The Work and Families Act (WFA), which received Royal Assent in the UK on 21 June, 2006, has been the subject of considerable speculation and debate since the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) outlined a range of proposals promoting family-friendly policies and practices at work in its February 2005 consultation paper.
June 27, 2007
On June 21, 2007, the Supreme Court issued an 8-1 decision in Rita v. United States, No. 06-5754, affirming the ability of appellate courts to use a presumption of reasonableness where the sentences they are reviewing were imposed within the applicable range under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
June 25, 2007
On June 21, 2007, the Supreme Court issued an 8-1 decision in Tellabs v. Makor Issues & Rights, No. 06-484, explaining the plaintiff’s burden under § 21D(b)(2) of the PSLRA (15 U.S.C.
June 22, 2007
On June 11, 2007, the Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in United States v. Atlantic Research Corporation, No. 06-562, holding that the plain language of Section 107(a)(4)(B) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), 42 U.S.C.
June 11, 2007
The Securities and Exchange Commission recently provided an important reminder of the need for effective information barriers and procedures to address potential conflicts of interest, including misuse of confidential information, that may exist given the multiple hats increasingly worn by broker-dealers, investment advisers, hedge funds, private equity funds, and other financial intermediaries.
June 11, 2007
On June 4, the IRS issued guidance clarifying which executive officers are "covered employees" for purposes of the $1 million deduction limitation under section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code.
June 8, 2007
On May 29, 2007, in response to the continuing conflict in Sudan, the United States imposed new sanctions against Sudan. The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), which maintains and enforces U.S.
June 5, 2007
Paris associate Jérôme Delaurière is the author of "News Analysis: Tax Authorities Issue Statement on Impact of Denkavit" [PDF] published in the June 4, 2007 issue of Tax Analysts's Tax Notes International (pg.1002).
June 4, 2007
Los Angeles associate Afshin Beyzaee is the author of "Current Tax Structuring Techniques for Private Equity Funds" [PDF] published in the May/June 2007 issue of the Journal of Taxation and Regulation of Financial Institutions.© 2007 Civic Research Institute. This article originally appeared in Journal of Taxation and Regulation of Financial Institutions and is reproduced here with permission. For information on the journal, visit http://www.civicresearchinstitute.com/tfi.html.
June 1, 2007
Washington, D.C. Partner Joseph Warin and Of Counsel Peter Jaffe are the authors of "Rolling the Dice in Corporate Fraud Prosecutions" [PDF] published in the Spring 2007 issue of Litigation Magazine.Reprinted with permission, Litigation Magazine, Volume 33 Number 3, Spring 2007, © 2007 American Bar Association.
May 30, 2007
The Securities and Exchange Commission's July 2006 guidance on client commission arrangements under section 28(e) of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 provides eligible money managers with a safe harbor from violating their fiduciary duties by using client commission dollars to pay more than the lowest possible brokerage rate. While the SEC is expected to issue additional guidance later this year, the attached two-part article outlines the current safe harbor requirements, including a discussion of research services and brokerage, and offers a detailed compliance checklist for eligibility. Gibson Dunn of counsel K.
May 30, 2007
At a meeting held on May 23, 2007, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") adopted interpretive guidance for management to use in conducting the annual evaluation of internal control over financial reporting that is required under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 ("Sarbanes-Oxley").
May 25, 2007
Washington, D.C. Partner Baruch Fellner and Associate Michael Billok are the authors of "Scrutinizing Workplace Fatalities" [PDF] published in the National Law Journal on May 21, 2007. The article analyzes how companies familiar with OSHA procedures can assist in an investigation and reduce liability risk. Reprinted with permission, The National Law Journal, © 2007 ALM Properties, Inc
May 21, 2007
With the newly installed, Democrat-controlled Congress comes a greater focus on aggressive congressional scrutiny of private- and public-sector behavior.
May 14, 2007
Claims against a party (D) for intentionally causing economic loss to another (P), in situations where D is neither in a contractual or other legal relationship with P, have been possible under English law for several centuries.
May 11, 2007
European Commissioner for Competition Neelie Kroes is maintaining her push for ownership unbundling in the electricity and gas sectors. Despite the protests of the French and German governments, the Commissioner is intent on forging ahead.
May 4, 2007
On April 30, the Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in KSR Int'l Co. v. Teleflex Inc., which has the potential to reshape long-standing Federal Circuit law and United States Patent and Trademark Office practice on determining whether a patent is "obvious" under 35 U.S.C.
May 3, 2007
The National Toxicology Program recently released a draft report on its two-year studies of rodents exposed to hexavalent chromium in drinking water. These studies were undertaken because of concerns raised by a number of California legislators and regulatory offices, including the California Environmental Protection Agency, the California Department of Health Services, and the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment.
May 1, 2007
On April 30, the Supreme Court of the United States issued a 7-1 decision in Microsoft Corp. v. AT&T Corp. that held that Microsoft is not liable under 35 U.S.C.
April 30, 2007
On April 10, the IRS issued final regulations interpreting the rules and standards under Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code ("Section 409A"). Our client memorandum of April 11 summarizes key provisions of the regulations. Section 409A provides various rules that "deferred compensation" must satisfy in order to avoid unfavorable tax treatment of employees, directors and other service providers, including immediate income tax, a 20% penalty tax, and an interest charge. In addition, some states (including California) have implemented similar rules, and deferred compensation payments that do not comply with Section 409A can be taxed at marginal rates exceeding 75%.The sweep of Section 409A is extremely broad, and reaches far beyond traditional nonqu
April 26, 2007