The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) must adhere to public notice-and-comment procedures before it can relieve certain tax-exempt organizations of the burden of reporting the names and addresses of their donors to the IRS, a Montana federal court ruled this week.  Last year’s Revenue Procedure 2018-38 provided that tax-exempt organizations, other than 501(c)(3) charities, were no longer required to report donor information to the IRS on the annual information return, Form 990.  The U.S. District Court…

On July 23, the New York State Department of Financial Services (“DFS”) announced a new Research and Innovation Division.  The Division will assume responsibility for licensing and supervising virtual currencies.  It will also “assess efforts to use technology to address financial exclusion; identify and protect consumer data rights; and encourage innovations in the financial services marketplace.” According to New York Superintendent of Financial Services Linda Lacewell, the Division will “position DFS as the regulator of…

It was not exactly a scene out of “Captain Phillips,” but it was still dramatic.  Aired on Iranian state TV on July 20th, the UK-flagged oil tanker Stena Impero is seen in the background, flanked by a flotilla of fast-moving Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) boats.  Simultaneously, an Iranian Mi-17 helicopter variant hovers over the slow-moving tanker, the camera cuts to an assault team inside the aircraft, and soon individuals fast-rope onto the Stena…

Summary Next week, the Members of the European Parliament (“MEPs”) will gather in Brussels for the final week of committee meetings before the summer recess.  A number of hearings and debates are scheduled to take place. On Tuesday, the Committee on International Trade (“INTA”) will have an exchange of views with Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström on recent developments in EU Trade Policy.  It is expected this hearing will touch on topics such as the EU…

A court in the Netherlands, an international research collective, and a daring Ukrainian operation have brought an international tragedy back to the headlines while providing a case study on new legal and political realities of the 21st century.  On July 17, 2014, a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 exploded in the skies of eastern Ukraine, killing 298 passengers and crew.  From the moment the aircraft was reported missing, it was apparent that it was an exceptionally…