On March 25, 2010, both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate passed the final piece of the health care package, the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (the Act).

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently issued an opinion, reversing an earlier bankruptcy court ruling that had revived the question of whether a physical supply contract may qualify as a forward contract or swap agreement for purposes of the Bankruptcy Code.

AT&T owns a patent covering a computer used to digitally encode and compress recorded speech. Microsoft’s Windows operating system includes software code that, if installed on a computer within the United States, would infringe AT&T’s patent. AT&T contended that a master disk containing Windows that was shipped by Microsoft to foreign manufacturers constituted a "component" supplied from the United States for assembly abroad and, therefore, Microsoft was liable for infringement under § 271(f).

On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (the “Act”), which includes significant protection against retaliation for employees who purport to blow the whistle on a host of abuses related to the use of stimulus funds.

After a long gestation period during which various proposals for new statutory rules governing nonqualified deferred compensation ("NQDC") have appeared in a number of House and Senate bills, these provisions were included in a form agreed between House and Senate Conferees in the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004.

In the Energy Policy Act of 2005 ("EPAct 2005"), Congress mandated market-based rates for new natural gas storage facilities even where the applicant is unable to demonstrate that it lacks market power if FERC finds that "market-based rates are in the public interest and necessary to encourage the construction of the storage capacity in the area needing storage services [and] customers are adequately protected."

The Georgia General Assembly amended the insurance code to create new disclosure and licensing obligations for insurance producers. Under Georgia law, the term "producer" is defined broadly enough to cover persons acting as traditional brokers. The new section of the Code, O.C.G.A. § 33-23-46 ("Section 46"), became effective on July 1, 2005 and appears to have been added in response to recent allegations by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer regarding insurance brokers and contingent commis

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) recently announced a model rule that, if adopted by the states, would require insurance companies to annually complete a survey disclosing financial risks they face from climate change, as well as actions they are taking in response to those risks.

On May 6, 2010, the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) jointly published a bulletin addressed to retirement plan investors who may be considering investing in target date funds.

On October 16, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) announced its position that it has jurisdiction over the licensing of hydroelectric projects, including wave, tidal and other forms of ocean energy, located on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

The United States Supreme Court has now held that when parties agree to arbitrate all questions arising under a contract, the Federal Arbitration Act ("FAA") will supersede state laws vesting jurisdiction over a dispute in an administrative forum.

A recent opinion in the bankruptcy case of Enron Corporation provides some insight into counterparties’ eligibility for the protections of the safe harbor provisions of the Bankruptcy Code.

In a 5-4 decision issued on June 29, 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court held that white firefighters in New Haven, Conn., were unfairly denied promotions because of their race when the city discarded the results of promotional exams because too few minority candidates passed.

On Friday, January 22, 2010, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held that a federal court does not lose Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA) jurisdiction over an action when class certification is denied.

On May 20, 2010, the Senate approved (59-39) the Restoring American Financial Stability Act of 2010 (the "Wall Street Reform Bill," or the "Bill"), containing significant reforms to the financial system and including Senator Dick Durbin’s (D-IL) Amendment 3989 (the "Amendment").

The IRS has issued Notice 2006-33 to provide a transition period for bringing nonqualified deferred compensation (NQDC) plans funded with offshore trusts or funding arrangements with financial health triggers into compliance with Internal Revenue Code section 409A(b).

The Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs ("OFCCP") has issued a new rule amending its record-keeping and impact analysis requirements for federal contractors and subcontractors with regard to internet-based job applicants.

The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a significant opinion recently, holding that the Enron bankruptcy court should adjudicate disputes concerning termination payments arising out of terminated Enron contracts.