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DOJ Launches Corporate Whistleblower Awards Pilot Program

In 2024, the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division launched the Corporate Whistleblower Awards Pilot Program to combat corporate crime. The Corporate Whistleblower Pilot Program will run through 2027, before being re-evaluated, and is modeled on other successful whistleblower programs like those administered by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The Pilot Program is designed …

Tabletop Fire Pits Can Explode, Cause Serious Burn Injuries and Death

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is warning consumers to immediately stop using alcohol-burning or other liquid fuel tabletop fire pits following two deaths and at least 60 injuries in the past five years. Tabletop fire pits — also called fire pots, miniature fireplaces and personal fireplaces — are small, portable fireplaces that can be placed on a tabletop or …

NHTSA Issues Final Rule for Auto Whistleblower Program

On December 12, 2024, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published the final rule formalizing its whistleblower program, as required by the Motor Vehicle Safety Whistleblower Act. The final rule deviates little from the rule proposed by NHTSA in April 2023, which addressed definitions of key program terms, tip-filing requirements, award applications, how decisions are made on award applications, …

SEC Obtains Orders for a Record $8.2 Billion in Financial Remedies in Fiscal Year 2024

In fiscal year 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed 583 enforcement actions and obtained orders for $8.2 billion in financial remedies—the most ever obtained by the SEC in a single fiscal year. The $8.2 billion consisted of $6.1 billion in disgorgement and prejudgment interest and $2.1 billion in civil penalties. The SEC also obtained orders barring 124 individuals from serving …

When Fun Toys Kill: The Products Liability Case Against Water Beads

Water beads are sold for children as toys, educational materials, art materials, sensory tools, and as projectiles for “gel blaster” guns. Adults use them as decorative, crafting and gardening supplies. When these small, colorful beads are swallowed by children, they do not simply get digested and pass through a child’s body. Instead, they absorb fluids and expand to many times …

The Products Liability Case Against Tianeptine: The Deadly “Dietary Supplement” Found at Your Local Store

You see them displayed by the cash register. Neptune’s Fix and other tianeptine-based products promise to help brain function, treat anxiety and depression, and even manage opioid addiction. Unbeknownst to many consumers, these products have been associated with severe adverse medical events, including seizures and even deaths. This article, written by John M. Dodig and Jason A. Daria and published in …

Fisher-Price Recalls Snuga Swings After Five Infant Deaths

In a recall that one federal safety regulator has characterized as “doomed to fail,” Fisher-Price is offering its customers $25 to remove components from its Snuga Swings — which have been linked to five infant deaths — instead of offering a meaningful remedy that would get this unsafe product out of people’s homes. On October 10, 2024, Fisher-Price announced the recall …

Lawmakers Seek to Address Supersized Vehicles That Kill Pedestrians

Federal lawmakers have introduced legislation aimed at reducing the number of pedestrians who are killed and seriously injured in crashes with supersized passenger vehicles. Recent government data show that there are more than 40,000 fatal car crashes per year in the United States. Between 2013 and 2022, pedestrian fatalities increased 57 percent from 4,779 to 7,522, according to the National Highway …

CPSC Warns Against Two Cradle Swings That Pose Suffocation and Fall Hazards

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is warning parents and caregivers to stop using DNYSYSJ and OUKANING cradle swings due to the risk of suffocation and falls. According to the CPSC, the cradle swings violate federal safety regulations for bassinets and cradles. The warning, issued on August 15, 2024, states that the “folds” of the cradle swing’s segmented sleeping pad …

October 31st, 2012

In July of this year, we posted an article about the possible dangers posed to women by the NuvaRing birth control system, which is an intra-uterine device worn by women for a period of three weeks, during which time it slowly releases hormones into the …

October 24th, 2012

This past May, Pennsylvania legislators passed a law that would force the state’s voters to produce some form of photo identification at their local polling places to participate in elections. As of late September (according to a poll conducted by Franklin & Marshall College), 59 …

October 17th, 2012

A few weeks ago, The Wall Street Journal published an article on its website called “How to Stop Hospitals from Killing Us” prompted by the statistic that every week, “medical errors kill enough people to fill four jumbo jets.” The author, Marty Makary, is a …

October 8th, 2012

Fungal meningitis is normally a very rare condition that primarily occurs in patients with weakened immune systems. However, there is currently an evolving and progressing outbreak of a dangerous type of fungal meningitis caused by the organism known as Aspergillus; at this time, there have …

September 26th, 2012

This past August, the largest for-profit hospital chain in the United States uncovered evidence that doctors at its many locations performed heart surgeries that were deemed unnecessary. The New York Times reports that in 2010, a former nurse wrote a letter to the chief ethics …

September 19th, 2012

The Bumbo® Baby Seat, essentially a large piece of molded green foam, has been the subject of two recalls in the last five years. In 2007, 1 million units were recalled in the United States. Now, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), …

September 12th, 2012

On July 11, this blog published a post titled “Justice Delayed Is Justice Denied,” which dealt with the shortage of judges (and thus backlog of civil cases) in Union County, New Jersey. Upon further research, it has become painfully clear that this problem is not …

September 5th, 2012

Reuters reported on August 8, 2012, that Kyleigh’s Law, which requires any New Jersey-licensed drivers under 21 with a provisional license to place a bright red sticker on the top left-hand corner of each of their two license plates for a year, has been upheld …

August 29th, 2012

Last month in Philadelphia, thousands of retired professional football players filed a personal injury class action lawsuit against their shared former employer, the National Football League (NFL). Also named as a defendant in the lawsuit is famous helmet manufacturer Riddell Sports, Inc. The heart of …