Representations & Warranties Policies: A Coverage Primer

• Related Attorney(s):
• Jeffrey A. Wothers

• Practice Area(s):
• Business and Corporate Law, 
• Commercial Litigation, 
• Insurance Law
• , Insurance Coverage

Representation and Warranties policies (R&W policies) insure representations made by a Seller to a Buyer in a merger or acquisition transaction, including those concerning financial statements, taxes, compliance with laws, material contracts, employee-related issues, intellectual property, operations-related issues, litigation, fundamentals, and environmental issues. Becoming common since 2014, with more than 20 insurers currently offering R&W policies, they implicate a variety of coverage issues due to their uniqueness in both the insurance industry and in their reflection of the specific deals for which they are purchased. 

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Reported Data Breaches Involving Maryland Residents on the Rise

• Related Attorney(s):
• Spencer S. Pollock

• Practice Area(s):
• Business and Corporate Law, 
• Commercial Litigation
• , Data Security & Privacy Law

Data breaches continue to occur on a spectrum of small to significant scale that can affect businesses of all sizes. In January alone, the Maryland Attorney General’s “Maryland Information Security Breach Notices” noted ninety-four (94) data breaches involved Maryland residents.

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Maryland Takes on the SEC in Debate Over Fiduciary Standard of Care

• Related Attorney(s):
• Michael P. Shaw

• Practice Area(s):
• Business and Corporate Law
• , Securities Law

The Maryland legislature may soon be considering legislation that would require Maryland-licensed broker-dealers to abide by a fiduciary standard of care when recommending stocks, bonds and mutual funds to Maryland consumers. The same law would require Maryland-licensed insurance agents to abide by a fiduciary standard of care when recommending insurance products to Maryland consumers.  

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Baltimore City Increases Recordation & Transfer Taxes for Some Real Estate Transactions

• Related Attorney(s):
• Matthew L. Kimball

• Practice Area(s):
• Commercial Real Estate

In a bid to provide a reliable source of funding for an affordable housing trust, Baltimore City Council has adopted a new excise tax on real estate transactions of more than $1 million, increasing the combined transfer and recordation taxes in Baltimore from 3% to 3.75%, taking effect on January 11, 2019.

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