Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision that, at least in the short run, is likely to dramatically reduce litigation under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). In Facebook, Inc. v. Duguid, the Court held that only a narrow set of telephone equipment meets the definition of “an automatic telephone dialing system” (“ATDS”) for purposes of the statute’s ban on making certain types of calls with an ATDS.  The TCPA’s prohibition on using an ATDS to call a cell...

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SPACs — short for “special purpose acquisition companies” — recently have drawn significant interest by companies and executives as a more seamless method to conduct an initial public offering. Often referred to as “blank check” companies, SPACs provide a vehicle by which companies may raise funds from public markets through initial public offerings (IPOs) that take a company from private to publicly listed. Unlike traditional IPOs, which often involve private companies that have developed over time, SPACs are shell...

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The Social Inspectorate is responsible for monitoring compliance with the rules on teleworking enacted to combat the spread of Covid-19. Criminal or administrative fines may be imposed for noncompliance with these rules. In the event of a Covid-19 inspection by the Social Inspectorate, the following information/documents should be made available. 1.    Covid-19 risk analysis Although teleworking is mandatory, measures should still be taken to protect employees who cannot telework due to the nature of their position or for business continuity reasons....

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Written on March 30, 2021 | With the new President, we expect a less restrictive approach toward immigration, however, the COVID-19 virus has significantly impacted global travel and immigration since March 2020.  As such, the current and past Administrations have implemented travel and immigration restrictions in the name of safety.  These measures have ranged from simple travel restrictions, to outright travel bans, medical testing requirements, and even the suspension of certain nonimmigrant work visas and immigrant visas issued by consulates...

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This article is part of Portolano Cavallo’s “INFORM@Digital & IP” Newsletter. Click here to subscribe. | In a recent interview, Europe’s antitrust chief, Margrethe Vestager, warned Apple that its recent changes to privacy rules must not give preferential treatment to its apps over those of its competitors or it might be in violation of antitrust norms. Apple has framed those changes as being designed to protect users’ personal data, but that does not exempt its actions from competition rules. This warning came in reaction...

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If you were to describe the way the world has changed over the past year to your pre-pandemic self, it would probably sound like something straight out of a bad sci-fi movie. From the moment COVID-19 entered the scene, it has been one disruption after another — especially for those of us tasked with figuring out how to keep supply chains running smoothly in the midst of all this chaos. The global economy started to decline almost immediately at the...

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If you want to have a 2021 that is much better than 2020, you have no other choice but to draw up a good strategic plan. Follow our 7 steps and get your ideas ready today. Access now! | The market has never changed so much in such a short time. The expression “overnight” started to mean something that demands a lot of time. Because of this, strategic planning (or re-planning) became the ace in the sleeve for corporations that...

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Who Needs to Know All employers. Why It Matters Businesses should begin to address these issues now so that when COVID-19 vaccines are ready for widespread public distribution, they will be too. On December 11, the Food and Drug Administration announced that it would be issuing emergency use authorizations for two COVID-19 vaccines, and shortly thereafter, the first vaccinations were administered on December 14. While initial doses of the vaccine have been allocated to health care workers and long-term care residents, all businesses...

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On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed into law the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The law contains various provisions that impact employers, including a new COBRA subsidy. The ARPA COBRA Subsidy For a limited period, the ARPA requires employers to cover 100% of the employee’s cost of continuing group health coverage under COBRA for up to six months if an employee has lost coverage under their employer’s health care plan due to a reduction in hours or involuntary termination (for reasons other...

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As the European Commission progresses on its pledge to reduce carbon emissions by 55 percent by 2030 as part of its European Green Deal, hydrogen is increasingly expected to become the future energy source of choice to drive the decarbonisation of Europe’s heavy industry and shipping in the years to come.  As the European Commission prepares to present its “Fit for 55” Agenda to revamp the EU’s energy and climate policy in June in view of achieving its goal of...

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