Privacy & Cybersecurity

Newly elected Crowell & Moring chair Angela B. Styles, partner and co-chair of the Government Contracts Group, is profiled by The National Law Journal. Styles discusses her childhood, past experience in both the federal government and private practice, and how she arrived at Crowell & Moring. When referring to the firm's visions for the firm's future, Styles notes that she plans "not growing for growth's sake," and hopes to strengthen practices such as cybersecurity and health care while maintaining the firm's government contracts, regulatory, and litigation reputation.  

Newly-elected chair of Crowell & Moring, Angela B. Styles, is featured in The Washington Post's "Capital Business" section after assuming her new role. The article notes that Styles, who joined the firm in 2007, is the second woman to serve as chair in firm history. "I am honored to serve as chair of Crowell & Moring and to be part of a long tradition of firm leaders who have helped to build a truly unique firm over the past 35 years," Styles said.

The National Law Journal reports the news that Angela Styles, partner and co-chair of Crowell & Moring's Government Contracts Group, has been elected as the firm's new chair. Referring to her predecessor, Kent A. Gardiner, who stepped down due to term limits, Styles notes: "It's a pretty good foundation I have to start with. I'm sure I will change some things. But we're at such a good place right now, we just need to keep thinking forward," she said.

Washington, D.C.-based partner and co-chair of the firm's Advertising & Product Risk Management Group, Christopher A. Cole, speaks to E-Commerce Times regarding recent Federal Trade Commission (FTC) data breaches. In the case of FTC v. Wyndham Worldwide, Wyndham is charged with violating the FTC Act by claims their privacy policy misrepresented the security measures the company had in place with a failure to safeguard personal information. Wyndham is fighting back, arguing the fundamental legal authorities the FTC relies on to protect consumer privacy. One of these authorities is the 'unfair practice' provision of the FTC Act which Cole says is an issue "that has ramifications far beyond data security, and it would be a major blow to the FTC if the court placed significant constraints on the FTC here."

Crowell & Moring Health Care Group attorneys, Arthur N. Lerner, Christine M. Clements, and A. Xavier Baker, discuss with Bloomberg BNA the top list of issues for 2015 as noted by the BNA's Health Insurance Report advisory board members in the annual Outlook survey. Of the top 10 issues, the question as to whether or not the Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies will remain the law ranks high on the list. As many agree that blanket repeal of the ACA is unlikely, Lerner believes that "They [Congress] then may try to repeal individual pieces, such as the risk sharing, the medical device tax, the individual mandate, and other elements." The article continues, touching on other potential risks for health insurers and what they should be aware of and to look out for as the year unfolds.

Washington, D.C.-based partner and co-chair of the firm's e-Discovery & Information Management Group, David D. Cross, tells Law360 about working with Judge Paul W. Grimm, who has recently been appointed one of the newest federal judges on the Maryland federal bench. Cross, who is familiar with Grimm's 16 years of experience as a magistrate judge, sheds light on Grimm's well-regarded reputation. When Judge Grimm wants to address something, "his decisions are written like law review articles," Cross says. "He makes his opinions very useful beyond the confines of his own case."

The U.S. Supreme Court on June 25 ruled that online television streaming service Aereo Inc. violates copyright law by retransmitting over-the-air programming without authorization. John Stewart, IP partner in the firm's Washington, D.C., office and co-head of the firm's member of the firm's global TLD and Domain Name Practice, tells Law360 why the decision in American Broadcasting Companies Inc. v. Aereo Inc. is significant. "America's unique system of free broadcasting provides unparalleled programming service. The Copyright Act carefully balanced the interests of creators, distributors and viewers to sustain this service. The court's decision was plainly driven by the transparency of Aereo's attempts to evade Congress's balance. Even the dissent agrees it 'ought not to be allowed.' The court's opinion reinforces the balance, without impinging on new methods of program delivery developed in cooperation with content owners. The court's analysis of the Transmit Clause and users' prior rights in stored content may affect the remand on Aereo's delayed-transmission services, notwithstanding prior court of appeals decisions."