A new name, image, and likeness (NIL) dispute signals that the storm surrounding college athlete compensation will not be calming anytime soon. A lawsuit involving Florida State’s head basketball coach is the latest – but...more
Imagine your virtual assistant did more than just respond to your questions or requests but actually took the initiative, performing complex tasks without needing instructions, learning and improving from each experience....more
1/20/2025
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Bias ,
Business Development ,
Business Opportunities ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Employee Engagement ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Internal Controls ,
Machine Learning ,
Recruitment Policies ,
Risk Management
Our Technology Industry Team thought leaders have pulled together their top predictions for the new year so that employers can get a running start to 2025....more
As we close out 2024 and look ahead to 2025, one thing is clear: this has been a year like no other. From a groundbreaking Supreme Court ruling to a pivotal election result that will usher in a new administration, employers...more
12/12/2024
/ Affirmative Action ,
Agricultural Sector ,
Analytics ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
California ,
Car Dealerships ,
Construction Industry ,
Construction Workers ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Foreign Workers ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hospitality Industry ,
International Labor Laws ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Relations ,
Manufacturing Employers ,
Mexico ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Professional Employer Organization ,
Retailers ,
Sports ,
Staffing Agencies ,
State Labor Laws ,
Student Athletes ,
Technology Sector ,
Trade Secrets ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Investigations ,
Workplace Safety
Our firm has provided general perspectives on what employers can expect under the next Trump administration – but we are delving into core issues and opportunities for tech employers. Everyone expects President Trump and his...more
11/26/2024
/ Diversity ,
Employment Policies ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Remote Working ,
Technology Sector ,
Trump Administration ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
A Florida state appellate court just issued a ruling raising the bar for workers pursuing whistleblower claims and making it easier for employers to defeat lawsuits before trial – but created a conflict with another appellate...more
Despite notable workforce reductions in 2022 and 2023, layoffs in the tech industry are still prevalent as 2024 wraps up. The layoffs range from large employers to smaller-sized startups that are focused on profitability and...more
Tech industry employers may want to boost their anti-discrimination efforts as the federal government recently decided to shine a spotlight on low diversity in many high-tech occupations. Although tech employers have made...more
10/28/2024
/ Age Discrimination ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Bias ,
Diversity ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Equal Pay ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Race Discrimination ,
Recruitment Policies ,
Technology Sector ,
Wage and Hour
A new NIL issue emerged last week as the starting quarterback for the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) left the undefeated Rebels over claims of unfulfilled verbal promises allegedly made to him by an assistant coach....more
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently announced a settlement to resolve a discrimination charge alleging an employer terminated a pregnant employee after she requested a reasonable accommodation to...more
9/25/2024
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Failure to Accommodate ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Pregnancy ,
Pregnancy Discrimination ,
Pregnant Workers Fairness Act ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Undue Hardship
Even though the FTC’s impending rule that will ban most non-competition agreements specifically carves out claims for violations that accrue before the rule goes into effect – an exception that many federal courts have...more
8/16/2024
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Exceptions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Popular ,
Restrictive Covenants
A hotel manager was recently held individually liable for violations of federal wage and hour law under a broad definition of “employer.” Although the ruling applied to a unique set of facts – including that the manager was...more
7/25/2024
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Managers ,
Minimum Wage ,
Over-Time ,
Personal Liability ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour
To the surprise of some, Governor DeSantis recently vetoed a bill that would have provided businesses with a defense to claims arising from “cybersecurity incidents” that lead to data breaches – so long as they met a few...more
There has been a seismic shift in Florida high school sports as state officials just unanimously approved high school athletes to receive compensation for their name, image, and likeness (NIL). The June 3 vote by the Florida...more
A federal appeals court recently held that an employer’s health insurance plan wrongly excluded coverage for gender-affirming care in violation of federal civil rights law – offering a warning to employers across the country...more
6/12/2024
/ Appeals ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Denial of Insurance Coverage ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gender Identity ,
Health Insurance ,
Policy Exclusions ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
The seemingly mundane task of fueling a boat is fraught with hidden risks and potential liability for marina owners and operators, especially when it comes to dangers from fire and bloodborne pathogens. As you navigate the...more
Colleges and universities have started to become involved with online NIL stores where fans, students, and alumni can purchase custom-branded clothing adorned with the last name and jersey number of their student-athlete of...more
Florida lawmakers recently passed a law that provides businesses with a defense to claims arising from “cybersecurity incidents” that lead to data breaches – so long as they meet a few critical obligations. The bill is...more
4/12/2024
/ Cyber Incident Reporting ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Florida ,
Immunity ,
Incident Response Plans ,
Popular ,
State Privacy Laws
More than ever before, marina owners and operators need to ensure their workplace safety practices are up to date. It’s no secret that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) frequently inspects marinas and...more
Two recent court rulings provide a roadmap for Florida employees and their attorneys to take their claims all the way to trial by building a convincing mosaic of circumstantial evidence. This means that now more than ever,...more
2/22/2024
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Best Practices ,
Bias ,
Discipline ,
Documentation ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Evidence ,
Florida ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Descriptions ,
Performance Reviews ,
Retaliation
An alternate solution to the ever-increasing push to make collegiate student-athletes employees may finally be on the horizon. The lack of uniformity in state name, image, and likeness (NIL) laws has created an uneven playing...more
Florida is expected to be the tenth state to pass comprehensive consumer privacy legislation. The Florida Digital Bill of Rights was approved by the state legislature earlier this month and is expected to soon be signed by...more
5/15/2023
/ Biometric Information ,
Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Data Collection ,
Data Controller ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Processors ,
Data Protection ,
Florida ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Smart Devices ,
State Privacy Laws
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and state lawmakers recently enacted significant tort reforms designed to restrict plaintiffs pursuing negligence claims – but which could give an unexpected boost to those pursuing costly...more
4/11/2023
/ Admissible Evidence ,
Emotional Distress Damages ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Florida ,
Health Care Providers ,
Medical Expenses ,
Negligence ,
New Legislation ,
Physicians ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Statutory Authority ,
Tort Reform
Federal wage officials recently announced that two Florida restaurants with common ownership failed to properly calculate overtime pay when their employees worked at both locations in the same workweek – sending a stark...more
3/22/2023
/ Back Pay ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Joint Employers ,
Liquidated Damages ,
Minimum Wage ,
Over-Time ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Tip-Pooling ,
Tipped Employees ,
Tips ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour
Nearly a year has passed since the NCAA’s unprecedented adoption of its interim policy removing long-standing restrictions for student athletes who want to profit from their name, image, and likeness (NIL). Since then,...more
6/22/2022
/ College Athletes ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Fair Market Value ,
Joint Employers ,
Name and Likeness ,
NCAA ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Student Athletes ,
Whistleblowers