Monthly Archives: July 2019
ILN Firm of the Month – KLA – Koury Lopes Advogados, Brazil!
A New Direction For Commission-Only Compensation In Mass.
A recent ruling by Massachusetts’ highest court has changed the way employers with commission-only compensation plans must pay their employees going forward. On May 8, 2019, the Supreme Judicial Court held in Sullivan v. Sleepy’s LLC et al. that employees compensated on a 100% commission basis are entitled to separate and additional compensation for overtime and Sunday work, even where the employee’s total compensation is equal to or greater than 1.5 times the minimum wage for those overtime and Sunday hours.[1]
Simon Cowell picks bone with “The Pets Factor” UK trade mark
When TV format creator Mark Duffy struck upon the tongue-in-cheek name “The Pets Factor” for what was (presumably) a talent competition for domestic animals, he might well have smiled at his own ingenuity. Conversely, when Simon Cowell heard about the name (via Mr Duffy’s application to register it as a UK trade mark in classes 9 (software) and 41 (entertainment services)) we can guess he probably wasn’t smiling (or if he was, it was probably more of a grimace). Instead, and acting via his company Simco Limited (in conjunction with Freemantle Media) (Simco), Mr Cowell wasted no time in instructing his lawyers to oppose Mr Duffy’s application, which he had made via his company Duf Ltd.
Talking Tax – Issue 162
The Limits of Latif: Enforcing Mandatory Arbitration Clauses as to Harassment and Discrimination Claims Litigated in New York State Court
On June 19, 2019, the New York State Senate and Assembly passed legislation that would, if signed into law, broaden the scope of last year’s ban on clauses requiring employees to arbitrate sexual harassment claims so as to prohibit such clauses with respect to all types of discrimination claims. As reported on this blog, this ban on mandatory arbitration clauses was deemed invalid, as contrary to federal law, by the June 26, 2019 decision of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in Latif v. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, et al. (S.D.N.Y. No. 18-11528). It is too early, however, to declare the death of New York’s ban on mandatory arbitration clauses in harassment and discrimination claims. Absent diversity of citizenship, plaintiffs’ counsel may choose to assert only state-law claims in an effort to eliminate federal court jurisdiction over an employer’s petition to compel arbitration. As motions to compel arbitration will continue to be decided by New York state courts, employers should be mindful of the relevant New York decisions when drafting arbitration agreements and dispute resolution programs.
Collaboration, Pooling, and Sharing Experience of External Lawyers
Today, I’m bringing you a guest post on a topic near and dear to my heart – collaboration. Gareth Stephenson, of Top3Legal has a different take on it, from his experience, which may be useful as you engage further in your own collaborative efforts.
5 Ways to Bolster Cyber Safety and Minimize Risk
Cyber threats are simply a business reality in the modern age, but with the right knowledge and tools, we can protect our businesses, employees and customers. Davis Malm’s Robert Munnelly outlines five actions companies can take to maximize long-term cyber safety.
The burden of proof when contesting a will
A will is an important document, that must be drafted by a person capable of expressing directions without any undue influence, otherwise its validity could be challenged before the courts. When such a dispute occurs, the party attacking the validity of the will has to adduce evidence supporting that claim on a balance of probabilities: the party must demonstrate that the invalidity of the will is more likely than its validity.
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