ANALYSIS: Foreign Investment Vehicles and the New Foreign Account Tax Compliance Rules of the HIRE Act

The Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (“HIRE”) Act signed into law on March 18, 2010, added new chapter 4 to the Internal Revenue Code. 1 Chapter 4 provides for information reporting by third-parties of certain U.S. accounts held in foreign financial institutions (“FFIs”).

Privacy Groups Urge Supreme Court to Tread Cautiously in Quon Work Texting Case

The U.S. Supreme Court should exercise caution in reviewing whether a police officer had a reasonable expectation of privacy in personal text messages sent from and received by his employer-issued pager, because the court’s ruling may reverberate beyond the public sector workplace, privacy groups argued in a friend of the court brief filed March 23.

House Passes Legislation Restricting File Sharing by Federal Workers, Contractors

The House March 24 approved legislation to severely restrict peer-to-peer file-sharing on government computers.
The bill, the “Secure Federal File Sharing Act” (H.R. 4098), passed 408-13 under suspension of the rules.

Washington Now Second State with Retailer Card Breach Liability Law, Joining Minnesota

As of July 1, Washington merchants and agencies that process 6 million or more payment card transactions per year face liability to financial institutions for certain credit and debit card breach costs, under a bill signed March 22 by Gov. Christine Gregoire (D).

President to Sign Health Care Reform Reconciliation Measure March 30

President Obama is scheduled to sign the reconciliation bill (H.R. 4872) that would tweak the recently enacted health reform law March 30.

Securities Class Action Settlements in 2009 Increased in Total Amounts, Numbers

Securities class action settlements totaled $3.8 billion in 2009, an increase of more than 35 percent compared to the $2.75 billion total in 2008, a new study by Cornerstone Research said.

SEC Violated Scope of Protective Orders by Providing Private Financial Data to IRS

The Securities and Exchange Commission violated the scope of two protective orders—intended to safeguard personal financial information provided by an alleged tax evader who also was the victim of a securities scheme—by providing the data to federal prosecutors who in turn passed the information to the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit concluded March 23.

Daimler to Pay $200 Million to Settle SEC, DOJ Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Charges

German car conglomerate Daimler AG (DAI) has agreed to pay almost $200 million to settle civil and criminal charges alleging violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, according to court filings by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice (SEC v. Daimler AG, D.D.C., No. 1:10-cv-00473-RJL, 3/22/10).

ANALYSIS: Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Risks in Cross-Border M&A Deals

Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) risks in cross-border deals should never be taken lightly. Although international acquisitions often involve many complexities, time pressures and significant business interests, U.S. companies and issuers should always include an FCPA due diligence checklist as part of their overall pre-acquisition due diligence.

Drug Industry Anticipates More Work Ahead Following Health Care Reform Bill’s Final Passage

While praising individual provisions of the final health care overhaul bill, pharmaceutical industry groups said that the legislation the House approved March 21 is an imperfect measure, and they will continue to work on issues such as pay-for-delay patent settlements and generic competition with biologic drugs.

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