Insights

FTC Noncompete Ban Blocked On August 20, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas struck down the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) rule imposing a near-total nationwide ban on noncompete clauses set to go into effect on September 4, 2024 (the “Effective Date”). The Court set aside the rule and nullified its…

Client Alerts | August 27, 2024 | Employment Litigation | Risk Management

As explained below, the effective date of the Federal Trade Commission’s (“FTC”) rule banning the use of post-employment noncompete agreements has been stayed indefinitely by a federal court in Dallas, pending a final ruling on the merits. Eighteen months ago, we first reported on the FTC’s proposed rule-making that would enact a comprehensive nationwide ban…

Client Alerts | July 8, 2024 | Employment Litigation | Risk Management

In an important new decision, the Supreme Court, in SEC v. Jarkesy, recently held that when the SEC seeks civil penalties against a defendant for securities fraud, the Seventh Amendment applies and the defendant is entitled to a jury trial in federal court.  Chief Justice Roberts delivered the Court’s opinion, with a dissent by Justice…

Client Alerts | July 3, 2024 | Commercial and Corporate Litigation | Risk Management | Regulatory Defense

A federal appeals court, in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Christopher Clark, recently reversed a lower court’s decision and remanded the case for a jury trial on civil insider trading claims based on suspicious trading and circumstantial evidence, with no direct proof of wrongdoing by the defendant. With this new ruling, the Securities and…

Client Alerts | March 16, 2023 | Commercial and Corporate Litigation | Regulatory Defense | Risk Management

The U.S. Department of Justice (the “DOJ”) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) recently brought criminal charges and civil claims for insider trading against Terren S. Peizer (“Peizer”), the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ontrak Inc., a publicly traded healthcare company, despite Peizer’s use of a…

Client Alerts | March 14, 2023 | Commercial and Corporate Litigation | Regulatory Defense | Risk Management

Non-compete agreements have long been a staple in the employment arena, despite their potentially anti-competitive effect. They are both common and highly controversial. In the best light, they are seen as a means of balancing the employee’s right to seek other employment with the employer’s legitimate interest in protecting itself from unfair competition by a…

Client Alerts | January 17, 2023 | Employment Litigation | Risk Management

The Delaware Supreme Court has held that fraudulent conduct by corporate officers and directors is insurable in Delaware.  This consequential decision, RSUI Indemnity Company v. Murdock, 2021 BL 76083 (Del. Mar. 3, 2021), is inconsistent with the public policy of many other states, and likely will have an immediate effect on Delaware-based corporations involved in…

Client Alerts | March 15, 2021 | Commercial and Corporate Litigation | Risk Management

The ICE Benchmark Administration (“IBA”) announced earlier this week that it will consult on its intention to extend publication of the overnight and one-, three-, six-, and 12-month USD LIBOR rates until June 30, 2023. The June 2023 extension, however, applies only to legacy contracts—no new USD LIBOR contracts will be permitted after 2021.1 The…

Client Alerts | December 3, 2020 | Commercial and Corporate Litigation | Derivatives | Hedge Funds | Risk Management

By Opinion and Order dated August 3, 2020 in the case of State of New York v. United States Department of Labor, Judge J. Paul Oetken, of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, invalidated four key components of the regulations issued by the Department of Labor (“DOL”) clarifying the…

Client Alerts | August 17, 2020 | Risk Management | Employment Litigation | Commercial and Corporate Litigation