Employment Law
In today’s post we continue exploring the depths of the due diligence phase of purchasing a business. We’ve already discussed the financial issues and the legal issues, and today we’ll look at the operational issues surrounding due diligence. We’ve highlighted four important questions to answer regarding operational issues of a business you’re looking to purchase.
What products or services does the company offer?
It may seem like a no-brainer to most, but it is important to acquire an in-depth knowledge of… Read the rest
Recent cases have triggered a growing discussion about the whistleblower protections under the Dodd-Frank Act. Most believe that the regulations under Dodd-Frank are here to stay (at least another four years) now that President Obama has been reelected. With new regulations comes new judicial interpretations of the regulations. These judicial interpretations often broaden or narrow the scope of the regulation and can have profound impacts depending on the nature of the interpretation. In today’s post, we’ve highlighted the general characteristics of the two major whistleblower protections under Dodd-Frank and how recent cases have expanded… Read the rest
President Obama spoke in Nevada today about the need for widespread immigration reform. Many of the proposals President Obama mentioned, which are weaving their way through Congress, would increase the number of highly skilled immigrant workers allowed in the U.S. By “highly skilled,” we are referring mainly to highly skilled workers in the technology sector. Currently, 65,000 highly skilled workers are allowed to enter the U.S. to work each year under the H1-B visa—the H1-B visa is a specific visa to allow companies to temporarily employ foreign workers in a specialty occupation. It is thought that this may increase to as many… Read the rest
Six states have now prohibited employers from requesting social media passwords during the hiring process. Bill Carleton, at his blog Counselor @ Law, had a number of attorneys (including myself) grade the various legislative attempts to statutorily define employment law. Take a few minutes to check out Bill’s post, which you can find here.
Thanks to Bill for first compiling the definitions and links in a single document and then compiling the opinions and posting the results on his blog!
Here are the full grades… Read the rest
When you sign a non-compete agreement in exchange for $325,000 as part of a severance agreement, you should avoid going to work for your prior employer’s rival (at least for awhile).
Former Amazon executive, Daniel Powers, signed a severance deal that he would not go work for the competition for at least 18 months. In exchange, Powers received $325,000. Rather than avoiding the “competition” and enjoying his severance pay, four months later Powers decided to accept a new job with Google, as the director of cloud platform sales.
While non-competes are not valid in California, the lawsuit that was filed… Read the rest
Last week we started a new contracts series where we explore common terms you see in various contracts and break them down so you can understand exactly what the term means, and its role in your contract. Today’s post will look into the definition of indemnification.
Webster’s Dictionary defines indemnification as “the action of indemnifying” or “the condition of being indemnified,” which is far from helpful. To indemnify is to “secure against hurt, loss, or damage.” Now we’re getting somewhere.
In simple terms, a typical indemnification clause allows you to seek reimbursement for money… Read the rest
An employee handbook can be one of the most important tools you can use to communicate with your employees. A carefully drafted employee handbook will detail your expectations for your employees, as well as what your employees can expect from the company. The handbook should describe your legal obligations as the employer and your employees’ rights. Today’s post details some of the most important sections you should include in your employee handbook.
Anti-Discrimination and Harassment Policies
As an employer you are required to comply with equal employment opportunity laws, which prohibit discrimination and… Read the rest
In Moore v. CAI, a recent Washington Court of Appeals case, the Court discussed a number of important issues related to employment law.
Case Background
Robert Moore worked at Commercial Aircraft Interiors LLC (CAI) as VP of sales and marketing. Moore was laid off by CAI in a general work force reduction. During his tenure with CAI Moore signed a document acknowledging that he understood and agreed to abide by CAI’s “policy of non-disclosure of any and all company policies, trade secrets, intellectual properties, and customer contacts to outside entities or persons.”
Moore sought employment from Volant, a CAI… Read the rest
To follow up last week’s blog post about HIPAA’s Privacy Rule, we’ve boiled down some of the most important administrative requirements for maintaining compliance with HIPAA. Below is a non-exhaustive list of best practices for your business.
- Carefully develop and implement policies and procedures regarding any protected health information (PHI) that are designed to comply with the Privacy Rule. If you’re not sure about your current policies or are in the process of developing new policies for your business, you should contact
Deferred compensation is compensation to employees or independent contractors that is paid after the income is earned. Examples of deferred compensation include stock options, retirement plans, agreements to defer salary or bonuses, severance agreements, and deferred payments in connection with covenants not to compete.
Qualified Deferred Compensation Plans
Under qualified deferred compensation plans, contributions by employers are not taxed to the employees at the time of the contribution. The full amount of the untaxed contribution can be invested. Employers get an immediate deduction for contributions to qualified plans, even though the employee is not taxed at that time. Eventually… Read the rest
