In a decision with potentially wide implications, a FINRA hearing panel recently ruled that Charles Schwab Company Inc. could include a provision in its customer agreements prohibiting customers from bringing class action claims against Schwab and requiring customers to arbitrate their claims. The decision should prompt other firms to review their arbitration agreements and to consider whether to amend their customer agreements to include similar clauses. Click here to view all PDF of this article by Brad Bondi and Jason Halper. The online version may be found at http://www.law360.com/m

The CFPB issued a final rule amending Regulation E ("Electronic Fund Transfers"), which implements the Electronic Fund Transfer Act ("EFTA"), and the official interpretation to the regulation. The final rule conforms Regulation E to an EFTA amendment which eliminated the requirement that a fee notice be posted on or at automated teller machines. Effective Date: March 26, 2013. Cross-Reference(s): Dodd-Frank Title X ("Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection"). See: 78 FR 18221.

A group of regional transmission organizations ("RTOs") and independent system operators ("ISOs") have petitioned the CFTC requesting no-action relief for each petitioner from the Dodd-Frank Act's swaps market provisions for certain transactions on markets administered by RTOs and ISOs from all but the anti-manipulation and anti-fraud provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act until an Exemption Order to be issued by the CFTC is effective with respect to such Petitioner. The entities, including the California Independent System Operator Corporation, Electric Reliability Council of Texas, Inc

Linked below is a brief article appearing in the Energy Metro Desk which quotes CFTC Commissioner O'Malia on the possibility of legislative changes to Dodd-Frank. Click here to view the article in full.The above link is to an excerpt from the most recent issue of Energy Metro Desk, which is published biweekly by Scudder Publishing Group, an energy trade news publishing company based in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Those interested in learning more about the Energy Metro Desk may do so by linking to www.energymetro.com or emailing [email protected] with permission

The SEC has published a litigation release regarding the March 21 charges against Rajarengan "Rengan" Rajaratnam for his role in an insider trading scheme allegedly spearheaded by his older brother, Raj Rajaratnam, and the hedge fund advisory firm Galleon Management. As previously reported, the SEC has now charged 33 defendants in its Galleon-related enforcement actions. Click here to view Litigation Release in full (links externally to SEC website). Related News: "SEC Charges "Rengan" Rajaratnam with Insider Trading" (March 21, 2013), "California Hedge Fund Manager Agrees to $1.8 Million