Publications
In its much anticipated decision in Eldred v. Ashcroft on January 15, 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutional authority of Congress to extend the term of future and currently existing copyrights. Article I, Section 8, clause 8 of the Constitution provides that “Congress shall have Power . . . To promote the Progress […]
On February 20, 2002, the European Commission pre-sented a proposal for a Directive on the patentability of computer-implemented inventions. Citing an effort to harmonize the way in which national patent laws of its Member States deal with inventions using software, the European Commission recommended adoption of the proposed Directive to the European Union’s Council of […]
The National Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCUSL) ecently approved a series of amendments to its three-year old Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA). This model law would govern con-tracts involving information products and services and provide uniform commercial standards for transactions that involve, for example, software, on-line databases, digital multi-media prod-ucts, and computer games. […]
On November 2, 2002, the President signed the 21 st Century Department of Justice Appropriation Authorization Act (Public Law 107-273). Generally, the legislation authorized appropriations for the Department of Justice for the fiscal year 2002; however, several provisions reformed aspects of U.S. intellectual property law.
The Supreme Court of the United States has issued several decisions this Term that are sure to impact employers, both directly and indirectly. The following is a summary of the revelant cases.
Region 1 of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the region that includes Connecticut, is increasing its enforcement efforts at hospitals, while continuing its longstanding program to encourage hospitals and other healthcare facilities to reduce their pollution output voluntarily. This past April, Robert Varney, EPA’s Region 1 Administrator, wrote to more than 250 New […]
The Most Basic HIPAA Implementation Facts HIPAA is not going away.If you, or any part of your organization, provide health care services (or prescription drugs or products) and you do any electronic billing, you are a HIPAA “covered entity.”The three major components of HIPAA (electronic transactions and code sets, privacy and security) have separate requirements […]
Nursing homes with rest homes with nursing supervisions (“RHNS”) beds or with Medicare distinct parts take note: Under a recent change in Connecticut law (Section 46 of Public Act 02-7, May Special Session) Medicare-distinct parts have been eliminated. As a result, all chronic and convalescent nursing homes (“CCNH”), RHNS (including free-standing RHNS facilities), and chronic […]
The Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice and the Office of the Attorney General for the State of Arizona recently filed an action, along with a proposed settlement agreement, that promises to have nationwide repercussions in the health care industry. Declaring that price protection contract provisions – commonly known as “Most-Favored Buyer” […]
On July 13, 1998, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled that technical drug advertisements in sophisticated medical journals could constitute statements made “in connection with the purchase or sale” of a security for purposes of securities fraud liability under Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. […]
New Rules for Retirement Distributions On January 17, 2001, the Internal Revenue Service issued proposed regulations which have a sweeping impact on the way funds can be distributed from Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) and other qualified plans. Previously, complicated rules restricted how and when distributions had to be taken out of an owner’s account, both […]
New Top Level Domain Names Announced by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) You may have heard that two new top-level domain names (TLDs), .info and .biz, will soon be available for public registration. Initial registrations will be made this summer and the new TLDs will go live in the […]
EGTRRA — Mostly Good News When President Bush signed the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act (“EGTRRA”) last June, employers administering retirement plans received good news. The new law provides the opportunity, starting with this year, for increased retirement plan contributions by both employers and employees. In addition, the Act significantly simplifies some tasks […]
Largest Health Care Fraud Settlement Ever and Related Investigation TAP Pharmaceutical Products Inc.’s $875 Million Settlement TAP Pharmaceutical Products Inc. (“TAP”), a major pharmaceutical manufacturer that is a joint venture between Abbott Laboratories and Takeda Chemical Industries, Ltd., agreed on October 3, 2001 to pay $875 million to settle criminal charges and civil […]
Estate Tax Repeal On May 26, 2001 the House and Senate approved a $1.35 trillion tax-cut plan that includes a repeal of the estate tax and substantial modifications to the gift tax. The bill is expected to be signed into law by President Bush early in June. Increased Exemption Amount In 2002, the estate tax […]
Notice: The powers granted by this document are broad and sweeping. They are defined in Connecticut Statutory Short Form Power of Attorney Act, sections I-42 to I-56, inclusive, of the general statutes, which expressly permits the use of any other different form of power of attorney desired by the parties concerned, KNOW ALL MEN BY […]
LIVING WILL If the time comes when I am incapacitated to the point when I can no longer actively take part in decisions for my own life, and am unable to direct my physician as to my own medical care, I wish this statement to stand as a testament of my wishes. I, ____________________________(NAME), request […]
Patent Application Publication Under the American Inventors Protection Act (AIPA) of 1999 and the recently adopted publication rules, all nonprovisional utility patent applications filed on or after November 29, 2000 are published automatically 18 months after the earliest claimed filing date. For many years, PCT procedure has required that all patent applications be published 18 […]
For the first time since the 1981 enactment of the incentive stock option (“ISO”) provisions in the Internal Revenue Code (“Code”), the IRS has published proposed regulations requiring the withholding of employment taxes upon the exercise of an incentive stock option, notwithstanding that such exercise does not result in the recognition of ordinary income […]
Although a great deal of fanfare accompanied Governor Rowland’s veto of a major State campaign finance reform bill this Spring, the Governor did sign into law new restrictions on certain individuals’ ability to contribute to the campaigns of candidates for State public office, effective immediately. The Connecticut legislature amended existing restrictions on the ability of […]
INFORMATION TO BE DISCLOSED A federally tax exempt organization, other than a private foundation, must disclose to the public: Its application for exemption (Form 1023 or 1024 and supporting materials) Its three most recent returns (Form 990, 990-EZ, or 1065 including schedules and attachments, but not donor lists or Form 990T). INTERNET POSTING You do […]
This notice explains how you may be able to pay less tax by contributing to [insert name of employer’s plan] (the “Plan”) or to an individual retirement arrangement (“IRA”). Beginning in 2002, if you make contributions to the Plan or to an IRA, you may be eligible for a tax credit, called the “saver’s credit.” […]
I. What Is A Compliance Program? A compliance program is an internal process designed to help an organization prevent improper conduct, identify such conduct when it occurs and implement corrective action. An effective compliance program promotes compliance by educating and training employees, monitoring and auditing the organization’s compliance status, disseminating information regarding changes in the […]
SPECIAL TAX NOTICE REGARDING PLAN PAYMENTS This notice explains how you can continue to defer federal income tax on your retirement savings in the [INSERT NAME OF PLAN] (the “Plan”) and contains important information you will need before you decide how to receive your Plan benefits. This notice is provided to you by [INSERT NAME […]
As many of you are aware, the Health Care Financing Administration (“HCFA”) is implementing a prospective payment system (“PPS”) for outpatient hospital services. As part of this initiative, HCFA has published proposed regulations concerning PPS for hospital outpatient services, including new requirements for designation of provider-based status. These new requirements may make it more difficult […]
On October 1, 2003, a new criminal law took effect targeting abuse of the elderly, blind, disabled and mentally retarded.
On November 2, 2002, President Bush signed the implementing legislation for the United States to join an international trademark treaty known as the Madrid Protocol (the “Protocol”). On August 2, 2003, the United States deposited the necessary Instrument of Accession to the Protocol with the World Intellectual Property Office (“WIPO”), allowing membership of the United […]
Festo v. Shoketsu Kinzoku Kohyo Kabushiki Co. A recent decision by the United States Supreme Court may significantly impact the scope of protection a court will accord to patent claims in an infringement lawsuit. In its much anticipated decision in Festo v. Shoketsu Kinzoku Kohyo Kabushiki Co., __ U.S. __ 122 S.CT. 1831 (May 28, […]
On January 13, 2009, the Department of Justice announced the following change to the authority of the Director of the ATF. The change was announced in an interim final rule with a request for comments. Any comments on this proposed rule change must be submitted on or before April 14, 2009.
Florida City Loses Patent Ownership Suit The City of Cocoa, Florida has been involved in litigation with two city employees over who owns the rights to a patent for technology potentially worth $300 million in licensing royalties. As reported in the Wall Street Journal on March 26, 2002, seven city employees designed a new […]