Author: Brian Sanchez

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September 8, 2017 /AccessWire/ —

NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / September 8, 2017 / Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Equifax Inc.(“Equifax” or the “Company”) (NYSE: EFX). Such investors are advised to contact Robert S. Willoughby at rswilloughby@pomlaw.com or 888-476-6529, ext. 9980.

The investigation concerns whether Equifax and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.

[Click here to join a class action]

On September 7, 2017, post-market, Equifax announced that criminals had exploited a website application vulnerability to gain access to the private information of approximately 143 million U.S. consumers between mid-May and July 2017.

On this news, Equifax’s share price has fallen as much as $8.72, or 6.11%, during after-hours trading on September 7, 2017.

The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Paris, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com.

SOURCE: Pomerantz LLP

ReleaseID: 474930

Source URL: https://marketersmedia.com/shareholder-alert-pomerantz-law-firm-investigates-claims-on-behalf-of-investors-of-equifax-inc-efx/237540

Source: AccessWire

Release ID: 237540

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First Published: Sat, September 09 2017. 01:19 IST

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The government is looking at the feasibility of mandating all unlisted companies to have their shares in dematerialised form, sources said as authorities step up efforts to weed out shell firms.

Preliminary discussions have been initiated on the proposal to dematerialise shares of all unlisted firms in a phased manner, which would still be a gargantuan task considering there are more than 1.6 million registered companies in the country.

While listed firms are required to maintain shares in dematerialised form, there is no such specific requirement in the case of unlisted entities — both public and private.

Sources said deliberations are progressing between the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and markets regulator Sebi on the nitty-gritty of keeping shares of all unlisted companies in the dematerialised form.

The idea of dematerialisation of listed companies’ shares was introduced in the mid-1990s and it took a long time before the scrips were converted into the dematerialised form.

The ministry is implementing the Companies Act, 2013, and all registered companies come under this law.

Dematerialisation is the process by which physical certificates of an investor are converted to an equivalent number of securities in electronic form.

While a final decision is yet to be taken, the exercise of dematerialisation of shares is expected to be put in place soon with specific near-term deadlines for companies to adhere to.

Dematerialised shares are held by depositories, which comes under the purview of Sebi. To chart out time-bound plans and address the practical issues involved in mandating such a requirement, the ministry is discussing various aspects with the regulator, sources said.

Depositories are organisations that hold securities, including shares, debentures, and bonds, of investors in electronic form.

Sources said having shares in dematerialised form would bring in more transparency as well as make it easier for authorities and regulators to track down the transactions.

Even though there are strict norms in place for companies, there have been instances of unlisted firms being misused for illegal funding activities, including by way of opaque share transfer arrangements.

With the government stepping up efforts to weed out shell companies as part of a larger clamp down on the black money menace, dematerialisation of shares of unlisted firms would further help in keeping a vigil on illicit funding activities, sources said.

The ministry has struck off more than 209,000 companies that have not been carrying out business for long and also not made the required statutory filings from the records.

There are more than 1.6 million companies registered and around 6,000 are listed on the stock exchanges.

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A looming battle over corporate social responsibility on the internet has taken an interesting turn. Oracle has backed a proposed US law that will penalize the operators of sex-trafficking websites.

The California database giant says it will support the bipartisan Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, aka SESTA, arguing that it is needed and tightly focussed. You may be astonished that America needs to, in 2017, introduce such a law at all, and that in this day and age its courts protect sex traffickers. But they do, very strongly so, if the pimps are operating on the web. And for that they have some of the wealthiest companies on the planet to thank.

Specifically, traffickers are safeguarded by section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which is an impenetrable force field for internet services. Originally intended to protect infant websites from vexatious litigation, critics say it has become a shield for criminality.

It all came to a head when child trafficking victims sued classified ads website Backpage for allegedly facilitating underage prostitution, and lost in court due to section 230. Meanwhile, Google and its fellow tech goliaths oppose section 230 reforms on free speech grounds – with the “do no evil” ads giant lobbying against any overhaul.

The sponsors of SESTA argue their law bill targets the Communications Decency Act’s forcefield with laser precision, appending the wording “to ensure vigorous enforcement of federal criminal and civil law relating to sex trafficking.”

Meanwhile, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children says the “majority” of the 10,000-plus cases referred to it every year are Backpage.com adult classified ads. One such example was highlighted in Congress by Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) last month:

Yet SESTA has raised the ire of Silicon Valley, which is spreading the word thanks to activist groups it sponsors that proclaim the sky is falling in relation to moves to curtail web firms.

The EFF, which one year received half of its total funding from Google, calls SESTA “censorship” and argues that it is “a bill that has nothing to do with human trafficking and everything to do with censoring sexual expression.” You can judge for yourselves by examining the text yourself – it won’t take you long.

Oracle calls the EFF’s warnings of innovation being chilled absurd. In a letter this week to the bill’s cosponsors Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Senator Portman, Oracle senior VP Kenneth Glueck wrote: “Your legislation does not, as suggested by the bill’s opponents, usher the end of the internet. If enacted, it will establish some measure of accountability for those that cynically sell advertising but are unprepared to help curtail sex trafficking.”

“Frankly we are stunned you must even have this debate,” he added, pointing out that with the benefit of hindsight, Congress would have overwhelmingly amended section 230 with similar wording in 1996.

What’s a sensible measure of making sure wealthy corporations behave with a modicum of social responsibility? Obviously, it lies somewhere on the scale between a website being seen to be guilty of anything that a third party does through the site, and the site being innocent of anything that takes place.

This requires a theory of secondary liability: how much “red flag” knowledge did any given operator have, and what actions did it take to facilitate behavior it knew was criminal?

That shouldn’t be rocket science. For now, though, SESTA (or SESTA-like) tweaks to section 230 can spare Silicon Valley’s blushes. And an internet that protects flagrant child abusers isn’t an internet worth “saving”. ®

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WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO – U.S. legislation may be needed to require social media companies to disclose more about how their platforms are used for political advertising, a senior Democratic lawmaker said Thursday, after new signs of Russian efforts to influence the 2016 election.

Facebook said Wednesday that an operation likely based in Russia had placed thousands of U.S. ads with polarizing views on topics such as immigration, race and gay rights on the site during a two-year period through May.

The world’s largest social network was already under fire for how little transparency it provides about digital political ads. Voters, researchers and journalists cannot see many of the ads politicians and interest groups run on Facebook to target certain groups, nor can they discover who paid for them.

Sen. Mark Warner said Congress may need to update laws in order to make them consistent with rules governing television advertising.

“An American can still figure out what the content is being used in TV advertising. You can go look at the ad,” Warner, of Virginia, said at a security conference.

“But in social media there is no such requirement. So, you know, we may need a legislative solution,” he said.

A second Democratic senator, Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, said Thursday that he supports regulating social media ads like TV ads.

U.S. intelligence agencies say there was an extensive Russian cyberinfluence operation during the 2016 election campaign aimed at helping Donald Trump, a Republican, defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton. Russia has repeatedly denied the allegations.

Watchdog group Common Cause on Thursday filed a complaint with the U.S. Justice Department and the Federal Election Commission alleging that unknown foreign nationals made expenditures during the election in violation of American election law.

Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said he believes what Facebook disclosed is “the tip of the iceberg” and that Twitter and other tech companies should also examine the issue.

Twitter declined to comment. The search engine Google, which also owns video-sharing website YouTube, said Thursday it had seen no evidence of an ad campaign like the one Facebook disclosed.

Warner’s committee is among those investigating alleged Russian meddling and whether members of Trump’s campaign colluded with Moscow.

Facebook’s disclosure about Russian advertising created more questions than it answered, such as which candidates the ads supported and how savvy the targeting was, said David Lazer, a Northeastern University political scientist.

“Does it reflect sophistication and coordination, or did they throw $100,000 at this just to try a bunch of stuff?” he said.

U.S. election law bars foreign nationals and foreign entities from spending money to advocate the election or defeat of a candidate, although non-citizens may advertise on issues. Other ads fall into a legal gray area.

Television has been the backbone of political advertising for decades, and local U.S. broadcasters are required to disclose a wealth of details about the cost and schedules of commercials. The ads can be seen by anyone with a television provided they are aired in their markets.

Online advertising offered by Facebook and other platforms such as Twitter and Google, though, often targets narrow, carefully constructed audiences based on factors such as age, political preference or interests. Facebook is especially valued by advertisers due to its targeting capabilities.

Facebook and Google have, so far, declined to make political ads more transparent. They said Thursday they are both open to reviewing specific congressional proposals.

Facebook also said it is continuing its investigation into possible nefarious activity.

Facebook briefed U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday and turned over information about the ads to Robert Mueller, the special counsel leading his own investigation into alleged Russian interference, a source familiar with the matter said.

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said after the November election that it was a “pretty crazy idea” to think false news stories on the network tilted the election.

Since then, though, the company and other tech firms have taken a series of steps to address deliberately false stories or manipulation of traffic by bots. Facebook in April released a report on “information operations” on the site, including some aimed at influencing the French election this past spring.

The report Wednesday expands on that and, for the first time, shows how paid advertising may have played a role in Russian influence efforts in the United States.

Much of the advertising on Facebook and Google is self-serve and can be easily ordered up through their websites.

“You can, from anywhere in the world, advertise to the entire world through the platform,” said Nathan Persily, a Stanford University law professor. “It’s incredibly empowering, but it doesn’t have all the regulatory trappings that a medium like television has.”

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Notable North Carolina attorney and plaintiff’s advocate Gary Jackson joins the Law Offices of James Scott Farrin. With over 37 years’ experience litigating hundreds of cases, Jackson will handle many of the firm’s more complex, high-stakes cases.

Durham, NC (PRWEB) September 07, 2017

Acclaimed plaintiff’s attorney Gary Jackson, who has tried dozens of trials over his more than 37-year career, recently joined the Law Offices of James Scott Farrin. Working with Hoyt Tessener on Farrin’s expanded litigation team, Jackson will help guide attorney teams as the firm casts a wider litigation net among some of the more complex high-stakes cases.

Jackson has represented North Carolinians against some of the largest and most powerful companies and industries in the country and has been responsible for verdicts and settlements totaling more than $100 million*.

Complex High-Stakes Cases

The disputes Jackson has handled have generally been complex, high-stakes litigation involving people’s health, homes, and financial wellbeing. Jackson has successfully* fought against insurance companies, product manufacturers, general contractors, banks, and other entities which have engaged in wrongful conduct.

Understanding the Other Side’s Methods

Jackson hasn’t always fought for the “little guy.” Earlier in his career, he litigated against them as a defense attorney working for the “other side” representing large corporations, insurance companies, and others. For a combined 15 years he was an associate with Baker & Mackenzie, one of the world’s largest law firms, and subsequently a partner with Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice in North Carolina. Jackson believes the experience he gained understanding how the defense side operates has helped equip him for the successes* he has achieved on behalf of the deserving underserved.

Jackson said, “After 15 years of practicing with large law firms whose claims to fame were representing corporate interests, I decided to take a different path. I realized that my background and values didn’t line up with advancing the interests of cigarette manufacturers, banks, insurance companies, and other powerful interests. When I did represent those clients, I got cases – however meritless – that were dropped on my desk. They were “institutional” clients that had to be represented, whatever the merit of claims against them. Those corporate entities had enormous resources to fight and obstruct. So I decided to represent people and small businesses who should expect the same quality of advocacy as their well-healed adversaries. Now, I evaluate cases based on their merit, not on the hourly fees I could amass. I no longer handle cases because a corporate client might be able to mount a questionable defense and have the money to pay for that. The cases we pursue are for people. People who deserve justice, but don’t have the resources of my former clients. I sleep a lot better now, and I get up earlier.”    

National Recognition for Stucco Class Action Victory

Jackson was one of the lead attorneys in the widely-publicized synthetic stucco lawsuits in the late 1990’s in which he represented homeowners in North Carolina whose homes were damaged due to defective stucco. He represented over 300 homeowners, several commercial businesses, and many homeowner associations in those cases, recovering over $25 million*.

Getting it Done

Jackson was the first in his family to attend college – Duke University, where he also obtained his law degree at the Duke University School of Law.

He later joined the law firm of Womble Carlyle in Winston-Salem earning six figures litigating for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. against smokers who claimed their tobacco products harmed their health. Later he had an opportunity to argue on behalf of Reynolds’ retirees.

That case led him to realize that he preferred fighting for the individual, and he subsequently left Womble Carlyle to join a small plaintiff’s firm that paid about half the salary he had grown accustomed to.

Jackson admitted the salary cut took some getting used to, but he said he was happier representing individuals instead of big corporations. It was while at this firm that Jackson began working on the defective stucco class action case. During the course of this lengthy case, that law firm disbanded. In an effort to keep the lawsuit moving forward for his clients and to be able to pay his own bills, Jackson sold his 401(k) and took an equity line on his home. Eventually he was able to bring the stucco cases with him to another law firm where he settled nearly 300 of them for about $25 million*.

A Recognized Advocate

Gary holds leadership positions in several national and state legal and advocacy organizations, such as the American Association for Justice, the Southern Trial Lawyers Association, and the North Carolina Advocates for Justice. He frequently speaks throughout the country at educational programs for lawyers and authors articles addressing current legal trends and developments.

“North Carolina Super Lawyers” magazine has designated Jackson a ‘North Carolina Super Lawyer’** every year since 2006 for Class Actions and Mass Torts. In 2013, 2014, and 2015 he was designated one of the ‘top 100 lawyers in North Carolina’** and in 2013 and 2015 among the ‘top 25 lawyers in Charlotte’**. Jackson has been recognized by “Business North Carolina’s” ‘Legal Elite’*** in 2003, 2004, 2008, and 2013. He is a charter fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, and holds an AV pre-eminent rating (the highest peer-review rating) from Martindale-Hubbell****.

Why the Law Offices of James Scott Farrin?

As co-counsel on the firm’s 300 Charlotte School of Law cases, Jackson noted the firm’s massive technological and staffing resources as a factor in his decision to join the firm.

Jackson said, “In order to serve individuals who need legal advice and, if necessary, representation, clients need lawyers who have the horsepower, experience, and devotion to this mission: thoroughly evaluating the facts; communicating their conclusions honestly; and vigorously fighting for their rights. I joined James Scott Farrin because I knew that this was the firm where I could best meet those goals and achieve results* for clients at the very highest level. I have practiced for over 37 years, and am very proud of what I have accomplished for people, as their lawyer. This new step is the ultimate opportunity for me to attain my highest and longest reach for the mission that I started 37 years ago.”

Jackson and Tessener will handle cases with Farrin’s expanded litigation team, which includes attorneys Rosa Antunez, Naa Atsoi Adu-Antoh, Christopher Bagley, J. Brett Davis, Sidney Fligel, Patrick T. White, and Walter McBrayer Wood.

Fast Facts about Gary Jackson

• Responsible for verdicts and settlements totaling more than $100 million*
• Multiple verdict awards of $1,000,000 or more for clients*
• Tried and appeared in cases in both state and federal courts
• Concentrates in class action cases, medical malpractice, fraud, and product liability claims
• Graduated from Duke University with a degree in History and earned his J.D. from Duke University School of Law
• Past president of the North Carolina Advocates for Justice; Southern Trial Lawyers Association Board of Governors since 2006; and co-chair of the American Association for Justice Construction Litigation Group since 2002
• In 2012, noted trial lawyer Gerry Spence selected Jackson to attend his Trial Lawyers College***** in Wyoming
• Selected by his peers every year since 2006 to be included as a ‘Super Lawyer’** in “North Carolina Super Lawyers Magazine”
• Each case is unique and must be evaluated on its own merits. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome

** For more information regarding the standards for inclusion, visit http://www.superlawyers.com

*** For more information regarding the standards for inclusion for Business North Carolina’s Legal Elite, visit http://www.businessnc.com

**** For information regarding the standards for peer review ratings, visit http://www.martindale.com

***** http://www.gerry-spence.com

ABOUT THE LAW OFFICES OF JAMES SCOTT FARRIN

The Law Offices of James Scott Farrin is headquartered in the American Tobacco Historic District, adjacent to the Durham Bulls Athletic Park, in Durham, North Carolina, with 13 additional offices statewide in Charlotte, Fayetteville, Greensboro, Greenville, Goldsboro, Henderson, New Bern, Raleigh, Roanoke Rapids, Rocky Mount, Sanford, Wilson, and Winston-Salem. The firm’s 43 attorneys focus on the following practice areas: Personal Injury, Workers’ Compensation, Social Security Disability, Eminent Domain, Intellectual Property, Civil Rights, Mass Torts, and Products Liability. Seven of the attorneys are North Carolina Board Certified Specialists in Workers’ Compensation Law and one is a North Carolina Board Certified Specialist in Social Security Disability Law. The Law Offices of James Scott Farrin is involved in the community, including sponsorship of local philanthropic organizations.

Contact Information:

David Chamberlin

280 S. Mangum Street, Suite 400

Durham, NC 27701

866-900-7078

http://www.farrin.com

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2017/09/prweb14658009.htm

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SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) – A task force weighing whether to move the University of South Dakota School of Law to Sioux Falls is now considering a third option.

The task force met Wednesday to discuss potentially moving only third-year law students from Vermillion to Sioux Falls, the Argus Leader reported . Supporters said such a move could help students at the state’s only law school better connect with law firms and more internship opportunities.

The first option involves moving the entire law school to Sioux Falls. In addition to more internships and law firms, task force members said a larger city would attract more students and faculty.

The second option would keep the school at its current location in Vermillion. Some committee members have said uprooting the law school would not solve declining enrollment, lower bar pass rates and other issues.

South Dakota Supreme Court Chief Justice David Gilbertson, a member of the task force, warned: “Trying to make a connection between the (bar exam) pass rate decline and the fact that the school is in Vermillion is very dangerous.”

Another member, law professor Chris Hutton, said moving third-year students to Sioux Falls would only increase strain on law school faculty.

Students, faculty and business leaders have come forward with several questions, so it’s unclear if the task force is ready to reach a decision, said Mark Mickelson, chairman of group.

The committee hasn’t determined the cost of moving the entire law school to Sioux Falls, though members have decided a new building would be required. The group will meet again Oct. 6 in Vermillion.

___

Information from: Argus Leader, http://www.argusleader.com

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For all the talk of timely onset of the monsoon and the forecast of normal rains, the current season is proving to be a dampener for investors in agrochemical companies. Shares of Rallis India Ltd, Dhanuka Agritech Ltd and Bayer CropScience Ltd have lost in the range of 8-24% over the last three months compared to around a 4% gain in the BSE 500 index.

Of course, these shares had seen smart up-moves ahead of the current crop season on business recovery expectations, especially post the demonetization hit in 2016. But the message implicit in the selling is this: the current season is proving to be anything but robust.

First, the June quarter performance was impacted by inventory liquidation ahead of the goods and services tax implementation. Dealers’ reluctance to stock up goods ahead of the new tax law impacted sales. Rajesh Aggarwal, managing director at Insecticides (India) Ltd, says 10-15 days of the initial part of the season, which is usually used for product placements, was lost as many took time to set up the systems.

Supply-chain channel checks by Investec Capital Services (India) Pvt. Ltd in August showed strong volume offtake from mid-July, which should aid agrochemical sales in the current quarter.

However, as August progressed, the uneven spread of the monsoon became more apparent, with the south and central parts of the country seeing significant deficit in rainfall. This weighed on sowing of crops like paddy, a heavy user of agrochemicals. According to Aggarwal, slow accumulation of water in crucial reservoir levels weighed on paddy sowing.

Nevertheless, as water became available, paddy sowing took place in the latter part of the season in southern India, which can extend the sales season to September and October. Even then, it has to be seen how big a lift this can give to agrochemical sales. According to Aggarwal, many firms are lagging behind their sales targets. “It looked to be a good year. But it is only a medium season, not as strong as initially expected,” he added.

Adding to the uncertainty is sub-par water levels at major reservoirs, which is crucial for the forthcoming (winter) crop season. As of last month, water levels in major reservoirs tracked by the Central Water Commission are 16% less than the year-ago levels and 55% of their storage capacity.

The situation is more acute in the south where water levels are only 36% of the total live storage capacity of the reservoirs. An analyst with a domestic broking firm says he is more worried about the winter crop season. The southern region is a large market for agricultural inputs and low groundwater levels and water availability may weigh on demand in the coming season, he warned.

While the monsoon is yet to withdraw completely, a clear picture on the quantum of business recovery will be known only when the companies declare their current quarterly results. For now, anecdotal evidence does not paint a robust earnings recovery for the sector.

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