Professional Development: Building Excitement Around Business Development
May 01, 2016
Ask lawyers what they find EXCITING about selling (it is okay to use the "sales" word) and most will say winning, followed closely by developing new relationships. On the flipside, they fear rejection and failure. Add risk aversion and low resilience to the mix and business development can feel daunting.
Section 181's Extension to Live Stage Productions Doesn't Set Clear Path for Producers, Investors
May 01, 2016
At the end of 2015, Congress passed, as part of a large tax extender bill, the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act (PATH), an extension of '181 of the Internal Revenue Code. Section 181 has been available since 2004 to permit expedited deduction of the costs of a film or TV production. Since inception, this has had several sunset provisions, each of which was extended as part of year-end extender bills. The latest for the first time has extended the availability of '181 treatment to live stage productions.
Covenants Not To Compete
May 01, 2016
Covenants not to compete are not the favorites of courts. Enforcement of such restrictions reduces competition; accordingly, the analysis requires the weighing of various factors and the cases are decided on in a fact-sensitive manner. In <i>Aamco Transmissions v. Romano,</i> the district court elegantly reviewed the specific facts of the case, modified the contractual covenant not to compete, and concluded that the former franchisee did not violate the modified covenant.
Quality Control Of Trademarks in Social Media
May 01, 2016
Trademark licensors, including those in the entertainment industry, are scrambling to keep up with the evolving use of social media as a tool for business advertising. As technology changes, so must the provisions in a trademark license.
NLRB and the Joint Employer: Is Franchising On the Ropes?
May 01, 2016
Recent NLRB decisions have rewritten the labor law map in a variety of ways, but nowhere more significantly than in the areas of franchising and outsourcing. With the decision in <i>Browning-Ferris</i> and decision by the NLRB's general counsel involving McDonald's, the definition of a "joint employer" has grown exponentially broader.
Cloud Computing Security: More Opportunity, Less Threat
May 01, 2016
If you follow the legal technology headlines you might have noticed that we've come full circle on cloud security. Rewind seven or so years, and mainstream cloud computing adoption was being thwarted by grave concerns about data security, data governance and data access. As the cloud became more pervasive in many industries globally, the legal market took note and slowly but surely more law firms went to the cloud.
EU Approves GDPR
May 01, 2016
Coming off the heels of the EU Article 29 Working Party Opinion on the Privacy Shield, the EU Parliament passed the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) on April 15, which overhauls the union's Data Protection Directive rules set forth in 1995. This regulation applies to all business and organizations targeting EU consumers, regardless of their geographic location.
Law Firms Grapple With Cybersecurity Issues and Regulatory Risks
May 01, 2016
Security is always a concern for law firms, and the risks have only grown in recent years. Increasingly, attorneys, staff and clients have become more mobile and rely on an array of laptops, smartphones and tablets to stay connected 24/7. As more data is created and resides in more places, it becomes more vulnerable.
Ethics and Criminal Practice
May 01, 2016
Last month, we asked the question: When faced with a client whose social media postings may harm his legal case, is it ethical for the attorney to advise the client to alter or delete those postings? We conclude this discussion herein.
