Programs Keep Alumni Close to Old Firms
May 31, 2006
As firms strive to differentiate themselves through marketing techniques and stave off mergers through network affiliations, they are gearing up alumni programs to net referrals and maintain positive relationships with former employees.
Making Your Employee Handbook Work For You, Not Against You
May 30, 2006
Is your handbook truly up to date? One of the points in the employment relationship where the employer can best position itself to achieve its business objectives is in the setting of policy ' a process in which the law affords employers broad latitude. A properly drafted policy manual can help foreclose or limit a lawsuit, and a manual that is prepared or updated carelessly can serve as the foundation for a legal claim. Here are several ways to tell at a glance whether your organization has postured itself to best advantage.
Clearing Up Executive Compensation
May 30, 2006
In Part One, the authors summarized the SEC's proposal to revamp the rules governing the disclosure of executive and director compensation. They focused on the proposal's treatment of current compensation. Part Two picks up with a look at outstanding equity interests, covers post-employment and other types of compensation and benefits, and also discusses other effects of the proposal on corporate counsel.
Antitrust Liability For Joint Ventures
May 30, 2006
The term 'joint venture' encompasses a wide range of business combinations, some of which are simply contractual agreements between independent parties, others of which involve the creation of new entities through consolidation, and some of which involve both integration and contractual agreements. Because joint ventures comprise such a diverse array of business structures, they often defy easy characterization for antitrust purposes: Is a venture best viewed as a merger? A price-fixing agreement? Something in between? This characterization problem contributed to significant confusion in the courts over the proper scope of antitrust liability for joint ventures. <br>At one time, courts routinely declared unlawful a variety of joint ventures, many of which were plainly pro-competitive. The Supreme Court's decision in <i>Texaco, Inc. v. Dagher</i>, clarifies the application of the antitrust laws to joint ventures, and narrows the scope of potential liability for these types of business combinations.
Employers Face Uncertainty of Immigration Reform
May 30, 2006
For years, the government has downplayed interior enforcement of our immigration laws. Inspections of I-9 compliance were nearly extinct; illegal workers thrived under a 'catch and release' deportation standard and lenient I-9 standard; and no one seemed to care about the Social Security mismatch problem. All of that is changing.
Who Decides the Validity of Your Contract?
May 30, 2006
Who do you turn to if you believe that an agreement is invalid? Should it make a difference if the agreement contains an arbitration clause? If it does have such a clause, can you nonetheless walk into court and have a judge decide? Or must the dispute go to arbitration? The Catch-22 is this: If an arbitrator were to determine that the agreement is invalid, the arbitrator logically would seem to have no jurisdiction over the matter to start with, because the arbitration clause therein should be invalid too. But if you were to litigate that dispute in court, and a judge determined that the agreement is valid, then an arbitrator should have resolved all disputes pursuant to the arbitration clause therein.
What Do You Want To Read?
May 26, 2006
We want to know how we can make this newsletter an even better resource for your professional needs. Are we covering all you want to see? Are there sections you would like to see enhanced or replaced?<br>Your views and opinions are essential in our effort to continue to provide you with the top notch News, Strategy and Analysis you have come to expect from Law Journal Newsletters.<br>Help us help you! Please click <a href="http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=604771980045">here</a> to complete a short survey or type the following URL into your browser: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=604771980045.<br>Your answers will assist us in making this an even better newsletter for you! Thank you.<br>Regards,<br>Colin Graf<br>LJN Marketing Director
<b>BREAKING NEWS</b> Supreme Court Hopeful Leaves Bench
May 10, 2006
Appeals Judge J. Michael Luttig, a Supreme Court contender and longtime fixture of the conservative legal landscape, made a sudden announcement on May 10 that he was leaving the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit immediately for the job of senior vice president and general counsel of the Boeing Co.
Hotline
April 26, 2006
Companywide layoffs don't immunize an employer from age discrimination suits The Third Circuit has ruled that where an employee is able to demonstrate 'implausibilities and inconsistencies' in an employer's justification for his or her layoff, the employer is not entitled to summary judgment in an age discrimination suit, even if the plaintiff's layoff resulted from an overall reduction in force (RIF) and the employer was able to identify certain 'age neutral' determination criteria. Tomasso v. The…
FRCP Electronic Discovery Amendments: Understanding the Impact
April 26, 2006
When Judge Scheindlin ruled in a landmark case and made the statement 'that's going to be the most expensive curse word you ever said,' little did she realize the prophetic nature of her words. I am not sure whether Judge Scheindlin knew how 'codified' her electronic discovery rulings would become when she issued her opinions (five times, no less in Zubulake v. UBS Warburg). She probably could not have foreseen the resulting cost and risk impact on corporations faced with defending lawsuits containing (as part of the pool of potential evidence) large volumes of electronically stored information (ESI). <br>We are now at the brink of the 'codification.' The (amended) Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (where the Zubulake standards are extremely influential) governing electronic discovery will go into effect in December 2006.
