Expert Analysis

• California FAIR Plan Is Outgrowing Last-Resort Role

  

  With a recent rate increase, a litigation win and pending legislation to reshape operations, the California FAIR Plan is being regulated and reinforced as an apparent fixture of California's insurance market, rather the temporary safety net originally intended, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

• Opinion

  After Monsanto, Defense Bar Must Build Case Against Lohr

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Monsanto v. Durnell has helped to demolish the foundation for its problematic 1996 ruling in Medtronic v. Lohr — so now defense counsel should lay the groundwork for the high court to overturn Lohr, say attorneys at Blank Rome.

• Series

  Being A Sommelier Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Being a sommelier has quietly shaped how I practice law by changing the way I think, communicate and connect with people, and offers a constant reminder that expertise is about making your knowledge useful and accessible to others, says Kara Du at Sheppard.

• Fed Report Underscores Focus On Nonbank, CRE Risks

  

  The Federal Reserve Board's latest supervision and regulation report highlights that broad systemic stability will not insulate individual institutions from rigorous supervisory challenges regarding concentrated commercial real estate portfolios and nonbank partnerships, says Daniel Meade at Hogan Lovells.

• 3 Upcoming Deadlines That EB-5 Investors Should Consider

  

  Potential EB-5 regional center investors should weigh three approaching deadlines, the most immediate of which is Sept. 30, that may affect their filing strategy, required capital commitment and ability to participate even if Congress fails to reauthorize the program, says Michael Ashoori at Ashoori Law.

• Assessing The Benefits Of Fla.'s Newest Business Structure

  

  As of July 1, Florida business owners can create protected series LLCs to shield assets from liability while avoiding increased costs and wasted time, but burdensome recordkeeping obligations are crucial to maintaining the very protection that makes them attractive in the first place, says Gregory Ritter at Moritt Hock.

• Key Post-Proposal Shifts Likely In CFPB Loss Mitigation Rule

  

  Mortgage servicers, borrowers and consumer advocates should prepare for a likely narrowed version of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's loss mitigation rule, which is likely to permit sequential reviews, defer to investor guidelines, extend compliance timelines and preempt conflicting state standards, say attorneys at Goodwin.

• Series

  Teaching SEC Investigations Makes Me A Better Lawyer

  

  Instructing a law school course on U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission investigations has made me a more thoughtful, deliberate practitioner because it requires me to continually reassess and challenge what I know about securities law enforcement, how I know it and how best to explain it, says David Chase at Miami Law.

• Justices' Tax Sale Ruling Tees Up Auction Fairness Battles

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Pung v. Isabella County, Michigan, that taxpayers are not entitled to fair market value of real property seized to satisfy a tax debt shifts attention to the fairness of state and local auction procedures, and whether taxpayers claiming surplus proceeds face unwarranted hurdles, say attorneys at Miller Canfield.

• Ala. Bank Case Tells A Cautionary Tale On Collateral Risks

  

  The Alabama Supreme Court's recent decision in U.S. Bank Trust National v. Bonilla, concerning a residential foreclosure gone awry, teaches that, beyond the common refrain of knowing your customer, banks should also take steps — such as obtaining a survey or purchasing title insurance — to know their collateral, says Danielle Douglas at Adams & Reese.

• What New USDA 'Beneficial Owner' Definition Means For Cos.

  

  The U.S. Department of Agriculture's recent pitch to add a new "beneficial owner" definition to its foreign-owned land reporting framework would overhaul how fund managers and joint venture participants report U.S. agricultural land interests, creating diligence risks as companies reassess governance rights and management structure, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

• Series

  Judges On AI: Examining Administrative, Organizational Uses

  

  U.S. District Judge Alan Albright of the Western District of Texas examines how artificial intelligence could transform a court's ability to deal with administrative work and organize materials when preparing for hearings or drafting opinions, thereby affording judges more time to resolve contested issues.

• USDA, Treasury Moves May Widen Agricultural Deal Scrutiny

  

  Two agency actions that identify weaknesses in the government’s foreign investment screening architecture signal a broadening of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States’ jurisdiction over agricultural real estate transactions, more demanding beneficial-ownership resolutions and the coming integration of agency disclosure systems, says researcher Robert Green.

• From Order To Regulation: How EOs Are Reshaping Banking

  

  The pattern of regulatory activity emerging in the wake of the Trump administration's first 18 months of executive orders makes clear that financial institutions should treat presidential directives as early warning signs and not wait for final rules to assess the accompanying compliance impact, says Jonathan Kolodziej at Bradley.

• Opinion

  USCIS Delays Shouldn't Mean Detention For EB-5 Investors

  

  Some EB-5 investors with pending petitions were recently detained amid a surge in immigration arrests, but when only U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services can resolve a respondent's status, immigration courts shouldn't retain cases they can't decide, and detention shouldn't replace adjudication, says Jun Li at Reid & Wise.