The decision by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals imperils one strategy for remedying societal racial inequities and creates legal risk for many DEI initiatives.
A panel of the Eleventh Circuit held that grant programs...more
The Department estimates that the changes will affect approximately 4.3 million employees in the first year of implementation and cost employers $803 million over the first 10 years of implementation.
Under a two-step...more
The Final Rule, if it survives significant legal challenges and the challenges yet to come, will ban all existing and future non-compete agreements with workers, with only narrow exceptions.
The FTC Final Rule imposes a...more
4/26/2024
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
FTC Act ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Trade Secrets
Based on First Amendment concerns, the Eleventh Circuit has blocked enforcement of provisions in Florida’s Stop WOKE Act that would restrict mandatory trainings endorsing DEI concepts.
The Second Circuit has rejected a...more
On January 10, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor published a final rule (the Rule) replacing the current test for determining whether a worker is an employee or independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act....more
The Department of Labor has proposed raising the minimum salary threshold for “white-collar” exemptions under the FLSA to $55,068 annually.
The proposed rule would also raise the threshold for “highly compensated...more
A Department of Education letter and Q&A document outlines lawful ways for universities to promote diverse student bodies.
Higher education institutions are urged to “redoubl[e] efforts to recruit and retain” students...more
8/21/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Biden Administration ,
Civil Rights Act ,
College Admissions ,
Department of Education ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Financial Aid ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
NASA ,
New Guidance ,
OCR ,
OFCCP ,
Scholarships ,
SCOTUS ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Students for Fair Admissions v University of North Carolina ,
Title VI
A recent DC Circuit decision contains cautionary lessons for drafting severance agreements and opens the door to personal liability for negative characterizations of the reasons for employee departures.
A mutual...more
In a new enforcement action against GM, the Department of Justice (DOJ) Civil Rights Division emphasizes that employers subject to export control obligations must still comply with federal laws against discrimination on the...more
5/23/2023
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Compliance ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
E-Verify ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Form I-9 ,
Immigration and Nationality Act ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Title VII
A review of notable cases and regulatory developments for nonprofit organizations at the federal and state levels in 2021 and 2022.
Governance -
Striltschuk v. Hryckowian, 202 A.D.3d 497, 160 N.Y.S.3d 56 (2022)...more
1/18/2023
/ Anti-SLAPP ,
Appeals ,
Breach of Contract ,
Certifications ,
D&O Insurance ,
Declaratory Judgments ,
Defamation ,
Duty to Defend ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Injunctive Relief ,
IRS ,
Liability ,
Nonprofits ,
NY Supreme Court ,
Sovereign Immunity ,
Trial Court Orders
The Notice would ban all existing and future non-compete agreements with workers, with a narrow exception in connection with the sale of a business by any individual holding at least a 25% interest in such business.
The...more
A new DC law restricts DC employers from entering into non-compete agreements with employees earning less than $150,000 as of October 1, 2022, whereas the prior iteration of the law would have imposed a near universal ban on...more
9/29/2022
/ Bonuses ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Damages ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Enforcement ,
Highly Compensated Employees ,
Incentive Compensation ,
Incentives ,
Minimum Salary ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Penalties ,
Proprietary Information ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Retaliation ,
Stocks ,
Wages
The court finds that the addition to the Florida Civil Rights Act turns the First Amendment “upside down.”
A federal court granted a preliminary injunction against the controversial Stop WOKE Act on First Amendment...more
More Generous Benefits for DC Employees The “Universal Paid Leave Amendment Act of 2022” section of the legislation (the Act) will increase the maximum duration of paid leave benefits available to eligible employees to 12...more
The new Florida expansion of the Florida Civil Rights Act faces an immediate legal challenge.
The controversial Stop WOKE Act amends the Florida Civil Rights Act to define certain mandatory DEI programs as prohibited racial...more
4/26/2022
/ Civil Rights Act ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Enforcement ,
First Amendment ,
Florida ,
Governor DeSantis ,
National Origin Discrimination ,
Public Policy ,
Race Discrimination ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Stop Woke Act ,
Title VII
A review of key legal developments for nonprofit organizations at the federal and state levels in 2020 and 2021.
Antitrust Torrey v. Infectious Diseases Society of America, No. 17-190 (E.D. Tex. Sept. 1, 2021), No. 407 &...more
12/30/2021
/ Antitrust Violations ,
Blue Cross ,
Blue Shield ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Lanham Act ,
Negligence ,
Popular ,
Public Records Act ,
RICO ,
Sherman Act ,
TCPA
In a bid to encourage vaccination among the nation’s workers to protect unvaccinated people, OSHA’s new Emergency Temporary Standard calls for private-sector employers with more than 100 employees to mandate COVID-19...more
11/9/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Executive Orders ,
OSHA ,
Privately Held Corporations ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Exemption ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
The Safer Federal Workforce Task Force recently issued guidance that requires the vast majority of prime contractors and subcontractors to ensure that their covered contractor employees, including those working remotely, are...more
9/30/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Healthcare Workers ,
New Guidance ,
OSHA ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
Under a forthcoming OSHA emergency temporary standard, private-sector employers with more than 100 employees will be required to mandate COVID-19 vaccination or weekly testing. Eliminating a testing alternative, federal...more
The Executive Order is projected to increase the hourly wage paid to hundreds of thousands of Federal contractor employees.
President Biden issued an Executive Order raising to $15.00 per hour the minimum wage that Federal...more
On February 1, 2021, DC Mayor Bowser signed emergency legislation passed by the DC Council, requiring DC employers to “adopt and implement social distancing and worker protection policies to prevent transmission of COVID-19...more
2/17/2021
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Lost Wages ,
New Legislation ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Punitive Damages ,
Regulatory Mandates ,
State and Local Government ,
State Attorneys General ,
Workplace Safety
Under new legislation, almost all DC employers will be prohibited from entering into non-compete agreements or enforcing workplace policies that restrict DC employees from obtaining outside employment.
Non-compete...more
For employers, encouraging but not mandating employee COVID-19 vaccination avoids legal risks.
Organizations seeking to require vaccination of visitors need to consider public accommodation accessibility requirements....more
1/12/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Guidance Update ,
OSHA ,
Public Accommodation ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Exemption ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
A review of key legal developments for nonprofit organizations at the federal and state levels in 2019 and 2020.
Antitrust enforcement continues against nonprofits.
Nonprofits have litigated in other areas, including...more
1/4/2021
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Board of Directors ,
Breach of Contract ,
CARES Act ,
Certification Requirements ,
Class Action ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Failure To State A Claim ,
False Advertising ,
First Amendment ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Lanham Act ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Nonprofits ,
Opioid ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Price-Fixing ,
RICO ,
SBA ,
Sherman Act ,
Trade Associations ,
Unjust Enrichment
Late on December 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law an omnibus stimulus bill. The new legislation contained much needed extensions of unemployment benefits that have supported many Americans who have experienced...more
12/30/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Financial Stimulus ,
IRS ,
New Legislation ,
Paid Leave ,
Relief Measures ,
Sick Leave ,
Tax Credits ,
Trump Administration