Over the last couple of weeks, a series of Federal Reserve speakers have talked up the likelihood of a Fed rate hike here in March. Heading into Friday’s USA employment report, the Fed Funds implied probability indicated a 100% chance – yes one hundred percent! – of a Fed rate hike at next week’s FOMC meeting. The report itself (nonfarm payrolls +235k vs. +200k expected, 4.7% unemployment in line with expectations, and a slightly higher labor participation rate) did...

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There are only 312,000 people who call the Upper Peninsula of Michigan home – which is less than 5 percent of the state’s total population – but nearly one of every three of these people has some Finnish ancestry. In fact, the westernmost five counties of Upper Michigan are the only counties anywhere in the U.S. where Finns are the majority ethnic group. Here in Hancock – a place the early Finns called, “Ameriikan Lappi” – the Honorary Consul office...

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The below is a new article by James Bacchus, previously published  in London Business Matters Magazine, on the need for a balanced approach toward the conclusion of a free trade agreement between the United Kingdom and the United States. “The United Kingdom has long stood side by side with America in the defence and in the advance of shared values of human freedom. The British people should never be at the “back of the queue” for America.” President Donald Trump has...

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Most contractors’ Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies are based on the post-1986 Insurance Services Office, Inc. (ISO) standard form policies that include a “Your Work” exclusion that precludes coverage for property damage to work or operations performed by a contractor or on the contractor’s behalf. However, the “Your Work” exclusion includes an express exception that states that the exclusion does not apply if the damages arise out of work performed on the contractor’s behalf by a subcontractor. Despite this...

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PARIS – March 1, 2017 – Ogletree Deakins, one of the largest labor and employment law firms representing management, expanded its international presence today by opening an office in Paris, France. Ogletree Deakins’ Paris office broadens the firm’s European footprint, which includes Berlin and London, and is the firm’s third office to open in 2017. Ogletree Deakins opens in Paris with a team of 11 attorneys and legal staff, including partners Karine Audouze and Jean-Marc Albiol. Audouze will serve...

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Welcome to our bite-size commercial law update. In this update, we summarise some of the key recent developments for in-house lawyers, covering contract, consumer and IP law, as well as the EU’s Digital Single Market initiative. If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in this update in more detail, please get in touch with one of us, or your usual Osborne Clarke contact. 1. Contract law Can you make a binding agreement over dinner in a restaurant? Yes, although...

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On March 6, 2017, President Donald Trump released a revised executive order entitled Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States (the “Order”) following legal challenges to the preceding order issued earlier this year. The new Order becomes effective as of March 16, 2017. Some interesting points are addressed below. The Order suspends unrestricted entry into the United States for nationals of six countries: Iran Libya, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen. Nationals of Iraq, who were suspended from...

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PHILADELPHIA – March 9, 2017 – Greenberg Traurig attorneys Mark L. Mattioli and Caroline Brancatella presented at the 23rd Annual Health Law Institute, hosted by the Pennsylvania Bar Institute. Mattioli was also a member of the Health Law Institute’s planning committee. The two-day event took place March 7-8, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Mattioli was on the panel, “Healthcare Antitrust in 2016: Increased Challenges and Greater Complexity.” The discussion reviewed recent private and governmental enforcement trends in hospital and provider...

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In his remarks at the LendIt Conference in New York, Comptroller of the Currency Tom Curry discussed the special purpose national bank charters to be granted by the OCC to fintech companies and addressed the various questions, criticism and challenges that have been made since the OCC's fintech charter announcement (click here to read Orrick's previous client alert regarding this announcement). OCC Authority In response to comments challenging the OCC authority and the wisdom of issuing such charters, Curry said, in...

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Addition Brings BDO Wealth’s Assets Under Management to $700 Million   Chicago, IL – BDO USA, LLP, one of the nation’s leading accounting and consulting firms, today announced an expansion of its Wealth Advisory Practice through the addition of LBA Wealth Management, LLC in Jacksonville, Florida.  The practice, a fee-only investment advisory firm encompassing seven professionals with $350 million in assets under management, was recently ranked among the top CPA firms by assets under management by Accounting Today.  This announcement follows...

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