Data privacy regulations like the the GDPR and CCPA have dramatically expanded consumer privacy rights—and there are more laws like them on the horizon. This regulatory increase has led to the need to establish better privacy measures across enterprises, which includes minimizing legal risks and exposure to data breaches.

One approach to solving this problem is through corporate document retention polices, ensuring private consumer data is deleted if it conflicts with data privacy laws.

NEW WHITE PAPER: Smart Data Retention Practices to Limit New Data Privacy Risks

In this whitepaper, legal professionals will learn:

• Why retention polices aligned with your data map is no longer just important but required A 3-phase approach for legal to help implement data retention practices at your organization.
• Best Practices for maintaining an effective, defensible retention program.

Download the whitepaper.

“PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has agreed to settle a class action lawsuit alleging age discrimination in hiring by paying out $11.625 million, an amount that is not even a blip on the radar screen of a firm that reports annual revenues in excess of $41 billion,” reports Patricia Barnes in Forbes’ Leadership.

“Moreover, PwC seems somewhat tentative with respect to its commitment to change the hiring practices the plaintiffs have argued since 2016 were grossly discriminatory to older workers.”

“Both sides released a carefully worded press release earlier this month stating that PwC has agreed ‘to enhance certain of its recruiting procedures geared toward further attracting qualified older applicants for entry level jobs.’”

Read the article.

“The three giant drug distributors are negotiating a deal with the states to end thousands of opioid lawsuits nationwide, in which they would pay $19.2 billion over 18 years and immediately submit to stringent monitoring requirements to assure that suspicious orders for prescription opioids would be halted,” reports Jan Hoffman in The New York Times’ Health.

“So far, 31 states plus the District of Columbia have tentatively agreed to the deal, while 19 states, including Florida, Connecticut and West Virginia, have not.”

Read the article.

“New court filings reveal that the Department of Defense wants to ‘reconsider certain aspects’ of its decision to award Microsoft with the coveted $10 billion Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure contract,” reports Taylor Soper in GeekWire.

“The latest legal development is part of Amazon’s protest over the prestigious cloud computing deal, known as JEDI. Amazon Web Services sued the federal government after Microsoft emerged as the surprise winner of the JEDI contract last year.”

“In the new filing, a motion for voluntary remand, the DoD said that it ‘wishes to reconsider its award decision in response to the other technical challenges presented by AWS.’ The DoD is asking for 120 days to assess the matter. It wants to specifically examine one issue related to ‘online marketplace offerings.'”

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“Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) announced that Ellen Patterson will join the company as its senior executive vice president and general counsel, effective March 23, 2020. Reporting to CEO Charlie Scharf, Patterson will be responsible for all legal affairs at the company and will serve on the company’s Operating Committee,” reported in Yahoo Finance.

“Patterson joins Wells Fargo after more than seven years at TD Bank Group, where she most recently served as group head and general counsel responsible for leading the bank’s global Legal, Compliance, Anti-Money Laundering, Corporate Secretary, Global Security & Investigations, and Fraud Risk Management teams. Earlier, she served as general counsel for TD Bank’s U.S. banking operations. For the past two years, she has chaired TD Bank’s global Women in Leadership program, supporting programs and practices to advance the careers of a diverse group of female employees.”

Read the article.

Washington, DC – The Venable Foundation, Inc., the philanthropic arm of Venable LLP, is pleased to announce it awarded the Maryland Food Bank (MFB), the largest charitable food provider in Maryland, a grant of $100,000. The grant will support MFB’s food distribution operations, technology upgrades, and Lawyers’ Campaign Against Hunger, which is an annual fundraiser to distribute meals.

Core to the MFB’s operations are its statewide food procurement and food distribution efforts, including the School Pantry Program, which provides children and their families vital nutrition in a school setting; HEART Markets, or pop-up farmer’s market-style distribution events; Supper and Summer Clubs, which supply meals for youth to ensure food reliability outside of school hours; FoodWorks, a culinary workforce development program; and the Pantry on the Go Program, which provides bulk food deliveries to locations without access to fresh and nutritious food.

Venable Foundation President Lindsay Meyer said, “With hundreds of thousands of Marylanders facing food insecurity, we know there is no more vital cause than the fight to end hunger. We believe in the work that the Maryland Food Bank does, and we proudly continue to support their efforts.”

The Venable Foundation was honored by MFB as one of its Heroes Against Hunger recipients and received the Powerhouse Partner of the Year award in 2018.

The Maryland Food Bank is dedicated to feeding people, strengthening communities, and ending hunger for more Marylanders by partnering with local organizations from the state’s western mountains to the Eastern Shore. The food bank’s statewide network of food assistance brings enough resources together to provide the equivalent of 110,000 meals every day (more than 40 million meals annually) to hungry children, seniors, veterans, and hard-working families, meeting the immediate needs of hungry Marylanders while simultaneously working to create pathways out of hunger. For more information, visit https://mdfoodbank.org/.

The Venable Foundation, Inc. was established in 1983 to support a wide variety of charitable, civic, and cultural endeavors, and serve public interest law needs in our communities. In the past 10 years, the Venable Foundation has granted more than $25 million to worthy organizations that provide critical support to those in need. These include children’s services and funding for disadvantaged families and individuals; homeless shelters and food programs; community organizations, hospitals, hospices, and local chapters of national health organizations; and educational, artistic, and cultural events and organizations. The Foundation is funded by the partners of Venable LLP.

Sommerman, McCaffity, Quesada & Geisler Attorneys Selected to 2020 Texas Rising Stars

DALLAS – Personal injury and commercial litigation trial firm Sommerman, McCaffity, Quesada & Geisler is pleased to announce that associates Jody Rodenberg and Alexandria Risinger have earned selection to the Texas Rising Stars listing for 2020 by Thomson Reuters.

Ms. Rodenberg has been honored in the Texas Rising Stars listing for her work in business litigation since 2017. She also handles employment and ERISA litigation, personal injury, wrongful death and medical malpractice cases. A 2011 graduate of Southern Methodist University’s Dedman School of Law, Ms. Rodenberg is a member of the Dallas Trial Lawyers Association and the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers. She recently received recognition in the Best Lawyers Under 40 listing by D Magazine.

Ms. Risinger earned a place on the prestigious Rising Stars list for the first time for her work representing plaintiffs in personal injury litigation. She also has expertise in commercial litigation, medical negligence and product liability. Her work has earned recognition in Texas Top 100 Verdicts for 2016 and 2018, as well as membership in the exclusive Million Dollar Advocates Forum and the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum.

Each year, only 2.5 percent of eligible Texas lawyers are selected to the Texas Rising Stars list based on peer nominations, independent research and additional review by a blue-ribbon advisory board. The list recognizes the work of the state’s top attorneys age 40 and younger or lawyers who have practiced law no more than 10 years. The attorneys will be listed in Super Lawyers magazine and Texas Monthly in March.

Sommerman, McCaffity, Quesada & Geisler, LLP, has a distinguished reputation for knowledgeable and assertive legal representation in the areas of personal injury, wrongful death and commercial litigation. Since formation, the firm has handled more than 4,000 personal injury cases, negotiated thousands of settlements and taken hundreds of cases to trial. Visit https://www.textrial.com/.

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP is pleased to announce that Nancy Williams Ball has joined the firm’s Birmingham office as a partner in the Trusts and Estates Practice Group.

Ball focuses her practice in areas that include estate planning and estate administration, taxation, real estate, and corporate law. She also speaks regularly on estate planning topics.

Ball is a member of the Estate Planning Council of Birmingham, Inc., and the Alabama Planned Giving Council. In addition, she currently serves as secretary of the Birmingham Bar Association’s Probate Section and is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel.

Prior to joining Bradley, Ball was a partner at Cabaniss, Johnston, Gardner, Dumas & O’Neal LLP.

Ball received her J.D. (summa cum laude) from the University of Mississippi School of Law. She also holds a Master of Laws in taxation (magna cum laude) from the University of Alabama and a Bachelor of Science (cum laude) from Birmingham-Southern College.

Bradley’s Trusts and Estates Practice Group attorneys represent a wide range of clients, including business executives, owners of closely held businesses, highly compensated employees, and many other individuals and families. In the area of probate law, Bradley represents the personal representatives and beneficiaries of estates.

Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale, P.C., is pleased to announce that Scott Cruz has joined the firm’s Chicago office as an Officer in the Employment and Labor practice group.

“We are thrilled to welcome Scott to our growing team of attorneys in Chicago,” said Thadford A. Felton, Managing Officer of Greensfelder’s Chicago office. “Scott is a leader in employment and labor law and is actively involved in the city’s business and civic communities.”

Mr. Cruz represents public and private sector employers in all aspects of labor and employment law, including civil litigation and preventative counseling. His practice includes representing employers in state and federal courts and administrative agencies involving claims brought under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, retaliatory discharge, breach of contract, labor arbitration, and class actions. He is particularly versed in all aspects of state and federal law relating to minimum wages, overtime, exemptions, and wage payment issues. He also trains management and employees on workplace legal issues and conducts workplace investigations and legal audits.

Mr. Cruz serves on the board of directors of Alivio Medical Center, a not-for-profit health center dedicated to increasing access to comprehensive, affordable quality health care for Chicago’s Hispanic community.

Prior to joining Greensfelder, Mr. Cruz was a labor and employment attorney at Clark Hill PLC.

Licensed to practice in Illinois and Missouri, Mr. Cruz received his J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law and his Bachelor of Arts (cum laude) from Marquette University.

Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale, P.C., founded in 1895, is a full-service law firm with offices in St. Louis, Chicago and Belleville, Ill. Greensfelder offers comprehensive legal solutions for clients locally, nationally and internationally. Areas of practice include business services; communications and media; construction; educational, religious and tax-exempt organizations; employee benefits; employment and labor; energy; franchising and distribution; health care; intellectual property; litigation; real estate; securities and financial services; and trusts and estates. Find out more at www.greensfelder.com.

Lowenstein Sandler’s Global Trade & Policy group adds to its ranks Christian C. Contardo, who joins the firm’s Washington, D.C., office after over a decade of experience in federal agencies such as Treasury, the Department of Homeland Security, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Christian most recently served as Attorney Advisor in various Treasury offices, including the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), where he counseled on economic sanctions, Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) matters, counterintelligence/insider threat programs, anti-money laundering, security clearance investigations, information security, and data privacy.

Why it matters:
The United States is both the largest recipient of foreign direct investment and the world’s largest investor in overseas businesses. In the last few years, the Treasury Department and the Department of Justice have responded to this trend by strengthening their enforcement teams and announcing more stringent compliance best practices. CFIUS has dramatically increased its review of deals involving both foreign investment and foreign investors, with a growing number of transactions at risk of being suspended or blocked.

As government scrutiny of global transactions rises, tech startups, private equity firms, hedge funds, C-suite executives, and other stakeholders engaged in international business must comply with ever-tougher CFIUS and OFAC regulations to avoid potentially devastating impacts on their investments and operations abroad. They need guidance in order to navigate the complex world of sanctions, tariffs, and investment restrictions under the Treasury Department’s evolving regulatory regime.

What:
Lowenstein Sandler’s Global Trade & Policy practice is expanding to meet this burgeoning need. In 2019 alone, Lowenstein completed over 500 venture-backed deals involving some of today’s most innovative companies. Its private equity and M&A teams handled a record-breaking number of deals, including numerous large-scale cross-border matters worth billions of dollars both for strategic acquirers and investment funds.

The firm’s global trade lawyers support these transactions by ensuring that clients and portfolio companies understand tariff engineering, country of origin requirements, OFAC sanctions, export restrictions, and CFIUS to minimize risks and maximize current and future profits. They help them to implement consistent and forward-thinking compliance programs and to anticipate supply chain issues and foreign investment requirements so that clients can plan for the future.

How:
The firm’s ranks are growing with experienced professionals deeply immersed in the ever-changing policies and laws governing CFIUS foreign investment national security reviews, OFAC economic sanctions, export and import transactions, cyber security, and data privacy. Doreen M. Edelman, chair of the firm’s Global Trade & Policy practice, says, “Our corporate lawyers understand that clients need this expertise to initially analyze a proposed transaction. National security concerns can actually cause an entire transaction to unravel. And national security now includes technology companies and those with access to personal data. We need more lawyers to advise not only our venture clients, but also our hedge fund and private equity companies. CFIUS alone is becoming a routine pre-deal concern.”

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP is pleased to announce that Margaret Oertling Cupples, managing partner of the firm’s Jackson office, has been named by the Mississippi Business Journal (MBJ) as one of the winners of its 2020 CEO Awards of Mississippi.

“We congratulate Margaret on being recognized by the Mississippi Business Journal as among the top organization leaders in Mississippi,” said Bradley Chairman of the Board and Managing Partner Jonathan M. Skeeters. “Margaret is an outstanding attorney and a tremendous asset to our firm.”

The CEO Awards of Mississippi recognize leaders around the state who demonstrate excellence among the top executives in their field. The honorees have helped their companies achieve strong growth and success and have made a profound impact on their company and community. Ms. Cupples was recognized in the Medium Companies category.

A member of Bradley’s Appellate Practice Group, Ms. Cupples focuses her practice on civil appeals and commercial litigation, including asbestos, benzene and silica mass-tort and products liability cases, as well as litigation involving insurance sales practices, consumer finance, and other general commercial matters. She has participated in more than two dozen appeals in Mississippi’s Supreme Court and Court of Appeals, and in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Ms. Cupples is listed in The Best Lawyers in America in the field of Appellate Law and Products Liability Litigation, and in Benchmark Litigation as a Litigation Star and as one of the Top 250 Business Women in Litigation.

About Bradley
Bradley combines skilled legal counsel with exceptional client service and unwavering integrity to assist a diverse range of corporate and individual clients in achieving their business goals. With offices in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and the District of Columbia, the firm’s nearly 550 lawyers represent regional, national and international clients in various industries, including banking and financial services, construction, energy, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, real estate, and technology, among many others.

“A Eureka lawyer accused of trafficking drugs and maintaining a drug house says he “was entirely framed” as a result of the clients he represents and at least one of the charges against him isn’t legally sufficient,” reports Sonia Waraich in Times Standard.

“Acosta is being charged with three felonies — maintaining a drug house, selling illegal drugs and selling prescription drugs — and entered a demurrer at his arraignment Thursday contesting the validity of the first charge.”

“The hearing was continued to Friday to allow the prosecution to look into whether the proper procedure was being followed.”

Read the article.

“A $143 million settlement between Columbia Gas and thousands of people affected by the company’s 2018 pipeline disaster in the Merrimack Valley received final approval from a state judge on Thursday,” reports Callum Borchers in Bostonmix.

“The resolution of a class action civil case comes two weeks after Columbia Gas agreed to plead guilty in a criminal proceeding, acknowledging it violated the federal Pipeline Safety Act. The plea deal included a $53 million fine and required Columbia’s parent company, NiSource, to sell its Massachusetts business. NiSource quickly found a buyer in Eversource.”

“Anyone who lived in Lawrence, Andover or North Andover at the time of widespread fires and explosions in September 2018 can apply for compensation. The deadline to file a claim has been extended to April 27.”

Read the article.

“A Hardwick lawyer was arrested for the second time this year after he allegedly violated a restraining order by sending his former girlfriend a legal form letter using their landlord as an unknowing go-between,” reports Kim Ring in Worcester’s Telegram.

“Donald W. Stolgitis, 51, of Avalon Drive, West Brookfield, was in court Thursday to face a charge of violation of a restraining order after his girlfriend, who still lives in the rented home they shared, received a notice to quit, essentially ordering her out of the house for nonpayment of rent, court records show.”

“Stolgitis was ordered in February to have no contact with her, even through a third party.”

“Michelle Valley said she was immediately suspicious of the notice because the certified letter arrived in a pink envelope like the one Stolgitis told her he’d forgotten at his father’s house when he presented her with a valentine card in February, according to a police report. Pink is her favorite color, she wrote, adding that she saw the move as intimidating.”

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“The privately held, Herndon, Va.-based company, founded in 2015, announced Wednesday its addition of executive vice president and general counsel Dennis Burnett. Unlike other satellite operators that use pictures to geolocate, Hawkeye monitors commercial signals and radio frequencies to triangulate and track things for its clients,” reports Brian Baxter in Bloomberg Law’s Tech & Telecom Law News.

“If there’s a distress signal coming from a ship, we can locate that on the surface of the earth from space,” said Burnett, crediting Hawkeye’s three “sophisticated, desk-sized” satellites. “They’re one-tenth the cost of a big satellite, so that’s what’s attractive about them.”

“Burnett, who has 40 years of space law experience and has long been affiliated with the International Institute of Space Law, started his in-house legal career in the late 1970s at Communications Satellite Corp. He comes to Hawkeye after the company raised $70 million in an August 2019 fundraising round led by aerospace giant Airbus SE. Hawkeye’s former in-house legal chief, J. Alison Alfers, left in September after more than two years at the company to become general counsel at Cherwell Software LLC in Colorado.”

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“Legal documentation governing subscription credit facilities has certainly improved for both lenders and funds alike since the product first came to market. Funds have effectively negotiated for more flexibility where needed, and lenders have effectively negotiated for more protections where perceived risks may exist. However, as with many other corporate or financial transactions between two or more parties, and especially given the relationship-nature of subscription finance lending, provisions in legal documentation often get replicated from one transaction to the next, including errors and inconsistencies as a result of the fast-paced world in which practitioners find themselves or, in some cases, a failure to connect the dots. Thus, we are presenting a multi-part series on common mistakes, misunderstandings and oversights we have noticed throughout the legal documentation governing subscription credit facilities over the years,” write Holly Loftis and Mark Nesdill in Cadwalader’s Fund Finance Friday.

Read the article.

“The possibility of a cybersecurity incident—and ensuing litigation—is a fact of life for almost every business. Even companies that do not process or handle consumer information collect personal information about their employees that can be targeted by hackers or phishing scams or even inadvertently disclosed, exposing the company to potential liability,” warns Seth Harrington, Michelle Visser and David Cohen in Orrick’s blog.

“While eliminating cybersecurity litigation risk entirely likely is not feasible, recent cases do highlight some steps that companies seeking to reduce potential exposure to cybersecurity litigation can take:
(1)  Recognize that pre-incident statements about the company’s cybersecurity measures can be used to sustain deception-related claims.
(2)  Assess the “reasonableness” of your cybersecurity, despite the difficulty of doing so.
(3)  Pay attention to how you structure cybersecurity initiatives to protect related documents and communications based on the attorney-client privilege and work product protection.
(4)  Recognize that your statements about a cybersecurity incident may be relied on by courts to sustain plaintiffs’ claims.
(5)  Consider arbitration clauses, but do so cautiously.
(6)  Consider opportunities to contractually allocate or disclaim liability.”

Read the article.

“In an important lesson for both employers and employees a California superior court judge affirmed a $179 million arbitration award against a former Uber executive, Anthony Levandowski, for stealing Google’s trade secret information and soliciting its employees to benefit Uber. See Google LLC v. Levandowski et al., Case No. CPF-20-516982. Levandowski, who also faces criminal charges from the U.S. Attorney’s office for theft and attempted theft of trade secrets, filed for bankruptcy following the judge’s order,” reports Aaron Goldstein and Jasmine Hui in Dorsey’s Publications.

“The court’s ruling underscores the importance of well-crafted confidentiality, non-compete, and non-solicit agreements. Over the course of Levandowski’s employment with Google, he signed at least four separate agreements which included either non-compete, non-solicit, confidentiality, and nondisclosure provisions, or a combination thereof. The panel of arbitrators in the underlying case held, among other things, that Levandowski breached these employment contracts with Google by misusing Google’s confidential information and attempting to solicit Google employees.”

“Google hired Levandowski in 2007, where he co-founded the company’s autonomous vehicle project, which later became Waymo, LLC. In 2015, Levandowski left Google and formed a new self-driving company, Ottomotto, Inc. In 2016, Uber acquired Ottomotto, Inc. and hired Levandowski to head its autonomous vehicle department. Shortly thereafter, Google filed two arbitration demands against Levandowski and another former Google employee who moved to Uber.”

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“In Chalker Energy Partners III LLC v. LeNorman Operating LLC, the Texas Supreme Court reaffirmed its belief in the sanctity of the written contract and the freedom of parties to negotiate and agree to contracts as they desire,” reports Charles Sartain in Gray Reed’s Energy and the Law.

“Chalker and other sellers wanted to sell leases in several Panhandle counties. LeNorman signed a Confidentiality  Agreement, which had a provision entitled ‘No Obligation’,  … unless and until a definitive agreement has been executed and delivered, no contract … providing for a transaction … shall be deemed to exist and neither Party will be under any legal obligation of any kind whatsoever with respect to  such transaction … ”

“After a bidding war between LeNorman and Jones Energy, the Sellers declined to sell and LeNorman elected not to pursue the transaction. Then, after the bidding deadline the Sellers offered to sell 67 percent of the assets, LeNorman emailed what it termed a “counter-proposal”, setting a deadline and adding that it would not be modifying or accepting any changes. Sellers’ representative emailed an acceptance before the deadline, subject to a “mutual agreeable Purchase and Sale Agreement”, sent LeNorman a revised draft PSA, and took off for Thanksgiving. LeNorman sent a redlined PSA for consideration.  During that time Jones made another offer that was accepted and Jones acquired the assets.”

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“The Am Law 50 firm moved its headquarters to Philadelphia’s Cira Centre in 2005, taking advantage of a tax break program that Pennsylvania offers businesses to move into developments in formerly run-down areas. Since taking up residence in Cira Centre, Dechert’s paid virtually no state or local business taxes in exchange for Dechert’s role in making the area an attractive business destination,” notes Joe Patrice in Above the Law’s Biglaw.

“But the program expired in 2018, so when the Keystone Opportunity Zone program eyed a new tax-free area in Schuylkill Yards, Dechert walked up and asked to move there too.”

“There’s nothing in the law to say companies can’t hop from zone to zone to remain permanently tax-free, and when authorities denied Dechert’s request to continue not paying its taxes, the firm took the government to court.”

Read the article.