Covid-19 Publications
"Paycheck Protection Program poses AML compliance challenges" by Benjamin W. Hutten (Bloomberg Law)
Promised relief started flowing to small businesses recently under the $350 billion Paycheck Protection Program established by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, but many lenders releasing funds now face a substantial compliance burden: establishing an anti-money-laundering...
ArticlesSpecial Alert: The Fed’s Main Street Lending Program: Fitting relief for fintechs and nonbank lenders?
The Federal Reserve Board’s recently announced the Main Street Lending Program, intended to provide financing for a range of small and mid-sized businesses, may provide much needed federal relief for fintech firms and nonbank lenders that has otherwise been lacking. These firms generally have not...
Special Alerts"Attorney-client privilege should not stop at the prison gate" by Elizabeth R. Bailey
U.S. law respects the confidentiality of a prisoner’s communications with counsel, including phone calls and visits, but with one critical exception that goes unnoticed by many attorneys: The government routinely monitors — and then uses in court — emails between federal prisoners and their...
Buckley Commentary & Analysis"CARES congressional oversight: Scope and structure" by Preston Burton (Bloomberg Law)
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, signed in March 2020, enacted an unprecedented level of emergency government spending to provide public health relief and stabilize an economy damaged by the pandemic, and included oversight provisions to monitor how the $2 trillion is spent...
Articles"Op-ed: Prepare for the coronavirus scams: Learning from post-9/11 fraud" by Daniel R. Alonso (Daily News)
On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, Beatrice Kaufman sat in her Hamptons house watching the Twin Towers collapse. Although she lived and worked in Manhattan, her 6,000-square-foot apartment was being renovated, so she stayed at her country home instead. But that did not stop her from filing papers...
Articles"CARES Act increases oversight and criminal investigations" by Daniel R. Alonso (Bloomberg Law)
The CARES Act will infuse more than $2 trillion into the U.S. economy — the largest such action in history. But if history is any guide, wherever there is a big pot of money, some people will look to steal it. Some desperate individuals might misrepresent their eligibility for unemployment benefits...
ArticlesSpecial Alert: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac ease RON requirements
On March 31, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac issued bulletins updating and clarifying their respective requirements for remote online notarizations as they seek to reduce in-person notarizations during the Covid-19 pandemic. Remote online notarization allows a notary to use electronic tools — typically...
Special AlertsSpecial Alert: Treasury and SBA release initial details on Paycheck Protection Program
On Tuesday, March 31, the Department of the Treasury and the Small Business Administration released initial details regarding the nearly $350 billion Paycheck Protection Program established by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. Under the program, private lenders will offer SBA-...
Special AlertsSpecial Alert: CARES Act places significant burdens on servicers of consumer debt but provides some relief to depositories
President Trump late last week signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act that attempts to soften the negative economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on consumers, including by suspending payments for certain student loan borrowers and enabling mortgage loan borrowers to...
Special AlertsSpecial Alert: CARES Act “Paycheck Protection Program” offers relief and opportunities for small businesses and lenders
On March 27, President Trump signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act or the Act). The legislation’s first title, the “Keeping American Workers Paid and Employed Act,” provides a host of relief measures for small businesses, including $349 billion for Small Business...
Special Alerts