The Democratic National Committee recently filed a lawsuit against Russia, WikiLeaks, the Trump Campaign, and a bunch of individuals (including Julian Assange, Jared Kushner, and a hacker named “Guccifer 2.0”) that includes...more
4/26/2018
/ Confidential Information ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Protection ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Hackers ,
Political Campaigns ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Sensitive Business Information ,
Trade Secrets ,
Trump Administration ,
Uniform Trade Secrets Acts ,
WikiLeaks
Just hours after the Eagles clinched their upset Super Bowl win over the Patriots, a different battle royale began in a San Francisco courtroom between an established juggernaut and its upstart rival. For techies and trade...more
2/13/2018
/ Confidential Information ,
Driverless Cars ,
Former Employee ,
Former Employer ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Misappropriation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Proprietary Information ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Software ,
Technology Sector ,
Trade Secrets ,
Uber
Waking up to news of another major data breach seems to have become a daily routine. On the front pages and cable news, we hear about hackers, rogue governments, and shadowy figures involved with these data breaches. But too...more
10/25/2017
/ Competition ,
Confidential Information ,
Data Breach ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Data Theft ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Employment Contract ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misappropriation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Trade Secrets
Every year, an increasing number of states and localities clamp down on an employer’s ability to ask about applicants’ criminal histories (our update from earlier this year provides a good primer). The good news is that...more
9/15/2017
/ Background Checks ,
Ban the Box ,
Consumer Reports ,
Credit Reports ,
Criminal Records ,
Driving Records ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Job Applicants ,
Screening Procedures
As the U.S. unemployment continues to drop to pre-recession levels, the supply of motivated and qualified workers is tightening. Gig economy businesses competing for a shrinking supply of labor may want to consider turning to...more
In a decision released today, a 6 to 2 majority of the Supreme Court restricted the president’s power to fill high-level administrative positions without the Senate’s advice and consent, handing a victory to an employer in a...more
3/22/2017
/ Administrative Appointments ,
Administrative Hearings ,
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Federal Vacancies Reform Act ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
NLRB v SW General ,
Presidential Appointments ,
SCOTUS ,
Senate Confirmation Hearings ,
Unfair Labor Practices
We've all struggled with what to do when we're given conflicting orders. Grandma says "have some pudding," and Pink Floyd's Roger Waters responds, "how can you have any pudding if you don't eat your meat?!" Employers are...more
When the revised requirements for the federal Fair Labor Standards Act's "white collar" exemptions take effect on December 1, the total-annual-compensation threshold for the "highly compensated employee" (HCE) versions will...more
Over the past 20 years, the number of individuals with disabilities in the workforce has increased due in part to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Contemporary technological developments could help increase this...more
As we have discussed previously, Uber has been caught up in a number of public legal disputes. At the forefront of Uber’s legal issues are ongoing disputes over whether Uber drivers will be considered employees or independent...more
Congressional Republicans have responded to the U.S. Labor Department's impending revisions of its much-discussed Fair Labor Standards Act Section 13(a)(1) exemption definitions by introducing legislation to nullify the...more
As the national debate roils about how to handle the problem of gun violence in modern American society, employers are asking whether it makes sense to allow employees to carry firearms at work. Although office killings have...more
The U.S. Labor Department has taken the next step in its nearly-six-year-old "fissured industries" initiative by releasing Administrator Interpretation No. 2016-1, dealing with concepts of "joint employment" under the...more
One question that often arises in the trade secret practice is what information, if any, can be protectable as confidential information even if it does not qualify under state law as a trade secret. In other words, what is...more