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Happily, tax audits are not happening as often as they used to. Internal Revenue Service budgets are diminishing, and audits are at an all-time low. But that’s no reason for general counsel to rest on the tax watch. Some of the most frequently asked tax questions are: how likely is my company to be audited and do we need a tax accountant? The answer is a twofer: yes, you need a tax accountant because the IRS can (and probably will) audit forever....

In what is sure to disappoint fans of the ‘Making a Murderer’ series, the United States Supreme Court has denied certiorari in the Brandan Dassey petition. The rejection effectively ends the story of Brandan Dassey, at least as far as the crime drama docu-series story. Dassey’s time on screen now may be more appropriate for a prison life series, maybe one about inmates who became famous thanks to Netflix. Appearing in the weekly Order List, under the heading Certiorari Denied, Dassey’s case appears listed....

Drug companies haven’t exactly been strict in tracking and limiting opioid doses. But those doses still need to find their way from the drug company to the user. And that’s where doctors come in. According to the Department of Justice, 31 doctors (and 22 other medical professionals) scattered from Alabama to Pennsylvania were responsible for over 350,000 prescriptions of controlled substances that amounted to 32 million pills. The announcement came after raids that netted 60 defendants, charged with violations of the Controlled Substances Act and health care fraud....

In AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion, the U.S. Supreme Court told us that the Federal Arbitration Act overrides state contract law if a contract contains an arbitration clause. In American Express v. Italian Colors Restaurant, the Court upheld an arbitration agreement’s class action waiver even when the cost of arbitrating a federal antitrust claim would exceed the recovery amount. This approach has it critics. Notably, Judge Richard Posner said that class action waivers effectively eliminate litigation: “The realistic alternative to a class action is not 17 million individual suits, but zero individual suits, as only a lunatic or a fanatic sues for $30....

Returning to competition during the coronavirus pandemic, professional sports leagues have created strict player testing regimens to minimize risks of spreading the disease. But what happens if a player tests positive, ignores quarantine orders, and puts his teammates at risk with physical contact? That’s a question that has arisen following the Los Angeles Dodgers’ recent World Series victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. On the evening of October 27, Los Angeles Dodgers’ third baseman Justin Turner received the news that he had tested positive for COVID-19....

Here’s a very interesting immigration law case out of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. It’s not your standard removal or asylum case. The case involves the removal of an alien, with issues involving drug trafficking and the definition of “aggravated felony.” The petitioner involved is actually a lawful permanent resident of the United States. That’s what makes the case a little different from what we’re used to seeing. He was convicted on charges of distributing prescription drugs and was sentenced to four months in jail....

US v. Comstock, No. 08-1224, involved civil commitment proceedings under 18 U.S.C. section 4248. The Supreme Court reversed the Fourth Circuit’s affirmance of the district court’s grant of respondents’ motions to dismiss on the grounds that 1) the Necessary and Proper Clause granted Congress broad authority to pass laws in furtherance of its constitutionally enumerated powers; 2) Congress has long been involved in the delivery of mental health care to federal prisoners, and has long provided for their civil commitment; 3) there were sound reasons for section 4248’s enactment; 4) section 4248 did not “invade” state sovereignty, but rather required accommodation of state interests; and 5) section 4248 was narrow in scope....

Here’s some good news for legal professionals in Michigan: FindLaw just launched its new Michigan Compiled Laws and Constitution section, bringing you the best source for Michigan laws this side of Great Lakes. So if you’re looking for information on anything from Michigan’s social services laws to its rules for coroners, FindLaw has you covered – for free. FindLaw’s Michigan codes section is made possible through our partnership with Thomson Reuters Westlaw, FindLaw’s sister company....

We’ve all seen a movie where someone storms into a church during a wedding at the last minute in hopes of stopping the one they love from marrying the “wrong” person. The phrase “speak now or forever hold your peace” has long been a part of traditional wedding ceremonies and actually began as a legality to give interested parties the chance to object to the validity of a marriage during the Medieval Age....

If you’re anything like us, you might have been too focused on the day-to-day operations of your small business to even notice the calendar flipping over from 2016 to 2017. And if the New Year caught you off guard, don’t worry – it’s not too late to make a few business resolutions and goals for the next 12 months. Need some guidance on making 2017 even better than 2016? Here are our biggest and best legal tips for small business from the past year:...

Over a sharp dissent about ‘Jim Crow-like’ comments, a federal appeals court said a black woman did not prove a hostile work environment against a union based on “a smattering of offensive conduct.” The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals said the plaintiff had a novel claim because the court had never addressed whether Title VII covers hostile work environment claims against a union. If the law applied, however, the court said the plaintiff did not have enough evidence to support her claim in Phillips v....

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals highlighted the occasional absurdity of the federal appellate process this week when it dismissed an administrative appeal because the appeal wasn’t originally filed with the appellate court. The short version of the ruling: If you get hit with Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) debarment, appeal directly to a federal appellate court. The long version, of course, is more interesting because it covers allegations of attorney misconduct....

The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals has held that a grand jury’s subpoena to Mazars USA to produce President Trump’s tax returns for the last eight years is enforceable. The panel, which included Chief Judge Katzmann, issued a narrow ruling that “presidential immunity does not bar a state grand jury from issuing a subpoena in aid of its investigation of potential crimes committed by persons within its jurisdiction, even if that investigation may in some way implicate the President....

In a shocking case, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals held that a TSA agent cannot be held liable for violating the civil rights of a traveler he falsely accused of making a bomb threat. Following the analysis under Zigler v. Abbasi, the appellate court refused to extend Bivens to hold a TSA agent liable for retaliating against a passenger that wanted to file a complaint. Additionally, it noted that TSA agents enjoy a special protection for national security reasons....

In an action challenging the EPA’s order permitting certain uses of the pesticide Azinphos-Methyl (AZM), dismissal of the action for lack of jurisdiction is affirmed where the cardinal condition for district court jurisdiction under section 16(a) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, was that the Administrator of the EPA had made a decision “not following a hearing,” and the Administrator did hold a hearing in this instance. Read United Farm Wkrs....

In defendant’s appeal from his sentence of twenty-four months imprisonment and twelve months supervised release imposed after the district court revoked defendant’s supervised release, the sentence is affirmed where 18 U.S.C. section 3583(e)(3) does not require a district court to reduce the maximum term of imprisonment to be imposed upon revocation by the aggregate length of prior revocation imprisonment terms. However, defendant’s term of supervised release is vacated where, under 18 U....

If you have a driver’s license, voter registration, or a state ID, at some point you may be called to report for jury duty in your state. Receiving a summons for jury duty is about as welcome as a traffic ticket. However, serving as a juror is your civic duty, and skipping jury duty can lead to serious consequences, such as being held in contempt of court, fines, and jail time....

Controversy aside, jurists will have to live with the fact that precedent does not allow a re-hearing of the Arab Bank suit which ruled against victims of suicide bombers late last year. This was the final say of the Second Circuit, which finally put to rest the suits brought by families of Israeli victims killed by Palestinian suicide bombers during the Second Intifada. The suit arises out of allegations that the Arab Bank, a foreign corporate entity, had helped funnel monies that were ultimately used by Palestinian terrorist groups for repeated attacks on Israel during the five year conflict between the two countries....

It’s not every day that a garden variety car accident case makes its way up to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. So what does it take for a federal appeals court to overturn a negligence determination? On Tuesday, a three-judge panel of the Eighth Circuit ruled on such a case, finding that a Michigan man, Justin Pohl, could keep his $407,000 jury award for the injuries he suffered in a car crash....

Sergio Hernandez died in Mexico, but the bullet that killed him was fired from the United States. The 15-year-old boy was shot in the head by a Border Patrol agent in 2010. The agent, Jesus Mesa, initially said Hernandez was throwing rocks in order to distract agents from a smuggling operation; his parents say he was simply playing with friends along the unmarked border that separates El Paso, Texas, from Juarez, Mexico....