transparency News

Federal Court in Delaware Requiring Disclosure of Litigation Funding Agreements

Insurers are applauding a decision by the chief judge for the U.S. District Court in Delaware to require parties to disclose whether a litigation funder has an interest in any cases brought before him. The standing order issued on Monday …

Whitmer Signs Bills to Regulate Pharmacy Benefit Managers

DELTA TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Wednesday signed bipartisan bills into law that are designed to reduce prescription drug costs by regulating pharmacy benefit managers that oversee coverage for employers, insurers and others. Parts of the laws …

Funds Have Made Lawsuit Bets Into a $39 Billion Sector

Hedge funds, private equity and sovereign wealth funds are piling billions into the outcome of high stakes court cases at a faster rate than ever before. Litigation finance — the practice of paying legal fees up front with a promise …

Money, Mimicry and Mind Control: Big Tech Slams Ethics Brakes on AI

SAN FRANCISCO — In September last year, Google’s cloud unit looked into using artificial intelligence to help a financial firm decide whom to lend money to. It turned down the client’s idea after weeks of internal discussions, deeming the project …

New Boeing 737 Max Documents Show ‘Very Disturbing’ Employee Concerns – U.S. House Aide

WASHINGTON — Boeing Co. documents under review by a U.S. congressional panel appear to point to a “very disturbing” picture of commentary from the planemaker’s employees over the grounded 737 MAX aircraft, a congressional aide said on Tuesday. The documents …

How Plaintiff Lawyers Help Corporate America Keep its Secrets

Paula Lawlor was sifting through piles of internal General Motors Co documents in a hotel room outside of Los Angeles when she hit pay dirt: Company records showing that GM knew for years that stronger roofs on its vehicles could …

Proposed Wildfire Board Could Operate Partly in Secret

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A closely watched wildfire law proposed by California Gov. Gavin Newsom would exempt a new safety board from some of the state’s government transparency laws. The Wildfire Safety Advisory Board would advise the state’s utility regulator and …

Quest for Food Stamp Data Lands Newspaper at Supreme Court

WASHINGTON — In the summer of 2010, reporters at South Dakota’s Argus Leader newspaper decided to request data about the government’s food assistance program, previously known as food stamps. They thought the information could lead to a series of stories …

Transparency: Technology’s Next Gift to the Legal Department

Series Summary Insurance executives should be asking a lot of questions right now. They should wonder why their outside law firms haven’t adopted available technology that could eliminate expenses for routine legal work. They should ask their law firms why, …

Oklahoma Workers’ Comp Panel Actions Reviewed

Oklahoma’s newly created Workers’ Compensation Commission is scheduled to meet this week to discuss its plan to be more open and transparent amid a review by the attorney general’s office into possible violations of the Open Meetings Act. Attorney General …