The Legal Brief

The Rise of Consumer Class Actions: How Changes to the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act Increased Consumer Class Action Filings in West Virginia

September 26, 2022

Sometimes the best intentions have entirely unforeseen consequences. This is the case with changes that were made to the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act, W. Va. Code §§ 46A-1-101 et seq. (“WVCCPA” or the “Act”). At the time, there were hundreds of individual lawsuits relating to verbal notification of attorney representation wherein plaintiffs filed suit seeking thousands of…

NEW SEC MANDATORY CLIMATE DISCLOSURES COULD COME AS EARLY AS THIS FALL

July 25, 2022

There needs to be clear rules of the road for disclosing climate risk.”  SEC Chair Gary Gensler

“We are not the Securities and Environment Commission – at least not yet.”  Commissioner Hester M. Peirce

On March 21, 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) proposed its long-awaited and groundbreaking rules intended to standardize and enhance climate-related disclosures for domestic…

Should I Stay or Should I Go? You Should Probably Stay: U.S. Supreme Court Poised to Resolve Circuit Split on Effect of Bankruptcy Code § 363(m) on Appeals

July 20, 2022

On June 27, 2022, the United States Supreme Court granted certiorari to possibly resolve the circuit split concerning the effect closing a bankruptcy sale under 11 U.S.C. § 363 has on appeals involving the sale order. MOAC Holdings LLC v. Transform Holdco LLC, 21-1270 (Sup. Ct.) In MOAC, Mall of America is challenging the bankruptcy court’s decision in the Sears bankruptcy to allow the buyer to…

West Virginia Becomes the 42nd State with an Intermediate Appellate Court

July 7, 2022

On July 1st of 2022, West Virginia became the 42nd state with an intermediate appellate court.[1]  The reorganization came after years of consideration and was passed as a part of Senate Bill 275 in April of 2021.[2] Prior to this, West Virginia had the largest population among states that did not have an appellate court.[3]

The court includes a panel of three governor-appointed judges that will…

Name, Image, and Likeness: The NCAA and College Sports Landscape One Year After Alston

July 1, 2022

The college sports landscape changed forever on July 1, 2021, when the NCAA permitted student-athletes to earn compensation for their name, image, and likeness (NIL). Now, a year later, we look back and evaluate how this change happened; the impact of this change on the NCAA, institutions, and student athletes; and the future of NIL.

Background

In June 2021, the NCAA was preparing to launch a new…

SECURE ACT 2.0: WHAT TO KNOW

April 11, 2022

The House of Representatives passed the Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2022 (“SECURE 2.0” or “the Act”, HR 2954) on Tuesday, March 29, 2022.  The Act now heads to the Senate, where it is expected to have significant bipartisan support.

SECURE 2.0 builds on the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (“SECURE Act”, PL 116-94) signed into law in December 2019, which was enacted to…

Ohio Revises Its Limited Liability Company Act

February 16, 2022

The Ohio Revised Limited Liability Company Act (“Revised Act”), signed into law on January 8, 2021, became effective Friday, February 11, 2022.  The Revised Act applies to all LLCs registered to do business in Ohio, whether formed before, on, or after the effective date.  Completely restating the existing Ohio Limited Liability Act (“Prior Act”), the Revised Act modernizes Ohio’s LLC law with a…

Video: WV Legislature Update Feb. 10

February 10, 2022

Member Danielle M. Waltz discusses bills focusing on energy that are moving through the West Virginia Legislature.

Name, Image, and Likeness: What's Next for College Sports

July 19, 2021

In a landmark decision issued in June 2021, the United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled in National Collegiate Athletic Assoc. v. Alston that the NCAA and eleven Division I conferences violated Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act, which prohibits restraining certain trade or commerce. The case led almost immediately to a new NCAA interim policy that allows student athletes from all three…

California Love (of Privacy): Virginia and Colorado Adopt Comprehensive Data Privacy Laws That Look Similar to California Laws

July 15, 2021

 Virginia and Colorado have passed legislation that will implement data privacy laws in 2023. Both the Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act (“VCDPA”) and the Colorado Privacy Act (“CPA”) are similar to the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) and the recently passed California Privacy Rights Act (“CPRA”) in their aims and goals. However, key distinctions amongst the privacy bills will…

Supreme Court Sides with Student Athletes...But What Does That Mean?

June 23, 2021

On June 21, 2021, the Supreme Court of the United States changed the collegiate sports world by rendering an opinion in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (“NCAA”) v. Alston, which ultimately will allow student athletes to be presented with education-related benefits outside of what the NCAA has historically permitted. While this opinion surely will be cited in future litigation that aims…

Supreme Court Rejects Challenge to ACA

June 17, 2021

The United States Supreme Court today again upheld the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) with a 7-2 vote, rejecting a challenge to the law by Republican-led states. In a decision by Justice Breyer, the Court reversed a lower court ruling that the law’s individual mandate is unconstitutional. The Court did not reach the merits of the case but held that the challengers did not have legal standing to sue.…