The CPSC has filed suit against several manufacturers of high-powered magnet sets seeking to have the products declared “substantial product hazards” so that it may to force a recall of the products. Last week, the CPSC amended its complaint against Maxfield & Oberton to name the dissolved company’s former CEO as a defendant, both “individually and in his capacity as CEO.”
February 21, 2013
Publications
|
The following is a summary of the precedential patent-related opinions issued by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit for the week ending February 15, 2013.
February 15, 2013
Publications
|
This alert discusses the long-awaited final regulations under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) provisions in Code Sections 1471 to 1474 (also known as “Chapter 4”).
February 15, 2013
Advisories
|
February 15, 2013
Publications
|
"CMS Releases Long-Awaited Physician Payments Sunshine Act Final Rule—What Comes Next For Physicians, Teaching Hospitals, Drug And Device Manufacturers, And GPOs?" Health Lawyers Weekly, Vol. 11, Issue 6, February 15, 2013.
February 15, 2013
Publications
|
"Enviro Cos., Beware Of More EPA Criminal Enforcement," Law360, February 14, 2013.
February 14, 2013
Publications
|
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) marked the twentieth anniversary of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) by issuing new FMLA regulations on February 6, 2013. The regulations, which take effect on March 8, 2013, implement several recent statutory expansions of the FMLA pertaining to protections for military family members and airline flight crews. The regulations also clarify DOL’s position concerning calculation of intermittent leave and remind employers of their obligation to comply with the confidentiality requirements of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA). This advisory summarizes the most significant aspects of the new regulations.
February 14, 2013
Advisories
|
“New Jersey Rejects Lack-of-Prior-Substantiation Claim,” Section of Litigation, Products Liability, News & Developments, American Bar Association Website, February 14, 2013.
February 14, 2013
Publications
|
Yesterday, the White House released an Executive Order titled “Improving Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity” (the “Order”). The Order was signed by the President yesterday and announced during his State of the Union Address. The Order represents an attempt by the President, frustrated by a lack of Congressional action, to improve a perceived vulnerability to cyber attacks within the Nation’s critical infrastructure.
This cyber alert, presented in a “frequently asked questions” format, summarizes several key aspects of the Order.
February 13, 2013
Publications
|
“Primary Jurisdiction May Be Useful in Food Labeling Cases,” Law360, February 12, 2013.
February 12, 2013
Publications
|
This advisory discusses Executive Order 13495, which serves to protect the jobs of individuals who might otherwise lose them as a result of the completion or expiration of a federal service contract or subcontract by requiring that such individuals be given the right of first refusal for employment with the successor contractor.
February 12, 2013
Advisories
|
Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks are not a new method employed by cyber criminals to inflict damage on victim entities’ networks. In fact, DDoS attacks were one of the first types of online crimes to appear in the dawn of the Internet age. In the past several years, however, cyber threat actors have rekindled this attack to produce two new variants, both of which specifically target the financial services sector.
February 12, 2013
Publications
|
Plaintiffs in mortgage loan put-back litigations may now have a roadmap to establish pool-wide representation and warranty breach claims in a streamlined manner—while the process is still lengthy, the path to recovery is now clearer.
February 11, 2013
Advisories
|
"2012: A Year of Change for E-Discovery in Patent Cases," Intellectual Property Today, February 2013.
February 2013
Publications
|
On January 29, 2013, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) released a revised version of its regulations to regulate consumer products sold in California, “The Safer Consumer Products Regulations.” The proposed regulatory program has evolved through many iterations and revised draft regulations, including previous releases on July 27, 2012, and November 1, 2011. This advisory specifically focuses on changes to regulations relating to trade secret protection in the January 2013 release versus the July 2012 release.
February 7, 2013
Advisories
|
Beginning in 2014, “applicable large employers” become subject to new rules prescribed in Internal Revenue Code Section 4980H (“4980H Rules”), which were added by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). These new 4980H Rules impose a confiscatory excise tax on employers who fail to offer certain coverage to full-time employees if at least one full-time employee receives a premium tax credit or cost share reduction (“Premium Subsidy”) for coverage in an “Exchange” established pursuant to the new ACA rules. These new 4980H Rules are often referred to as the “employer shared responsibility requirements” or the “pay or play” requirements. Now, less than a year before these game-changing rules go into effect, the IRS has issued comprehensive proposed regulations (the “Proposed Rules”) that give much-needed substance to the new rules.
February 6, 2013
Advisories
|
This advisory discusses the long-awaited CMS final rule on “Transparency Reports and Reporting of Physician Ownership or Investment Interests” (the “Final Rule”). The Final Rule implements Section 6002 of the Affordable Care Act, known as the “Physician Payments Sunshine Act,” which requires that applicable drug and device manufacturers report payments or other transfers of value to physicians and teaching hospitals to the Department of Health and Human Services. It also requires applicable manufacturers and group purchasing organizations (GPOs) to report certain physician ownership and investment interests.
February 5, 2013
Advisories
|
“Missed Opportunity in Green Chemistry,” The Daily Journal, February 4, 2013.
February 4, 2013
Publications
|
In the late 20th century, the IRS made a combination of unrelated decisions resulting in a proliferation of upstream C reorganizations. This advisory discusses how the ease with which an upstream C reorganization can occur can cause problems.
Febuary 1, 2013
Advisories
|
Alston & Bird has developed the attached checklist tool to assist Covered Entities, Business Associates, and Subcontractor Business Associates to plan their implementation of the January 25, 2013 Omnibus HIPAA Rule. The Omnibus HIPAA Rule significantly amended the HIPAA/HITECH Act Privacy, Security, Breach Notification, and Enforcement Rules, as discussed in the attached Alston & Bird HIPAA Advisory issued on January 25, 2013.
February 1, 2013
Advisories
|