Last August, two new judges joined the United States District Court for the District of Delaware, Judge Colm F. Connolly and Judge Maryellen Noreika. Judge Connolly filled the seat previously held by Judge Sue L. Robinson and Judge Noreika filled the seat previously held by Judge Gregory M. Sleet. In recent months, both Judge Connolly and Judge Noreika have each adopted new procedures for dealing with case dispositive motions.
The 2019 legal landscape of employee mobility continues to evolve, at times drastically. Courts and legislatures are giving increased scrutiny to employers’ claims to protect the confidentiality of their trade secrets and attempts to enforce their employees’ restrictive covenants, including non-competition and non-solicitation agreements. It can be hard for employers to prevent their confidential information and client goodwill from following certain departing employees.
With greater knowledge of the latest legal theories, decisions, statutes, and other developments in this area, employers can better protect and defend their interests—even preemptively—including in the ways they draft their employee agreements, design their compensation structures, and consider whether and when to engage in litigation.
This issue of Take 5 aims to provide a few tools for deciphering and navigating this changing employee mobility landscape.
The market for direct-to-consumer (“DTC”) genetic testing has increased dramatically over recent years as more people are using at-home DNA tests. The global market for this industry is projected to hit $2.5 billion by 2024. Many consumers subscribe to DTC genetic testing because they can provide insights into genetic backgrounds and ancestry. However, as more consumers’ genetic data becomes available and is shared, legal experts are growing concerned that safeguards implemented by U.S. companies are not enough to protect consumers from privacy risks.
Countless employment agreements are simply drafted: an annual salary is specified, and the number of working hours is more or less loosely expressed, if at all. Does such an agreement exclude overtime pay?
These days, it seems that everyone is looking for a quick fix to everything. How do I get clients fast? How can I do business development without being directly involved myself? How can I skip ahead to the final steps?
Just over 20 years have passed since all New England states, except Vermont, restructured electric service to enable competitive retail supply and implemented basic protections focused on licensing, enrollment standards, customer notices and contractual protections. In recent years, additional rules have been implemented, such as credit card-style “Schumer Box” contract summaries, standard renewal notices 30-60 days prior to contract end, disclosures specific to variable price products, and minimum conduct standards for door-to-door sales. As New England heads towards its third decade of retail electric competition, the next evolution of rules and enforcement priorities is underway. The following new front-line issues, which hold the promise of both hindering and fostering competition, should be watched by all stakeholders.
The dust has now settled since the surprise re-election of the Morrison Government last month and the subsequent Cabinet reshuffle. Now is a good time to consider what the focus of Government is in respect of workplace relations, and what this may mean for Australian employers.
In our discussions over the last few years about the future of the law firm, the one thing that has become abundantly clear is that for lawyers and firms to be successful, they will have to learn to collaborate effectively and efficiently. In her book, Heidi Gardner calls this “Smart Collaboration.” I had the chance to see Gardner present at the CLOC conference in February, and recently finished her book, and I can’t recommend it enough – for anyone in professional services looking to be successful over the next ten years, this is a must-read.
A & K Metaxopoulos and Partners was awarded Best Firm in Greece by Euromoney Legal Media Group at the ninth annual European Women in Business Law Awards held in London at 14/6/2019.
Does your company understand the bankruptcy, insolvency and rehabilitation proceedings for your jurisdiction? The ILN’s Restructuring & Insolvency group has put together a collaborative paper on Bankruptcy, Insolvency & Rehabilitation Proceedings, which serves as a quick and practical reference for those with relevant needs in the 12 jurisdictions covered. Please see the full paper here.
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