Expert Analysis

• Bracing For The CFPB's War On Mortgage Fees

  

  As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau homes in on the legality of certain residential mortgage fees, the industry should consult the bureau's steady stream of consumer lending guidance for hints on its priorities, say Nanci Weissgold and Melissa Malpass at Alston & Bird.

• Deciding What Comes At The End Of WTO's Digital Tariff Ban

  

  Companies that feel empowered by the World Trade Organization’s recent two-year extension of the ban on e-commerce tariffs should pay attention to current negotiations over what comes after the moratorium expires, as these agreements will define standards in international e-commerce for years to come, say Jan Walter, Hannes Sigurgeirsson and Kulsum Gulamhusein at Akin Gump.

• DOE Funding And Cargo Preference Compliance: Key Points

  

  Under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the U.S. Department of Energy will disburse more than $62 billion in financing for innovative energy projects — and recipients must understand their legal obligations related to cargo preference, so they can develop compliance strategies as close to project inception as possible, say attorneys at White & Case.

• Georgia's Foreign Lobbying Bill Is Not A FARA Copycat

  

  Though a recently passed bill in Georgia aims to mirror the transparency goals of the federal Foreign Agents Registration Act by imposing state-specific disclosure requirements for foreign lobbyists, the legislation’s broad language and lack of exemptions could capture a wider swath of organizations, say attorneys at Holtzman Vogel.

• FTC Noncompete Ban Signals Rising Labor Focus In Antitrust

  

  The Federal Trade Commission’s approval this week of a prohibition on noncompete agreements continues antitrust enforcers’ increasing focus on labor, meaning companies must keep employee issues top of mind both in the ordinary course of business and when pursuing transactions, say attorneys at Skadden.

• Breaking Down EEOC's Final Rule To Implement The PWFA

  

  Attorneys at Littler highlight some of the key provisions of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's final rule and interpretive guidance implementing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which is expected to be effective June 18, and departures from the proposed rule issued in August 2023.

• 4 Ways To Refresh Your Law Firm's Marketing Strategy

  

  With many BigLaw firms relying on an increasingly obsolete marketing approach that prioritizes stiff professionalism over authentic connection, adopting a few key communications strategies to better connect with today's clients and prospects can make all the difference, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law.

• What 3rd Circ. Trust Ruling Means For Securitization Market

  

  Mercedes Tunstall and Michael Gambro at Cadwalader break down the Third Circuit's March decision in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. National Collegiate Master Student Loan Trust, as well as predict next steps in the litigation and the implications of the decision for servicers and the securitization industry as a whole.

• Breaking Down DOJ's Individual Self-Disclosure Pilot Program

  

  The U.S. Department of Justice’s recently announced pilot program aims to incentivize individuals to voluntarily self-disclose corporate misconduct they were personally involved in, complementing a new whistleblower pilot program for individuals not involved in misconduct as well as the government's broader corporate enforcement approach, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

• Cos. Must Prepare For Calif. Legislation That Would Ban PFAS

  

  Pending California legislation that would ban the sale or distribution of new products containing intentionally added per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances could affect thousands of businesses — and given the bill's expected passage, and its draconian enforcement regime, companies must act now to prepare for it, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

• How To Prepare As Employee Data Reporting Deadlines Near

  

  As filing deadlines approach, government contractors and private companies alike should familiarize themselves with recent changes to federal and California employee data reporting requirements and think strategically about registration of affirmative action plans to minimize the risk of being audited, say Christopher Durham and Zev Grumet-Morris at Duane Morris.

• FDA Warning Letter Tightens Reins On 'Research Only' Labels

  

  A recent warning letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to Agena Bioscience alleged the company’s diagnostic devices were labeled for research use only, but improperly promoted for human clinical purposes, signifying a reinforcement — and a potential narrowing — of the agency's policy on products labeled “research only,” say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

• Opinion

  Seafarer Detention Under Ship Pollution Law Must Have Limits

  

  The U.S. Coast Guard should reinstate limits on the number of days that foreign crew members may be forced to remain in the country while the U.S. Department of Justice investigates alleged violations of shipping pollution laws, in order to balance legitimate enforcement interests and seafarer welfare, say attorneys at Blank Rome.

• Perspectives

  Justices' Forfeiture Ruling Resolves Nonexistent Split

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in McIntosh v. U.S., holding that a trial court’s failure to enter a preliminary criminal forfeiture order prior to sentencing doesn’t bar its entry later, is unusual in that it settles an issue on which the lower courts were not divided — but it may apply in certain forfeiture disputes, says Stefan Cassella at Asset Forfeiture Law.

• Behind Indiana's Broad New Healthcare Transactions Law

  

  The high materiality threshold in Indiana's recently passed healthcare transaction law, coupled with the inclusion of private equity in its definition of healthcare entities, makes it one of the broadest state review regulations to date, say attorneys at DLA Piper.