26 Feb, 2024 401(k) Plans Beginning to Utilize Student Loan Repayment Matching Benefit Under SECURE Act 2.0 By Ryan Gorman An increasing number of 401(k) plan sponsors are (finally) getting around to implementing the innovative student loan matching provision...
28 Mar, 2024 The Importance of Standards of Review: A Tornado Is Not a “Windstorm” By Nathan Miles Seslee Smith Ryan Burke A recent Texas case shows the importance of providing clear and unambiguous policy language. In Mankoff v. PURE, the insureds negated an...
26 Mar, 2024 Coming Back Around on Adaptive Reuse By JD Howard Bruce Smith Colby Nelson As MMM's construction group discussed back in August of 2023, converting an office building into a multifamily residence is an...
25 Mar, 2024 Excess Insurer’s Policy Conditions Shield It from a Potential $10 Million Coverage Liability By Nathan Miles Excess insurers facing claims should heavily scrutinize their policies for conditions that may be unsatisfactory —even if seemingly...
13 Mar, 2024 ERC Voluntary Disclosure Program Deadline is Approaching By Barclay Taylor William Stone III OVERVIEW Thousands of businesses struggling to stay afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic filed employee retention credit (ERC) claims in...
11 Mar, 2024 Was NAIOP's Industrial Demand Forecast Too Pessimistic? By Daniel Weede Last week, NAIOP released its Q1 Industrial Demand Forecast. It predicts the “market for industrial real estate faces headwinds from a...
06 Mar, 2024 Navigating Work Calls Without Privacy By Ellenor Stone A BP executive's husband pleaded guilty to securities fraud for buying and selling stock of BP's merger target. He knew of the upcoming...
26 Feb, 2024 Foregoing Discovery Leads to Adverse Judgment Against Insurer By Nathan Miles Seslee Smith Ryan Burke Although discovery is costly, skipping it altogether can be far costlier. Indeed, in a recent case in the Second Circuit, an insurer’s...
22 Feb, 2024 Georgia Senate Passes Bill That Would End Direct Action Suits Against Truck Insurers By Nathan Miles Seslee Smith Ryan Burke Senate Bill 426 would bar a plaintiff injured by a motor carrier from suing the motor carrier’s insurer directly unless (1) the plaintiff...
22 Feb, 2024 EPA Finalization of PFAS Testing Method Paves Way for Federal "Hazardous Substance" Designation under CERCLA By Brian Remler A few weeks ago, the federal Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) finalized Method 1633, an environmental sampling method for...
15 Feb, 2024 Georgia State Representative Introduces Bill to Ban Insurers From Solely Relying on AI for Coverage Decisions By Nathan Miles Seslee Smith Ryan Burke A Georgia State Representative recently introduced legislation prohibiting an insurer from relying solely on artificial intelligence to...
15 Feb, 2024 Georgia Court of Appeals Invalidates Another Insurer’s Acceptance of a Holt Demand Based on Language in Settlement Check By Ryan Burke Seslee Smith Nathan Miles Insurers attempting to accept a time-limited demand (often called a “Holt” demand in Georgia) must adhere to every term and condition of...
12 Feb, 2024 EPA and Corps Guidance Expands Clean Water Act Jurisdiction Over Wetlands Beyond the Supreme Court's Sackett Decision By Stephen McCullers In the decision Sackett v. EPA, the U.S. Supreme Court provided a clear statement regarding what wetlands are subject to regulation under...
29 Jan, 2024 FinCEN Increases Civil Penalties Under the CTA By Rebecca Arrington Last week, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) released a final rule modifying specific maximum civil penalties within its...
19 Jan, 2024 Could your patent be invalid if your attorney uses AI in the drafting process? By Adam Thompson The Federal Circuit held in Thaler v. Vidal that an “inventor” must be a human. During the patent drafting process, the human inventors...
18 Jan, 2024 Insurers Ordered to Pay Policy Limits Twice for a Single Policy Term By Nathan Miles Seslee Smith Ryan Burke In a cautionary tale for insurers everywhere, a California court recently ordered two excess carriers to pay their policy limits twice...
17 Jan, 2024 Can All Prior Art Patent Applications Be Submitted in an Inter Parties Review (IPR)? By Adam Thompson Inter Partes Review (IPR) proceedings have become a crucial aspect of the patent landscape, allowing parties to challenge the validity of...