All Perspectives

On the one hand, business insurance provides in-house counsel with the peace of mind to know that if their company is involved in a covered event, the insurer will be responsible for some or all of the damages and also may be responsible for footing the bill for legal fees and defense costs. On the other hand, insurance carriers usually are incentivized to engage inexpensive attorneys who may not have the industry, business or other expertise which in-house counsel typically desire.

This week, the US Department of Labor (DOL) issued a final rule — Federal Register: Employee or Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Headlines that Matter for Companies and Executives in Regulated Industries

This week, SAP SE (SAP), the German-based software company, agreed to pay over $200 million to resolve investigations by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) into violations of the Foreign Corruption Practices Act (FCPA).

Health Care Practice Leader Douglas Grimm was quoted by Healthcare IT Today discussing the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in health care.

Climate change litigation continues in the headlines, this time with an Oregon federal court evaluating claims by 21 children that the federal government violated their constitutional right to a habitable environment.

Chairman Anthony V. Lupo was quoted by Quartz about the concerns of the authentication practices of resellers.

The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) became effective on January 1. The CTA creates a new national database of companies, maintained by the US Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), to facilitate the government’s law enforcement and national security efforts.

Proposed bills at the federal and state level were announced January 10, both intended to protect recording artists and the music industry from unauthorized “soundalike” vocals created using artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

The Electric Mobility industry is on track for another exciting year. However, current and forthcoming US agency regulations continue to inject confusion and costs in critical supply decisions, for which legal tools can provide near- and long-term solutions.

We chose to include a discussion of this important but lesser understood policy area because of the likelihood of their impact — both adverse and positive — on many companies’ procurement and production plans.

Aluminum is clearly an important material for the industry as there is an objective for making vehicles as light as possible. Aluminum issues may start with Tariff Classification and Country of Origin questions, and can lead to more complex issues, including Section 232 tariffs or other high-tariff trade barriers.

For readers who may not be fully apprised of what these tariffs are, we offer a short summary.

The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), in many ways, can be a game changer for many automotive companies. First and foremost, eligibility of products deemed USMCA compliant benefit from zero US import tariffs.

Critical minerals — the lithium, graphite, cobalt, manganese, and other key minerals that are later processed into battery-grade chemicals — represent the essential ingredients in any electric vehicle (EV) battery.

Chairman and Fashion & Retail Law Industry Team Leader Anthony V. Lupo was quoted on the industry reaction to the Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act.

Amy Antoniolli will join a webinar on energy zoning and permitting, hosted by EUCI on January 11, 2024.

ArentFox Schiff is pleased to announce the addition of partner Todd Feinsmith to its Bankruptcy & Financial Restructuring practice in the firm’s Boston office.

This constitutes the third in a four-part series that discusses the practice of repledging (sometimes referred to as “rehypothecation”), how standard agreements allow for repledging, the treatment of repledging under current law, the potential pitfalls of which borrowers should be aware, and how borrowers can protect themselves going forward.

Headlines that Matter for Companies and Executives in Regulated Industries

Nuclear power has long been a core component of the Illinois energy sector. A new law seeks to enable nuclear power to play an increased role in the energy transition by allowing construction of new “small modular reactors” in the state.

Partner Ross Panko was quoted on the major trademark trends attorneys anticipate could impact matters in 2024.

The US Department of the Treasury (Treasury Department) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently published proposed regulations under Section 4966 to provide additional guidance on several issues related to creating and administering a donor-advised fund (DAF).

On December 18, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the availability of the Cosmetics Direct electronic submission portal and publication of final guidance for industry on cosmetic facility registration and cosmetic product listing.

For better or worse, generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) is already transforming the way we live and work. Within two months of its initial release to the public, ChatGPT reached 100 million monthly active users, making it the fastest-growing consumer application in history.