News and Insights

October 2020

Since the beginning of the Brexit process in 2016, Covington’s Brexit Task Force–comprised of over 40 lawyers and former senior diplomats and policymakers, in London, Brussels, Frankfurt, Dublin, and Washington–has advised clients in a wide range of industries on the challenges and opportunities created by this historic event. While the EU-UK negotiations have ...

November-December 2020, Journal of Robotics, Artificial Intelligence & Law

October 23, 2020, Inside Energy & Environment

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) that would allow certain Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) systems to be certified as Qualifying Facilities under the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) and thus receive regulatory benefits meant, in part, to encourage the innovation and development of ...

October 23, 2020, Global Policy Watch

Next week, Members of the European Parliament (“MEPs”) will gather in Brussels for committee meetings.  Several interesting votes and meetings are scheduled to take place. On Monday, the European Parliament’s Committee on the International Market and Consumer Protection (“IMCO”) will vote on a resolution that calls on the Commission to establish a consumer ...

October 23, 2020, Tax Withholding & Reporting Blog

Without notice or fanfare, the New York Department of Taxation updated guidance on its website to address the application of its “convenience of the employer” rule to COVID-19 telecommuters.  The question of whether New York would consider employees who are working remotely due to the pandemic as doing so for “convenience” or “necessity,” has been...… Continue ...

October 23, 2020, Cov Financial Services

I. The German Ringfencing Act As a reaction to the financial crisis in 2007/2008 and to address risks in connection with the “too big to fail” phenomena, the German legislature issued the Ringfencing Act in 2014 (the “Act”). In a nutshell, the Act forbids big CRR-credit institutions (depending on certain balance sheet thresholds) to engage...… Continue Reading

October 23, 2020, Covington Alert

Since Covington's last global Business and Human Rights update, there have been significant developments in national, regional, and international regulatory and enforcement initiatives, which have continued to exert pressure on companies to develop or enhance their processes for identifying and mitigating human rights risks in their global operations and value ...

October 23, 2020, Covington Alert

On October 21, 2020, the National People's Congress (“NPC”), China’s top legislative body, released its first draft of the Personal Information Protection Law (the “Draft Law”) for public comment (official Chinese version available here).  The period for public comment ends on November 19, 2020 and comments can be submitted through NPC’s official website.    

October 22, 2020, Inside Energy & Environment

Earlier today, the Energy Futures Initiative and Stanford University released a new joint report that provides policymakers in California with an action plan for realizing the significant decarbonization opportunities presented by use of carbon, capture and storage (CCS) technology within the state. The results of the study add to a growing body of evidence ...

October 22, 2020, Global Policy Watch

On October 21, 2020 the Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) published a Request for Information (“RFI”) seeking voluntary submissions of workplace diversity and inclusion training information and materials from federal contractors, federal subcontractors, and their employees. The RFI was published pursuant to Executive ...