Category Archives: Legal

DOJ Sues to Overturn California Net Neutrality Law

Trump’s DoJ yesterday filed a lawsuit to overturn California’s net neutrality law, signed by Governor Jerry Brown earlier during the day.

SEC Sues Elon Musk for Fraud, Seek to Bar Him Permanently from Executive, Board Role in a Public Company

Elon Musk put himself in the SEC’s crosshairs.

First Set of High Seas Treaty Negotiations Concludes in New York

The first set of of four negotiating sessions to produce a UN treaty on the high seas by 2020 concluded last week in New York; this would extend the existing law of the sea framework beyond each nation’s territorial waters.

SEC Enforcement Wanes on Trump’s Watch

SEC co-director of enforcement Stephanie Avakian delivered a speech in Dallas last week defending the agency’s enforcement record, as the number of cases brought and amount of fines collected both continue to drop.

Senators Unveil Legislation To Protect Patients Against Surprise Medical Bills

Medical bills are so out of hand that despite the power of the health industry lobbyists, some Senators are taking on the worst abuses.

Marcie Frost‘s Poor Job as CalPERS CEO – “The Place is Being Run Like a High School, Not a Business,” IT and Operational Failings

More on Frost’s misrule at CalPERS.

Chevron Arbitration Ruling Against Ecuador ‘Completely Off Base’

A secret corporate arbitration panel in the Hague ruled that Ecuadorean courts’ $9.5 billion judgement against Chevron for environmental damages is illegal and should not be enforced. An expert argues that the decision is a travesty.

Gaius Publius: Brett Kavanaugh’s #MeToo Moment — Questions Raised As His Accuser Comes Forward

The Kavanaugh row gets messier.

Double Whammy: Implicit Subsidies and the Great Financial Crisis

Follow the subsidies, and you will understand why we had the crisis and why not enough has been done to prevent a recurrence.

Gaius Publius: Democrats Should Release All “Committee Confidential” Kavanaugh Documents Now

Urging the Democrats to act out of character and do the right thing on the Kavanaugh nomination.

State AGs to Step Up Enforcement Against Tech Companies?

The WSJ reported Monday that state AGs, who include many Republicans, are poised to step up enforcement against big tech. Interesting times may lie ahead.

Prisoners Strike Across America & Canada to End Penal Enslavement

Prison strike that began on August 21 is scheduled to end today, the forty-fifth anniversary of the Attica uprising and rebellion took place in the New York state prison, with prisoners protesting slave labor conditions and other injustices.

How Supreme Court Pick Brett Kavanaugh Could Return US Policy to the Era of Robber Barons

Understanding Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s potential impact on corporate regulation and the climate means looking back all the way to 1890, to the era of Lochner v. New York and the robber barons.

Second Circuit Narrows Reach of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

Second Circuit last week narrowed the reach of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, but will not redirect the DoJ to focus on enforcement of more significant violations that occur closer to home.

UN to Launch Talks on Treaty to Regulate High Seas

Talks kick off in New York on Tuesday to negotiate a UN treaty on the high seas by 2020; this would extend the existing law of the sea framework beyond each nation’s territorial waters.