Widespread use of the Internet is barely a decade old, and already its use and abuse have increased dramatically. While the Web provides companies with new outlets for their products, it also provides a larger outlet for rogue entities to harm the consumer and damage manufacturers' reputations. Indeed, the Internet has created an opportunity for a whole new class of fraudulent activity, with rampant identity theft the best known. In the context of drug outlets, if a purchaser buys his or her prescription from a "rogue" pharmaceutical site, that consumer may be buying expired, substandard, contaminated, counterfeited and, in some cases, unsafe products. The lack of medical oversight, which can result in administration of incorrect dosages, wrong or contra-indicated drugs, or medication without adequate directions for use are among the concerns to be addressed as we enter this new world of Internet pharmacies. Part One of a Two-Part Article.
- June 29, 2004Vivian Quinn and Jacob Herstek
Given the central role of computer technology in our personal and professional lives, discovery requests for electronically stored information have become commonplace. The costs associated with discovery frequently escalate when the information sought is stored electronically, because retrieval is often more complicated and nuanced than the production of hard copies of documents. Not surprisingly, the disclosure and production of electronically stored information is often the subject of discovery disputes.
June 29, 2004Connie A. Matteo, Timothy Coughlan and David C. UittiThe latest Agency news you need to know.
June 29, 2004ALM Staff | Law Journal Newsletters |In the first ruling applying the whistleblower protections of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, 18 U.S.C. ' 1514A, an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ordered a bank holding company to rehire its former Chief Financial Officer (CFO), after finding that the company fired the CFO in retaliation for reporting alleged accounting misconduct to the company's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), outside auditors, and others.
June 29, 2004Mark Rochon and Simon KannThe Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) responded to well-publicized allegations of securities fraud. Its commandments about financial and internal control certifications, audit committees, auditor independence and the like expressly target publicly traded corporations. Yet much has been written about the "inevitable" spillover of SOX-type obligations onto not-for-profit organizations, especially in the health care sector. As a result, not-for-profit CEOs, compliance officers and counsel have practical questions.
June 29, 2004Ronald H. LevineOn Feb. 5, 2004, the FDA and the SEC announced a new alliance between the two agencies. In a press release describing the changes, the FDA explained that "[u]nder the new referral procedure, any FDA employee who believes a publicly held, FDA-regulated firm has made a false or misleading statement to the investment public concerning a matter within the FDA's authority can initiate a process for referring the matter to the SEC Division of Enforcement."
June 29, 2004Jacqueline C. Wolff and Kate GreenwoodAs we all know, the ADA prohibits discrimination on account of past, present and perceived physical and emotional disabilities. Generally, the key to avoiding liability is focusing on abilities and not disabilities. That's an easy mantra to articulate, but it can be deceptively complicated for a supervisor to implement.
June 29, 2004Jonathan A. SegalContinuing a seesaw battle that has been ongoing since the early 1980s, the NLRB recently held in a 3-2 decision that non-union employees do not have a right under the National Labor Relations Act to be accompanied by a fellow employee during a meeting that might lead to discipline.
June 29, 2004Andrew A. MalahowskiIn the past several years, employment class and collective action lawsuits have caught the attention of employees across the country. Many of these cases have resulted in multi-million dollar settlements or verdicts. Equally troubling, once an industry or corporation is viewed as potentially vulnerable on an issue, copycat cases may be brought in multiple jurisdictions against the same defendant or against others in the same industry.
June 29, 2004Deborah A. Sudbury, Douglas M. Towns and Sandra H. Dermody