DOJ Nearly Doubles False Claims Act Penalties, Increasing Risk of Litigation and Potential Liability
8/30/16
By: Michael Wolak III
On June 30, 2016, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) issued an Interim Final Rule that nearly doubles civil penalties for False Claims Act (“FCA”) violations. The FCA is a federal law that prohibits anyone from submitting …
OCR Casts a Wider Net on HIPAA Breaches
8/29/16
By: Agne Krutules
Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), covered entities and their business associates have duties under the Privacy Rule and the Security Rule to protect patient health information. The U.S. Department of Health and Human …
8/22/16
By: Dennis Strazulo
On July 22, 2016, Governor Brown approved Assembly Bill 2535 (AB 2535) to amend California Labor Code section 226. The amendment provides much-needed narrowing of the statute’s current requirement that an employer include hours worked on itemized …
8/22/16
By: Bart Gary and Tim Holdsworth
Earlier this month, in Altman Contractors, Inc. v. Crum & Forster Specialty Insurance Co., the Eleventh Circuit certified to the Florida Supreme Court the question of whether Florida’s statutory notice and repair process constitutes …
How to Prevent Your Own Millennium Tower Slump
8/18/16
By: Daniel A. Nicholson
The affluent inhabitants of San Francisco’s Millennium Tower may be experiencing a sinking feeling as the first lawsuits concerning the tower’s reported sixteen inch drop and two inch tilt were filed last Tuesday. Residents claim that …
FDA Continues to Fight the First Amendment But Facteau Deals Another Blow
8/18/16
By: Kristian Smith
Last month, a federal jury in Massachusetts acquitted two executives of medical device company Acclarent, Inc. of 14 felony counts of fraud related to off-label promotion of Acclarent’s “Stratus” device. United States v. Facteau, et al. stemmed …
Ninth Circuit Issues Two Significant FDCPA Rulings To Debt Collector Law Firms
8/18/16
By: Bill Buechner
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act requires that debt collectors send a notice to the consumer containing certain required disclosures, either in the “initial communication” with the consumer in connection with the collection of a debt or …
Baltimore Prosecutor Strikes Out on Criminal Charges for Arrest Without Probable Cause
8/12/16
By: Wes Jackson
Recent high-profile deaths of unarmed black men at the hands of police officers have been met with a clarion call for police reform on multiple fronts. Proposals range from requiring officers to wear body cameras to mandates …
Insider Trading Alert – It is Not Just a Wall Street Issue
8/9/16
By: John Goselin and Ze’eva Kushner Banks
Be forewarned! The Securities and Exchange Commission continues to hunt down individuals for improper insider trading. Last week, the S.E.C. announced charges against Doctor Edward Kosinski for violations of the antifraud provisions of …
EEOC Modifies Proposed Rule that Would Require Many Employers to Report Pay Data
7/27/16
By: Bill Buechner
On February 1, 2016, the EEOC published in the Federal Register notice of a proposed rule that would require employers with 100 or more employees to provide pay data for their employees on a revised EE0-1 form. …
NLRB Reverses Standard for Multi-Employer Bargaining Units
7/19/16
Once again, the NLRB has overturned precedent in their quest to dramatically expand employer liability. For over a decade, the NLRB has held that multi-employer bargaining units that include temporary employees from a staffing employer (“supplier employer”) …
The Hearsay Exception for Market Reports
7/15/16
By: Ryan Babcock
The hearsay exception for “compiled information” or market reports is an important tool that allows for the admission of such evidence notwithstanding the hearsay rule, but it is generally strictly applied by the courts. For that reason, …