RopesTalk

Implementing effective compliance programs is challenging, especially where third-party risk management is involved. In this podcast, Ropes & Gray litigation & enforcement partner Amanda Raad is joined by ethics and compliance consultant Hui Chen, who served as compliance counsel in the Department of Justice, to discuss how companies can tell if a compliance program is working.

In this Ropes & Gray podcast, tax partner Kendi Ozmon and tax counsel Gil Ghatan discuss one of the key provisions for tax-exempt organizations from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) – the new unrelated business taxable income (UBTI) rules for certain fringe benefits. As of January 1, section 512(a)(7) now treats certain employee fringe benefit expenses as giving rise to UBTI for tax-exempt employers, including expenses related to providing transportation-related benefits. This Ropes & Gray podcast explains new section 512(a)(7), provides examples of how it works in the real world and explores the necessity for future guidance as tax-exempt employers consider estimated tax payments.

The rules regarding truthful, non-misleading communications by medical product manufacturers have long been unclear. In recent years, there have been significant developments in the case law, as well as in FDA guidance and DOJ policy, with regard to manufacturer communications about unapproved uses of their medical products. In this Ropes & Gray podcast, life sciences partner Kellie Combs is joined by government enforcement and litigation partners Joan McPhee and Doug Hallward-Driemeier to discuss the most recent developments in this area, relating both to FDA policy development and DOJ enforcement priorities.

Compliance programs are difficult to design, and implementing and enforcing policies and procedures is challenging, especially in complex, global organizations. In this podcast, the first in a series on challenges and best practices in risk mitigation and management, litigation & enforcement partner Amanda Raad and ethics and compliance consultant Hui Chen, former Department of Justice compliance counsel, discuss how companies can transform policies into a culture of compliance.

Today’s asset managers are increasingly multi-platform, regularly managing private equity funds, hedge funds and credit funds all under the same roof. Invariably, it might make business sense for some of these funds to engage in transactions with or alongside one another which give rise to potential conflicts of interest.

Credit fund managers face unique conflicts issues under ERISA that require specific policies and procedures designed to identify, avoid and mitigate the risks these conflicts pose. This podcast serves as an introduction to how credit fund managers should approach some of the common and emerging scenarios and misconceptions surrounding ERISA, including season and sell, loan participations, venture capital operating company designations and transacting in secondary markets.

In its May 30, 2017 decision in Impression Products v. Lexmark International, the U.S. Supreme Court expanded the scope of the patent exhaustion doctrine – a decision that could have substantial effects on patent owner rights, licensing practices, and what companies and consumers may do with products they buy. On this podcast, Ropes & Gray IP litigation counsel Matt Rizzolo discusses the Court’s ruling and its implications.

In this Ropes & Gray podcast, asset management partner Isabel Dische and tax partner Brett Robbins discuss the effect of Section 457A on pre-2009 management and incentive fees and charitable planning strategies that can be implemented this year to reduce 2017’s tax burden.

The pending Supreme Court case of Impression Products v. Lexmark International could affect what companies and consumers do with products they buy, based on the doctrine of patent exhaustion. Following oral argument on March 21, Megan Baca and Matt Rizzolo from Ropes & Gray’s intellectual property practices discuss the background of the case and potential consequences.

What impact is the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Star Athletica v. Varsity Brands, the cheerleader costume case, likely to have on the protectability of the creative elements of clothing and other useful articles? Doug Hallward-Driemeier, who leads Ropes & Gray’s Appellate & Supreme Court practice, along with Evan Gourvitz from the firm’s Intellectual Property Litigation practice, offer their perspectives on the case and what it may mean for the future copyright protection of fashion and industrial design.