The recent settlement agreement entered in the EP MedSystems matter (described below) does little to refute the common wisdom that the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security ('BIS') treats voluntary disclosures of export violations more harshly than other agencies that regulate exports from the United States. It also illustrates a potential, but avoidable, peril in the two-step voluntary disclosure process urged by BIS and other federal agencies. Finally, it serves as yet another example of the regulatory minefield that U.S. export laws present for U.S. companies with foreign subsidiaries.
- January 31, 2007Robert Clifton Burns
Most U.S.-based companies have fairly sophisticated environmental, health and safety ('EHS') programs that are designed to ensure compliance with applicable EHS rules and regulations. The reasons for such programs are obvious: EHS compliance represents the floor for most, if not all companies, and non-compliant companies are likely to experience adverse financial, environmental, health and safety impacts as a result of non-compliance.
January 31, 2007ALM Staff | Law Journal Newsletters |The U.S. Supreme Court is currently considering a case of great importance to employers, Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Inc. It will decide when the statute of limitations begins to run under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as amended) ('Title VII') for certain types of disparate pay claims.
January 31, 2007Debra S. FriedmanWith the amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP), precedent-setting adverse sanctions against some of the largest corporations and growing regulatory requirements, the need to become 'litigation ready' has been like a large snowball, gaining mass and momentum. The indisputable need to become litigation ready has arrived, and the snowball continues to get bigger and faster as it heads down the mountain. With the FRCP amendments, Dec. 1 has come and gone and guess what? Nothing has exploded.
January 31, 2007Prashant DubeyOn Dec. 12, 2006 the U.S. Justice Department issued new guidance that will require federal prosecutors to seek approval from senior DOJ officials before requesting a waiver of attorney-client privilege and work product protection in corporate criminal investigations. The new guidance supersedes the existing language on waiver in the 'Thompson memo,' issued by then-Deputy Attorney General Larry D. Thompson in January 2003.
January 31, 2007Steven P. SolowRecent rulings you need to know.
January 31, 2007ALM Staff | Law Journal Newsletters |Highlights of the latest product liability cases from around the country.
January 31, 2007ALM Staff | Law Journal Newsletters |The first part of this article discussed dioxin litigation and the use of environmental and blood data, and the design and results of the University of Michigan study. The conclusion addresses how to use the study.
January 31, 2007Anthony G. Hopp'You can't be shining lights at the Bar because you are too kind. You can never be corporation lawyers because you are not cold-blooded. You have not a high grade of intellect. I doubt you could ever make a living.' Clarence Darrow to women lawyers. Morello, Bar Admission Was Rough for 19th Century Women, 189 N.Y.L.J. 19 (1983).
January 31, 2007Sandra Giannone EzellFrom the moment a manufacturer decides to undertake a new venture, it creates a staggering number of documents. These documents run the gamut from new product designs to market studies to safety test results. Even small-scale manufacturers may generate enough documents to fill a small warehouse, thus begging the question: Are we required by law to keep all these documents?
January 31, 2007Bikram Bandy and Daniel Simon

