White Collar

Expert Analysis

• 4 Antitrust Risk Areas To Watch For Government Contractors

  

  To plan for the increased likelihood of detection and stiff penalties for antitrust violations following the anticipated passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, compliance efforts should focus on joint bidding, dual distribution, legal certifications, and hiring and compensation, say Andre Geverola and Lori Taubman at Arnold & Porter.

• Opinion

  Sentencing Commission Data Tool Is Deeply Flawed

  

  The U.S. Sentencing Commission's recently released Judiciary Sentencing INformation platform presents skewed data on the length of federal sentences, creating a misleading picture that encourages judges to impose higher sentences, says Michael Yaeger at Carlton Fields.

• Pandora Papers Reveal Need For Greater Tax Enforcement

  

  The recent Pandora Papers leak is a reminder of the importance of transparency laws and proper funding for enforcement efforts against tax evasion as bad actors increasingly operate in the shadows, says Daren Firestone and Kevin Crenny at Levy Firestone.

• Opinion

  Subpoena Defense Cost Ruling Gets Insurance Law Wrong

  

  A Connecticut federal court's recent decision that National Union Fire Insurance Co. of Pittsburgh didn't need to cover defense costs for a power utility's response to a grand jury subpoena included two crucial mistakes that contravene long-standing insurance law principles, say attorneys at Hunton.

• Girardi Scandal Provides Important Ethics Lessons

  

  The litigation and media maelstrom following allegations that famed plaintiffs attorney Thomas Girardi and his law firm misappropriated clients' funds provides myriad ethics and professional responsibility lessons for practitioners, especially with regard to misconduct reporting and liability insurance, says Elizabeth Tuttle Newman at Frankfurt Kurnit.

• Series

  Embracing ESG: Jabil GC Talks Compliance Preparation

  

  Tried-and-true compliance lessons from recent decades can be applied to companies’ environmental, social and governance efforts, especially with regard to employee training and consistent application of policies — two factors that can create a foundation for ESG criteria to flourish, says Robert Katz at Jabil.

• 3 Ways CLOs Can Drive ESG Efforts

  

  Chief legal officers are specially trained to see the legal industry's flaws, and they can leverage that perspective to push their companies toward effective environmental, social and governance engagement, says Mark Chandler at Stanford Law School.

• Opinion

  Why Congress Should Pass Whistleblower Protection Law

  

  It’s crucial that lawmakers enact the Whistleblower Protection Reform Act — which remedies the Dodd-Frank Act’s weak safeguards for those who report federal securities law violations — to ensure courageous tipsters continue to step forward when they spot wrongdoing, say Jason Zuckerman and Matthew Stock at Zuckerman Law.

• ComEd Ruling Invites Plaintiffs To Bypass Filed Rate Doctrine

  

  An Illinois federal court's recent ruling on a putative class action claim against Commonwealth Edison could encourage future plaintiffs to avoid dismissal by failing to mention in their complaints that they paid the rates listed in a public utility's filed tariff, says Tyson Covey at Duane Morris.

• Why The Future Of Telehealth Parity Remains Murky

  

  Though the federal government, states and private insurers have united during the pandemic in recognizing the value of expanding telehealth access, there is no consensus on the merits of long-term telehealth parity, say Adriana Riviere-Badell and Alexandria Swette at Kobre & Kim.

• How Law Firms Can Rethink Offices In A Post-Pandemic World

  

  Based on their own firm's experiences, Kami Quinn and Adam Farra at Gilbert discuss strategies and unique legal industry considerations for law firms planning hybrid models of remote and in-office work in a post-COVID marketplace.

• 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.

• Series

  Embracing ESG: Baker Hughes CLO Talks Sustainability Team

  

  For businesses focused on addressing environmental, social and governance considerations, a legal team that can coordinate sustainability efforts across the company can help to manage risk and compliance issues, anticipate and prepare for change, and identify new opportunities, says Regina Jones at Baker Hughes.

• What Mainstreaming Of Litigation Finance Means For Industry

  

  The rush of new capital and investors into the litigation funding space is expected to bring heightened competition on price and other key deal terms, but litigants will need to be more in tune with individual financiers' proclivities, says William Weisman at Therium Capital Management.

• How Investors Can Avoid Falling Prey To Crypto Scams

  

  Mr. White Hat's recent theft, and surprising return, of $611 million in cryptocurrency from the Poly Network illustrates that crypto investors must conduct their own due diligence to avoid scams, including by closely scrutinizing coin founders, backers, white papers and token sales, and watching for red flags with respect to transparency, valuation and more, says Dorothy Siron at Zhong Lun.