On July 26, 2023, an important message was delivered from the offices of the Commerce, Justice, and Treasury Departments in the form of a “Tri-Seal Compliance Note”. This second-ever issued note marks a significant moment in the development of corporate compliance and violation disclosure standards, aiming to guide businesses towards a path of self-regulatory transparency….
The Biden administration has announced several new measures intended to lower housing costs and bolster supply. Central to these steps is an effort to incentivize municipalities to loosen restrictive land use and zoning policies. This will be achieved by adopting these considerations into the grant criteria for key government programs. As part of the strategy,…
On August 2-3, 2023, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes, Elizabeth Rosenberg and Acting Director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, Himamauli Das, convened with their counterparts from the Government of Mexico. The meeting took place at the Strategic Dialogue on Illicit Finance (SDIF) event in Mexico City. The SDIF…
In the current complex legal landscape, the classification of workers as employees or independent contractors continues to generate much debate, as evidenced by the ongoing deliberations at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The decision-making criteria employed by ongoing government entities, the NLRB included, carry notable ramifications for corporations and their HR departments, especially considering…
The US Committee on Foreign Investment (CFIUS) has reviewed a record number of foreign investments for potential national security risk during the past year, according to its Annual Report to Congress for 2022. The Committee evaluated 440 covered transactions, marking an increase from the 436 transactions scrutinized in the previous year. This rise in reviews…
China is making notable strides in artificial intelligence (AI) regulation, with the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) and six other Chinese government agencies jointly releasing a finalized version of the Interim Administrative Measures for Generative Artificial Intelligence Services on July 13, 2023. You can refer to the Chinese version here. The new measures are due…
Protests erupted in Belém, Brazil this past Sunday, coinciding with a Brazilian government environmental conference titled The Amazonian Dialogues. The focal point of the demonstrations were against Petrobras, the Brazilian state oil company’s proposal to begin offshore drilling near the mouth of the Amazon River. This proposed project would be in the deep waters off…
In a recent update, PilieroMazza, a renowned law firm serving government contractors, highlights the necessity of I-9 Physical Inspections, which are now required by August 30. This announcement came through their podcast series, “Clocking in with PilieroMazza: Labor and Employment News for Government Contractors.” This series aims to provide employers, specifically those operating within the…
The Crime Victims’ Rights Act (CVRA) carries considerable implications for the victims of crimes involving fraud against the Federal Government. The Act, according to some legal experts, isn’t always adequately considered by prosecutors handling such cases. Federal prosecutors are urged to view beyond the four corners of the conspiracy to defraud as billed in the…
On July 31, 2023, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) signaled its intent to recast its regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) across the federal government. This move is evidence of an increasingly fluctuating Federal environmental policy disposition, as it marks a second attempt at an overhaul after CEQ’s original regulations…
Afghan refugees living in the UK are facing homelessness following government-led evictions from accommodations provided in hotels, according to local government officials. This unsettling situation comes at a time when inadequate long-term housing availability intensifies the crisis, attributing homelessness to about 20% of Afghan refugees exiting the hotel accommodations per anecdotal accounts, as indicated by…
Iraq’s Ministry of Communications announced on Sunday that it had imposed a block on the messaging application Telegram, citing national security concerns. The underlying reason for this restriction, according to the ministry, was to protect users’ personal data, which it claimed the app had mishandled. The statement claimed that this decision emanated from guidance from…
The United Nations Human Rights office in Uganda has been closed, as announced by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, last Thursday. Türk cited the East African country’s decision not to renew an agreement enabling the office’s operation as the principal reason for this closure. Simultaneously, he conveyed substantial apprehensions regarding the…
The Chinese government recently published a draft of proposed regulations that could potentially compel specific data processors to undergo annual or biennial audits. This first draft, labeled as the “Administrative Measures for Compliance Auditing of Personal Information Protection”, has been unveiled on the Chinese Cyberspace Office’s website, marking a significant regulatory move in Asia’s largest…
On the ongoing investigation into alleged election subversion during the Trump administration, a recent indictment points towards involvement of five lawyers, including a U.S. Department of Justice official. Further details on the indictment and specific charges against these individuals remain undisclosed, yet this development highlights serious concerns over attempts to undermine democratic processes from within…
In an unprecedented compliance crackdown by the California State Bar, over 1,700 lawyers have found themselves suspended due to their failure to adhere to the newly established trust account rules. As reported, this wave of suspensions marks a stern response to breaches of compliance within the legal community. The failure of a considerable number of…
In a noteworthy move, the Government of India has presented a new digital privacy bill to the Lok Sabha (the lower house of India’s Parliament) despite voiced apprehensions from opposition leaders. The Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023, follows the withdrawal of a similar privacy bill from last year and has been introduced amid renewed…
On Friday, Ethiopia’s government announced a six-month state of emergency in the Amhara region in the wake of persistent clashes between the military and local Fano militia. As revealed through a press release by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s office, the conflicts have prompted the need for emergency measures to restore peace and order. The resolution…
This week has seen noteworthy developments in the world of government contracting and commercial businesses, especially for legal professionals who closely watch policy changes and updates. A highlight of the week involves an on-going legislative effort that would significantly update the current Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). This initiative is spearheaded by the Department of Defense,…
Good news for our readers who follow global environmental affairs. The weekly Climate Policy Update published this August by Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP is hot off the presses. This comprehensive update tracks changes in climate policy and offers insight into major environmental headlines that took place last week. Akin Gump Strauss Hauer…
The worlds of law and corporate affairs have seen several significant changes recently as governments and corporations alike tackle emerging and re-defined challenges in their sectors. Whilst new legislation and pivoting business transactions are a focal point of these changes, it is important for lawyers and in-house legal teams in corporations to look at the…
On July 28, 2023, an unexpected shift occurred in the mattress industry. A coalition of United States domestic producers and wholesalers of mattresses officially filed petitions with the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) and the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC). Within these petitions, the coalition was seeking the imposition of antidumping (AD) duties on imports…
The Supreme Court has upheld a ruling from a federal appeals court which prevents the city of Tulsa from enforcing municipal ordinances against Native Americans. The unsigned order, which was passed without any public dissents, came as a refusal of the city’s request to suspend the appeals court’s decision whilst it launches an appeal. The…
Recently, the House Oversight and Accountability Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services hosted a hearing with the title “Hemp in the Modern World: The Years long Wait for FDA Action”. Described as a “first-of-its-kind”, this hearing took place in a small room in a House office building and offered a platform for lawmakers and…
The United Kingdom has earned a bit of a reputation for lagging behind in terms of corporate criminal enforcement, especially when compared with the practices in the United States and elsewhere. However, over the recent years, it appears that the UK government is intent on rectifying this, as evidenced by a series of reforms aimed…