The U.S. Senate has confirmed former Google executive Michelle Lee to head the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, a position that has been vacant for more than two years, reports Reuters.

She was confirmed by an unrecorded voice vote in the full Senate,more than a week after the Senate Judiciary Committee passed along her nomination.

Lee, a former deputy general counsel and head of patents and patent strategy at Google, had been the acting director of the office. She started with the agency in 2012 as the first director of the patent office’s Silicon Valley outpost, according to the report.

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A white paper written by Howard Mavity of Fisher & Phillips give some advice on what managers need to note in order to challenge OSHA citations, especially when the citations arrive months after an inspection.

“Many articles on handling OSHA inspections provide the same basic guidelines and little explanation of why employers should take certain steps.” he writes. “You already know to take photos whenever the Compliance Officer (CO) takes shots and to take notes. But do you know why to take those photos and what to look for? What do you need to note in order to challenge citations when they are issued six months later?”

The article includes sections headed “Plan in Advance,” “Manage the Inspection,” “Take Your Time” and “Push Back.”

Read the white paper.

A white paper published by Smith, Anderson, Blount, Dorsett, Mitchell & Jernigan discusses a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that addresses the question: In a contract governed by federal law, does “The End” really mean “The End”?

The conclusion of the paper is that, although some federal courts have said “no,” the U.S. Supreme Court has just said “yes.”

“Most contract cases in federal court involve the application of state substantive law and so it is uncommon for the U.S. Supreme Court to expound on what it considers to be the contract principles to be applied in federal cases where no state’s substantive law applies,” the paper says. “But in a recent unanimous decision, M&G Polymers USA, LLC v. Tackett, 135 S.Ct. 926 (2015) (four justices concurring in a separate opinion), the Court took the opportunity to do just that when it vacated a Sixth Circuit decision because that court had failed to apply ‘ordinary principles of contract law’ to a collective bargaining agreement.”

Mike Mitchell, Scott Miskimon and Kayla Marshall wrote the paper.

Read the white paper.

Jonathan L. Bing, partner in Wilson Elser

National law firm Wilson Elser appointed Partner Jonathan L. Bing, a former New York State assemblyman and Governor Cuomo appointee, to head of the New York City Government Affairs practice.

In this role, Bing will work closely with Albany Regional Managing Partner Kenneth Shapiro and Deputy Regional Managing Partner Lisa Marrello, both of whom lead the firm’s New York State Government Affairs practice, named the state’s highest grossing by the Joint Commission on Public Ethics for the past 17 years, the firm said in a release.

Bing joined Wilson Elser in 2012 after serving as special deputy superintendent in charge of the 260-employee New York Liquidation Bureau (NYLB), appointed by Governor Andrew Cuomo.

Prior to joining the NYLB, Bing was elected to the New York State Assembly for five terms, representing the Upper East Side and East Midtown Manhattan from January 2003 through June 2011. During his tenure, he authored 85 bills that passed the Assembly, 35 of which also passed the Senate and were signed into law by four New York governors.

A seasoned politician and an accomplished attorney, Bing’s understanding of the legislative process enables him to provide the firm’s clients with highly effective solutions.

Bing is a prolific writer and is often invited to speak on lobbying, regulatory issues and government affairs.

Bing has earned numerous awards and distinctions throughout his career, including an honorary doctor of law degree from LIM College, the Presidential Medal from Hunter College, and the NYU College of Nursing Health Policy and Legislation Award, among others.

Bing earned his J.D. degree from New York University School of Law (1995) and his B.A. degree from the University of Pennsylvania (1992).

Bing’s support in the New York City Government Affairs practice includes Of Counsel Jake Herring and Associate James Ansorge.

An analysis by June DeHart, published in Environmental Leader, discusses the prospects of Congress lifting the ban on crude oil exports.

The industry itself is divided into two camps and specific regional and environmental interests are fully engaged in the debate, she writes.

“Fracking, horizontal drilling and the shale oil revolution have the U.S. on track to overtake Russia and Saudi Arabia as the leading crude oil producer in the world,” the report says. “The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) recently reported that it expects US crude production in 2016 to be close to the record level of 9.6 million barrels per day set in 1970. As a result, the policy battles have begun in the Congress and the groundwork is being laid by both proponents and opponents.”

Read the story.

McDermott Will & Emery has prepared a white paper on energy-related provisions in his recently released budget proposal for the 2016 fiscal year.

President Obama’s proposal for the 2016 fiscal year repeats many of his past energy-related tax proposals, including a permanent extension of the renewable energy production tax credit and a provision making it refundable, the report says.

The firm’s report is a summary of the key energy-related tax provisions contained in the budget proposal and discussed further in the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s general explanation of the proposal.

Download the report.

Gordon & Rees presents a free on-demand webinar on the nationwide trends and hot topics in prevailing wage and Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) claims; best practices for compliance; and practical strategies to reduce risks.

Government contractors often face unique employment issues, especially in the areas of wage and hour and safety. Things become more complicated with overlapping spheres of regulatory control on the local, state, and federal level, the firm says on its website.

The firm’s labor and employment attorneys provided a roundtable discussion on the nationwide trends and hot topics in prevailing wage and Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) claims; best practices for compliance; and practical strategies to reduce risks.

Watch the on-demand webinar.

The new Republican majority in the Senate is turning up the pressure on the National Labor Relations Board, with a series of hearings and legislative attacks against policies that make it easier for workers to unionize, reports The Hill.

The hearings will put a spotlight on an agency increasingly held in disdain by Republicans, while also offering a platform for the GOP to cozy up to the business groups that have assailed the labor board as blatantly pro-union. Atop the GOP’s agenda is an effort to beat back regulations that would speed up the process by which employees vote to form a union, according to the report in The Hill.

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The Network for Public Health Law has posted a complimentary webinar that looks at the structure and essential functions of the state and federal court systems, including administrative courts; explores the Tribal court system; and examines the role of court watch programs in addressing public health issues.

This webinar is first in a three-part series focused on the judiciary and public health. Upcoming webinars in the series include Public Health in the Courts, and the Court and Public Health Emergencies.

“The judicial system plays an important role in advancing public health goals, and it is critical that public health practitioners, legal counsel, and other partners understand how the court system works and how courts are involved in public health matters,” the Network says on its website.

Watch the on-demand webinar.

The National Law Review has posted a paper on the use of drones in the energy industry and the FAA’s upcoming proposed regulations governing unmanned aircraft systems’ usage.

Bracewell & Giuliani associates Michael Weller, Salo Zelermyer and Joshua C. Zive wrote the report.

“The expansion of the UAS market is inevitable, and the use of this technology by the energy industry will only increase,” the authors write. “That being said, there are challenges ahead.  The current approval process will soon give way to a new regulatory program.”

Read the report.

Microsoft’s general counsel says he wants 2015 to be a “year for solutions” when it comes to the intersection of the internet and international law, according to a report at GeekWire.com.

Brad Smith told an audience at a an event organized by the Center for European Policy Studies in Brussels, Belgium that the regulations governing how internet companies handle user privacy and government requests for data are woefully outdated and ready for a refresh.

Smith said that governments need to set up a new framework for handling security and data requests, GeekWire reports. In particular, he called for greater transparency, and protection of “fundamental freedoms,” including freedom of speech and a right to privacy.

Read the story.

Business Insurance offers a free on-demand webinar explaining how and why companies should prepare to comply with fresh health benefits requirements under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the political, legal and regulatory changes that could alter the continued implementation of the five-year-old landmark law.

This webinar will explain how and why companies should prepare to comply with fresh health benefits requirements under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the political, legal and regulatory changes that could alter the continued implementation of the five-year-old landmark law, Business Insurance says on its website.

The U.S. Supreme Court will decide on the legality of IRS rules that authorize health insurance premium subsidies to the millions of uninsured people obtaining coverage in the 36 states where the federal government runs health insurance exchanges. If the high court strikes down those rules, will health care costs soar again for employers as hospitals and other medical providers move to curtail uncompensated care expenses by increasing medical charges for insured patients?

Watch the on-demand webinar.

Performance-based contracting received a boost this month when the Government Accountability Office found that the U.S. Department of Transportation is making progress in moving toward a national performance-based approach, reports Forbes.

In Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21^st Century (MAP-21), the DOT recognized the importance of a more progressive approach in the way federal agencies and states do business with each other, with planning organizations and with private vendors.

Accordinng to the Forbes report, in the fiscal year 2013, DOT provided about $50 billion to states and other “grantees” — such as metropolitan planning organizations and transit agencies — to support highway and transit infrastructure and safety.

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Ropes & Gray has published an examination of a recent 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling on the False Claims Act (FCA) in United States ex rel. Badr v. Triple Canopy, Inc., No. 13-2101.

As the firm described the case, private security company Triple Canopy, Inc. contracted with the government to provide security services at a U.S. military airbase, then falsified its employees’ marksmanship scorecards to cover up their failure to meet the required qualifications. Although the district court had dismissed the government’s claims, the 4th Circuit reversed, and in so doing it adopted the “implied certification” theory of FCA liability and issued an important decision analyzing materiality as related to that theory, the firm reported.

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Equifax Workforce Solutions will present a free webinar discussing best practices for incorporating electronic records throughout the life of a mortgage loan, as well as the power of electronic signatures as a tool for achieving compliance with the ever-increasing regulatory burden.

The webinar will be Tuesday, Jan. 27, at 12 p.m. Central time.

Margo Tank, counsel for the Electronic Signature and Records Association (ESRA), will explain the legal foundations for electronic signatures, the reasons electronically-signed mortgages are undergoing rapid growth, and recent developments in the regulatory environment for electronic signatures and trusted third-party records.

Tank will be joined by Jeff Knott, 2015 ESRA chairman. Knott, who is also Assistant Vice President of Product Management for Equifax Verification Services, will provide insights on technology issues related to electronic signatures.

Tank, who is also a partner at financial services law firm BuckleySander LLC, will discuss best practices for electronic signatures in such areas as:
–Validating identity
–Getting consent to electronic documents
–Demonstrating the document made it into the correct hands
–Making sure the eSigned document is tamper-evident

Register for the webinar.

GovWin has published a free white paper on the top government contract set-asides for the current fiscal year.

The top ten federal set-aside opportunities for FY 2015 list consists of prime 100 percent set-aside contract opportunities from an array of federal departments and multiple industries, GovWin says on its website. The FY 2015 top ten set-aside opportunities total over $21 billion.

Jennifer Sakol, Principal Analyst with Deltek Federal Information Solutions, wrote the report.

Download the white paper.

Piliero Mazza has posted a free white paper analyzing the Small Business Administration’s proposed rule to implement provisions of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2013 (NDAA) that change the way firms calculate compliance with the limitation on subcontracting rule on small business set-asides.

SBA’s proposed rule also proposes changes dealing with the nonmanufacturing rule, including affiliation and joint ventures, among other topics.

The memorandum summarizes the key provisions of the proposed rule. Comments are due to SBA on, or before, February 27, 2015.

Download the white paper.

Crowell & Moring has posted the slides from a recent webinar on the recent ASBCA decision in Laguna Construction, which is likely to reverberate in 2015 and beyond. This case introduced the doctrine of “antecedent breach” in the ASBCA as a means of denying legitimate contractor claims.

In Laguna, after the completion of the contract, the contractor submitted a $3 million claim based on a dozen separate task orders under a large IDIQ contract, the firm explained on its website. Mid-way through litigation, two contractor employees pled guilty to receiving kickbacks from subcontractors on some, but not all, of the Task Orders at issue in the litigation. The Government then added Fraud as an affirmative defense at the Board, arguing that Laguna’s entire claim should be denied because Laguna’s employees had pled to Fraud on some of the Task Orders.

See the presentation.

Microsoft former chief privacy adviser Caspar Bowden recently presented “The Cloud Conspiracy 2008 – 2014,” in which he considered how likely is it, legally or technically, that data centers have secret doors for warrantless mass surveillance by government entities.

Network World said in a Jan. 7 report that Bowden explained how the 2008 changes to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Amendment Act (FISAAA) added the secret surveillance of remote computing services, aka the cloud. That surveillance, he said, doesn’t have to be triggered by potential criminality or national security, but is instead “purely political surveillance” of  “ordinary lawful democratic activities.”

Read the story.