The American Thoracic Society (ATS) on April 3, 2020 published a guidance document providing several suggestions for treatment of COVID-19. The document, entitled “COVID‐19: Interim Guidance on Management Pending Empirical Evidence,” was developed by an ATS-led international task force and addresses several recently publicized potential treatment regimens.
To read the full text of this post by Duane Morris attorney Alison Rosenblum, please visit the Duane Morris Health Law Blog.
Landlords are often among the very first to feel the impacts of their tenant’s financial woes. In today’s unpredictable economic environment, many businesses are forced to shut their stores temporarily while the risks of COVID-19 continue to play out. Within the last few days many large and small retailers have unilaterally announced publicly that they would not be paying upcoming rent. In these unprecedented times, landlords must be aware of the risks they face in light of what is certain to be a previously unheard of level of tenant defaults.
To read the full text of this post by Duane Morris partner Rick Hyman, please visit the Duane Morris Business Reorganization and Financial Restructuring Blog.
The Coronavirus Economic Stabilization Act (CESA, under Title IV of the CARES Act) puts in place a foreclosure moratorium for certain residential properties (including individual units of condominiums and cooperatives), and an eviction moratorium for tenants of certain “covered property” (predominantly multifamily housing units). The foreclosure moratorium applies to foreclosures of single family residential real property (designed for occupancy by one to four families) subject to federally backed mortgage loans (prohibiting loan servicers from initiating foreclosure actions). The eviction moratorium applies to lessor eviction actions based on nonpayment of rent or other fees and charges from single family and multifamily properties that (i) participate in certain federal housing voucher programs, (ii) have a loan that was made or guaranteed a federal program, or (iii) were purchased or securitized by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac (collectively, “Covered Property”) (prohibiting lessors from intiating eviction actions). In addition to the imposition of the above noted moratoria, CESA has mandatory forbearance provisions that apply to loans on single and multifamily residential property with federally backed mortgages.
To read the full text of this Duane Morris Alert, please visit the firm website.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to take its economic toll, many companies with outstanding bonds worry that they will not have enough cash on hand to repay their bonds on their stated maturity date, or that their bond covenants are, or may soon become, under pressure. These companies may benefit from amending their bonds to defer payment, achieve greater covenant flexibility or make other advantageous changes. For other companies, the decline in the bond markets presents an opportunity to repurchase their bonds at a significant discount.
“Liability management” is an umbrella phrase for a variety of techniques that companies can use to manage their outstanding bonds. These include redemption, open market repurchases, tender offers, exchange offers and consent solicitations. This Alert provides an overview of key legal considerations applicable to liability management transactions.
To read the full text of this post, please visit the Duane Morris and Selvam COVID-19 Resource Blog.
As of 5 April 2020, Singapore has reported more than 1,300 cases and six deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While Singapore is handling the COVID-19 pandemic better than most nations, the crisis continues to intensify at an increasing rate. As such, there is the continued need to be vigilant in enforcing social distancing and isolation measures.
Even as countries all over the world begin increasing such preventative health measures, the pandemic is also devastating the global economy, including Singapore. During times of economic downturn and uncertainty, controlling fixed costs such as labour becomes even more pressing for companies. Businesses in almost every sector have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and many are looking to cut costs during this period of crisis. While every business faces unique considerations, the following guidance aims to clarify issues relating to safe distancing practices at the workplace, cost-saving and business continuity measures, and the available government support during this health and economic crisis for Singaporean businesses.
To read the full text of this Duane Morris Alert, please visit the firm website.
The global COVID-19 pandemic, and the response by the Singapore government will have important consequences for the construction industry. This article provides a summary of the current laws, our analysis of how it will affect industry players, and various legal and practical issues that may arise.
To read the full text of this post, please visit the Duane Morris & Selvam COVID-19 Resources Blog.
On April 6, 2020, the Judicial Council of California, under the direction of California Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani Gorre Cantil-Sakauye, adopted 11 categories of COVID-19 emergency rules to help California courts balance the health and safety needs of the community with the civil and constitutional rights of various parties during the COVID-19 pandemic.
To read the full text of this Duane Morris Alert, please visit the firm website.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt our lives, wreak havoc on our economy and force millions to social distance, shelter at home or even quarantine, scientists across the globe have turned their focus and expertise to developing new treatments and vaccines aimed at containing the effects of this virus.
The need for this life-saving work has never been more apparent or more urgent. We owe them a sincere debt of gratitude as our lives may literally depend on their success. And as the hard work of these scientists starts to bear fruit, the demand for these treatments will be so urgent and of such magnitude that no single company will likely be able to scale up, manufacture and distribute the treatment to all those in need.
The U.S. government has several options at its disposal to intervene―if necessary―to ensure a low priced treatment is rapidly made available to those in need.
To read the full text of this Duane Morris Alert, please visit the firm website.
On Tuesday, April 21, 2020, Seth A. Goldberg, partner and team lead of the Duane Morris Cannabis Industry Group, and Justin M. L. Stern, Duane Morris associate, will present at the webinar, “Cannabis 303: Civil Litigation and COVID-19 Implications for the Cannabis Industry: An Unavoidable Consequence of a Maturing U.S. Cannabis Market.”
Please join the attorneys to review the recent landscape of cannabis-related commercial litigation, discuss the potential impact of COVID-19 on marijuana- and hemp-related civil litigation, and learn best practices for businesses with respect to preparing for, and possibly preventing, potentially resource-draining and almost always disruptive civil litigation matters.
The coronavirus pandemic may spur new thinking about patent issues, as owners of relevant patents face the risk of backlash for asserting them, and companies developing equipment or treatments consider ways to limit potential liability. […]
There has already been public outcry over patents related to COVID-19, and such responses will likely grow in intensity if an effective treatment is seen as being hindered by patents. So companies may have to think about using their patents differently than they normally would, attorneys say. […]
“Most companies are thinking differently right now than they were six months ago,” Patrick Gallagher of Duane Morris LLP said. “I would think there would definitely be hesitancy around pursuing [an infringement case] right now.” […]
To read more of Mr. Gallagher’s comments and for a link to the full article, please visit the firm website.
