The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) published its controversial final “walkaround” rule on April 1, 2024. The final rule clarifies the rights of employees to authorize a representative – employee or non-employee – to accompany an OSHA compliance officer (CSHO) during an inspection of their workplace. This can include a … Continue Reading
On February 28, 2024, the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) published a news release regarding the voluntary market phase-out of per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in grease-proofing substances used on food packaging. The FDA stated that the completion of this phase-out “eliminates the primary source of dietary exposure to PFAS from authorized food contact uses.”… Continue Reading
After a few years off, we are delighted to bring back our Annual UK Environmental, Safety & Health Conference this June. The theme is Managing Developing ESH Risks in the UK and Internationally. We are excited to have the following speakers join us for what will be an interesting discussion:… Continue Reading
President Biden signed into law the “Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023” on December 29, 2022 (the enactment date). The Act includes the Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act of 2022 (“MOCRA”) which increases the authority of the United States Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) to regulate cosmetics and provide enhanced protections for consumers. The new law includes … Continue Reading
On June 15, 2022, US EPA issued its prepublication notice announcing final drinking water health advisories for PFBS and GenX, as well as interim drinking water health advisories for PFOA and PFOS.1 In this publication, we discuss US EPA’s recent announcement and consider how it could impact industries moving forward: Drinking Water Advisory Levels for … Continue Reading
In April, we published an article about the UK COVID-19 Public Inquiry’s four-week long consultation process into its draft Terms of Reference (“TORs”), which will shape the scope of issues to be addressed by the Inquiry. Last month, the Inquiry published its summary report into the consultation, having analysed the 20,000 responses received, and meeting … Continue Reading
Squire Patton Boggs invites you to join us for a webinar on 5 May 2022 where we will discuss the environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues that affect food manufacturers, from changes in legislation, priorities for remaining compliant, navigating supply chain transparency and how, together, these feed into the wider corporate governance obligations both current … Continue Reading
On Thursday, January 21, President Joe Biden signed an Executive Order that directed the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to issue guidance to employers on protecting workers from COVID-19, including protecting workers from COVID-19 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act and protecting other categories of workers from COVID-19. In this alert we outline … Continue Reading
In April 2017, the UK Joint Committee on Human Rights suggested that it might be appropriate for a “failure to prevent” mechanism, such as the one found in section 7 of the Bribery Act 2010, to be applied to business and human rights. Earlier this year, the British Institute of International and Comparative Law (“BIICL”) … Continue Reading
On April 26, 2020, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued interim guidance for the US meat and poultry industry. The guidance contains a number of recommendations aimed at stemming transmission among workers in this particularly vulnerable industry, which continues to face plant … Continue Reading
In a little over a couple of months, the COVID-19 outbreak has dramatically altered the landscape of business. Companies are struggling to cope with massive uncertainty and an array of unforeseen challenges, including everything from supply chain and revenue disruptions caused by reduced consumer demand, to staffing shortages, travel restrictions, business closures, and other such … Continue Reading
While COVID-19 has turned everyone’s focus toward safety and health generally, it has forced US employers specifically to focus on the safety and health of their employees during an unprecedented time. Employers in the US have common law and statutory duties to ensure safe workplaces, but the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly disrupted many of the … Continue Reading
The coronavirus, and the illness caused by the coronavirus, COVID-19, are dominating headlines, stock markets and daily conversation. They are also raising many questions—and employers in the U.S. are facing one such critical question: How do we help ensure the health and safety of our employees? Squire Patton Boggs helps provide some answers below.… Continue Reading
We are pleased to share with you the latest edition of “frESH Law Horizons – Key Developments in UK & EU Environment, Safety and Health Law, Procedure and Policy”. In our June edition, we summarise 34 developments in the environmental, safety and health sector. Some of the top stories this month include: A food grain storage … Continue Reading
On Tuesday, April 16, 2019, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed Senate Bill 19-181 (SB19-181) into law. SB19-181 was a controversial bill as it made its way through the Colorado Legislature, and it is now a controversial piece of legislation. Indeed, SB19-181 passed the Colorado Legislature strictly along party lines, and it has now pitted some … Continue Reading
We are pleased to share our latest edition of “frESH Law Horizons: Key Developments in UK & EU Environment, Safety and Health Law, Procedure and Policy”. In the November edition, we summarise 35 developments in the environmental, safety and health sector. Top stories this month include: The Institute of Safety and Health responding to the Sentencing … Continue Reading
There has been a general decline in health and safety inspection and enforcement by local authorities since 2010 principally due to reduced funding and competing priorities, according to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Occupational Safety and Health (APPGOSH). According to their recent report, “Local Authorities and Health and Safety”: the overall number of inspections and … Continue Reading
We are pleased to share with you the latest edition of “frESH Law Horizons: Key Developments in UK & EU Environment, Safety and Health Law, Procedure and Policy”. This month we review 40 new developments that may be of interest to those in the environmental, safety and health sector, including: BUPA was fined £3 million after … Continue Reading
Whilst the recent case of R v ATE Truck & Trailer Sales Limited provides a reminder to litigants that judges are not bound by parties’ agreed bases of plea, it also serves to point out that judges will not necessarily be correct to depart from them. Facts of the case The defendant allowed a scrap metal … Continue Reading
The recent UK Court of Appeal judgement in the case of R v Whirlpool UK Appliances Limited provides a useful analysis on the approach that courts should take when sentencing “very large organisations” under the Sentencing Council’s Definitive Guideline on Corporate Manslaughter, Health and Safety and Food and Safety Hygiene Offences (“the Guideline”).… Continue Reading
The Definitive Guideline for Health and Safety Offences, which came into force on 1 February 2016 (2015 Guideline), must be applied when sentencing cases in England and Wales. Being separate and distinct legal jurisdictions, the courts of Scotland and Northern Ireland are not bound to follow the 2015 Guideline. Historically, Scottish courts have still recognised … Continue Reading
A common question that arises when performing environmental due diligence on commercial real estate is the degree to which the presence of asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) should be investigated. In the case of ACMs, “what you don’t know can hurt you” and, therefore, the old axiom of “less is more” does not apply. This is especially true regarding asbestos not only … Continue Reading
In the wake of the UK’s more prescriptive approach towards sentencing adopted in the recent Definitive Sentencing Guidelines which came into force on 1 February 2016, the UK Sentencing Council has now turned its focus to the guidelines regarding the credit available for the entering of a guilty plea in criminal cases. The Sentencing Council … Continue Reading
The Sentencing Council published draft sentencing guidelines for health and safety, corporate manslaughter and food safety and hygiene offences on 13 November 2014. Following the closure of its consultation period on 18 February 2015, the Sentencing Council has today, 3 November 2015, published the new definitive guidelines along with supporting documents, including the response to … Continue Reading
