Banking

Expert Analysis

• 3 Ways High Court's Liu V. SEC Ruling Curtails FTC Authority

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Liu v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission limited the Federal Trade Commission's authority in important ways, and the court's eventual decision in FTC v. Credit Bureau Center could prevent the regulator from seeking disgorgement or restitution altogether, say attorneys at Sidley.

• FinCEN Guidance A Positive Step For Hemp Businesses

  

  The recent Bank Secrecy Act guidance from the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network represents a major shift that should enable certain hemp-related businesses to receive better access to financial services, say Gregory Kaufman and Ben Marzouk at Eversheds Sutherland.

• NY High Court Case Could Upend Litigation Finance Industry

  

  A ruling in favor of the defendant in Fast Trak Investment v. Sax, a case recently accepted by the New York Court of Appeals, could enable borrowers to avoid repaying litigation funders by claiming state usury law violations, say attorneys at MoloLamken.

• Associates Can Prioritize Biz Development Despite Pandemic

  

  Although many traditional business development activities are on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, associates should seize the unique opportunities of this time to cultivate business by strengthening their personal and professional relationships, and developing new ones, says Jeremy Schneider at Jackson Lewis.

• Alleged ICO Fraud Highlights Compliance Considerations

  

  Parallel U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission fraud charges connected with NAC Foundation's digital currency offering draw attention to the use of undercover agents in financial crime investigations, the risk of retaining questionable service providers, and heightened securities law scrutiny in the space, says Casey O'Neill at Fenwick.

• Key COVID-19 Accessibility Issues As ADA Turns 30

  

  Shira Blank and Joshua Stein at Epstein Becker examine pandemic-related accessibility challenges businesses should consider when balancing Americans with Disabilities Act Title III compliance against employee and patron safety as the statute's 30th anniversary approaches.

• Redefining Commercially Reasonable Foreclosure Sales In NY

  

  As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing shelter-in-place regulations, mezzanine lenders will likely want to account for the changing Uniform Commercial Code landscape and recent New York state court rulings when approaching foreclosure sales and litigation, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

• How New Fla. Real Estate Remedies May Benefit Lenders

  

  Although Florida's recently passed Uniform Commercial Real Estate Receivership Act isn't specifically intended as COVID-19 relief, it should give lenders a better framework for contemplating receivership, streamlining commercial foreclosures and protecting their interests in the looming increase in foreclosures, say attorneys at Nelson Mullins.

• Opinion

  Let's Create An Ethical Obligation For Attys To Fight Racism

  

  In this moment of national recognition of historical institutional racism, the American Bar Association must implement a model rule that explicitly declares efforts to fight racism and advance equality to be a matter of attorneys' ethics and professional conduct, say Marc Firestone at Philip Morris International and David Douglass at Sheppard Mullin.

• Takeaways From FCA's Latest Financial Crime Controls Fine

  

  The Financial Conduct Authority's £37.8 million ($47.85 million) fine of Commerzbank London last month for alleged failures in anti-money laundering controls provides useful risk-management reminders for financial institutions operating in the U.K., say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

• 6 Considerations When Shopping For Legal Tech Software

  

  When evaluating the vast range of legal technology options available today, law firms will want to make sure that firm intellectual property and client data stored in the software are encrypted, isolated, protected through backups and in compliance with the ever-growing list of data regulations, say Eric Tucker and Dorna Moini at Documate.

• Berman Ouster May Not Be The End Of SDNY Drama This Year

  

  While the dust appears to have settled after the surreal departure of U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman from the Southern District of New York last month, the interim tenure of Acting U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss bears close watch in this fraught moment leading up to the presidential election, say Danya Perry and Samidh Guha at Perry Guha.

• Tips For Securitizing Loans With Future Advance Obligations

  

  With the COVID-19 crisis heightening borrowers' desire to minimize costs and lenders' desire for liquidity in secondary markets, real estate loan terms for future advances may be an attractive option but they also create some complexities that should be addressed in loan agreements, say Steven Herman and Matthew McManus at Cadwalader.

• Law Firm Strategies For Publicizing Laterals Amid Lockdowns

  

  With business development dinners and social events no longer viable for new lateral hires, law firms need a refreshed game plan — one that fully exploits the digital landscape, say Andrew Longstreth and Jesse Dungan at Infinite Global and Michael Coston at Coston Consulting.

• Opinion

  End Forced Employee Arbitration To Advance Social Equality

  

  If recent corporate claims against systemic racism and discrimination are genuine, companies should return bias and harassment claims to the courts by discontinuing the use of mandatory employment arbitration agreements, says attorney Victor Caldwell.