On March 21, 2023, the United States Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (“CISA”) announced the issuance of updated Cybersecurity Performance Goals (“CPGs”). The CPGs, which were originally released in October 2022, are intended to establish a set of fundamental cybersecurity practices to be voluntarily implemented by critical infrastructure owners and operators across all critical infrastructure
FTC Proposes to Rewrite Negative Option Rule with Expansive Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
On March 23, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced a notice of proposed rulemaking that would significantly revise the legal framework governing automatically renewing subscriptions. The proposal would amend the FTC’s existing Negative Option Rule to provide specific disclosure, consent, and cancellation requirements applicable to all negative options in all media. The Rule would formalize
Ninth Circuit Sharpens Predominance Requirement: Looking Behind Plaintiffs’ Fiction in Dismantling Class Certification
The Ninth Circuit continues its efforts to give teeth to the predominance requirement of Rule 23 as a potent tool for defendants to defeat class certification.
Earlier this year, in Bowerman v. Field Asset Services, Inc., 39 F.4th 652 (9th Cir. 2022), amended, — F.4th —-, 2023 WL 2001967 (9th Cir. Feb. 14
Will the EU Commission start new State aid investigations into multinationals’ tax rulings after of the Court of Justice’s judgment in the Fiat Chrysler case?
The European Competition Commissioner, Margrethe Vestager, announced on 20 March 2023 that new State aid investigations into “aggressive tax planning” practices of multinationals can be expected. This follows an in-depth inquiry into tax ruling practices in European Union (“EU”) Member States for the period 2014-2018.
While the European Courts have annulled several European Commission (“Commission”)
Stakeholders Threaten to Sue the EPA to Require Regulation of Noise Pollution
On March 17, 2023, a law school clinic submitted to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) a sixty-day notice of intent to sue letter, setting forth various entities’ intent to sue the EPA for its alleged failure to perform various non-discretionary duties under the Noise Control Act of 1972 (the “Act”).
The Act has
SAMR Issues Guideline on Absolute Terms in Advertisements
The State Administration for Market Regulation recently issued the Guideline on Law Enforcement for Using Absolute Terms in Advertisements (the “Guideline”), which provides guidance to regulators and companies on one of the most common issues of enforcement under the Advertisement Law. The Advertisement Law prohibits use of absolute terms like “highest level,” “best,” “first,” and
Colorado AG Files Final Rules Implementing CPA
On March 15, 2023, the Colorado Attorney General filed final rules implementing the Colorado Privacy Act (“CPA”) with the Secretary of State. The Attorney General first released proposed draft rules on October 10, 2022 and subsequently released revised draft rules on December 21, 2022 and January 27, 2023 after public comment. The final rules will
EU Talking Life Sciences Audiocast: Episode 2 – Key Developments in the Medical Device Sector – State of Play in the EU and UK
Tune into the second episode of Covington’s Life Sciences Audiocast, where Sarah Cowlishaw, Ellie Handy, and Léna Beley discuss key developments in the medical device sector in the EU and the UK. Our speakers review the major legal developments for medical devices in the last few years, including the issues surrounding the
Administration Proposes Increased Childcare Tax Credit for Employers
As we have been discussing in recent blog posts, the Treasury Department released its Fiscal Year 2024 General Explanations of the Administration’s Revenue Proposals, commonly called the “Green Book,” on March 9, 2023. This year’s Green Book includes a proposal that both employers and employees are likely to embrace: an enhanced tax credit
Iowa Passes Comprehensive Privacy Statute
On March 15th, the Iowa legislature passed S.F. 262 (the “ICDPA”), making it the sixth U.S. state to pass a comprehensive state privacy statute. The Iowa statute most closely resembles the Utah Consumer Privacy Act (“UCPA”), though it also shares some similarities with the approaches adopted in Virginia, Colorado, and Connecticut. The statute will next