INTRODUCTION In a previous issue of Decoded, we discussed the alarming fact that many medical devices, including those implanted in patients' bodies, are leaving the manufacturers with known cybersecurity flaws. Due to these known flaws, these devices are vulnerable to being hacked, and patients’ personal/protected health information ("PHI") stolen; or worse, the device being held hostage in a ransomware attack ...
Shoosmiths hosted one if its best attended Shoosmiths Aviation & Marine Breakfast Association (SAMBA) webinars on 25 February. Joined by representatives from industries across the marine spectrum (boatbuilding, finance, insurance, marinas and the RYA) Elliot Bishop and Sarah Fairweather discussed the impact of Covid and Brexit on the leisure marine sector in particular and the outlook for the coming year ...
The Online Safety Act 2023 implements broad reforms for how many businesses must operate their online services. Here, Matthew MacLachlan explains the action to take now to comply. The Online Safety Act 2023 (‘the Act’) received Royal Assent in October 2023. Although the Act is now law, it will not be enforced by the regulator, Ofcom, until secondary legislation is passed and when Ofcom’s draft codes of practice are finalised ...
On 28 May 2022, the Belgian law transposing EU Directive 2019/2161 into the Code of Economic Law (CEL) entered into force (the “Omnibus Act”). The Omnibus Act aims to modernise consumer protection given the increasing development of e-commerce. In addition to new transparency obligations for online marketplaces, the Omnibus Act has new general information obligations, and new unfair commercial practices and obligations for price reduction announcements that apply to all retailers ...
The Olympic Games is a huge "brand", commanding global media attention; for adertisers, it represents a golden opportunity for a marketing boost. However, it is also one of the most fiercely protected brands in the world, with complex legal protection ...
On April 18, the Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued revised guidance regarding exclusions imposed under section 1128(b)(7) of the Social Security Act ...
Few medical issues are as significant to an employee and an employer as major back surgery. The procedure incapacitates the injured worker for months and leaves the employer short staffed while the employee recovers. Additionally, these surgeries often do not result in the expected outcome, which leads to further impairment and expense ...
In 2016, West Virginia had the highest death rate in the country from drug overdoses—primarily caused by opioids—at 52.0 for every 100,000 people.[1] The state was on track to exceed that number in 2017.[2] Seeking to enact policies that not only curb but reverse this upward trend, the West Virginia Legislature introduced a number of bills during the 2018 Regular Legislative Session that sought to address this disturbing epidemic. One of these, S.B ...
The outbreak of COVID-19 comes on the back of an already tumultuous two years for the global economy, markets and trade where the US-China "trade war" and other trade tensions and macroeconomic factors have created uncertainty, commercial losses and subdued growth prospects ...
The AGCOM (the Italian Media Authority) has recently published (on December 28th, 2010) two resolutions concerning the broadcasting services of audio and/or video contents (so-called “audiovisual media services”) in “linear” mode (“streaming” or “simulcast” services: Resolution n ...
The Indonesian Minister of Health has issued Minister of Health Regulation No. 24 of 2022 on Medical Records (“MOH 24/2022”), under which the MOH requires all healthcare facilities to keep electronic medical records. MOH 24/2022 allows, among other things, cooperation between a healthcare facility and a third-party electronic organizer and covers who may have access to electronic medical records ...
On March 3, 2020, Attorney General William Barr announced the National Nursing Home Initiative—a new U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) taskforce organized to push criminal and civil enforcement action against nursing homes across the country. The initiative will help coordinate DOJ enforcement actions against nursing homes that provide “grossly substandard care ...
Myriad Genetics is known as a leader in the market for diagnostic testing of BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations that have been linked to breast and ovarian cancer. These same diagnostic tests were recently in the celebrity press, as Angelina Jolie announced she had been tested positive for the mutations, resulting in her electing to have a preventative double mastectomy ...
Social determinants (or drivers) of health (SDOH) can create substantial barriers to an individual’s overall health and wellbeing. For example, several factors associated with economic hardship—lack of transportation, safe housing, or access to nutritious food, etc.—are highly correlated with poor health outcomes ...
The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has today published its report1 on immigration reform. As the MAC itself acknowledges, there will be “winners” and “losers” in any policy for immigration reform.On an initial reading of the report, it would appear the reforms proposed, while impacting all sectors, would be most challenging for those sectors employing a low-skilled workforce ...
The Metaverse, retail and brand protection When first confronted with concepts such as cryptocurrencies and NFTs, it took most of us quite some time before we felt it was “safe enough” to make our first online purchase. For some, it was a case of calling a friend to find out if their experience was legitimate before taking that leap! Well, safe to say this is no longer the case ...
Retail is facing its biggest reset post-pandemic. It survived multiple economic depressions, two world wars and a catastrophic fire. But after 162 years, Robinsons will be no more. The iconic Singapore department store may have been the pandemic’s latest casualty, but the truth is that the red ink had begun bleeding long before Covid-19 struck. Suffering from intense competition from e-commerce, the once-publicly listed company had not turned a profit since at least 2014 ...
As in most countries, Brazil has strict regulations on sensitive advertising, especially as regards to alcohol, tobacco and other controlled substances. In Brazil, advertising is regulated by the Federal Constitution, which main directive is the freedom of speech. However, the Constitution also predicts that regulations referring to products that offer health and environmental risks will be provided by specific laws (section 220) and follow some restrictions ...
Did you know? The new Trade Marks (Amendment) Ordinance 2020 which came into effect on 19 June 2020 empowers the Registrar of Trade Marks to make the rules for implementing the long-awaited Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks (the “Madrid Protocol”) in Hong Kong ...
The high street will of course evolve according to prevailing consumer habits. That evolution has been brought into sharp focus by the pandemic, where retailers have had to adapt to the restrictions imposed on non-essential retail at certain times combined with the general growth of e-commerce. That said, the retail market in Guernsey compares well to the UK market and is seen as an attractive opportunity for retailers, both for well-known UK brands and local independents alike ...
In its second tranche of major standards reduction, The Joint Commission will eliminate or consolidate 210 accreditation standards across many of its programs. The modification to the affected standards will be effective August 27, 2023. The reduction is part of a major review effort of Joint Commission requirements announced in September of 2022 ...
The IVAucher programme was set up to stimulate private consumption in the sectors worst affected by the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic (catering, accommodation and culture). With regard to these sectors, “catering” is used in the broad sense to cover restaurants, cafés, bars and catering companies providing food and beverage services, and “accommodation” refers to hotels and other short-stay accommodation for holidays and business travel ...
The Philippine section of The International Comparative Legal Guide to: Trade Marks 2015 was contributed by SyCipLaw partners Enrique T. Manuel and Vida M. Panganiban-Alindogan. Mr. Manuel heads the firm’s Intellectual Property department ...
