Government
DOJ Investigating Whether Uber Violated Foreign-Bribery Laws
News
The privately-held ride-hailing giant is being investigated for possibly violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, reports Business Insider.
VW Engineer Sentenced to 40-Month Prison Term in Diesel Case
News
A federal judge in Detroit sentenced former engineer James Liang to 40 months in prison for his role in Volkswagen AG’s multiyear scheme to sell diesel cars that generated more pollution than U.S. clean air rules allowed, Reuters is reporting.
Mueller Uses Classic Prosecution Playbook Despite Trump Warnings
News
Bloomberg Law describes how special counsel Robert Mueller is following a time-tried strategy for looking into the Trump campaign’s possible ties to Russia
Stays of Contract Award and Performance
Insight
An article in the Government Contracts Insights blog on the website of Morrison Foerster discusses stays of award and performance during the pendency of a bid protest.
Mueller, Several Team Members Gave Up Million-Dollar Jobs to Work on Special Counsel Investigation
News
Robert S. Mueller and other former WilmerHale lawyers who left the firm to work on the Russia investigation left behind incomes ranging as high as $5.8 million, according to The Washington Post.
Trump’s Real Personnel Victory: More Conservative Judges
News
While the public watches President Trump churn through White House staff members, his Administration is humming along nicely in filling federal judgeships, with the enthusiastic assistance of the Republican majority in the Senate, points out Jeffrey Toobin in The New Yorker.
Could State Subsidies for Renewable Energy Face Legal Challenges?
Insight
The latest developments in federal courts indicate that state subsidies for renewable energy, including renewable-energy portfolio standards and mandated procurement programs, are safe from challenges, at least for now, according to an O’Melveny & Myers article.
PwC to Pay $1 Mln to Settle Merrill Lynch Audit Complaint
News
Reuters is reporting that accounting company PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP will pay $1 million to settle a civil complaint alleging it conducted a flawed audit into Merrill Lynch’s compliance with federal brokerage customer protection rules.
New U.S. Rule on Class Actions Survives First Challenge
News
Reuters reports that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s rule abolishing “mandatory arbitration clauses” was released on July 10, and was immediately threatened by Republicans in Congress and President Donald Trump’s administration
Once Again, Trump DOJ Busts Convention, Splits Government in High-Profile Employment Case
News
The case of Donald Zarda, a skydiver who claimed his employer violated Title VII when it fired him after finding out he was gay, illustrates how the U.S. Department of Justice and the Equal Opportunity Commission can sometimes operate at cross purposes in litigation.
BLM Proposes Rescission of 2015 Hydraulic Fracturing Rule
News
The Bureau of Land Management has announced its recommendation that the hydraulic fracturing rule from 2015 entitled, “Oil and Gas; Hydraulic Fracturing on Federal and Indian Lands,” be rescinded, reports Fox Rothschild.
Pharmaceutical Company Celgene Settles Suit for $280 Million
News
The agreement, announced by federal prosecutors, came out of a lawsuit filed by a former Celgene saleswoman who said Celgene submitted false claims to Medicare and health care programs in 28 states and Washington, D.C.
Can the President Be Indicted? A Long-Hidden Legal Memo Says Yes
News
The New York Times reports that the 56-page memo amounts to the most thorough government-commissioned analysis rejecting a generally held view that presidents are immune from prosecution while in office.
Disgraced Fugitive Lawyer Sentenced in Absentia to 12 Years in Prison
News
The conspiracy included using false evidence of clients’ physical or mental disabilities in their claims, paying doctors to sign forms with little scrutiny, and bribing a Social Security judge, reports the Lexington Herald-Leader.
Trump Lawyer Marc Kasowitz to Critic: ‘Watch Your Back. . . . I Already Know Where You Live
News
President Trump’s longtime attorney representing him in the Russia investigations, reportedly sent angry, threatening and profane emails to a stranger who criticized him this week, reports The Washington Post.
Trump Faces Obstacles in Bid to Re-Shape Key U.S. Courts
News
Some of the courts best placed to thwart Trump’s agenda have liberal majorities that are likely to stay in place in the short-term, according to Reuters.
‘No One’s Minion’ – Colleague Says Steady Hand, Moral Compass Mark FBI Nominee’s Career
News
Former high level Justice Department lawyer Bill Mateja says his former colleague is ideally suited to weather the turbulent and politically charged approval process, according to a post on the website of Androvett Legal Media & Marketing.
Tillerson in Focus as Exxon Investigation Intensifies
News
Schneiderman’s office considers the nation’s chief diplomat a central figure in a case that pits the ambitious Democrat against a Texas energy giant and has divided attorneys general nationwide, reports JWN.
Potential Medicaid Cuts Put Savings of Middle-Class Elderly at Risk
News
A Houston elder-care lawyer says the health care bill the U.S. Senate is fine-tuning could have profound effects on elderly people who rely on nursing home care.
Ex-WellCare General Counsel Pleads Guilty in Florida Medicaid Case
News
Thaddeus Bereday, indicted along with four other former WellCare executives in 2011, faces a maximum of five years in prison.
