Insights

January

• 1/4/2016
  Health Care Alert: OCR Ends 2015 with Announcement of Additional HIPAA Settlements
  Recently the Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced three settlements to resolve investigations into potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
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• 1/4/2016
  • Rodney A. Holaday
  The Duty of Competence and Trends in E-Discovery
  Rodney Holaday, a partner in the Vorys Columbus office, and Paige Kohn, an associate in the Columbus office, co-authored an article for the Winter 2016 edition of the Columbus Bar Association’s Lawyers Quarterly. The article was titled “The Duty of Competence and Trends in E-Discovery.”
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December

• 12/29/2015
  • Jessica Knopp Cunning
  A 'Drone’s Eye' View of State Laws Governing Drone Use
  Jessica Knopp Cunning, an associate in the Vorys Akron office and a member of the litigation group, authored an article for The Whisper, DRI's Young Lawyers Committee Newsletter titled "A 'Drone’s Eye' View of State Laws Governing Drone Use.”
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• 12/28/2015
  Labor and Employment Alert: Right-to-Work Legislation Introduced in Ohio
  In October 2015, Representative Tom Brinkman introduced House Bill 377 in the Ohio General Assembly to make Ohio the nation’s 26th right-to-work state (along with Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Kansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming).
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• 12/23/2015
  Client Alert: Guidance for Employers Conducting Internal I-9 Audits
  The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices recently released guidance for employers conducting internal I-9 audits. The guidance covers topics including how to define the scope of an internal audit, how to communicate to employees regarding the audit, how to fix specific errors discovered during the audit, and other related questions.
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• 12/21/2015
  Labor and Employment Alert: The Lone Star State Now Allows the Open Carry of Handguns
  On January 1, 2016, the Texas Open Carry Law becomes effective. The new law allows a person with a concealed handgun license to carry a holstered handgun in plain view in any public place where a concealed handgun is otherwise permitted.
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• 12/18/2015
  Ohio Statehouse Update: Ohio General Assembly Wraps Up Work for 2015
  Members of the Ohio House and Senate concluded their formal work schedule for 2015 last week with a flurry of activity aimed at finalizing pending legislative issues before heading back to their respective districts for the holidays. They are expected to return to Columbus January 20th for a very limited schedule prior to the March 15th Primary Election.
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• 12/18/2015
  Labor and Employment Alert: Expansive Changes to Concealed Weapons Law May be Coming to Ohio
  In November 2015, the Ohio House of Representatives passed a bill (House Bill 48) to expand Ohio’s concealed weapons law.
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• 12/18/2015
  Health Care Alert: ICF/IID Two Person per Bedroom Compliance Plans Due By Year End
  Ohio’s biennial budget bill for FY 2016-2017 (Am. Sub. H.B. 64) added Section 5124.70 to the Ohio Revised Code. This section, which was effective September 29, 2015, prohibits, with limited exceptions , an ICF/IID from allowing more than two residents to share a sleeping room.
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• 12/15/2015
  • Jackie Ford
  Houston HERO Defeat Doesn't Mean End of Discrimination Protections for LGBT
  Jackie Ford, a partner in the Vorys Houston office and a member of the labor and employment group, authored an article for Texas Lawyer titled “Houston HERO Defeat Doesn't Mean End of Discrimination Protections for LGBT.”
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• 12/15/2015
  Eminent Domain Caution
  Tom Fusonie, a partner in the Vorys Columbus office and a member of the litigation group, authored an article for Ohio Farmer on the government’s use of eminent domain.
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• Winter 2016
  • Travis J. Wahl
  • Nancy Nicole "Nici" Workman
  Banking Agencies Finalize Margin and Capital Requirements
  Recently five federal agencies, The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Farm Credit Administration and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (collectively, the Agencies), issued much-anticipated joint final rules (the Final Rules) that establish minimum margin and capital requirements for registered swap dealers, major swap participants, security-based swap dealers and major security-based swap participants (Swap Entities) for which one of the Agencies is the prudential regulator (Swap Entities regulated by one or more of the Agencies are referred to as Covered Swap Entities).
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• 12/8/2015
  Client Alert: Ohio EPA to Begin Discussions on USEPA’s Notice of Deficiency for Ohio’s SSM Rules
  On Dec. 3, 2015, the Ohio EPA issued an invitation to certain interested parties to begin discussions on how to address USEPA’s Notice of Deficiency for Ohio’s Startup, Shutdown and Malfunction (SSM) rules.
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• 12/1/2015
  Client Alert: New Partnership Audit Rules Impose Federal Income Tax Liability Directly on Partnerships/LLCs
  In November, 2015, as part of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, new rules were enacted governing partnership audits and assessments by the IRS.
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November

• 11/25/2015
  Client Alert: Effective December 1, 2015, Most Official Bankruptcy Forms will be Replaced with Revised, Reformatted and Renumbered Versions; New Official Forms will be Required in All Bankruptcy Cases
  As part of a modernization project that was begun by the Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Rules in 2008, most of the Official Bankruptcy Forms will be replaced with substantially revised, renumbered and reformatted versions, effective December 1, 2015.
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• 11/25/2015
  Client Alert: FTC Amends Telemarketing Rule to Ban “Cash-To-Cash” Money Transfers, “Cash Reload” Payments, and Remotely-Created Payment Orders and Checks, in Effort to Curb Scammers
  In an Official Press Release last week, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it has approved final amendments to its Telemarketing Sales Rule that, in large part, help protect consumers by eliminating various payment methods popular amongst scam artists.
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• 11/24/2015
  • Heather A. Kabele
  FinCEN Expands Data Collection Geography Beyond Banking
  Heather Kabele, a partner in the Vorys Houston office and a member of the litigation group, authored an article for International Law360 titled “FinCEN Expands Data Collection Geography Beyond Banking.”
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• 11/20/2015
  • Daren S. Garcia
  California’s Green-Chemistry Intiative: Retailers, Be on the Lookout
  California has taken the lead in enacting new comprehensive “green chemistry” laws aimed at reducing toxic chemicals found in everyday consumer products.
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• 11/20/2015
  Labor and Employment Alert: $1.85 Million Settlement Highlights the Risks with Payroll Debit Cards
  As more employers consider paying their employees with payroll debit cards, they need to be aware of lawsuits challenging the practice and what sparked those suits. In several cases, employees argued that the payroll cards imposed fees for withdrawals, transfers, balance inquiries, and/or inactivity, which allegedly made it impossible for employees to obtain their full, earned wages.
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• 11/20/2015
  How to Remove Harassment, Other Harmful Internet and Social Media Postings
  Minutes, if not seconds, is all it takes for someone to cause harm to another person on the internet. Whether a single posting on social media or another online forum, or a full-fledged harassment campaign consisting of numerous postings on various platforms, it is extremely easy today to cause damage to another’s reputation online.
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