Expert Analysis

• Ky. BIPA Copycat Bill Could Usher In Class Action Tsunami

  

  A new Kentucky bill replicating Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act may trigger a wave of class actions, and momentum for similar legislation in other states, but companies can get ahead of it by taking several proactive compliance measures, says David Oberly at Blank Rome.

• How AI Can Transform Crisis Management In Litigation

  

  Attorneys should understand how to use rapidly advancing artificial intelligence technology to help clients prepare for potential catastrophic events and the inevitable litigation arising from them, from predicting crises before they occur to testing legal theories once they arise, say Stratton Horres at Wilson Elser and David Steiger.

• 10 DOL Policy And Enforcement Priorities To Expect In 2022

  

  This year, it’s likely the U.S. Department of Labor will approach policy and enforcement aggressively, with a focus on issues like employee classification, overtime exemption, Employee Retirement Income Security Act fiduciary duties, and more, say Timothy Taylor and Tessa Tilton at Holland & Knight.

• Litigation Complicates Surprise Medical Bill Law Compliance

  

  Health care providers working on compliance with a recently effective law intended to curb surprise medical bills should prioritize provisions of the statute that are not being challenged by a group of ongoing lawsuits, and prepare to take advantage of potential provider-friendly court rulings regarding components in question, say Brenna Jenny and Jaime Jones at Sidley.

• Scope, Circumvention, New Shippers: Key Rule Changes

  

  William Isasi and Rishi Gupta at Covington suggest practices international trade practitioners should adopt in response to changes in U.S. Department of Commerce procedures for requesting scope and circumvention inquiries and new shipper reviews, especially in light of the newly retroactive application of some agency determinations.

• Opinion

  SEC Sacrifices Process To Block New Proxy Adviser Rules

  

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's about-face on its recently passed reforms concerning proxy advisers is an example of how Chair Gary Gensler has forgone deliberation and bipartisanship to pursue his ambitious agenda — which is emblematic of the increasing politicization of the commission, says David Dragics at the National Investor Relations Institute's Advocacy Committee.

• Get Ready For Likely New Sanctions Against Russia

  

  ​New sanctions against Russia​ ​will be a likely reaction to the military situation in Ukraine, so compliance professionals should review​ ​their current relationships and learn common red flags associated with Russian state-owned enterprises, oligarchs and senior officials, say Daniel Chirlin at Walden Macht, David Tannenbaum at Blackstone Compliance and Serge Masters at SDM.

• Supervisor Relationships Are Key To Beating Atty Burnout

  

  In order to combat record attorney turnover and high levels of burnout, law firm partners and leaders must build engaging relationships with supervisees, fostering autonomy and control, enabling expression of values, and building a sense of community and belonging, says Anne Brafford at the Institute for Well-Being in Law.

• How New Laws Could Tighten FDA Regulation Of Cosmetics

  

  Federal legislation on the use of perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substances and other ingredients in cosmetics has a good chance of passing this year, so companies should track policy developments, identify any PFAS ingredients in their cosmetic products, and prepare for possible new safety and reporting requirements, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

• What Stablecoin Industry Can Expect From Congress In 2022

  

  As congressional scrutiny of the crypto-asset industry grows, stablecoin issuers and exchanges should anticipate new legislative proposals and regulatory developments, as well as further inquiries and oversight action, from both parties in Congress this year, say attorneys at Debevoise.

• The New Antitrust Agenda's Impact On Energy And Chemicals

  

  The Biden administration's antitrust enforcers have already left their mark on the energy and chemicals industries, with longer and more frequent investigations, lower standards for second requests on mergers, and a wider range of concerns in merger reviews, say attorneys at V&E.

• Opinion

  FTC Rulemaking Risks Expansion Of Unfair-Method Bounds

  

  The Federal Trade Commission's plan to issue rules defining unfair methods of competition under Section 5 of the FTC Act arguably exceeds the commission's power, and isn't justified, because the current case-by-case approach to promoting competition through adjudication is preferable, says Sean Gates at Charis Lex.

• Settlement Holds ERISA Lessons For Private Co. Directors

  

  The U.S. Department of Labor’s recent settlement with Kurt Manufacturing board members and Reliance Trust illustrates potential consequences under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act for private company directors and fiduciaries who exercise too much influence over employee stock ownership plan transactions, says Carol Buckmann at Cohen & Buckmann.

• What To Do As PFAS Food Packaging Phaseouts Approach

  

  Attorneys at Hogan Lovells offer tips on compliance with the transition timeline for the federal phaseout of the chemicals known as PFAS from food packaging, the coming bans in California, New York, Maine, Vermont, Washington, Connecticut and Minnesota, and the states' differing definitions of packaging terms.

• Germany's Google Controls Illustrate Global Antitrust Trend

  

  Germany's recent move to rein in Google with extended restrictions on anti-competitive behavior provides an example of the new aggressive stance regulators around the world are adopting as tech giants grow their power in the digital economy, says Andrea Pomana at ADVANT Beiten.