Outlook 2020: Gambling Legislation and Enforcement in the Netherlands

By Marijn Bodelier, Jacomijn Christ and Jan Herfkens on Posted in Gaming, Global

The Dutch government is updating its legislation and policy on both online gambling and land-based gambling. In GT Alert, we briefly describe the most relevant legal developments of 2019 in this area, and also look forward to 2020.

Online gambling’s illegality in the Netherlands notwithstanding, the number of people in the Netherlands who participate in online gambling has increased steadily over the last few years. According to research of Motivaction (link in Dutch), 1.8 million Dutch people admitted to having participated in an online gambling game (at least) once. Most gambling websites operate in other countries (such as Isle of Man, Gibraltar, Malta) and are accessible to Dutch gamblers from these locations. To regulate and control online gambling, the Dutch Senate (Eerste Kamer) approved the Remote Gambling Act (Wet kansspelen op afstand) in February 2019. This new legislation legalizes online gambling for providers that have obtained a permit.

Read the full GT Alert.

Are Employment Agreements Necessary for US Employees?

By Meira Ferziger on Posted in Israel, Labor & Employment

At the request of the Guberman Group, which provides accounting and financial management services to Israeli companies, including those operating in the United States, attorney Meira Ferziger has prepared an article addressing the commonly considered question of whether United States-based employees should have written employment agreements.

Read the article in English.

Read the article in Hebrew.

Federal Communications Commission Rules Require Communications in Video Games to Be Accessible and Usable

By Debra McGuire Mercer and David Schulman on Posted in Gaming, Technology, telecommunications, Video Games and Esports

Advanced Communications Services (ACS) that are available in video games, such as instant messaging, enable players to interact with other players and offer an enhanced gaming experience. The Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 (CVAA) updated accessibility laws to ensure that persons with disabilities have access to modern technologies used in communications. In 2012, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted rules implementing CVAA that required ACS services and equipment used for ACS to be accessible to persons with disabilities.

To learn more about the accessibility objectives that must be met by video games, read the full GT Alert “Federal Communications Commission Rules Require Communications in Video Games to Be Accessible and Usable.”

Announcing Riskified’s $165 Million Funding Round

By Joey Shabot on Posted in Cybersecurity, Israel, Retail, Risk Management, Startup Nation, Startups, Technology, Tel Aviv, Venture Capital

Congratulations to Riskified on their Series E funding round of $165 million! Greenberg Traurig is proud to have represented an institutional investor in this transaction, and excited to have been part of this incredible achievement.

For more details, please click here.

The Israel Hotel Investment Summit: Take Five!

By Greenberg Traurig on Posted in Event, Global, Hospitality, Israel, Real Estate, Startups, Tel Aviv, Venture Capital

On Nov. 20-21, 2019, Greenberg Traurig participated in and sponsored the Israel Hotel Investment Summit in Tel Aviv, Israel. Washington, D.C. office Shareholder and Hospitality Practice Co-Chair Nelson Migdal joined a panel, together with representatives of leading international hotel brands, on the benefits of international brand penetration into the Israel hotel market, as well as legal structuring and operational models for hotels in Israel. Attended by more than 200 professionals from Europe, the United States, and Israel, the conference demonstrated Israel’s status as a major international hospitality destination. Tel Aviv office Managing Shareholder Joey Shabot (M&A), Shareholder Lawrence Sternthal (Real Estate), and Associate Saar Warner-Lipton (Real Estate) also attended the summit.

Here are the top five highlights: Continue Reading

Adam Snukal Discusses Effects of Privacy Laws on Israeli-Based Call Center Technology Providers

By Greenberg Traurig on Posted in compliance, Cybersecurity, Data protection, Israel, Privacy and Data Security, Technology, Tel Aviv, telecommunications

On Nov. 25, 2019, GT Shareholder Adam Snukal participated in a fire-side chat at NICE’s Annual Personal Connections Elevated Israel Conference. The discussion focused on the effects of the GDPR, CCPA, and other privacy laws on Israeli-based call center technology providers that operate in an increasingly global arena. Continue Reading

Amadeus leads a $9.8M investment round in Refundit to digitalize VAT refunds for travelers worldwide

By Greenberg Traurig on Posted in Firm News, Israel, Startup Nation, Startups, Venture Capital

Congratulations to our long-standing client Amadeus upon its investment in Refundit, an Israeli startup which is developing a mobile solution to make it easier for travelers to get their VAT money back.

For more details, please click here.

U.S. House Passes Bill That Would Require Disclosure of Beneficial Owners of U.S. Corporations and Limited Liability Companies

By Saar Warner-Lipton on Posted in Corporate

A newly approved Bill could significantly increase disclosure requirements for Israelis invested in or operating business in the U.S. The Corporate Transparency Act of 2019 would require that the identities (including addresses and passport information) of the “beneficial owners” of US LLC’s or corporations be reported. Updated information would need to provided annually. While similar requirements are the norm in the E.U., it has until now been possible for many people to establish or invest in a U.S. entity while keeping their identity hidden. The bill, if enacted in law, would apply immediately to newly formed entities, with existing companies having two years to comply.

Click here to read the full GT alert prepared by Carl A. Fornaris (Shareholder), Marina Olman-Pal (Of Counsel), and Anthony J. Fernandez (Associate) of GT’s Miami office.

^ Attorneys in the Tel Aviv office do not practice Israeli law.

2 Recent Cases Impacting False Claims Act Litigation and Investigations Deserve the Attention of Health Care Providers and Private Equity Investors

By Mark L. Mattioli and Jessica Natali on Posted in Health Care & FDA

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida announced on Sept. 19, 2019, that it settled a qui tam False Claims Act case in which a private equity firm was a named defendant. See United States ex rel. Medrano and Lopez v. Diabetic Care Rx LLC, d/b/a Patient Care America, et al., No. 15-CV-62617 (S.D. Fla.). On Sept. 9, 2019, in a win for hospice and other health care providers, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in United States v. Aseracare, Inc., — F.3d — (11th Cir. 2019) that a mere difference in medical judgment cannot rise to a false statement under the False Claims Act. This case involved hospice care and whether the defendant improperly certified patients as being terminally ill so as to meet the Medicare requirement for hospice services.

Click here for the full GT Alert, which discusses these two cases.

LexBlog