White Collar Defense & Government Investigations

As we previously discussed, FINRA issued guidance to member firms and their associated persons in April 2020 to remain “vigilant in their surveillance against cyber threats and take steps to reduce the risk of cyber events.”

In what will likely be the first of many, the SEC brought an action against a company for false and misleading press releases related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspection and Examinations (OCIE) issued two risk alerts relating to Regulation Best Interest (Reg. BI).

As financial professionals struggle to adapt during these trying times, securities regulators are also revising their processes and procedures to address the current realities of investor protection in the time of COVID-19 while being fair to the regulated entities.

On March 23, 2020 the SEC issued a statement warning about the risks of insider trading posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This alert covers new regulations taking effect on February 13, 2020 that significantly broaden CFIUS’s jurisdiction by granting it significant new review power over foreign investments in US businesses and real estate.

In my post of April 2, Divided Supreme Court Restricts Provider Challenges to State Medicaid Rates, I wrote about the March 31st Supreme Court decision that providers may not sue in federal court over the adequacy of state Medicaid rates (See Armstrong v. Exceptional Child Ctr., Inc. (“Exceptional Child Center”).

A unanimous U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (“CPSC”) announced that Ross Stores Inc. (“Ross”), a national discount retailer, agreed to pay a $3.9 million civil penalty to settle allegations that it failed to report its continued sale of banned children’s upper outerwear containing drawstrings.