As we previously reported, in December New York Governor Kathy Hochul issued a mandate requiring that masks be worn in all indoor public places, unless the business or venue requires proof of vaccination for entry. As part of the state’s “Winter Surge Plan 2.0”, the mandate, which was initially set to expire on January 15, has now been extended for an additional two weeks, through February 1, 2022.
January 6, 2022
New York’s Paid Family Leave Is Expanding in Two Ways
New York recently updated two significant aspects of its Paid Family Leave program: (1) expanding the definition of “family member” to include siblings and (2) increasing the cap on weekly benefits available.
Since its inception in 2018, Paid Family Leave has offered eligible employees the ability to take job protected, partially-paid time off to bond with a new child, care for a family member with a serious illness, or provide assistance when a family member is deployed abroad on active military duty. In 2020, after years of gradual increases in the maximum amount of leave and benefits, eligible employees may use up to 12 weeks of Paid Family Leave per rolling 52-week period.
ILN Today Post
January 6, 2022
The Top 5 Privacy Issues to Watch for in 2022
While we could have listed a dozen or more issues from new laws to regulatory actions to changes by major platforms, below are the top five privacy issues to look out for this year.Upcoming CPRA Regulations; Preparing for CPRA ComplianceSome parts of the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA), a/k/a “CCPA 2.0”, have already taken effect, including the creation of a new California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA); the nation’s first stand-alone privacy regulatory agency. The CPPA is tasked with drafting and adopting regulations under the CPRA by July 1, 2022. Read more…
ILN Today Post
January 6, 2022
FSSAI issues Draft Regulations for GMO Food Products
Introduction
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (“FSSAI”) on November 15, 2021, issued Notification F.No.1/Standards/GM Food regulation/FSSAI/20181 which in turn notified the draft Food Safety and Standards (Genetically Modified or Engineered Foods) Regulations, 2021 (“Draft Regulations”). These Draft Regulations are governed by the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (“Act”) and are applicable to Genetically Modified Organisms (“GMOs”), Genetically Engineered Organisms (“GEOs”), Living Modified Organisms (“LMOs”) which are intended to be used directly in the food and food processing industries. The FSSAI has currently invited comments and suggestions from all stakeholders in relation to the Draft Regulations.
ILN Today Post
January 5, 2022
Employment Law in 2022: What You Need to Know at the Start of the New Year
As we turn the page on 2021, we reflect on a year of uncertainty and challenges, and look forward with hope to the year ahead. Last year, employers and employees alike faced uncharted waters as we began to envision a post-pandemic world and start the recovery journey. We heard the term “great resignation” for the first time, employees returned to offices and began adjusting to new office protocols, and employers grappled with establishing vaccination policies. So, what are the key legal takeaways from 2021, and what will employers face in the new year? Here’s what you should know: Read more…
January 5, 2022
“What’s Mine Is Not Yours To Give Me”—Nor To Take Without Just Compensation: A New Jersey’s Reaction To Sovereign Immunity, Intellectual Property, & Takings
I have to give it to creative, resilient lawyers (and in fact, I have lauded them in the past here and there). When the United States Supreme Court issued its decision in Allen v. Cooper, 140 S.Ct. 994 (2020), a decision holding that the sovereign immunity of individual states prevented a copyright holder from recovering damages for infringement, I was a bit disheartened. Seeing no immediate litigation alternative, I called for “common sense Congressional legislation to make States directly liable for damages for copyright infringement,” because I felt it unfair that, after Allen, copyright owners “would find themselves defenseless from state-sponsored copyright piracy.” Flynn, Queen Anne’s Revenge, Indeed!: Copyright Conundrums, Sovereign States, and IP Piracy (2020). Then some creative, resilient lawyers said, “Not so fast,” arguing that the 11th Amendment’s bar on infringement damages actions does nothing to lessen a copyright holder’s claim for just compensation for the taking of property under the 5th and 14th Amendments, and that unlicensed use of another’s intellectual property is a form a taking from the owner a defining strand of the bundle of rights that define copyrights as “property.”
January 4, 2022
Connolly Gallagher Remembers Partner Rachel Dwares
It is with great sadness that Connolly Gallagher announces the passing of Rachel Dwares, wife, mother, partner, and friend to so many. Rachel was a founding partner of the firm and had been a practicing real estate attorney for over 35 years. A Delaware native and graduate of Brandywine High School, Rachel went on to study at Cornell University and Boston University School of Law. She moved first to Chicago, where she met her husband of over 30 years, and then returned to Wilmington in 1994 to begin her practice here.
January 4, 2022
New Year, New You? Lessons for the Beleaguered Legal Professional
Here we are, another year.
Do you feel differently? Fresher? Begun again?
2021 was a challenging year for me, and for a lot of people. I lost my dog, who was my heart, after a long and challenging illness that meant we didn’t sleep a lot. My best friend was diagnosed with breast cancer at 36, which means I don’t sleep a lot. There is still a pandemic. I had some chest pains (which, fortunately, turned out to be anxiety – see the part about not sleeping). Betty White DIED.
January 4, 2022
Will 2022 Be the Year California Voters Repeal PAGA?
Employers with operations both large and small in California are all too familiar with California’s Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”), the controversial statute that permits a single employee to stand in the shoes of the state’s attorney general and file suit on behalf of other employees to seek to recover penalties for alleged Labor Code violations.
The in terrorem effect of PAGA lawsuits, in which a plaintiff need not satisfy class certification criteria to represent an entire workforce, has led many employers to pay large settlements just to avoid legal fees and the possibility of larger awards, even when the evidence of unlawful conduct is spotty or entirely absent.
January 4, 2022
Unpacking Averages: Likelihood of FDA Medical Device Inspections
It is common for FDA and others to show a map of the United States with the states color-coded by intensity to showcase the total number of inspections done in that state. Indeed, FDA includes such a map in its newly released dashboard for FDA inspections. In reviewing that map with the U.S. map color-coded to reflect where medical device establishments are located, do you notice anything? Not to destroy the suspense for you, but it turns out that FDA tends to inspect where medical device inspection facilities are located. Really.
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