Sam Bankman-Fried Is Charged With Fraud and Illegal Campaign Contributions
The United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York charged disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried ("SBF") with eight criminal counts, including conspiracy and wire fraud, for allegedly misusing billions of dollars in customers' funds prior to the collapse of his "House of Cards" cryptocurrency empire.[1] The indictment, unsealed ...
Second Circuit Reaffirms New York Labor Law’s Protections against Retaliation for Political (and Other) Activities Outside of Work
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals recently revived a lawsuit alleging the bank unlawfully fired an employee for engaging in political activities outside of work, thereby reaffirming the validity of and legitimate protections provided by a rarely invoked provision of the New York Labor Law ("NYLL"). In Truitt v. Salisbury Bank and Trust Company, ...
Private Messaging Costs Big Banks almost $2 Billion in Penalties
Several Wall Street banks were financially penalized earlier this month for the use of private messaging and encrypted chats by their employees. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission settled with units of Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Nomura and eight other financial services giants with ...
The Rise in Age Discrimination Law Suits in America
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) prohibits employment discrimination against individuals 40 years or older. To prove age discrimination, an employee must establish that (1) he or she is in the protected age class; (2) he or she was subjected to an adverse employment action; (3) he or she was qualified for the job; and (4) a ...
Despite Relatively Few Employment Law Cases on the Docket, the U.S. Supreme Court’s Upcoming Term Could Have Major Implications in the Workplace
In recent years, the U.S. Supreme Court's docket has seemingly been jam-packed with employment law cases of massive consequence each and every term. The upcoming term, however, is uncharacteristically light in this regard. Nevertheless, it is highlighted by several disputes that could have massive implications in employment law—some dealing ...
Boeing and Former CEO Settle with SEC for $201 Million Over Charges of Misleading Investors about Safety of 737 MAX Aircraft that Killed 346 People
Last month, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") issued a Cease-and-Desist Order against Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) and its former CEO, Dennis A. Muilenburg, both of whom agreed to pay civil money penalties to the SEC in the amounts of $200 million and $1 million, respectively, regarding the SEC's charges that Boeing and Muilenburg misled ...
SEC REQUESTS PUBLIC COMMENT ON PROPOSAL FOR 24-HOUR SECURITY EXCHANGE
On September 1, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") called for public comments on a proposal to create a 24-hour securities exchange. Currently, no securities exchange registered with the SEC allow investors to trade between 8:00 p.m. and 4:00 a.m. Eastern time. The proposal comes from 24X National Exchange LLC ("24X"), which ...
New Jersey to Ban Non-Disparagement Language in Employment Related Settlement Agreements
On September 30, 2022, the New Jersey Assembly took a step toward allowing employees who endured discrimination, retaliation, or harassment at the workplace to speak about their experiences on the job. Specifically, New Jersey lawmakers advanced a bill barring settlement agreements in employment related cases from including language that require ...
NY Dept. of Financial Services’ first enforcement action against a crypto company, and what it means for crypto trading
On August 2, the New York Department of Financial Services issued a $30 million consent order against Robinhood Crypto LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Robinhood Markets Inc., which offers cryptocurrency trading. DFS' order states that Robinhood failed to maintain a compliant anti-money laundering program, an appropriate transaction monitoring ...
Regulations May Be Coming For Cryptocurrency ‘Staking’
John Wu, the President of Ava labs, believes that securities regulations for cryptocurrencies utilizing "staking" could be coming in the future. This comes on the heels of Securities and Exchange Commission Gary Gensler signaling that the recent Ethereum "Merge" could lead to securities regulation.[1] [1] Lydia Beyoud, SEC Chair Gensler Raises ...
SEC Seeks To Obtain Penalties Greater Than A Defendants’ Gain
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") is seeking a ruling in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upholding a fine larger than what a defendant individually gained from an allegedly illegal scheme. According to Bloomberg Law, the SEC obtained a ruling in SEC v. Imran Husain, et al., No. 16-cv-03250 (C.D. Cal.), that imposed "a ...
Garden Leave Slowly Gains Traction in the United States
A non-compete agreement is an agreement or clause in a contract specifying that an employee must not work for a competitor or enter into business in competition with the employer during or after employment. Non-competes are used to protect company trade secrets and client relationships. Eleven states in the United States ban non-competes for ...
SEC’s Draft Fiscal Years 2022-2026 Strategic Plan Is Available for Public Comment
On August 24th of this year, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") released for public comment its draft strategic plan for the fiscal years 2022 to 2026. Prepared pursuant to the Government Performance and Results Modernization Act of 2010, the draft strategic plan lists three primary goals: • Protecting working families against ...
New York City Passes Landmark AI Bias Law, with Similar Legislation Across the Country Likely on the Rise
New York City will soon enact novel legislation, Local Law Int. No. 1894-A, aimed at curbing bias in hiring and promotion decisions aided by artificial intelligence ("AI"), which has increasingly been employed by businesses in recent years. The new law, which requires employers to conduct an independent audit of the automated tools they use, ...
Fourth Circuit Holds that Transgender People Suffering from Gender Dysphoria are Entitled to Protections Under American with Disabilities Act
The Fourth Circuit recently held that people suffering from gender dysphoria qualify for protections under the American with Disabilities Act ("ADA"). The ADA protects people who suffer from disabilities. Under the ADA, "disability" is broadly defined to include "a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life ...
Apple Likely to Face Antitrust Lawsuit by the Department of Justice
As reported recently by Politico and TechCrunch, the Department of Justice ("DOJ") is likely drafting an antitrust lawsuit against Apple Inc., potentially related to its dominance and control of its App Store, as well as other aspects of its business. Confidential sources suggest that the lawsuit may be filed by the end of this year. According ...
Eleventh Circuit Holds That Certain Yearly Estimates Are Forward Looking Statements
On August 1, 2022, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed dismissal of a putative securities class action against medical technology company Axogen, Inc. ("Axogen") ruling that certain yearly estimates about the number of injuries requiring a medical procedure were "forward-looking statements" protected by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act ...
New Jersey High Court Rules That Drywall Workers Are “Employees” Under ABC Test
On August 2, 2022, the New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously reversed a finding that workers for a drywall installation company were independent contractors, instead ruling that the workers had been misclassified and were, in fact, employees. As previously outlined here, in 2018, the Supreme Court of California established the so-called "ABC ...
Florida Governor Proposes Anti-ESG Law
On July 28, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis proposed legislation that would ban state pension funds from selecting investments based on environmental, social and governance factors, typically considered "ESG investing." The proposed legislation would amend Florida's state statute on deceptive and unfair trade practices to prohibit practices ...
Chipotle Settles Fair Workweek Suit for $20 Million
On August 10, 2022, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. ("Chipotle") and New York City reached a $20 million settlement to resolve a suit filed by the city in April 2021 alleging the restaurant committed approximately 599,693 violations of the Fair Workweek Law ("FWL") and failed to provide its employees the requisite 56 hours of paid sick leave ...