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New-Wave Legal Challenges for Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrencies
As the adoption of cryptocurrencies — or digital currencies that are encrypted for security — spreads throughout the business and financial sectors, so too do the concerns that lack of regulation render the new-age currency susceptible to fraud, manipulation, and to being used as a vehicle for money laundering. Nevertheless, recent efforts by U.S. enforcement agencies to apply and enforce financial regulations indicate that cryptocurrency-based transactions will be under greater scrutiny than ever before.
Now, those involved in global Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), which function like traditional securities offerings, and similar transactions will need to consider whether the cryptocurrencies concerned are securities, as well as the extent to which U.S. securities laws apply to such transactions made outside the United States. In an ICO, virtual coins or tokens are distributed by a company to the public in exchange for another cryptocurrency or fiat currency. These coins or tokens come with particular rights, which could range from a right to access software, redeem the token for a currency or service, or receive future earnings from the company.
In a recent shot across the bow after issuing its report, the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) filed an emergency TRO to freeze the assets of a Brooklyn-based businessman and two of his companies in an attempt to halt two ongoing ICOs, including one that the SEC claimed was disguised as a club membership. See, SEC v. RECoin Group Foundation, LLC. The Department of Justice (DOJ) too has recently weighed in. In July, the DOJ brought criminal charges against BTC-e, a major foreign platform for buying and selling virtual currencies, and its Russian operator for violations of U.S. anti-money laundering laws (more on this below). Other countries, including the United Kingdom and Japan, similarly have indicated that regulatory reform to address cryptocurrency growth is on the horizon. In light of this enforcement environment, those using cryptocurrency to do business need to pay attention to the rules of financial regulatory compliance and the possibility of defending civil or criminal charges.
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Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
The Article 8 Opt In
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.
Legal Possession: What Does It Mean?
Possession of real property is a matter of physical fact. Having the right or legal entitlement to possession is not "possession," possession is "the fact of having or holding property in one's power." That power means having physical dominion and control over the property.
The Stranger to the Deed Rule
In 1987, a unanimous Court of Appeals reaffirmed the vitality of the "stranger to the deed" rule, which holds that if a grantor executes a deed to a grantee purporting to create an easement in a third party, the easement is invalid. Daniello v. Wagner, decided by the Second Department on November 29th, makes it clear that not all grantors (or their lawyers) have received the Court of Appeals' message, suggesting that the rule needs re-examination.