INSIDE COMPLIANCE

Investor Choice Act Approved by House Committee

January 26, 2022Jeffrey HymenFinance & Banking

For several years, broker-dealers and investment advisory firms have typically required harmed investors to dispute matters through arbitration rather than the court system. However, the House of Representatives’ Financial Services Committee has approved a bill aimed at prohibiting mandatory arbitration commonly imposed by broker-dealers and investment advisory firms. H.R. 2620, known as The Investor Choice Act, restricts investment advisors and broker-dealers from including pre-dispute binding arbitration clauses in their client agreements. The Investor Choice Act addresses “long-standing and deeply unfair practices of forcing customers to resolve their claims through arbitration instead of as part of a class action,” according to Maxine Waters, Chairwoman of the Financial Services Committee.

CongressDodd-FrankFinancial services complianceFINRAMandatory ArbitrationRegulationSecurities and Exchange Commissionsecurities exchange act

Expanding Mental Health Services Through Community-Based Care: Crisis Stabilization Centers

January 25, 2022Micaela EngerUncategorized

Many believe that a hospital emergency department is potentially the worst place for an individual experiencing a mental health crisis. Emergency departments are often loud, bright, and bustling with hospital employees, emergency responders, patients, and visitors. These conditions are stressful and can further trigger additional symptoms for individuals facing a psychiatric crisis. Moreover, many individuals experiencing a mental health crisis do not require inpatient care at a psychiatric hospital. Rather, there is a growing trend to promote community-based care through Crisis Stabilization Center Models. Crisis stabilization centers or units provide an alternative to traditional emergency department and psychiatric hospitalization care by providing continuous care for a short period of time in a safe environment for those with an acute psychiatric crisis.

community-based caremental health careRegulation

America’s Fight Against Robocalls

January 24, 2022Katia Cortes GuzmanFraud & Abuse

Robocalls are an increasing threat to Americans across the country. In 2020, American consumers received nearly 4 billion robocalls per month. This number quickly increased in March 2021 when Americans received 4.9 billion robocalls. Although not all robocalls are illegal, illegal robocalls hurt Americans by spamming them to market a product. Americans have a choice to give their written consent, but the issue stems from robocalls marketing products without written consent. About 60 million Americans say they have been a victim to phone scams in the last year and have lost nearly $30 billion as a result. Unfortunately, despite the FCC and FTC increasingly targeting spammers and illegal robocalls, it is difficult to say when this problem will end.

FCCFTCPrivacy & Securityrobocalls

Stadiums, Casinos, and Riverboats: Illinois and Chicago Hedging Their Bets on the Future of Gambling Regulations

December 11, 2021Zachary MauerThe Marketplace

Illinois has historically been at the forefront of gambling regulations in the United States. Chicago, on the other hand, has resisted sanctioning formalized gambling locations until recently. Following the passage of the 2019 Gaming Expansion Law, Illinois expanded gambling across the state and Chicago is planning to open its first casino by 2025. Chicago is also concurrently debating an ordinance that would allow sports gambling within the city’s stadiums and arenas.

Chicago CasinoChicago City CouncilGamblingGambling Expansion Lawsports gambling

International Student-Athletes Lose Out in NIL Era

December 8, 2021Ashley BethAthletic Regulation

The NCAA’s interim Name, Image, and Likeness (“NIL”) policy has made it possible for student-athletes to receive compensation, however, equitable shortcomings are evident. The most significant issue is faced by international student-athletes, who are substantively barred from capitalizing on the NIL opportunities afforded to their American counterparts.

Journal of Regulatory Compliance

Concert Venues Crowd Control Regulations

December 6, 2021Cora LeeuwenburgUncategorized

On November 5, 2021, Travis Scott performed a concert at the Astroworld Festival in Austin to a crowd of fifty thousand people. In the hour that he performed, eight people were killed in a deadly crowd crush (another concert goer losing their life days after), and hundreds were injured. Multiple lawsuits have been filed against Travis Scott himself, as well as the production companies that organized the show in response to the tragedy. In the wake of the devastating event, regulations concerning crowd control and management must also be considered, as well as whether these regulations were complied with by the organizers of Astroworld.

compliancecompliance programenforcementJournal of Regulatory Compliancepublic healthRegulationrulemaking

Coinbase Proposes a New Regulator to Oversee Digital Assets After Feud with SEC

December 2, 2021Patrick GilsenanFinance & Banking

In October 2021, the cryptocurrency exchange platform Coinbase released a proposal for a regulatory framework that would designate a single regulator for the digital asset markets. This proposal comes less than a month after Coinbase’s CEO had a public meltdown on Twitter after the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) sent the firm a Wells Notice, a warning of potential litigation, about their planned cryptocurrency lending platform allegedly violating securities regulations. As the digital asset market grows and the financial institutions involved become more influential, regulators continue to struggle with jurisdictional and definitional questions around the new products.

CFTCCoinbasecryptoCryptocurrencyDigital AssetsHowey TestRegulationSECsecurities

Should Small Business Owner’s Allow Payments of Cryptocurrencies?

December 1, 2021Jamal AzizFinance & Banking

Cryptocurrency is a relatively new form of currency that has risen in popularity worldwide. Since the pandemic struck, many small businesses have begun to accept cryptocurrency as a form of payment for their goods and services. There is much debate regarding taxation and auditing of cryptocurrency transactions in small businesses, along with weighing the cost and benefit of providing this alternative payment method.

Banking RegulationbusinessCryptocurrencyRegulation

Nuclear Energy: Safety and Viability

November 30, 2021Todd DegerUncategorized

The United States currently stands ready to make energy decisions that will impact every U.S. citizen alive today and generations moving forward. President Joe Biden committed to fighting climate change in his campaign for President and has continued in this vein by making goals to halve U.S. carbon emissions by 2030 and further, to create a net-zero carbon economy by 2050. The key to this plan is the not-so-simple issue of electricity generation.

clean energyEnergyEnergy ComplianceJournal of Regulatory ComplianceNuclear Energy

The Latest Environmental Regulations and What It Means for the US

November 29, 2021Alyssa WolslegelUncategorized

For the past few weeks, world leaders have been discussing climate action and how to tackle the growing problem at COP26. They recently reached an agreement that pushes countries to strengthen climate targets that can be achieved in the near future and limit fossil fuel use, but they are still facing criticism from scientists who say it is not enough. While they did come up with language urging countries to move away from fossil fuels, there are few concrete goals written leaving it largely up to the countries themselves to decide how to meet those goals.

climateclimate actionemissionsEnergyenvironmental regulationenvironmental regulationsfossil fuels