Expert Analysis

• Proxy Season Takeaways Indicate ESG Initiative Shifts

  

  While proxy season takeaways from 2023 may seem to indicate a move away from environmental, social and corporate governance initiatives, the numbers also reflect shifts in the types of proposals being submitted, their proponents, voting patterns and broader investor sentiment, says Leah Malone at Simpson Thacher.

• How A Gov't Shutdown Would Affect Immigration Processing

  

  While a government shutdown would certainly create issues and cause delays for immigration processing, independently funded functions would continue for at least a limited time, and immigration practitioners can expect agencies to create reasonable exceptions and provide guidance for navigating affected matters once operations resume, say William Stock and Sarah Holler at Klasko Immigration Law Partners.

• Opinion

  Smart Immigration Reform Can Improve Health Care Access

  

  With the U.S. health care crisis expected to worsen due to ongoing nationwide physician shortages, immigration reform can provide one short-term solution to bring more trained doctors to medically underserved areas, says Sarah Peterson at Fragomen.

• Opinion

  Private Equity Owners Can Remedy Law Firms' Agency Issues

  

  Nonlawyer, private-equity ownership of law firms can benefit shareholders and others vulnerable to governance issues such as disparate interests, and can in turn help resolve agency problems, says Michael Di Gennaro at The Law Practice Exchange.

• UN Climate Summit: What To Watch For In Dubai

  

  The upcoming 28th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP28, may be remembered as a turning point in the emerging low-carbon economy — but only if conference commitments are successfully translated into new laws, business practices and financial support, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

• Cos. Must Overhaul Data Privacy Approach To Avoid Lawsuits

  

  With the proliferation of third-party trackers and the increasing complexity of privacy laws, companies need to significantly change their approach to online privacy to avoid litigation by focusing on responsible data collection practices and ongoing monitoring of ad tech tools, says Ian Cohen at LOKKER.

• Don't Wait To Prepare For CFPB's Small Biz Lender Data Rule

  

  Though federal courts in Kentucky and Texas have paused the rollout of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's small business loan reporting requirement, with more delays perhaps on the way, financial institutions should nonetheless turn to new agency guidance to prepare for the rule's eventual implementation, say Christopher Friedman and Shelby Lomax at Husch Blackwell.

• Biden Admin's Mental Health Proposal May Not Be Enough

  

  The Biden administration's recent proposed updates to federal mental health care rules acknowledge the difficulty that Americans face in finding and affording care, but may have limited impact due to enforcement challenges, a lack of providers and other issues, say Khaled Klele and Jessica Osterlof at Riker Danzig.

• What Cos. Must Know About New Ore. Consumer Privacy Law

  

  Oregon was recently the 12th state to enact a comprehensive consumer data privacy law, but its one-year effective date delay is only applicable to certain nonprofits — so entities in the state should review their data inventory, collection and sharing practices to comply by July 1, 2024, say Neeka Hodaie and Lisa Schaures at Seyfarth.

• New FCC Broadband Label Rules Should Be Read Carefully

  

  A recent order from the Federal Communications Commission clarifies standardized broadband label requirements that are pending final approval — and while compliance should be manageable, the rules impose new risk, particularly with regard to speed and latency disclosures, say Craig Gilley and Laura Stefani at Venable.

• Suit Alleging FDIC Overdraft Overreach May Not Make Waves

  

  Regardless of its outcome, a lawsuit filed by a Minnesota community bank and state bankers trade group arguing against recent overdraft-related fee enforcement from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is unlikely to ease pressure from other banking regulators for corrective action on nonsufficient fund fees, say John Stoker and Kate Wellman at Moore & Van Allen.

• Navigating PFAS Compliance With FDA, Emerging State Laws

  

  As PFAS food packaging regulation intensifies at the state level, businesses should consider how federal action and possible preemption from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration may affect their compliance plans, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

• Not To Be Outpaced: How The 2024 NDAA Addresses China

  

  Both the House and Senate versions of the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act include numerous provisions aimed at strengthening U.S. deterrence and competitive positioning vis-à-vis China, while imposing significantly more disruptive burdens on government contractors and their suppliers than in prior years, say attorneys at Covington.

• Mass. Robinhood Ruling Will Affect Broker-Dealers Nationwide

  

  Following the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court's recent ruling in Robinhood v. Galvin, which upheld the state's rule imposing a fiduciary duty standard on broker-dealers, the Massachusetts Securities Division will likely target in-state and out-of-state firms under the rule, say attorneys at Mintz.

• How To Protect Atty-Client Privilege While Using Generative AI

  

  When using generative artificial intelligence tools, attorneys should consider several safeguards to avoid breaches or complications in attorney-client privilege, say Antonious Sadek and Christopher Campbell at DLA Piper.