News

In McKey v. U.S. Bank Nat’l Ass’n, No. 19-2638 (8th Cir. October 23, 2020), the Eighth Circuit ruled in favor of the employer in a case where an employee alleged it had illegally fired her on account of her age and in retaliation for reporting suspected age discrimination. The Eighth Circuit is the federal jurisdiction of appellate courts that includes Arkansas, and therefore valuable points can be drawn from its analysis on how similar cases will be analyzed in Arkansas.

With interest rates remaining historically low, a number of Arkansas banks have taken steps to secure an additional capital cushion through a subordinated debt offering. As reported earlier this year by American Banker, the pandemic has incentivized institutions to shore up capital as a protection against credit losses, as well as preparing to take advantage of potential lending and M&A opportunities.

Friday, Eldredge & Clark has been voted Best Law Firm by the readers of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Each year, readers of the newspaper vote for the best Central Arkansas businesses in its Best of the Best Readers' Choice Awards. The winners are featured in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's Sunday, October 25th issue and posted online.

Attorneys Price C. Gardner, Michael S. Moore and Bryan W. Duke have recently been named to the Legal Elite 2020 rankings by Arkansas Money and Politics. The Legal Elite is a collection of 100 of the state’s top attorneys with emphasis on specific areas of law. The list is created from nominations from AMP readers.

While healthcare providers were reeling from the chaos surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) quietly released two final regulations related to interoperability and data exchange across the healthcare industry. These rules implement directives from the 21st Century Cures Act and President Trump’s Executive Order 13813, and both final rules bring change and new compliance concerns for healthcare providers.

Attorney Taylor A. Stockemer graduated on Friday, Oct. 9 from the Leadership Greater Little Rock Program. He is a member of the Class of XXXV. LGLR is a nine-month community leadership program from the Little Rock Regional Chamber.

James C. Baker Jr., a partner with Friday, Eldredge & Clark, was voted into the American Board of Trial Advocates at the National Board Meeting on Saturday, October 3, 2020. Attorneys Michelle Ator, Donald H. Bacon, William Mell Griffin III, Michael McCarty Harrison, James M. Simpson, Jr.and Frederick S. Ursery are also members.