a good target to potential acquirors? It is important to understand whether you could be a target before getting that first overture from an acquiror ...
E-DISTRIBUTION OF INSURANCE PRODUCTS: THE AMF WANTS YOUR INPUT!On February 24, 2012, the Autorité des marchés financiers (the “AMF”) published, on its website, a notice of consultation entitled Notice and Request and Comment on Internet Insurance Offerings in Québec (the “Notice”). This process follows the AMF’s analysis, initiated a few years ago, on the issues relating to e-distribution of insurance products ...
On February 1, 2012, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (“DEP”) and its Office of Oil and Gas (“OOG”) conducted what it named the “Natural Gas Horizontal Well Control Act Industry Workshop” at the Marriott Town Center in Charleston, West Virginia (“Workshop”). For those of you who may have missed all or a portion of the Workshop, the following is a summary of the presentations by the various DEP speakers ...
