Tag: conflict minerals
D.C. Circuit grants petition for panel rehearing of conflict minerals case
by Cydney Posner The D.C. Circuit court of Appeals has granted the petitions of the SEC and Amnesty International for panel rehearing (and the motion of Amnesty to file a supplemental brief) in connection with the conflict minerals case, National Association of Manufacturers, Inc. v. SEC. (The Court also ordered that […]
New version of conflict minerals reporting template now available
by Cydney Posner The Conflict-Free Sourcing Initiative (CFSI) has now made available a new version of the conflict minerals reporting template (CMRT) that has become the standard tool for gathering information from suppliers on conflict minerals The new template can be downloaded for free. The template is designed to help […]
A peek into Corp Fin’s assessment of the first year of conflict minerals filings
by Cydney Posner As those who worked on conflict minerals this past year can attest, the SEC was not exactly lavish in providing guidance on the application of its rules. As reported by Bloomberg, director of Corp Fin, Keith Higgins, speaking at the ABA meeting of the Business Law section […]
Monumental effort by some to comply with conflict minerals rule: is it helping or hurting?
by Cydney Posner For some companies, compliance with the SEC’s conflict minerals rule required a truly monumental effort. According to this article in the WSJ, one company identified over 38,000 suppliers– pause on that a moment: thirty-eight thousand suppliers! – of components for its products that might contain conflict minerals (tin, tantalum, […]
Publish the list — hold the irony
by Cydney Posner As required by section 1502(d)(3)(C) of Dodd-Frank, the U.S. Commerce Department has compiled and posted (albeit more than a year late) a list of ”all known conflict mineral processing facilities worldwide.” Without the slightest hint of irony, Commerce notes that the list does “not indicate whether a […]
En banc opinion of D.C. Circuit upholds American Meat Institute case — what does it mean for the conflict minerals case?
by Cydney Posner Today, the D.C. Circuit issued its en banc opinion in American Meat Institute v. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, upholding the mandatory disclosure regulation at issue in that case. You may recall that this case concerned the USDA’s country-of-origin labeling rule, which AMI argued compelled disclosure in violation […]
Are the securities laws a First Amendment free zone?
by Cydney Posner When does the First Amendment prevent the Government from compelling companies to make specified disclosures? Isn’t that what the securities laws are all about? Are the securities laws just exempt from First Amendment challenges? After all, the USSCT has long recognized that “the exchange of information about […]
Rare good news from the DRC?
by Cydney Posner This month, the Enough Project issued a relatively favorable report on progress in the DRC and adjoining countries in curtailing the funding of armed groups through the trade in conflict minerals (tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold –3TG). Happily, according to the Enough Project — one of the key proponents […]
Expecting SEC comments on your conflict minerals filing? Don’t hold your breath.
by Cydney Posner Waiting for those helpful and informative SEC comments on your — or even better, other companies’ — Form SD conflict minerals filings? Fuggedaboutit. At today’s PLI Securities Regulation Institute, Shelley Parratt, Corp Fin Deputy Director, Disclosure Operations, confirmed that, while Corp Fin is “assessing” this year’s conflict […]