Publications
On September 3, 2003, the Office of the New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer announced a $40 million settlement with Canary Capital Partners, LLC (a multi-million dollar hedge fund), Canary Investment Management, LLC, Canary Capital Partners, Ltd, and the managing principal Edward Stern, for fraudulent trading of mutual-fund shares. Because of suggestions that such […]
Effective for plan years beginning after November 26, 2004, group health plans should use these model COBRA notices to provide the requred initial notice to participants (Final Model General COBRA Notice) and the notice upon the ocurrence of a COBRA “qualifying event” (Final Model COBRA Election Notice ) .
Effective for plan years beginning after November 26, 2004, group health plans should use these model COBRA notices to provide the requred initial notice to participants (Final Model General COBRA Notice) and the notice upon the ocurrence of a COBRA “qualifying event” (Final Model COBRA Election Notice ).
On July 15, 2003, Wiggin & Dana issued a Client Alert summarizing the recent decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (the Court), reversing nearly $490 million in damages awarded to IGEN International, Inc. after a six year legal battle with Roche Diagnostics GmbH over issues relating to a license agreement […]
The Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) has delayed until January 1, 2005 the effective date of its new rule that requires the sender of an unsolicited fax “advertisement” to have the prior written consent of the recipient. The new rule, which amends the FCC’s telemarketing and facsimile advertising rules pursuant to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act […]
The GLBA only applies to individuals who obtain financial products or services primarily for personal, family, or household purposes, and does not apply to companies or individuals who obtain financial products or services for business, commercial, or agricultural purposes. On November 12, 1999, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) became law, bringing important changes to […]
"To swallow gudgeons ere they're catch'd,And count their chickens ere they're atch'd." Samuel Butler [1600-1680] "This moral, I think, may be safely attached;Reckon not on your chickens before they are hatched." Jefferys Taylor [1792-1853] "But Times do change and move continually." Edmund Spenser [1553-1599] This article addresses a recent Federal Circuit opinion exploring the question […]
The Health Care Finance Administration (HCFA) has issued a final rule under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”) adopting standards for eight electronic transactions and code sets to be used in those transactions. It contains requirements concerning the use of these standards by health plans, health care clearinghouses and health care […]
www.hcfa.gov Health Care Finance Administration www.healthlawyers.org American Health Lawyers Association www.smed.com/hippa Shared Medical Services www.chim.org Center for Health Care Information Management www.wpc-edi.com/hipaa Washington Publishing Company http://aspe.hhs.gov/admnsimp/ Dept. of Health and Human Services Administrative Simplification http:[email protected] Site that allows you to submit a hipaa question www.hipaacomply.com HIPAA Compliance www.hipaa-iq.com/resource.htm QuadraMed www.ahima.org AHIMA www.afehct.org Association for Electronic […]
The DecisionOn Thursday, April 4, 2002, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued an important decision in Karl Storz Endoscopy-America, Inc. v. Surgical Technologies Inc. et al., a case of first impression regarding the scope of the protections provided by U.S. trademark laws. Representing Karl Storz, a team of Wiggin & […]
Appearing in the Medical Staff News May, 2000 ©-2000 Wiggin & Dana. Health care attorneys who represent provider networks are facing a critical question with the advent of the new Healthcare Integrity and Protection Data Bank (HIPDB): whether provider networks fall within the reporting requirements of the HIPDB for purposes of registration and for reporting […]
Federal Law With President Bush’s announcement that he is calling Reservists to duty, many employers are asking about their responsibilities to employees who take a military leave of absence. The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) governs employers’ rights and obligations in this area. As a general rule, the USERRA requires employers […]
The efforts of institutions of higher education to maintain racially diverse student bodies are more complicated today than ever before. Both public and private institutions may be sued by applicants claiming that admissions policies, designed to ensure minority student enrollment, discriminate against them. The well-known 1978 decision of the United States Supreme Court in Regents […]
Effective February 1, 2001, the HSR Act will be revised in important respects. On December 21, 2000, the President signed into law the first significant changes in the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, 15 U.S.C. § 18a, since its enactment in 1976. The Act requires parties intending to merge or make acquisitions of voting securities or assets […]
Reprinted with permission from Intellectual Property Today November 1997. Abstract Recently there have been a number of changes in the law and regulations governing corrections of inventorship. The Federal Circuit, in two recent cases, has issued rulings regarding diligence, deceptive intent, and declaratory judgments to resolve inventorship. In response to these rulings, the Patent Office […]
On June 17, 1994, a negotiated settlement was reached in United States and State of Florida v. Morton Plant Health System, Inc. and Trustees of Mease Hospital, Inc., Civil No. 94-748-CIV-T-23E (M.D. Fla.), an antitrust action brought by the Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice and the Office of the Attorney General […]
On September 27, 1994, the United States Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission (the “Agencies”) jointly issued “Statements of Enforcement Policy and Analytical Principles Relating to Health Care and Antitrust.” The statements supersede the September 15, 1993 “Statements of Antitrust Enforcement Policy in the Health Care Area”, and expand those six statements to […]
New SEC Proposals On December 15, 1999 the SEC proposed Regulation FD and Rules 10b5-1 and 10b5-2 for adoption under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”). What is Regulation FD? How Can I Fix a Selective Disclosure Problem? What Can I do to Prevent Selective Disclosure? Proposed Regulation FD (the “FD” stands […]
TAP Pharmaceutical Products Inc.’s $875 Million Settlement As we noted in our October 16, 2001, Client Alert, TAP Pharmaceutical Products Inc. (“TAP”), a major pharmaceutical manufacturer that is a joint venture between Abbott Laboratories (“Abbott”) and Takeda Chemical Industries, Ltd. (“Takeda”), agreed on October 3, 2001 to pay $875 million to settle criminal charges and […]
n October 3, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued new guidance on the application of certain anti-discrimination laws to health and life insurance benefits, long-term and short-term disability benefits, severance benefits, pensions and other retirement benefits and early retirement incentives offered by employers. This guidance was issued as part of the EEOC’s Compliance […]
This report to our clients summarizes the principal changes in the recently enacted Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998. Significant changes were made in the areas of IRS administration and procedures. The new law provides sweeping changes in the way the IRS will operate and enacts many new provisions that will affect […]
September 2002 To Our Clients and Friends: Over the past few months we have been receiving an increasing number of questions about the applicability of the federal Intermediate Sanctions to the directors and officers of tax-exempt organizations when they are approving compensation arrangements. We thought it would help our clients and friends who have an […]
A little more than a year ago, many of us were frantically copying Privacy Notices, completing HIPAA training and tweaking our privacy policies. While some commentators predicted mass chaos after April 14, 2003 as a result of the HIPAA privacy requirements, the intervening year has been manageable, thanks to the diligent efforts of the health […]
The day after five of its former chairmen testified to the Senate Banking Committee urging new accounting rules to prevent future corporate disasters such as the one that bankrupted Enron, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced proposed changes in corporate disclosure rules as “the first in a series of steps designed to improve the financial […]
On June 9, 2008, the United Supreme Court released a unanimous decision in Allison Engine Co., Inc. v. United States ex rel Sanders, 553 U.S. __ (2008), limiting the scope of the False Claims Act. The False Claims Act (FCA) was originally enacted in the Civil War era to facilitate prosecution of profiteers defrauding the […]
The Subordination, Non-Disturbance and Attornment Agreement (“SNDA”) is often misunderstood by landlords and tenants in a lease transaction, and consequently is frequently disregarded. The failure to obtain a SNDA for the benefit of a tenant may result in an unanticipated early termination of a lease. In the face of current economic uncertainty, it is helpful […]
The Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2009 suspended required minimum distributions (RMDs) from defined contribution accounts for 2009. This Client Alert will highlight some factors you may want to consider if you are currently subject to the RMD requirements. Background. Generally, RMDs must be taken from IRAs and certain qualified retirement plans after […]
On July 30th 2002, President Bush signed into law the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. The Act is a response to recent accounting issues that have arisen at large public companies and the subsequent calls for legislation to prevent the recurrence of these types of issues. The Act seeks to promote corporate responsibility by, among other […]
On January 20, 2003, Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson issued revised guidelines for the federal prosecution of business entities. The changes to the guidelines extend the Department of Justice’s effort to “deputize” corporate counsel as adjuncts to the government. As one Assistant United States Attorney recently said at a securities fraud seminar, “It’s better for […]