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The Consumer Review Fairness Act: Compliance and the Quest for Transparent Customer Assessment

In the age of Yelp, Facebook Amazon and Trip Advisor, most people make purchasing, dining, travel and entertainment decisions based on reviews posted by fellow consumers. These reviews are critical for both would-be customers and businesses, and it is crucial that they honestly reflect the quality of a company’s products, services and customer service. (Read More)

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Employee Accommodations: Now a Mandatory Topic of Conversation in NYC

The hurdles for employers in New York City continue to line up. The latest legal mandate: compliance with local accommodations law.

Beginning October 15, 2018, NYC employers with four or more employees will be required to engage in and document a good faith written or oral dialogue concerning (1) their employees’ accommodations needs, (2) potential accommodations that may address those needs (including proposed alternatives), and (3) any difficulties potential accommodations may pose for the employer. The types of accommodations contemplated under the so-called “cooperative dialogue law” are those relating to an employee’s religion; disability; pregnancy, childbirth or other related medical conditions; or the needs of a victim of domestic violence, sex offenses and stalking. (Read More)

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Under the Microscope: Substance Abuse Patient Referrals 

Governor Brown just signed Senate Bill 1228 into law, implementing Health & Safety Code §§11831.6 and 11831.7. The move directly impacts marketing practices within the world of substance abuse treatment. (Read More)

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California’s Salary History Ban Just Got a Bit Easier to Understand

That employers in California are not allowed to ask job applicants about their prior compensation is, by now, old news. The prohibition was signed into law in October 2017, when California joined several other jurisdictions nationwide in a move to close the gender pay gap by banning salary history inquiries.

Indeed, California Labor Code §432 makes it unlawful for employers to rely on an applicant’s salary history information in determining whether to extend an offer of employment or the salary to be paid. There is more. The law also requires an employer, upon an applicant’s “reasonable request,” to provide the “pay scale” applicable to the position applied for. (Read More)

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The Joint Employer Saga Continues: Proposal by NLRB Narrows Scope of Liability

For years, the words “joint employer” have figured prominently in the parlance of labor attorneys across the country. This theory of liability has been subject to something of a tug of war, which can be traced to the halls of power in Washington where, in 2015, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) doubled down on an employer’s legal exposure to employees—quite literally. (Read More)

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AB 3080: Arbitration and Nondisclosure Agreements in the Crosshairs

Assembly Bill 3080 is pending legislation that should be of great interest to all California employers. The proposed law seeks to prohibit employers in California from requiring an applicant or employee to agree to arbitrate discrimination, harassment or retaliation claims as a condition of employment, continued employment, or receipt of any employment-related benefit. As pointed out in one of our previous blog posts, not only does AB 3080 look to make many employment arbitration agreements unlawful in the Golden State, but it also forbids an employer from prohibiting an employee or independent contractor from disclosing sexual harassment he or she suffers, witnesses or discovers. The upshot: if the bill is signed into law, these banned acts will be characterized as unlawful employment practices under the Fair Employment and Housing Act, which would entitle employees to remedies for every violation. (Read More)

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The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act: Do Insurance and Real Estate Brokers Benefit?

Due to the double taxation of C-Corporations and their shareholders, most small business usually prefer flow-through entities such as S-Corporations, LLC’s and Partnerships for the operation of their businesses. Section 199A of the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act provides that owner(s) of these flow-through entities may be entitled to take a deduction equal to 20% of the entity’s "qualified business income" (“QBI”) earned from the business. Qualified business income can best be described as the ordinary, non-investment income of the business, less any business expenses. QBI excludes passive income like interest, dividends or capital gains. (Read More)

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The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act: Offshore Insurance Subsidiaries Dance to a Different BEAT

Congress has come up with yet another good acronym – BEAT (Base Erosion Anti-abuse Tax). As is typically the case, when Congress uses an acronym in legislation, it is inevitably accompanied by complexity. BEAT, as referenced in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”) is no exception. (Read More)

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Mind If I Take a Seat: Shareholder vs. Board Votes in Venture Capital Transactions

Seats on a board of directors are, no doubt, coveted. In fact, when investing venture capital into a company through an equity financing, VC investors often negotiate to receive one or more board seats for themselves or their designees. Additionally, these investors frequently require that specified matters not be pursued by the company without board approval (including approval by the VC’s board designees). To a large degree, angling for a board presence and mandating board approval makes sense to the extent doing so grants the VC investors a greater level of control and serves to protect their investment. But to what degree should important business decisions be taken, by default, at the board level? And when might it be a better practice to put certain company actions to a shareholder vote? (Read More)

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Temporary Schedule Changes in NYC

Work schedules in New York City may be a bit in flux all thanks to the Fair Workweek Law. Pursuant to the new law, employers must grant eligible employees two schedule changes per year (one business day per request or two business days total by way of one request) to attend to qualifying “personal events.” (Read More)