A federal district court this week certified a class of former, current, and future 401(k) Plan participants in Tussey v. ABB, Inc., No. 2:06-04305-CV-NKL (W.D. Mo.) (originally filed as Kennedy v. ABB, Inc.). Plaintiffs have sued their employer (ABB, Inc.), the financial services provider for the Plan (Fidelity Management Trust Company), and various other defendants alleged to be Plan fiduciaries.

A new opinion from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit is a reminder of the rigor with which courts apply Rule 23(f)'s requirement that a petition for permission to appeal an order granting or denying class action certification be filed with the circuit clerk within 10 days after the order is entered.

In a case in which Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP, and Of Counsel, Walter Hellerstein, participated in representing the taxpayer, the Texas Court of Appeals held that the "throwback rule" contained in the Texas franchise tax unconstitutionally burdens interstate commerce as applied to an in-state corporation that sells to mostly out-of-state consumers.

Last week, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued guidance on a variety of qualified and nonqualified retirement plan matters.

The aggressiveness of some states to assert tax jurisdiction over out-of-state retailers (or to enforce tax against their customers) took another turn last week. On June 23, 2010, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a complaint in U.S. Federal District Court against Kenneth Lay in his official capacity as the Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Revenue in an attempt to protect the privacy of customers of Amazon.com.

On June 23, 2010, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California certified two classes of senior citizens (individuals sixty-five years of age or older) who had purchased deferred annuities, some of which included a bonus feature.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") took two important steps toward addressing the uncertainty regarding the permissible investment activities of business development companies ("BDCs").

The rules for qualified annuity contracts – contracts forming plans qualified under section 401(a), 403(a), 403(b), 408 or 457(b) of the Internal Revenue Code – include required minimum distributions generally at retirement or age 70-1/2, as well as at death.

NASD arbitration panels have the power to issue subpoenas requiring non-member entities to produce documents prior to a hearing, a Georgia district court recently ruled. The court also held that an action to enforce such a subpoena is properly brought in the district where the panel sits regardless of where the non-member entity is located.

A legal decision arising out of the Mirant bankruptcy finds that Federal, State, and Municipal governmental entities (e.g., Bonneville Power, TVA, CDWR) are not forward contract merchants under the Bankruptcy Code. What this means is that they cannot terminate their physical power and gas contracts if their counterparty files for bankruptcy, unless the court specifically allows the termination.

On June 8, 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion in "Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal Co.", No. 08-22 (2009).

Linda Feinberg, President, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) Dispute Resolution, Inc.; John M. Gannon, Senior Vice President, FINRA Office of Investor Education; and Laura Gansler, Associate Vice President, FINRA Emerging Regulatory Issues, shared program updates with over 1,700 arbitrators yesterday during a FINRA – sponsored phone-in workshop.

The United States Supreme Court today granted two petitions for certiorari filed in the Cuno case — DaimlerChrysler v. Cuno and Wilkins, Tax Comm’r, Ohio v. Cuno.

The Administration, working with U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, proposed legislation last week that would provide for the U.S. government’s purchase of $700 billion of illiquid mortgage and other assets currently held on the books of U.S. financial institutions.

One of the most controversial proposals for regulating the derivatives market may have come to an end with yesterday’s announcement by New York State Insurance Department Superintendent Eric Dinallo that his department would delay indefinitely its plan to regulate covered credit default swaps ("CDS").

"All talk, no substance" aptly describes the first meeting to revise the Uniform Division of Income for Tax Purposes Act ("UDITPA").

With the clock ticking on the deadline for the first year of Maryland’s new combined reporting requirements, the Comptroller of Maryland (“Comptroller”) recently issued regulations that clarify several important issues.

On May 24, 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari in "Mobility LLC v. Concepcion", No. 09-893, to address the question of whether the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) preempts state law rules limiting the enforceability of arbitration agreements.