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Blogs

Baker Hostetler prides itself on providing clients and other interested parties with timely updates on developing issues in law. The following legal and industry blogs are written and maintained by the lawyers of Baker Hostetler and report on changes to the law, recent court decisions and other issues affecting businesses.
 

China-U.S. Trade Law Recent Posts


The Sun Does Not Shine on Trade Policy: Hypocrisy in Technological Green
Posted January 18, 2012 by Dr. Elliot Feldman

The Plan To Make The Planet Green In Cooperation With China

President Barack Obama committed his Administration soon after his election in November 2008 to the development of green technologies. He posited that investment in the creation of systems and equipment that would roll back climate change would create jobs while saving the planet, and as everyone in every country ultimately would share the mission of saving the planet, an American lead in green technologies would fuel exports. President Obama decided in the depths of the Great Recession that doubling American exports in five years was a key to recovery. He could see before him a coherent agenda: saving the planet and the economy at the same time by creating new jobs in new industries. MORE


U.S. Appellate Court Rules That Commerce May Not Apply The Countervailing Duty Law To Non-Market Economies
Posted December 28, 2011 by John J. Burke

This blog reported on August 30, 2010 that Chief Judge Jane Restani of the U.S. Court of International Trade (“CIT”) ordered the U.S. Department of Commerce ("Commerce") to revoke the countervailing duty ("CVD") order on pneumatic off-the-road tires from the People’s Republic of China in a case titled GPX International Tire Corporation v. United States. Her reasoning was that Commerce was unable to eliminate the double-counting inherent in imposing CVDs while at the same time imposing antidumping duties calculated by using Commerce's non-market economy ("NME") methodology. Commerce appealed the CIT’s decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ("Federal Circuit"). On December 19, 2011, the Federal Circuit upheld the CIT’s decision but for different reasons than those offered by Chief Judge Restani. MORE

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Data Privacy Monitor Recent Posts


The Cybersecurity Act of 2012—What Does It Mean?
Posted February 15, 2012 by Theodore J. Kobus III

Yesterday, Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman (ID-Conn.), Ranking Member Susan Collins (R-Maine), Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), and Select Intelligence Committee Chairman Dianne Feinstein, D-Ca. introduced The Cybersecurity Act of 2012. The press release can be found here. MORE


Bipartisan Senate Cybersecurity Bill Introduced Amid Partisan Opposition
Posted February 15, 2012 by William J. Weber

The Cybersecurity Act of 2012, S. 2105, was introduced yesterday by Senators Joe Lieberman (I-VT), Susan Collins (R-ME), Diane Feinstein (D-CA), and John Rockefeller (D-WV). MORE

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Employment Class Action Blog Recent Posts


California Appeals Court Rejects Attempt to Try California Misclassification Case by Statistics
Posted February 13, 2012 by Gilbert Brosky

The California Court of Appeal issued a rare decision in favor of employers last week, when it reversed a class action judgment of $15 million and decertified a class of 260 current and former bank employees who claimed they had been misclassified as exempt and were therefore entitled to meal and rest break premiums. News of the opinion caused many in the employment defense bar to double check their calendars that it wasn’t April 1. MORE
 
In Re American Express Merchants' Litigation
Posted February 6, 2012 by John Lewis

The Third Time is Not a Charm as the Second Circuit Again Holds Class Action Waivers Unenforceable

The Second Circuit considered the validity of class action waivers for the third time in an antitrust action brought against American Express ("AMEX") based upon the company’s Card Acceptance Agreement. And, despite intervening Supreme Court opinions, for the third time the appellate court held class action waivers involving federal statutory rights were unenforceable. The Second Circuit’s February 1, 2012 opinion held "that each waiver must be considered on its own merits based on its own record and governed with a healthy regard for the fact that the [Federal Arbitration Act] is a congressional declaration of a liberal federal policy favoring arbitration agreements." This third opinion likely will have an impact beyond costly antitrust litigation, but the question is how far? Indeed, the opinion cited two District Court decisions denying enforcement of class action waivers in the employment law context. MORE

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Hospitality Lawg® Recent Posts


Caveat Jurista Y'all: Is the Mortgage Securing your Property in South Carolina Enforceable? 
Posted February 15, 2012 by Chirag B. Kabrawala

The South Carolina Supreme Court’s ruling in Matrix Financial Services Corp v. Frazer, et al, may have a significant impact on lenders and borrowers operating directly or indirectly within the State. In Matrix, the Court confirmed that a lawyer is required in all loan closings “for the protection of the public,” and the failure to use a South Carolina licensed attorney constitutes the unauthorized practice of law and will result in the lender not being able to foreclose a recorded mortgage. MORE
 

Getting Prepped for ICANN's Domain Rush
Posted February 9, 2012 by Dave Waller

By now, you likely know that ICANN is accepting applications for new gTLDs through April 12, 2012. This post is intended to help those in the hospitality industry charged with monitoring the opportunities and risks associated with ICANN’s initiative. MORE

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Issues In Tax Controversy Recent Posts


Careful Attention to Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Cases
Posted January 19, 2012 by Allen Littman

Baker Hostetler’s lawyers have handled hundreds of voluntary disclosures through the 2009 and 2011 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Programs (OVDI). Recently, the IRS has announced a third OVDI, this time with no defined termination date. MORE
 
IRS Announces A Third Voluntary Disclosure Initiative
Posted January 12, 2012 by Jennifer Benda

The IRS formal program for making voluntary disclosures of offshore accounts and unreported foreign income has been reopened. This is the third in a series of voluntary disclosure programs announced by the IRS. This newest program reinstates fixed penalty amounts for taxpayers who agree to amend prior tax returns and pay taxes due and file outstanding FBARs to disclose foreign accounts. For taxpayers who still wish to come clean with the government, this offers an opportunity to come into compliance with the tax laws. Most terms of the 2012 program remain the same as the 2011 program, but the maximum FBAR civil penalty is increased from 25% to 27.5%. MORE

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