Headlines

A Supreme Court affirmation of the Fifth Circuit decision in Roland likely will mean that we will see more Ponzi-related class claims brought under state law.

In July 2013, the U.S. Senate designated September as Spinal Cord Injury Awareness month. This new annual month focus brings awareness for individuals that suffer from the effects of spinal cord injuries and allows for further education, injury prevention and an understanding of the importance of medical treatment and spinal cord research.

More than two years have passed since the launch of a new Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) whistleblower program established by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act – a program that offers a bounty of 10 to 30 percent of recovered sanctions to whistleblowers that significantly assist an SEC investigation, along with increased protections from employer retaliation. Since that time, the SEC has issued only two awards to whistleblowers.

On Monday, Sept. 23, 2013, an 80-year ban on general solicitation will be lifted, allowing companies to advertise private securities offerings to investors of all kinds without having to register the offering with the SEC or any state so long as certain requirements are met.

As American citizens spent yesterday honoring the memory of the brave souls who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks of 9/11, it was very disheartening and outright offensive that BP sought to use Sept. 11th to again attack our judicial system.

It is vitally important that everyone help to spread the word about the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund deadline to insure maximum participation by first responders and other volunteers that are eligible.

The easiest answer to that question is also the simplest: If you haven’t heard of the airline you are about to book, perhaps it’s better to step back and search for an airline you HAVE heard of. However, there are some places where you simply can’t get on a main-line carrier from a developed nation.

In a year of mixed court rulings in the field of human rights and anti-terrorism law, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia delivered a well-earned bright spot recently. The Court upheld the Security and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Final Rule enforcing Dodd-Frank Section 1502.

The victims of the Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crash were probably stunned to learn that, unlike U.S. pilots, foreign airline pilots who crash a plane on U.S. soil do not have to be drug or alcohol tested.

In the course of 30 years of practicing law I have never seen a corporate defendant backpedal on an agreed-to settlement to the extent BP is attempting to do in the Deepwater Horizon Economic and Property Damages Class Action Settlement. BP still doesn’t understand the law or the facts of this case.