Expert Analysis

• Series

  Embracing ESG: CBRE GC Talks Effective Compliance Emails

  

  Good corporate governance requires communicating expectations for ethical conduct, but compliance emails need not be overly technical — a relatable story told in simple language with humility and respect can create internal communications that drive home the message, says Laurence Midler at CBRE.

• Aviation Watch: Dealing With Air Rage In The COVID-19 Era

  

  In the age of COVID-19, unruly passengers have become a bigger threat to airline security than terrorism — but neither airport screening nor prosecution after the fact have effectively addressed the problem, so policymakers must explore other solutions, says Alan Hoffman, a retired attorney and aviation expert.

• New DOJ Corporate Crime Approach May Deter Self-Reporting

  

  Deputy U.S. Attorney General Lisa Monaco's recent unveiling of a tougher white collar enforcement approach at the U.S. Department of Justice — focusing on corporate recidivism and compliance monitors — could result in companies being less willing to self-report wrongdoing or enter into resolutions with the government, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• Why State Law Noncompliance Is Federally Risky For Pot Biz

  

  The Sixth Circuit's recent U.S. v. Trevino decision, affirming federal marijuana convictions against an unlicensed Michigan dispensary owner, shows how businesses not in compliance with state medical marijuana law risk losing the protection of an appropriations bill amendment that prohibits federal prosecution, says Lloyd Pierre-Louis at Dickinson Wright.

• Opinion

  High Court Should Safeguard Tribal Children In ICWA Case

  

  With Brackeen v. Zinke on its doorstep, the U.S. Supreme Court must use this opportunity to reaffirm the Indian Child Welfare Act in order to uphold U.S. treaty obligations with tribal nations and protect Native American children, says Angelique EagleWoman at the Mitchell Hamline School of Law.

• Perspectives

  Why Law Schools Should Require Justice Reform Curriculum

  

  Criminal defense attorney Donna Mulvihill Fehrmann argues that law schools have an obligation to address widespread racial and economic disparities in the U.S. legal system by mandating first-year coursework on criminal justice reform that educates on prosecutorial misconduct, wrongful convictions, defense 101 and more.

• How To Navigate California's New Intrastate CBD Route

  

  Businesses and consumers should prepare for rigorous compliance checks on manufacture, distribution and retail sale of consumer products made with CBD and other hemp-derived cannabinoids. following California's new law opening the potentially enormous market for these items, says Christian Foote at Clark Hill.

• Opinion

  Cannabis Fraud Decision Shows Need For Sentencing Reform

  

  A New York federal court's recent decision in U.S. v. Akhavan, holding a $17 million forfeiture request for cannabis bank fraud unconstitutionally excessive, reveals the need to reform sentencing laws that overemphasize crimes' financial elements even when tenuously related to defendants' intent, say Lloyd Liu and Hilary LoCicero at Bennett LoCicero.

• Lifting The Veil On The Supreme Court's Shadow Docket

  

  Following headline-making U.S. Supreme Court emergency orders on Texas’ new abortion law, COVID-19 restrictions and more, Vetan Kapoor, counsel to Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, examines the court's so-called shadow docket and its decision-making procedures, including questions around transparency, timing and precedential effect.

• Opinion

  Justice Gap Demands Look At New Legal Service Models

  

  Current restrictions on how lawyers structure their businesses stand in the way of meaningful access to justice for many Americans, so states should follow the lead of Utah and Florida and test out innovative law firm business models through regulatory sandboxes, says Zachariah DeMeola at the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System.

• A Look At Global Tax Enforcement Developments: Part 2

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  Sean Craig at LexisNexis examines recent investigations by the Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement and their impact on U.S. taxpayers, as well as the growing significance of transfer pricing disputes and policies for future enforcement.

• What G-7 Xinjiang Focus Means For UK And US Companies

  

  Attorneys at King & Spalding consider the shifting legal and political landscape, highlighted at last month's G-7 summit, around eradicating forced labor in China’s northwest Xinjiang region, and what U.K. and U.S. businesses with supply chain exposure should do to mitigate their legal, financial and reputational exposure.

• Tit-For-Tat Sanctions With China May Put Companies In A Bind

  

  With President Joe Biden amending and expanding a Trump-era ban on investment in Chinese military companies, U.S. entities and individuals must consider not only the consequences of noncompliance with recent executive orders, but also how compliance could affect their operations in the face of Chinese counter-sanctions, say attorneys at Winston & Strawn and YuandaWinston.

• White Collar Defense Do's And Don'ts For Meeting With DOJ

  

  Former high-level U.S. Department of Justice prosecutors, now at Jones Day, offer suggestions for how to approach meetings with DOJ decision makers in white collar matters, highlighting common counter-productive moves and strategies that maximize the odds of a favorable outcome.

• Weighing Ability To Pay Criminal Fines Amid FCPA Crackdown

  

  As Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement is expected to increase under the Biden administration, companies facing scrutiny should assess the reasonableness of fines in the context of their capacity to continue operations, and the potential impacts of filing an inability-to-pay claim, say analysts at Charles River Associates.