Amendment to Labor Code Section 226 Itemized Wage Statement Requirements Provides Welcome Relief – and some hope – to California’s High Tech Industry
8/22/16
By: Dennis Strazulo
On July 22, 2016, Governor Brown approved Assembly Bill 2535 (AB 2535) to amend California Labor Code section 226. The amendment provides much-needed narrowing of the statute’s current requirement that an employer include hours worked on itemized …
Is Florida’s Notice and Repair Process a Suit? Eleventh Circuit Asks Florida Supreme Court to Weigh In
8/22/16
By: Bart Gary and Tim Holdsworth
Earlier this month, in Altman Contractors, Inc. v. Crum & Forster Specialty Insurance Co., the Eleventh Circuit certified to the Florida Supreme Court the question of whether Florida’s statutory notice and repair process constitutes …
FDA Continues to Fight the First Amendment But Facteau Deals Another Blow
8/18/16
By: Kristian Smith
Last month, a federal jury in Massachusetts acquitted two executives of medical device company Acclarent, Inc. of 14 felony counts of fraud related to off-label promotion of Acclarent’s “Stratus” device. United States v. Facteau, et al. stemmed …
Ninth Circuit Issues Two Significant FDCPA Rulings To Debt Collector Law Firms
8/18/16
By: Bill Buechner
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act requires that debt collectors send a notice to the consumer containing certain required disclosures, either in the “initial communication” with the consumer in connection with the collection of a debt or …
Hearsay Exception for Recorded Recollections: Pitfalls to Avoid
7/15/16
By: Ryan Babcock
Rule 803(5) of the Federal Rules of Evidence operates as an exception to the hearsay rule, provided the requirements governing the rule as to the “recorded recollection” are satisfied. The rule is as follows
Recorded Recollection. A …
SCOTUS Clarifies Standing Requirements in Long-Awaited Spokeo Opinion
5/18/16
By: Matthew Foree
On Monday, the Supreme Court of the United States issued its anticipated opinion in the Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins case. Robins alleged that Spokeo, which operates a “people search engine,” violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act by …
President Obama Signs Bipartisan Bill Creating Federal System Of Trade Secrets Law
5/12/16
By: Mike Wolak and Amanda Cash
On May 11, 2016, President Obama signed the Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”) into law. The DTSA is intended to create a more predictable, nationwide body of trade secrets law through a single federal …
TCPA Cases Stayed Pending SCOTUS Spokeo Ruling
5/10/16
By: Matt Foree
Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) litigants are anxiously awaiting a decision from the Supreme Court of the United States in Robins v. Spokeo, Inc., 742 F.3d 409 (9th Cir. 2014) cert. granted, 135 S.Ct. …
Show Me the Money! The Supreme Court Leaves Open the Possibility of Mooting Class Claim by Depositing Money to Satisfy Representative Plaintiff
5/4/16
By: Ze’eva Kushner Banks
In the recent Supreme Court case Campbell-Ewald Company v. Gomez, 136 S. Ct. 663 (2016), the Navy contracted with the advertising company Campbell-Ewald (“Campbell”) to develop a multimedia recruiting campaign. The campaign included sending text …
Disclose! Disclose! Disclose! Says the S.E.C. to a Municipal Advisor
3/28/16
By: John Goselin and Ze’eva Kushner Banks
Earlier this month, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced its first ever enforcement proceeding for breach of fiduciary duty for municipal advisors created by the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010. On March 15, 2016, …
Liability Insurance Specific for Dog Bites?
3/15/16
By: Wayne S. Melnick
While many dog owners merely assume liability for their pets are covered under their home owner’s insurance, new data would suggest dog owners should think twice. According to the Insurance Information Institute and State Farm, the …
From 3D Printing to 4D Printing – New Advances in Science Implicate Changes in Existing Products Liability Law
2/25/16
By: Amanda K. Hall
On January 25, 2016, researchers at Harvard University and The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign detailed their creation of “4D-Printed” structures –made by mimicking the way orchids and other plants move and twist – that could ultimately …