The US Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that an investment banker may be held liable under 17 CFR § 240.10b-5 (Rule 10b-5) for sending fraudulent information about a potential investment even if the employee did not draft the correspondence and sent it at the behest of their boss. In Lorenzo v. Securities and Exchange Commission the court considered of whether Lorenzo, [...]
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Thursday announced plans to ban on semi-automatic and assault rifles. The Governor-General of New Zealand, Patsy Reddy, signed an Order in Council under section 74A(c) of the Arms Act of 1983 that broadened the semi-automatic classification of the Act to include weapons similar to those used in the Christchurch terrorist [...]
The American Bar Association Commission on Immigration on Wednesday published an update to their 2010 report that made recommendations on reforming the immigration system. The 2019 update focused on recommendations for improvement in six key areas involved in the immigration adjudication process: the Department of Homeland Security (DHS); Immigration Judges and Immigration Courts; the Board of Immigration [...]
In a per curiam decision Wednesday, the US Supreme Court remanded, for further review of standing, a case concerning whether cy pres settlements satisfy Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(e)(2). The class action case, Frank v. Gaos, originated with an alleged violation of the Stored Communications Act (SCA) by Google. Plaintiffs claimed that Google’s use of referrer headers breached the [...]
The US Senate voted 59-41 Thursday to reject President Donald Trump’s declaration of a national emergency to appropriate an additional $3.6 billion in funding to build a wall along the border of Mexico. Trump had used authority granted to him under the National Emergencies Act to direct funding from other military projects to address the alleged national emergency [...]
Uber reached a $20 million preliminary settlement agreement Monday in a class action lawsuit over how the company classifies its drivers. The case involved drivers from California and Massachusetts who disagreed with Uber’s policy of classifying its drivers as independent contractors. Classifying drivers as contractors lowers costs for Uber by avoiding employee benefits like minimum wage [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held Wednesday that a policy of the Board of Regents for the University System of Georgia barring the enrollment of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients at Georgia’s most selective universities had a rational basis and was not superseded by federal law. Three DACA recipients, who would otherwise have [...]
The Utah Senate passed a hates crime bill (SB 103) by a vote of 18-11 on Tuesday. The bill now moves to the Utah House of Representatives for consideration. SB 103 would authorize increased penalties for criminals who target victims based on certain personal attributes including age, race, religion, sex, and sexual orientation. (2) A defendant is subject [...]
Jody Wilson-Raybould, former Attorney General of Canada, testified before the House of Commons Wednesday about her involvement in the SNC-Lavalin scandal, which hinges on allegations that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau inappropriately pressured Wilson-Raybould to intervene in the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin for corruption and fraud. Trudeau allegedly pushed for Wilson-Raybould to negotiate a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) with SNC-Lavalin. [...]
The US Supreme Court held Wednesday that the Sixth Amendment‘s presumption of prejudice of ineffective counsel applies to situations in which an attorney declines to file an appeal because an appeal waiver was signed as part of a plea agreement. The case, Garza v. Idaho, centered on Petitioner Gilberto Garza’s claim that his lawyer offered ineffective [...]
