In Nunez v. Syncsort Incorporated, a Massachusetts court held that a retention bonus did not constitute not “wages” under the Massachusetts Wage Act (the “Wage Act”). The plaintiff-employee alleged that his former employer...more
10/4/2024
/ Compensation ,
Employee Retention ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Holiday Pay ,
Liquidated Damages ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Title VII ,
Vacation Pay ,
Wage Act ,
Wages
On September 9, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced it settled enforcement actions against seven public companies for alleged violations of its whistleblower protection rule in their...more
In a win for employers, the Connecticut Supreme Court defines “supervisor” narrowly for purposes of vicarious employer liability under Connecticut Fair Employment Practices Act -
Under Connecticut’s civil rights law, an...more
9/4/2024
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Bullying ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
CT Supreme Court ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Harassment ,
Hostile Environment ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
SCOTUS ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Social Media ,
Supervisors ,
Title VII ,
Vance v. Ball State University ,
Vicarious Liability
On August 20, 2024, U.S. District Judge Ada Brown from the Northern District of Texas issued a decision setting aside the Federal Trade Commission’s (“FTC”) non-compete ban (the “Rule”) and prohibiting the FTC from enforcing...more
Arbitration agreement deemed inapplicable where plaintiff plausibly alleged sexual harassment claim -
The Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021 ( “EFAA”) amended the Federal...more
8/1/2024
/ Arbitration ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
FinTech ,
Retaliation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
On July 23, 2024, U.S. District Judge Kelley B. Hodge from the Eastern District of Pennsylvania issued a decision and denial of a preliminary injunction, which would have stayed enforcement of the non-compete ban (the “Rule”)...more
On July 3, 2024, U.S. District Judge Ada Brown from the Northern District of Texas issued a decision, and subsequently a preliminary injunction, staying enforcement of the Federal Trade Commission’s (“FTC”) non-compete ban...more
7/9/2024
/ Appeals ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Texas
CFTC charges employer with failing to include whistleblower carveout in agreements with employees -
Commodities trading firm Trafigura Trading LLC agreed to pay a $55 million fine to settle charges from the Commodity...more
7/3/2024
/ Carve Out Provisions ,
CFTC ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
OSHA ,
Retaliation ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblowers
May 2024 NJ Supreme Court holds that non-disparagement provisions cannot prohibit disclosure of details relating to claims of discrimination, retaliation, or harassment -
The New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously held that...more
6/4/2024
/ Confidentiality Agreements ,
DE Supreme Court ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Groff v DeJoy ,
Harassment ,
NJ Supreme Court ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Retaliation ,
SCOTUS ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Summary Judgment ,
Title VII ,
Title X ,
Undue Hardship
Employer sues former traders for using an allegedly confidential trading strategy but loses bid for emergency injunctive relief.
On April 12, Jane Street Group LLC (“Jane Street”) sued two of its former traders and...more
On April 24, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission ( “FTC”) published a sweeping ban on non-competes (“Rule”). The Rule passed by a 3-2 vote, with the FTC’s Democratic commissioners voting in favor, and Republican commissioners...more
4/30/2024
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
FTC Act ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Trade Secrets
New York State and New York City Human Rights Laws May Protect Out-of-State Applicants -
On March 14, the New York Court of Appeals held that out-of-state applicants who seek employment within the State or the City can...more
On March 20, 2024, a significant amendment to New York City’s Earned Safe and Sick Time Act (“ESSTA”) will take effect that gives New York City employees the right to sue employers in court for violations of ESSTA.
Under...more
Former HR Executive Sues Financial Services Company for Equal Pay Violations in New Jersey Federal Court -
A former head of human resources sued a financial services company for allegedly underpaying her relative to her...more
3/1/2024
/ Arbitration ,
Confidential Information ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Enforcement ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Jurisdiction ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Retaliation ,
Transparency ,
Wrongful Termination
On December 20, 2023, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) amended its advertising rules for the second time in as many years. The amendments apply to both insured depository institutions (“IDIs”) and...more
Today, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) published its final rule (the “Rule”) addressing whether a worker is properly classified as an employee or an independent contractor under the federal Fair Labor Standards...more
Delaware court declines to enforce restrictive covenants in LLC agreement but grants interlocutory appeal.
In Sunder Energy v. Jackson, et al., a company, Sunder, sued a former employee, Jackson, for breaching a...more
On December 22, 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul vetoed a bill which, if signed into law, would have imposed a ban on non-compete agreements throughout the state, without exception. The bill, which we previously covered here,...more
Ex-employee’s golf outing with customer does not violate non-solicit -
An auto parts manufacturer in Michigan sought a preliminary injunction against a former sales employee for violating his restrictive covenants,...more
12/4/2023
/ Appeals ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Breach of Contract ,
Class Action ,
Confidential Information ,
CVS ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Employment Litigation ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Private Right of Action ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Software ,
Trade Secrets
October 2023: Public information can be a trade secret; Litigants get creative to contest non-competes; NJ addresses the enforceability of non-disparagements; Law firm DEI programs face legal challenges -
Compilation of...more
11/1/2023
/ Appeals ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Trade Secrets ,
Unions
Rule 21F-17 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Rule 21F-17”), adopted under Dodd-Frank, prohibits employers from “tak[ing] any action to impede an individual from communication directly with [SEC staff] about a possible...more
September 2023: Enjoining competitive employment, advisor mobility, reverse discrimination, the low bar for retaliation, and litigating “Cause”
Connecticut Court Issues Temporary Restraining Order Enforcing Noncompete...more
9/19/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Asset Management ,
Breach of Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Financial Adviser ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Race Discrimination ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Retaliation ,
Reverse Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment
To paraphrase what Ben Franklin may have been alluding to nearly 300 years ago in his famous quote, often the best approach when it comes to reducing the risk of litigation and government enforcement proceedings is to take...more
7/27/2023
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Compliance ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Security ,
Document Review ,
Due Diligence ,
Employment Contract ,
Enforcement ,
Ethics ,
Force Majeure Clause ,
Fraud ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Health and Safety ,
Insurance Industry ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Investigations ,
Non-Public Information ,
Performance Reviews ,
Personal Information ,
Pricing ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Sales ,
Social Media ,
Technology Sector
On June 7, 2023, the New York State Senate passed Bill No. SO3100, which, if signed into law, would ban non-compete agreements (“non-competes”) throughout the state, without exception.
The bill defines non-competes...more
Fresh off convincing the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) to declare unlawful confidentiality and non-disparagement provisions in severance agreements, the Board’s General Counsel, Jennifer Abruzzo, is setting her...more