In welcome news to employers, the U.S. Supreme Court on June 13, 2024 issued a decision in Starbucks Corp. v. McKinney that clarifies that the National Labor Relations Board can only obtain a preliminary injunction under the National Labor Relations Act if it can satisfy the four-factor test traditionally applicable to this extraordinary form of relief. In doing so, the Court resolved a circuit split whereby some courts had applied a less exacting standard when assessing the Board’s preliminary injunction applications.

The Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) published a final rule in the Federal Register on May 29, 2024 amending the Cuban Assets Control Regulations to further implement the Biden administration's policy announced on May 16, 2022, aimed at increasing support for the Cuban people.

On May 13, 2024, President Biden signed into law a bill that bans imports of Russian uranium for use as nuclear fuel in the United States. The new law, titled the "Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act," H.R. 1042, 118th Cong., § 2 (2024), aims to cut off a significant source of revenue for Russia and to reduce U.S. dependence on Russian nuclear fuel. The ban unlocks a significant increase in federal funding to grow the country’s uranium industry. As a result of the ban, some companies will need to apply for waivers for utilities, which they must do by January 1, 2028.

On June 3, 2024, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed HB24-1472 to increase the damages caps for personal injury and wrongful death claims. The law nearly triples the amounts available to plaintiffs, which will continue to increase for inflationary adjustments beginning in 2028 and every two years thereafter. These new damages caps affect not only claims that accrue in 2025 and beyond, but they also change the caps for any civil cases filed on or after January 1, 2025. This law was enacted as a compromise to a ballot measure that would have removed any cap on damages.

On August 23, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) adopted a controversial new rule designed to enhance the regulation of private fund advisers. Private Fund Advisers; Documentation of Registered Investment Adviser Compliance Reviews, 88 Fed. Reg. 63206 (Aug. 23, 2023). The rule, which passed by a narrow 3-2 vote, aimed to protect investors who directly or indirectly invest in private funds by increasing transparency, establishing requirements to address potentially harmful practices, and prohibiting certain activities deemed contrary to the public interest. Id. at 63209. However, on June 5, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit dealt a fatal blow to the SEC's efforts, vacating the rule in its entirety. See Nat'l Ass'n of Private Fund Managers v. SEC, No. 23-60471, slip op. at 25 (5th Cir. June 5, 2024) (Because the promulgation of the Final Rule was unauthorized, no part of it can stand.”)

On May 10, 2024, the Department of Health and Human Services for the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services published its final rule establishing minimum staffing standards for Long-Term Care (LTC) facilities. The final rule is part of the Biden administration’s focus on nursing home reform. In this alert, we break down the key provisions of the rule

On May 17, 2024, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) issued a final Rule (2024 Rule) that clarified its regulations pertaining to Iranian sanctions. In large part, these changes expressly clarify what technologies can be provided to Iran. Although the regulations remain largely restrictive, the changes also provide some new opportunities for businesses trading with Iran, since OFAC’s new rule expressly permits the import/export of certain technologies, and therefore gives assurances to businesses that their conduct is permissible. An additional new opportunity is that OFAC will accept licenses for service providers to permit providing unlisted hardware and software to Iranian entities if those applications can meet OFAC’s policy considerations.