At the recent In-House Counsel Seminar, three Ward and Smith attorneys presented a realistic role play response to an incidence of wire fraud, addressing red flags associated with fraudulent communications, corporate incident...more
4/3/2024
/ Breach Notification Rule ,
Cyber Insurance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Documentation ,
FBI ,
Fraud ,
Hackers ,
Incident Response Plans ,
Malware ,
Phishing Scams ,
Wire Fraud
On January 10, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor ("DOL") issued a final rule to provide guidance to employers in determining whether a worker should be classified as an employee or an independent contractor under the Fair...more
Attendees of Ward and Smith’s recent annual Employment Law Symposium received insights on key employment law developments in an interactive discussion between Emily Massey, a labor and employment attorney, and Tom...more
12/4/2023
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Automation Systems ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Hairstyle Discrimination ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Descriptions ,
Machine Learning ,
Mental Health ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Strategic Enforcement Plan
In a discussion led by employment law attorney Will Oden, two experienced North Carolina employment attorneys who represent employees shared insights on their respective practices representing employees, and best practices...more
August 10, 2023, marks the first anniversary of the Camp Lejeune Justice Act, a pivotal legislation within the broader Honoring Our PACT Act. ...more
8/14/2023
/ Contamination ,
Drinking Water ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Marine Corps ,
Military Service Members ,
Occupational Exposure ,
Public Health ,
Toxic Exposure ,
Veterans ,
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) ,
Water Supplies
It is no hidden secret that many employers use various restrictive covenants to protect their trade secrets, confidential information, goodwill, and customer relationships.
For example, employers often use non-compete...more
12/6/2022
/ Choice-of-Law ,
Confidential Information ,
Contract Terms ,
Cross-Border ,
Employment Contract ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Remote Working ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Trade Secrets ,
Venue
On November 15, 2021, President Joe Biden signed the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act into law, which is popularly known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law ("BIL").
The BIL is estimated to create an...more
This is article is part of a series summarizing key topics discussed at Ward and Smith's Fall Employment Law Update Webinar.
Several Ward and Smith attorneys delivered their take on what the new Emergency Temporary...more
11/2/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
On July 29, 2021, Governor Roy Cooper issued Executive Order No. 224 (the "Order"), which implements additional safety measures for workers at Cabinet agencies in the state and strongly encourages private businesses and...more
Last month, the Department of Health and Human Services – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ("CDC") updated its COVID-19 guidance for fully vaccinated individuals.
The updated guidance provided that fully...more
When an accident happens due to someone else's negligence, an injured person is able to recover compensatory damages from the at-fault party or their insurance carrier.
For instance, if an innocent driver is injured in a...more
The CDC's Order comes as other eviction moratoria and eviction protections provided at the federal, state, and local levels have expired or are set to expire. For example, the eviction moratorium provided by the Coronavirus...more
9/9/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Eviction ,
Financial Distress ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Landlords ,
Moratorium ,
Public Health ,
Relief Measures ,
Rent ,
Rental Property ,
Tenants
Today, the Supreme Court of the United States ("SCOTUS") decided in Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia that the protections of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act ("Title VII") extend to individuals who are discriminated...more
6/16/2020
/ Altitude Express Inc v Zarda ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Civil Rights Act ,
EEOC v RG & GR Harris Funeral Homes ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gender Identity ,
Hiring & Firing ,
LGBTQ ,
SCOTUS ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
More than half of the states have started to lift restrictions to re-open businesses or have similar plans to re-open in the next few weeks.
This mass re-opening, coupled with the fact that some employees at home are...more
The world continues to combat the devastating COVID-19 global pandemic. Many businesses have been forced to lay off and/or furlough untold numbers of valued employees. Still, many employers are able to continue operating, if...more
On March 25, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division ("WHD") published its initial guidance to provide compliance assistance for employers related to the application of the benefits and leave entitlements...more
...Governor Roy Cooper announced a new Executive Order ("EO") to close all restaurants and bars to dine-in customers.
The EO still allows those businesses to continue operations through takeout and delivery orders. In his...more
The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 ("FLSA"), for decades, has permitted employers to pay some workers a lower minimum hourly wage than would otherwise be due if the workers receive at least a minimum amount per month in the...more
2/28/2020
/ Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Minimum Wage ,
NPRM ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Tip Credit ,
Tip-Pooling ,
Tipped Employees ,
Tips ,
Wage and Hour
HR Professionals will soon know the answer to this question.
The United States Supreme Court is preparing to settle a contentious debate on employee protections under federal employment discrimination laws. On October...more
10/11/2019
/ Altitude Express Inc v Zarda ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Civil Rights Act ,
EEOC v RG & GR Harris Funeral Homes ,
Employment Litigation ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Gender Identity ,
Hiring & Firing ,
LGBTQ ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
SCOTUS ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Transgender