Banking

Expert Analysis

• 6 Structural Issues Complicating Libor Transition

  

  Examining specific challenges financial institutions face in reconfiguring risk models, compliance processes and operational technologies ahead of Libor's 2021 phaseout may keep the market from grinding to a halt as it transitions to a new interest rate benchmark, says Don Mumma at AxiomSL.

• Foreign Cos. Should Consider Risks Of OFAC Iran Sanctions

  

  The Office of Foreign Assets Control’s recent sanction of 18 Iranian banks creates a dilemma for foreign entities, particularly those reliant on U.S. dollars, who must evaluate whether to wind down their existing business with Iran to minimize risk of becoming a secondary sanctions target, say attorneys at Kirkland.

• Series

  Lawyering While Parenting: A Day In A Dad's Pandemic Life

  

  Christopher Jennison shares a view of his life working from home as a Federal Aviation Administration attorney preparing to first-chair a trial while splitting child care responsibilities with his lawyer wife.

• Series

  Lawyering While Parenting: A Day In A Mom's Pandemic Life

  

  Josephine Bahn shares a view of her life working from home as an attorney at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation while splitting child care responsibilities with her lawyer husband.

• Opinion

  SBA Change-In-Ownership Guidance Highlights PPP Flaws

  

  The lack of clarity in the U.S. Small Business Administration's recent guidance on Paycheck Protection Program requirements for borrowers undergoing ownership changes is an example of how changing the pandemic relief program's rules on the fly could leave borrowers confused and potentially economically vulnerable, says Christine Price at Moritt Hock.

• Brazilian Data Protection Law's Impact On US Financial Firms

  

  In this brief video, Flavia Rebello at Trench Rossi and Daniela Fonseca Puggina at Baker McKenzie explain why U.S. financial institutions that do not have a presence in Brazil should still be up to speed with its newly effective General Data Protection Law to avoid potential issues with Brazilian regulators and courts.

• 5 Cost-Cutting Strategies For Corporate Legal Departments

  

  To achieve long-term reduction in their legal expenses, companies must look beyond law firm hourly rates and better distribute their legal work among high-cost premier firms, low-cost practitioners and alternative legal service providers, and their own in-house teams, says Nathan Wenzel at SimpleLegal.

• Guest Feature

  Preparing The Next Generation Of Female Trial Lawyers

  

  To build the ranks of female trial attorneys, law firms must integrate them into every aspect of a case — from witness preparation to courtroom arguments — instead of relegating them to small roles, says Kalpana Srinivasan, co-managing partner at Susman Godfrey.

• Guest Feature

  Mentorship Is Key To Fixing Drop-Off Of Women In Law

  

  It falls to senior male attorneys to recognize the crisis female attorneys face as the pandemic amplifies an already unequal system and to offer their knowledge, experience and counsel to build a better future for women in law, says James Meadows at Culhane Meadows.

• Calculating FCA Damages From PPP Fraud May Be Tricky

  

  The Paycheck Protection Program will undoubtedly give rise to False Claims Act enforcement, but the intangible nature of some contract benefits and differences in contract valuation between the circuits raise uncertainty about damages calculations, say Ellen London at Alto Litigation and Derek Adams at Potomac Law.

• Guest Feature

  5 Ways Firms Can Avoid Female Atty Exodus During Pandemic

  

  The pandemic's disproportionate impact on women presents law firms with a unique opportunity to devise innovative policies that will address the increasing home life demands female lawyers face and help retain them long after COVID-19 is over, say Roberta Liebenberg at Fine Kaplan and Stephanie Scharf at Scharf Banks.

• Highlights From 'SEC Speaks' 2020

  

  At its recent virtual SEC Speaks conference, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission emphasized efforts to adapt enforcement to emerging risks amid the pandemic, and warned companies not to use COVID-19 to cover up past mistakes or newly discovered ones, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

• How The State And Local Regulatory Landscape Is Expanding

  

  States and localities are employing creative methods to emerge as key players in regulatory enforcement traditionally dominated by the federal government, including False Claims Act investigations, unfair and deceptive acts and practices claims, and pharmaceutical sector regulation, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

• What To Know About The First Wave Of CARES Act Litigation

  

  James Murphy and Daniel Payne at Murphy & McGonigle analyze the first six months of CARES Act litigation and provide insight into how early cases are progressing and who seems to be winning.

• UK Pandemic Recovery Offers Opportunities For Green Cos.

  

  The U.K. government's plans to use regulations and funding to accelerate the transition to a green economy after the COVID-19 pandemic promise significant opportunities for companies and investors focused on clean technologies, says Samantha Deacon at Goodwin.