Introduction The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) estimates that there are 34 million defined benefit plan participants in private pension plans and 106 million defined contribution plan participants with combined assets of $9.3 trillion. Participants increasingly access their plan accounts and take actions on their plan benefits through online tools made available by plan sponsors and service providers. In fact, in 2020, the DOL finalized rules encouraging electronic delivery and disclosures of plan information. As a...

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With MSC’s recent launch of a global electronic bill of lading, containers falling overboard everywhere you turn, EU’s approval of the post-Brexit trade treaty, container shipping turning 65, and the mess that is O’Hare airport, we’ve got a lot of ground to cover in this week’s global freight updates. But first, let us toot our own horn as Jaguar Freight is proud to be receiving the Global Supply Chain Award at the World Trade Week NYC. The World Trade Week...

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After generally trending higher in the first quarter, the dollar slumped in April.  An important leg of support was cut, as interest rates fell.  The 10-year yield slid by more than 20 bp at one point despite the unambiguous evidence that the economy was strengthening, and input prices were rising, not just stemming from comparisons with last year's depressed levels.  The implied yield of the December 2022 Eurodollar futures contract is lower than at the end of February. Yet,...

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Prompt Attention Necessary for Registrations Which Begin April 30 Congress created the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (Fund) as a part of the larger American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (H.R. 1319) (Act), which President Biden signed into law last month with $28.6 billion allocated to the Fund under the Act. The U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) grant program, created under the Act’s authority, will begin accepting applications on May 3, 2021 at 12:00 p.m. EST. In anticipation of the application window...

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With days before the 30 April “orientation date” for national capitals to submit their economic recovery plans to the European Commission for assessment, the EU’s economic powerhouses this week submitted their national reform and spending plans in order to get a share of the mammoth €800 billion post-COVID Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF).  As the initial brains behind the landmark Recovery Fund, which, for the first time in EU history, will be funded by Member States’ joint debt, German Finance Minister...

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This article is part of Portolano Cavallo’s “INFORM@Digital & IP” Newsletter. Click here to subscribe. | With a recent decision, the Italian Competition Authority (AGCM or “ICA”) brought renewed focus to the increasing intersection between consumer protection rules and personal data protection rules. Specifically, the ICA fined Telepass (a company providing payment systems and toll services to drivers) and its subsidiary, Telepass Broker, EUR 2 million for having received information about users from car insurance companies and brokers without adequately informing users...

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On 26 April 2021, the Litigation Chamber of the Belgian Data Protection Authority (BDPA) handed down its first fine specifically for cybersecurity failures. This decision follows others where the Litigation Chamber considered cybersecurity failures as a factor among others (see e.g. decision of 22 January 2021), and it should serve as a signal for other organisations: all controllers and processors must ensure that the technical and organisational measures they have taken to keep personal data secure are appropriate. Otherwise, the bill...

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The ambiguity around protecting data and regulatory compliance creates a tension for companies that they must navigate to stay competitive. The way personal data is collected and used by companies today has gone from a novel strategy to a business imperative. A company’s success — or demise — can depend on the kinds of data it maintains and how it utilizes this trove in all aspects of its operations. As data and data privacy evolve into valuable assets for businesses and...

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Grassi is pleased to announce that Gramkow, Carnevale, Seifert, & Co., LLC has joined the Grassi family. This addition will more than double the number of Grassi partners and professionals serving clients and business partners out of our New Jersey office. Oradell-based Gramkow, Carnevale, Seifert & Co., LLC has a rich 37-year history of offering advisory, tax, audit, accounting and payroll services to family-owned and privately held businesses. Their professionals also meet a wide range of tax, estate planning, concierge...

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If you follow our blog, you’ve probably heard of the term Edge Computing. Now, let’s present a similar concept, but related to Artificial Intelligence: Edge AI. Ten years ago, we would not imagine that Artificial Intelligence would be at today’s levels. Now, it is part of industries and even devices for customer service. The time has come to take a step forward. The new frontier is Edge AI. In today’s post, you will understand what this concept is and why you...

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