Pre-Suit is the New Lawsuit: Florida Supreme Court holds Insurance Carrier Had Duty to Defend Policy Holder during Pre-Suit Proceedings
12/22/17
By: Jake Carroll
Given the pace of construction in Florida over the past three decades, it should come as no surprise that the Sunshine State has a robust statutory scheme for construction defect claims. Indeed, Florida’s Construction Defects Statute, Chapter …
UPS Orders Tesla Electric Big Rigs – One Step Closer to Driverless Semis
12/22/17
By: Wayne S. Melnick
Last month, Tesla Motors announced that it was taking its electronic vehicle technology one step further with the unveiling of the Electric Semi Truck . If the numbers are to be believed, the Tesla Semi not …
Are E-mails HOA Property?
12/21/17
By: Michael Kouskoutis
Despite the ubiquitous use of e-mail, Florida law provides no clear answer on the extent to which HOA members can access e-mail communications of the association’s board members. While Florida Statutes permit broad access to “official records …
Enforcing the Rules: Are HOA Fines Too Heavy, Too Light or Just Right
12/21/17
By: David G. Molinari
Nearly one quarter of Californians live in a community governed by an HOA. Associations use fines to curb violations of governing documents. Some associations use fines excessively, while others only rarely. How should fines be used …
Say Goodbye to Arbitration; Say Goodbye to Confidentiality?
12/20/17
By: Christopher M. Curci
On December 4, 2017, New Jersey state Senator Loretta Weinberg introduced Senate Bill S-3581. The bill aims to (1) eliminate arbitration provisions in employment agreements related to discrimination, retaliation, and harassment claims, and (2) eliminate confidentiality …
Gone In A Flash: NLRB Overrules Employee Handbook Standard
12/20/17
By: William E. Collins, Jr.
On December 14, 2017, in a case involving the Boeing Company, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) overruled the Lutheran Heritage workplace policy standard that stood for over 13 years, and ushered in a new …
A Look Ahead to 2018 Legislative Session
12/20/17
By: Allan J. Hayes
The Georgia General Assembly will convene on January 8, 2018 and adjourn after 40 legislative days (usually the end of March). With 2018 being an election year, there is likely to be as much politicking, positioning …
Another Super Bowl in New Jersey? Unlikely!
12/19/17
By: Joshua G. Ferguson
A Third Circuit panel issued an opinion last week in an NFL fan’s class action alleging the National Football League violated New Jersey’s consumer fraud law by failing to make enough 2014 Super Bowl tickets available …
DOL To Rescind 2011 Tip-Pooling Regulations
12/19/17
By: Timothy J. Holdsworth
In 2011, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) revised its regulations to support its position that the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) requires that tipped employees retain all their tips regardless of whether the employer takes …
NLRB Delivers One-Two Punch to Pair of Standards that Have Dogged Employers
12/18/17
By: Paul H. Derrick
In a stunning development, the National Labor Relations Board has overruled a pair of controversial standards that have caused headaches in the business community for years.
In the first case, the NLRB reversed an Obama-era decision …
What Does Your Video Watching Behavior Say About You?
12/18/17
By: Jonathan Romvary
A federal court recently determined that the sharing of an individual’s device identification number and the videos watched does not violate federal privacy laws. In Eichenberger v. ESPN, Inc. , 2017 BL 427074, 9th Cir., No. 15-35449 …
Private Passenger Auto Rates
12/15/17
By: Allan J. Hayes
A lobbyists job in never done. Like the tides of the ocean, politics has an ebb and flow. Issues go through a cycle effected not by the moon’s gravitational pull but by the nature of America’s …