Biden White House Issues Sweeping Executive Order to Boost Competition and Increase Workers’ Pay
After months of being prematurely heralded as a "modern F.D.R.," President Joe Biden recently took a significant step toward beginning to justify the lofty comparison. On July 9, 2021, Biden issued an expansive executive order (the "Order") focused on aggressive enforcement of antitrust law with, as Biden put it, "no tolerance for abusive ...
Supreme Court to Decide Whether PSLRA Discovery Stay Applies to State Securities Cases Under the Securities Act of 1933
Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 ("PSLRA"), all discovery in a Federal securities lawsuit is put on hold while the court decides whether to grant a motion to dismiss. The PSLRA provides "In any private action arising under this subchapter, all discovery and other proceedings shall be stayed during the pendency of ...
Cybersecurity Risk Governance on SEC Agenda
On June 11, 2021, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs ("OIRA"), a part of the Office of Management and Budget and the U.S. Government's central authority for reviewing Executive Branch regulations, released the Spring 2021 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions. The purpose of the OIRA Agenda is to report on short ...
NCAA to Vote to Suspend Rules Prohibiting Name, Image, and Likeness
On June 28, 2021, the NCAA's D-1 Council, made up of a group of school athletic directors, administrators, and faculty members who run the daily operations of the nation's highest collegiate athletics organization recommended a proposal to the NCAA's Board of Directors to suspend rules prohibiting college athletes from profiting from the use ...
SEC APPROVES AMENDMENTS TO NYSE RELATED PARTY TRANSACTION APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS
The New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE") has long required NYSE-listed companies to have "an appropriate body" to review and evaluate related party transactions. However, Section 314.00 of the NYSE Listed Company Manual ("Section 314.00") did not explicitly define a related party transaction. Instead, the prevailing view was that a related party ...
Chickens Come Home to Roost for Tyson Foods and Pilgrim’s Pride as Court Grants Final Approval in Price-Fixing Settlements
Direct purchasers of broiler chicken obtained final approval of their settlements with Tyson Foods and Pilgrim's Pride, for a total of $155 million for the class. The direct purchasers alleged that Tyson Foods, Pilgrim's Pride, and more than a dozen other producers of broiler chicken coordinated output restrictions and shared competitively ...
U.S. Department of Labor Issues COVID-19 Safety Standards for Healthcare-Sector Employers
On June 10, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor ("DOL") issued a long- and highly-anticipated emergency rule setting workplace safety parameters for employers in the healthcare sector that, once published in the Federal Register, will remain in effect throughout the remainder of the COVID-19 pandemic. The rule, which largely tracks recent guidance ...
SEC Chair Addresses “Cracks” In Insider Trading Rules
Speaking at the CFO Network Summit on June 7, 2021, SEC Chair Gary Gensler informed the audience about his plans to "freshen up" Rule 10b5-1. Approximately 20 years ago, the SEC enacted Rule 10b5-1 as a means to regulate insider trading. Rule 10b5-1 provides a safe harbor for companies and company insiders to purchase and sell shares of stock ...
GOVERNMENT BACKS SEVENTH CIRCUIT IN COMCAST’S BID FOR SUPREME COURT REVIEW
At the Supreme Court's request, the acting United States Solicitor General has submitted an amicus brief weighing in on Comcast Corp.'s petition for a writ of certiorari in an antitrust case brought by Viamedia, Inc. Comcast is an entertainment and technology company that provides, among other things, cable television services. In so doing, ...
Is My Employer Setting Up a Non-Discriminatory Justification for My Termination?
A. The Employment Laws Protect Employees from Discrimination The Federal and New York State, and New York City laws prohibit an employer from discriminating against an employee because of his or her race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, or other protected characteristic. The Federal and New York State laws prohibit ...
DIRECTORS SERVE AN ESSENTIAL ROLE IN DATA SECURITY
On April 28, 2021, Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") staff published a blog post entitled "Corporate boards: don't underestimate your role in data security oversight." While data security threats are not new, the FTC states that it is "essential for corporate boards to do what they can to ensure that consumer and employee data is protected." ...
College Athlete Union Bill Announced in Congress
On May 27, 2021, members of Congress announced a bill, the "College Athlete Right to Organize Act," that seeks to provide college student athletes the right to unionize and collectively bargain as employees of their respective collegiate institutions. The bill covers student athletes who attend public and private colleges and universities ...
FINRA To Seek Public Feedback On ‘Gamification’ Of Trading Platforms
Officials from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA") stated during the agency's annual conference earlier this month that it will seek public feedback on the "gamification" used by some stock trading platforms. According to Law360, "gamification refers to the marketing tactics used by trading platforms, other online retailers ...
Tyson to Pay $4.6 Million to Settle Turkey Price-Fixing Case
Tyson Foods has agreed to pay $4.62 million to resolve its portion of a lawsuit that accuses Tyson and its competitors of fixing prices for turkey. In addition to the monetary relief, Tyson agreed to provide "meaningful cooperation" to assist the plaintiffs in their claims against the remaining defendants, which include Butterball LLC, Cargill ...
Kim Kardashian Sued for Wage Violations by Gardeners and Maintenance Staff
On May 24, 2021, seven gardeners and members of Kim Kardashian's maintenance staff sued her for wage violations they suffered while working at Kardashian's $60 million Los Angeles mansion under California law. Kardashian is accused of failing to pay her staff overtime and timely wages, failing to provide required meal and rest breaks, and ...
Steven Donziger Predicts Conviction for Criminal Contempt in Trial Likely to Set Dangerous Precedent, Chilling Public Interest Litigation against Large Corporations
Last week—in what will likely mark the end of a fight between Steven Donziger and Chevron Corporation spanning nearly three decades—the prosecution rested its case against Donziger in a trial seeking to convict him of criminal contempt. If convicted, Donziger faces up to six months in prison. In 1991, Donziger, along with other attorneys, ...
SEC VOTES TO REOPEN PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD ON UNIVERSAL PROXY CARD PROPOSAL
On April 16, 2021, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") announced the reopening of the comment period relating to the SEC's 2016 proposal for mandatory universal proxy cards. The proposal seeks to amend the federal proxy rules to establish new procedures for the solicitation of proxies, the preparation and use of proxy cards, ...
Chipotle Sued for $150 million by New York City Over Scheduling Violations
On Wednesday, April 28, 2021, New York City's Department of Consumer and Worker Protection filed a suit in the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings seeking to collect $150 million from Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. ("Chipotle") on behalf of approximately 6,500 workers. The complaint alleges that Chipotle committed approximately 599,693 ...
European Union Slaps Apple with Fresh Antitrust Allegations Over Alleged Anticompetitive Conduct Pertaining to its App Store
As I've covered repeatedly in this blog, tech giants such as Apple and Google are facing heightened antitrust scrutiny here at home. But such scrutiny also extends well beyond our borders, and a strong argument can be made that European regulators have taken antitrust regulation of the technology sector even more seriously than their counterparts ...
Fourth Circuit Revives Tracleer Purchasers’ Suit
Purchasers of a blood pressure drug, Tracleer, secured a reversal of a district court decision finding that they had filed suit outside of the four-year statute of limitations for antitrust claims. The Purchasers allege that Actelion, a pharmaceutical company with an exclusive license under the patent for Tracleer, engaged in a years-long ...