The ongoing technology war involving the conflict between privacy and security has taken a new twist as the FBI hacked into San Bernadino terrorist Syed Farook’s iPhone. Instead of continuing to pursue a lawsuit to force Apple to reveal its encryption secrets, the FBI used an unknown third party to unlock the phone. Apple and news sources have yet to determine the identity of the third party or how exactly the FBI hacked the iPhone. The FBI also has not revealed if they have discovered any material information through the hack.
Continuing Casualties of the Housing Market Crash
The housing crisis was a nationwide banking emergency that coincided with the US’s recession in December 2007. The housing bubble burst, which resulted in a steep decline in home prices; this drastic dip led to an insurmountable number of mortgage delinquencies and eventual foreclosures throughout the late 2000s.
But despite nearly a decade having passed, America’s housing market is still very much in recovery after its unprecedented crash. Distressed mortgages continue to fall prey to mishandling and bad faith, particularly at the hands of hedge funds and private equity firms that are “quick to push loans into foreclosure” and shirk on their promises to “keep owners in their homes.”
Google Pushes for Federal Regulation of Self-Driving Cars
The self-driving car race is on and Google is in the lead. Google plans to move full speed ahead, but faces some hefty regulatory roadblocks.
The California Department of Motor Vehicles approved and implemented a set of “testing” regulations for self-driving cars in September 2014, but has been reluctant to allow much leeway in its “deployment” guidelines. A preliminary draft released in December 2015 outlined extensive constraints on autonomous vehicle design, such as a steering wheel, brake pedal and licensed driver capable of taking immediate control, among other limitations. The draft was a blow to Google who hopes bring its self-driving car to market by 2020 without the traditional manual controls.
Law Firm Squire Patton Boggs to Merge with Carroll Burdick
The law firm of Squire Patton Boggs announced in February that it had reached a deal to acquire the San Francisco-based law firm of Carroll, Burdick & McDonough. The acquisition will increase Squire Patton Boggs’ headcount of roughly 1,500 lawyers by approximately fifty more and could be complete as early as the end of this month.
First Lawsuit Regarding Fraudulent Law School Employment Data to Go to Trial
In the past few years, law students unable to find employment after graduation sued their alma maters for alleged fraud. The students claimed that their schools defrauded them with misleading employment figures. However, many courts rejected this argument and these cases never made it to trial. A state judge presiding over a case against New York Law School described law students as “a sophisticated subset of education consumers, capable of sifting through data and weighing alternatives.” Many courts in Florida, New York, and Michigan shared this view. Thus, judges generally concluded that law students were sophisticated enough to recognize the uncertainty of legal employment and that they chose a legal education at their own risk.
The Future Is Small: One Silicon Valley Incubator Shoots for Quality over Quantity
In the wake of fresh reports of mixed economic signals, some Silicon Valley heavyweights are now placing large bets on a “small” plan. Last week, Expa – the “start-up studio” that was launched in 2013 by Uber co-founder Garrett Camp – announced the close of a $100 million fund to support a different sort of incubator. Dubbed “Expa Labs,” this new project will offer a high-touch, hands-on approach to growth and development.
SEC Charges Wells Fargo with Fraud
On Monday, March 7, 2016, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged Wells Fargo with fraud in its role as underwriter of a $75 million municipal bond deal. The Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation (RIEDC), a state agency, issued the bonds and loaned $50 million of its proceeds to 38 Studios, a now defunct video game company whose chairman and majority shareholder was the legendary Boston Red Sox pitcher, Curt Schilling. The RIEDC hoped to stimulate jobs and lure other businesses to relocate to Rhode Island.
“Could” v. “Would” and Other Issues: The Definition of Materiality in Light of Disclosure Reforms
The year of disclosure reforms is upon us. Public financial disclosures, increasingly riddled with boilerplate, repetitious, and irrelevant information, have been criticized for “disclosure overload,” where too much noise drowns out critical information for investors, shareholders, and the public. In light of congressional urging, the SEC has recently sought public comments on financial disclosure requirements in Regulations S-K and S-X. The comments showcase the issues with reform from minor changes, such as document-compatibility upload in EDGAR, to overarching conceptual issues regarding requirements across administrative agencies. Disclosure effectiveness is seen as a multi-issued problem that requires a comprehensive solution.
In light of Justice Scalia’s Death, Dow Chemicals Settles Instead of Taking Its Chances in Front of the Supreme Court
In a statement released on February 26th, Dow Chemicals announced the $835 million settlement of a pending class-action lawsuit citing “growing political uncertainties due to recent events within the Supreme Court and increased likelihood for unfavorable outcomes for business involved in class action suits.” The suit in question—a class action lawsuit alleging illegal urethane price fixing—has already been decided by a lower court in favor of the plaintiff class with damages totaling $1.06 billion. Prior to settlement, Dow filed a writ of certiorari with the Supreme Court, requesting review of the lower court’s verdict for improper application of class-action lawsuit standards. However, it appears that the passing of Justice Scalia has revised Dow’s risk assessment to the tune of $835 million.
Retirees Win Against Mining Industrialist
In a nearly unprecedented turn of events, the occupant of one of the largest single-family dwellings in the U.S., mining industrialist Ira Rennert, has settled with a group of retirees from one of his subsidiary companies and agreed to pay their pensions in full.
In 2011, Rennert’s conglomerate, Renco, purchased R.G. Steel for $1.2 billion. At the time, Renco’s pension was underfunded by almost $70 million. Shortly after the acquisition, Renco struck a deal with the private equity group Cerberus in a purported attempt to find more funding for R. G. Steel. The deal included Cerberus’s purchase of a 24.5 percent equity stake in R. G. Steel – causing Renco’s ownership to fall under the 80 percent cutoff to legally be considered the controlling group and therefore responsible for pension obligations. Though Renco executives claim they acted appropriately, the government believes the intention was to avoid being held accountable for the pension payments.