On December 9, the FHFA, in connection with its fulfillment of the ‘Strategic Plan for Enterprise Conservatorships,’ directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to raise their guarantee fees in three separate components: (i) increase the base (or ongoing)...
In today’s global village many people travel to and reside in a number of countries. When one married partner desires to dissolve a marriage and partners are living in different countries, there are a number of issues that could arise....
In Geauga County, Ohio, Rita Greifenstein, a 66-year-old woman, shot and killed her 68-year-old husband in their kitchen. Mrs. Greifenstein claimed that she shot her husband in self-defense. The police stated that the two had been arguing for hours...
Should employers be forced to accept the observance of religious rituals that could affect the bottom line of the business? The answer to this question is complicated. Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, employers are required to reasonably...
On December 10, the Fed, CFTC, FDIC, OCC and SEC issued final rules to implement Section 619 of the Volcker Rule Act (the Volcker Rule), which prohibit insured depository institutions and banking entities from engaging in short-term proprietary...
While recreational marijuana legalization has come to Colorado and Washington State, it may seem odd that it remains possible to be arrested for pot possession in California. But the defeat of Proposition 19 by voter referendum in 2010 effectively...
On October 21, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued a final rule (78 Fed. Reg. 62368) revising the rules of practice pursuant to title II of the Patent Law Treaties Implementation Act of 2012 (PLTIA), which amends U.S. Patent Law to implement...
When businesses apply for an EIN (employer identification number) with the IRS, the Form SS-4 Application (and the corresponding online application) asks for the name and SSN (if an individual) or EIN (if another entity) of the responsible party. The...
The CFPB has issued Version 2.0 of its “2013 CFPB Dodd-Frank Mortgage Rules Readiness Guide.” The Guide, originally issued in July 2013, is intended “to help financial institutions come into and maintain compliance with” the CFPB’s mortgage rules...
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia has issued a number of decisions in the last several years touching upon the outer contours of jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act’s citizen suits provision (33 U.S.C § 1365), in...
