Now that Canada allows using and producing marijuana and marijuana-related products, and bordering U.S. states like Washington, Maine, and Michigan have similarly relaxed marijuana-related laws, it seems natural that...more
According to the White House, U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed over the weekend that neither the United States nor China would increase tariffs over the next 90 days, pending further...more
On November 5, 2018, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) will reimpose certain economic sanctions against Iran that had been held in abeyance under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action...more
A little more than two months after the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018 (“FIRRMA”) was signed into law, the United States Department of the Treasury (has invoked its new authority under the FIRRMA to...more
10/24/2018
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
CFIUS ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
Filing Requirements ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
National Security ,
Reporting Requirements ,
U.S. Treasury
On Sunday, September 30, 2018, the U.S. and Canadian governments announced that they had reached agreement on a new trilateral trade agreement with Mexico, which will replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)....more
10/4/2018
/ Canada ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Exports ,
Foreign Relations ,
Free Trade Agreements ,
Imports ,
Mexico ,
NAFTA ,
Trade Relations ,
Trump Administration ,
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) ,
US Trade Policies
Since July 2018, the Trump Administration has imposed two sets of tariffs on goods made in China under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 (“Section 301”) (19 U.S.C. § 2411) that cover an estimated $50 billion in imports...more
After months of deliberation, Congress has passed the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018 (“FIRRMA”) as Title XVII in the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (“2019...more
8/15/2018
/ CFIUS ,
China ,
Covered Transactions ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Emerging Technology Companies ,
Export Controls ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Investment ,
National Security ,
NDAA ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury
The recent settlement agreement between Kinross Gold Company and the Securities and Exchange Commission is a reminder to Canadian cross-listed companies that it is not enough to adopt a parent-company level anti-corruption...more
4/10/2018
/ Acquisitions ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Books & Records ,
Canada ,
Cease and Desist Orders ,
Cross-Border ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Internal Audit Functions ,
Parent Corporation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement Agreements ,
White Collar Crimes
On January 31, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a plurality opinion en banc that confirmed the constitutionality of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (“CFPB”) governance by a sole Director, while...more
2/14/2018
/ Article I ,
Article II ,
Article III ,
Banking Sector ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disgorgement ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Mortgages ,
PHH Corp. v CFPB ,
Removal For-Cause ,
RESPA ,
Single Director ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Statutory Interpretation
On July 25, 2017, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a Russia sanctions bill, “Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act” (“H.R. 3364”) by an overwhelming vote of 419 to three. This broad-ranging sanctions...more
On June 12, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Fourth Circuit’s decision in favor of Santander Consumer USA, Inc. (“Santander”) under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”). In his first written opinion, the...more
After months of public pronouncements on the future, including threatened withdrawal from, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the Trump Administration announced on May 18, 2017, its intention to begin...more
On March 1, 2017, President Donald Trump released his first major policy statement on U.S. foreign trade relations. Issued through the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (“USTR”), a part of the Executive Office of the...more
On July 26, 2016, the D.C. Circuit rejected a consumer class action complaint based on alleged violations of two D.C. consumer protection statutes. Citing the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins, No....more
On April 4, 2016, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of New York issued a decision that may significantly change the landscape of student debt relief. In re Decena, No. 15-72903, 2016 WL 1371031 (Bankr....more
As previously reported on this blog, the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs v. Inclusive Communities Project, Inc., 135 S. Ct. 2507 (2015) adopted a burden-shifting approach to...more
3/9/2016
/ Burden-Shifting ,
Disparate Impact ,
ECOA ,
Fair Housing Act (FHA) ,
FEMA ,
Puerto Rico ,
Race Discrimination ,
SCOTUS ,
Texas Dept of Housing v Inclusive Communities ,
Title VII ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA) ,
Voting Rights Act
On November 2, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court heard a contentious round of oral arguments in a case that may significantly change the landscape of consumer class actions.
The case, Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins, is a class action...more
On September 16, 2015, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Chicago dismissed a False Claims Act (FCA) case against the City of Chicago, because the qui tam complaint did not satisfy the relevant pleading...more