Section 806 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (18 USC §1514A) expressly authorizes any “person” alleging discrimination based on protected conduct to file a complaint with the Secretary of Labor and, thereafter, to bring suit in an appropriate district court. There is no exception for lawyers or in-house counsel. Recently, the Ninth Circuit tackled this issue in … Read more »
Social Networking for the Legal Profession
I just finished reading Social Networking for the Legal Profession by Penny Edwards and Lee Bryant. They were nice enough to send me a copy. Penny and Lee used a few quotes from me, referred to some of my writings and used some of my social networking activity as examples. That poor judgment aside, the book … Read more »
Green Initiatives and Compliance Risks
Organizations or all types and sizes are adopting policies to provide standards for environmental responsibility and sustainability initiatives. But adopting green policies may impose risks on your organization if the policies are not properly followed. Perkins Coie published a piece on these risks and issues: Green Policies – Understanding and Addressing Compliance Risks. False Advertising. … Read more »
How Are the Fortune 100 Using Web 2.0 for Investor Relations?
Francine McKenna, of re: The Auditors, put together a great study on how the Fortune 100 are using Web 2.0 for investor relations. There are some. But for the most part, they are not using web 2.0. The Downside: Only 3 use blogs Only 2 use Facebook Only 2 use Twitter. (Although 4 others do, … Read more »
New Liability Under the FCPA: Control Person Liability
The SEC charged Nature’s Sunshine Products Inc. with violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act after its Brazilian subsidiary made cash payments to customs officials to get their products imported into the country. The SEC also included two officers of the company in those charges. That part of the case was fairly standard. What was new … Read more »
Self-Reporting Corruption in the UK
As part of its renewed efforts to combat overseas corruption, the United Kingdom’s Serious Fraud Office published its new Approach of the Serious Fraud Office to Dealing with Overseas Corruption . Previously, the Serious Fraud Office saw its role as an after-the-event investigator and prosecutor, difficult for a company to engage except in the context … Read more »
Pension Security Act of 2009 and its Effect on Private Investment Funds
I missed the introduction of the Pension Security Act. Rep Michael Castle introduced the bills in January and it was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor. It’s a short bill, but would have a big effect on the disclosure of investments in private investment funds. The bill revises a section of the Employee … Read more »
42
In Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, 42 is the number from which all meaning could be derived. A group of hyper-intelligent pan-dimensional beings demand to learn the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything from the supercomputer, Deep Thought. It takes Deep Thought 7.5 million years to compute … Read more »
Radical Transparency
The current buzzword in the markets is “transparency.” Companies want to be more transparent so investors, customers and partners can better understand the company. Some of this came from Enron, whose operations and financial statements were often called “opaque.” With the growing Web 2.0 it is harder to get secrets as anyone with an internet … Read more »
Social Media Risk & Rewards
On September 21, 2009, in New York City I will be a speaker at Social Media: Risks & Rewards. This comprehensive, dynamic event will explore the inherent challenges of social media and will arm you with the specific tools necessary to protect your company, your intellectual property and your reputation in today’s virtual world. Find … Read more »