Banking Articles
June 25, 2010
Nancy Sasser - LeClair RyanThe extension of the COBRA health insurance subsidy, signed into law by
President Obama on December 21st after an 88-10 vote by the Senate, will
provide additional relief for a record number of unemployed workers. Full Story
June 22, 2010
Todd Solomon The IRS has recently issued several pieces of guidance related to the filing of the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, IRS Form TD F 90-22.1 (“FBAR”), by pension plan sponsors. While the IRS has relieved some of the filing obligations, most notably the requirement for plans to file for foreign hedge fund investments for 2009 and prior years, certain filing obligations remain. Full Story
June 11, 2010
James Orr and Benjamin C. Morgan - Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLPThree recent federal court decisions sharply divide on whether large
carbon emitters may be sued under common law theories of nuisance and
negligence.Connecticut v. American Electric Power
CompanyNative Village of Kivalina v.
ExxonMobilComer v. Murphy Oil USA Full Story
June 11, 2010
Alisa Chestler - Baker DonelsonThis year has brought about historic and dramatic changes in federal law
governing the privacy and security of health care information in the
United States. The February 2009 enactment of the Health Information
Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, which was part
of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), created
federal notification requirements for security breaches of protected
health information (PHI) and added numerous provisions and amendments to
the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA)
and its implementing privacy and security regulations. Full Story
June 11, 2010
Jeffrey Margolis and Barry D. Lapides - Duane Morris LLPThe U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently issued
new rules that modify the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA).
RESPA is a consumer-protection statute that was enacted to (1) help
consumers become better shoppers for settlement services and (2) eliminate
kickbacks and referral fees that unnecessarily increase the costs of
certain settlement services. Loans secured with a mortgage placed on a
one-to-four-family residential property are governed by RESPA. These loans
include most purchase loans, assumptions, refinances, property improvement
loans, and equity lines of credit. HUD's Office of RESPA and Interstate
Land Sales is responsible for enforcing RESPA. Full Story
June 11, 2010
Elizabeth Nedrow - Holland & Hart LLPA recent decision by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals may make it
harder for insurance companies in some states to defend claims denials.
Standard Insurance Company v. Morrison, a case decided by the
court on October 27, 2009, established its place in claims denial case
history by addressing the standard of review in Employee Retirement Income
Security Act (ERISA) cases. Full Story
June 11, 2010
Michael Dawkins - Baker DonelsonOn January 4, 2010, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
formally solicited comments on what should be EPA's enforcement priorities
for fiscal years 2011 through 2013. The EPA's draft list of priorities
indicates a new emphasis on certain sectors of the economy, including
manufacturers that cause disproportionate environmental impact to minority
neighborhoods, manufacturers and users of pesticides, developers with
projects impacting wetlands, and owners, operators and industrial users of
municipal wastewater treatment facilities. EPA's request for public
comments is published at 75 Federal Register 146-148. Full Story
June 11, 2010
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP In a recent decision, a magistrate judge in a U.S. District Court in New
Jersey ruled that a discovery plan crafted pursuant to Federal Rule of
Civil Procedure 26(f) did not protect the plaintiff’s inadvertent
production of privileged documents from being subject to waiver. This case
is important because it distinguishes between the procedural or
process-based rules found in Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 26(b)(5)(B)
and 26(f), and the substantive-based rules regarding privilege waiver
found in Federal Rule of Evidence 502. Full Story