Features
Victoria Woodlin Chavey
In employment class actions in federal court, such as class actions under Title VII for which Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23 provides the governing procedure, the most critical juncture in the case is often the plaintiffs' motion for class certification. That motion requires the court to evaluate whether the plaintiffs have met the Rule 23 requirements and may proceed as a class; denial of the motion generally deals a devastating blow to plaintiffs' claims. In a new ruling that employers can use to support their bids to defeat plaintiffs' motions for class certification under Rule 23, the Second Circuit recently clarified ' and strengthened ' the standard under which district courts should determine plaintiffs' satisfaction of Rule 23's requirements.
Features
Janice G. Inman
The California Supreme Court, in its recent 6-1 decision in <i>Vineyard Area Citizens for Responsible Growth Inc. v. City of Rancho Cordova</i>, 2/1/2007, concerning the Sunrise Douglas Community Plan, raised the number of hoops developers must leap through to ensure that their large-scale developments' future water needs will be met without too great an impact on the environment. The decision in <i>Vineyard Area Citizens</i> not only put a hold on a huge development planned for Rancho Cordova, but also placed other developers in the state on notice that certain shortcuts in water-use planning will not be accepted by the courts when challenged.
Features
Sarah Dean
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Gil Abramson
In the old days, decisions made by executives and directors in the board room often were cloaked with a veil of legitimacy. Now, however, these decisions are under constant surveillance and scrutiny from outsiders and are even vulnerable to leaks from insiders. As executives and directors are thrust into the media and legal forefront, not only do they face potential personal liability for their decisions, but the corporations themselves face liability for their actions.
Features
Debra S. Friedman
The U.S. Supreme Court is currently considering a case of great importance to employers, <i>Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Inc.</i> It will decide when the statute of limitations begins to run under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as amended) ('Title VII') for certain types of disparate pay claims.
Features
Mark Blondman
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Brooke Iley
It has often been said that the most frequently violated federal employment-related statute is the Fair Labor Standards Act ('FLSA'), 29 U.S.C. '' 201-19 (Supp. 2006). This law, enacted in 1938, regulates, among other things, the payment of overtime to employees who work for employers. Our experience indicates that most, if not all, employers do not intend to violate the provisions contained in the FLSA but, instead, do so out of ignorance of its requirements. This article highlights some of the key provisions of the FLSA, makes reference to recent pronouncements by the United States Department of Labor (the federal agency principally responsible for interpretation of the statute) and presents advice on how to avoid the pitfalls inherent in the FLSA.
Features
Jonathan Friedland
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Mazen Asbahi
An end-of-year (Nov. 29) Delaware Chancery Court decision, <i>Esopus Creek Value LP v. Hauf</i>, No. 2487-N (Del. Ch. Nov. 29, 2006), is receiving a great deal of attention from corporate transactional and corporate restructuring attorneys alike. In <i>Esopus</i>, the Delaware Chancery Court prevented a financially sound company that was prohibited by federal securities law from holding a shareholder vote, because it failed to meet its reporting requirements, from executing an agreement outside of bankruptcy to sell substantially all of its assets under Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code without first obtaining common stockholder approval as required under Section 271(a) of the Delaware General Company Law ('DGCL').
Features
Melissa J. Krasnow
Thirty-four states have enacted security breach notification laws. And Michigan passed such a law with an effective date of July 2, 2007. These laws cover the notification that a company must make in the event of a breach of security of its system with respect to computerized personal information. How are these laws enforced in the event of a violation? These laws vary in terms of enforcement and penalties, as more particularly described below. This article provides an overview of the enforcement of these laws and describes examples of penalties.
Features
James D. Sherman
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Lori E. Steidl
In today's litigation world, corporate counsel struggle to contain the ever-increasing costs of document discovery. The explosion of electronically stored information ('ESI') is often a huge contributor to the expense of discovery. Consultants, vendors, and e-discovery software can help bring greater efficiencies and cost-savings to the process. But while there is a dizzying array of options available, they are not all created equal. Finding the right solution requires that you do your homework.
ALM Staff
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Law Journal Newsletters
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A federal judge sitting in Philadelphia has struck down the 1998 Child Online Protection Act ('COPA') on March 22. The Act was challenged as unconstitutionally vague by health Web sites and the American Civil Liberties Union ('ACLU').
Kenneth R. Costello
On Jan. 22, 2007, after more than a decade of study, the FTC released its long-anticipated new Federal Trade Commission Rule on Franchising. This article outlines the key elements of the New Rule. The New Rule changes the coverage of the existing FTC Rule.
