On January 20, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued two sets of final rules to implement various provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (Dodd-Frank). The first rule, which implements section 943 of Dodd-Frank, involves “new rules related to representations and warranties in asset-backed securities offerings. The final rules […]
On February 8, the Financial Times published an article on growing concerns among some in the commodities industry that so-called “algorithmic” trading — futures trading with high-speed computers — is causing price distortions. As the article put it, “Ten years ago it took the sugar market six months to move 2 cents. In the past […]
On January 20, in Tesler v. Government of the United States of America, a panel of the High Court of Justice in London dismissed an appeal by Jeffrey Tesler, who had been indicted in the United States on charges of conspiring to violate, and aiding and abetting violations of, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). […]
On January 11, the ABA announced that the Task Force on Federal Lobbying Laws, organized by the ABA Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice Section, had issued a report that recommends changes in various provisions of federal lobbying laws. In brief, the report, according to the ABA press release, recommends (1) greater transparency with respect to […]
On January 18, President Obama issued a new Executive Order on “Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review.” The Executive Order supplements and reaffirms the principles, structures, and definitions governing contemporary regulatory review that were established in Executive Order 12866, and mostly sets forth broad principles applicable to regulation and regulatory review. Subsection 1(a) of the Executive […]
On January 11, the United States Supreme Court handed down its decision in Mayo Foundation v. United States. Mayo involved a challenge to a Treasury Department regulation providing that the services of full-time employees, which include employees normally scheduled to work 40 hours or more a week, are required to pay taxes under the Federal […]
On November 30, the Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS) will hold a forum on “Transforming E-rulemaking to Promote Public Participation and Efficiency.” Paul Verkuil, ACUS Chair, will provide an introduction to the forum, which will include a keynote address by Cass Sunstein, Administrator of OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, and eight […]
On November 14, the Associated Press reported that Social Security Administration (SSA) administrative law judges and staff “are facing a growing number of violent threats from claimants angry over being denied benefits or frustrated at lengthy delays in processing claims.” According to the article, SSA data show “[t]here were at least 80 threats to kill […]
On November 12, in a widely reported action, the Food and Drug Administration published in the Federal Register a notice of a proposed rule that would amend FDA regulations “to add a new requirement for the display of health warnings on cigarette packages and in cigarette advertisements. The proposed rule would implement a provision of […]
On November 10, President Obama signed an Executive Order establishing within the Department of Homeland Security an interagency Federal Export Enforcement Coordination Center (Center). The Executive Order stated that the Center “shall coordinate on matters relating to export enforcement among” seven executive branch departments (i.e., the Departments of Commerce, Defense, Energy, Homeland Security, Justice, State,and […]
On November 11, the European Parliament, at a plenary session, announced that it had adopted a directive to impose European Union-wide rules on registration, reporting, and initial capital requirements on marketing of alternative investment funds such as hedge funds and private equity funds. The EP, which approved the directive by a vote of 513-92 with […]
On November 3, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) unanimously approved two new proposed rules pursuant to provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank). One proposed rule, according to the SEC release, would “help prevent fraud, manipulation, and deception in connection with security-based swaps.” It would do so by ensuring […]
On November 11, the European Union (EU) Competitiveness Council of Ministers will meet in extraordinary session in Brussels to revisit the issue of an improved EU patent system. Noting that “[o]btaining a patent in Europe currently costs ten times more than in the US,” the Council meeting notice indicated that the Council will be considering […]
From October 14 through November 3, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) published in the Federal Register a series of nine sets of proposed rules and interim final rules to implement various provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank). The notices include an interim final rule for reporting pre-enactment swap […]
On October 26, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) published in the Federal Register its final notice transferring and reorganizing the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) regulations in 31 C.F.R. to a new chapter. The notice explains that the BSA regulations in the new chapter “are generally reorganized by financial industry. Moving the BSA regulations to […]