Articles

03.24.17

Ponzi Schemers Promise Illusory "Hamilton" Tickets

Why it matters: On January 27, 2017, the SEC thwarted a Ponzi scheme where the defendants stand accused of taking an illegal "shot" at cashing in on the smash Broadway musical Hamilton and other high-demand shows by taking advantage of the inflated prices the desperate public would be ...


03.24.17

SEC—Data Analytics Key to Unlocking Fraud Schemes

SEC—Data Analytics Key to Unlocking Fraud SchemesWhy it matters: Data analytics, used by the SEC to find suspicious trading patterns, has in recent years become a formidable weapon in the SEC's arsenal to combat insider trading and other fraudulent trading schemes. Two recent SEC ...


03.24.17

Spotlight on the False Claims Act March 2017

Why it matters: This month, we cover a few of the recent False Claims Act (FCA) resolutions and actions involving the healthcare industry that caught our eye, including the DOJ's decision to intervene in part in a qui tam lawsuit brought against numerous Medicare Advantage healthcare ...


03.23.17

Stop Pulling My Leg: Pully Block Systems Not “Made in USA”

A distributor of pulley block systems agreed to stop making what the Federal Trade Commission said were false, misleading and unsupported claims that its products are “Made in USA.”Texas-based Block Division sells metal pulleys for industrial use (to lift boats, for example, or operate ...


03.21.17

Facebook Scores Second Dismissal in TCPA Suit

For the second time, a California federal court dismissed a Telephone Consumer Protection Act lawsuit against Facebook, ruling that the plaintiff failed to adequately allege that text messages from the social networking site were sent using an automatic telephone dialing system (ATDS).Noah Duguid ...


03.16.17

New in False Ad Suits: Paint, Beer, Dog Food and Shampoo

From paint to beer to dog food to shampoo, consumer class action false advertising suits continue to proliferate.Citing a decision from the National Advertising Division, two plaintiffs filed suit against Rust-Oleum Corporation in Illinois federal court, accusing the company of scamming consumers ...


03.16.17

Transfer Tax on Ground Lease Assignments

Documentary transfer taxes collected on the transfer of real property interests are a major source of revenue for counties and municipalities in California. As local governments endeavor to refill their coffers, depleted in the wake of the recession, many have taken a closer look at the tax ...


03.10.17

New California Single-User Restroom Law in Effect

Why it mattersCalifornia employers, take note: the state's single-user restroom law took effect on March 1, 2017. The new law requires all single-user toilet facilities in any business establishment, place of public accommodation or government agency to be identified as available to all ...


03.09.17

Draft Budget Would Slash Legal Aid Funds

President Donald J. Trump's first draft budget includes the elimination of funding for the Legal Services Corporation. This has renewed the ongoing national debate over LSC and whether government should fund legal assistance to the poor. The conservative Heritage Foundation, which now holds ...


03.05.17

How to Keep Toxic Substance Inventories EPA Compliant

Included in the 2016 amendments to the federal Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) is a one-time reporting requirement for industry, designed to bring the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) list of chemicals in commerce—referred to as the “TSCA Inventory”—up ...