Hunton Retail Law Resource

As we kick off a new year, the Hunton Andrews Kurth Retail team would like to provide you with a rundown of the top posts we shared throughout 2022. Please click the links below to review these highlights.

We look forward to continuing to provide you with real-time, relevant content regarding legal and regulatory developments in the retail space. If you would like to receive email alerts when new posts are published to this blog, please enter your email address in the ‘Subscribe’ field. Thank you for your readership!

This is an extraordinary and unprecedented time for the retail industry. Our 2020 Retail Industry Year in Review provides an in-depth analysis of the issues and challenges that retailers faced in the past year, and a look ahead at what they can expect in 2021.

In-house lawyers know that an email is not automatically cloaked in privilege just because a lawyer receives it. But when exactly are communications and information privileged, and when are they not? Are there risks for inadvertent waivers that an in-house lawyer might not be thinking about? And could remote work affect privilege?

This article outlines what an in-house lawyer should know about the attorney-client privilege and work-product doctrine and the top four things that in-house lawyers should communicate to clients about protecting privilege.

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On July 22, 2020 Leaflink, a B2B cannabis marketplace, closed a $250 million senior secured credit facility with an undisclosed private lender. In the press release, Leaflink described the deal as “one of the largest debt financing deals completed in cannabis to date and…an important milestone for the industry.” When most people think of cannabis industry financing for retailers or operators, rather than debt financing, they think of sale-leasebacks with a cannabis real estate investment trust (REIT). Leaflink intends to use the money to provide supply chain financing options to its retailer clients through its new platform Leaflink Financial. This blog post gives a brief overview on why sale-leasebacks are ubiquitous and why debt financing is on the rise.

Few other retail sectors have seen the expansion that dollar stores have in the past decade, not to mention in the chaotic first half of 2020. During a time when other retailers are struggling to stay afloat due to social distancing requirements and widespread economic uncertainty, dollar stores are continuing to increase their physical presence as well as their profits. Dollar stores tend to cluster in either rural areas where access to traditional grocery and retail stores is limited or in underserved urban communities that lack full-service grocery stores.

Importers that have suffered “significant financial hardship” due to COVID-19 may qualify for a 90-day pay extension for certain tariffs. On April 19, 2020, following calls for trade liberalization to ease economic pressures, the Trump administration issued an executive order, along with a temporary final rule by the US Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which postpones the time to deposit certain duties, taxes and fees. However, the 90-day pay extension is limited in scope and certain goods are not eligible for the extension.

Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP’s retail industry team is pleased to announce their Band 2 ranking in the 2018 Chambers and Partners guide. Chambers and Partners notes that the team is known for its “expertise in technology, data protection and e-commerce…[with a] robust class action defense practice.” Clients attest that one of the team’s strengths is “innovati[on] on complex litigation.”