“Never a dull moment” – 2010 was an eventful year for Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) jurisprudence in the Fifth Circuit and across the country ...
The 2011 Session of the West Virginia Legislature promises to be one of the most interesting in the state's history. The passing of U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd in 2010 has led to a series of corresponding leadership changes in West Virginia's state and federal delegations. Further, perceived incongruities between state succession laws and West Virginia's Constitution have led interested parties to seek input and clarification from the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals ...
In the 2011 legislative session, Pennsylvania's new Republican governor, Tom Corbett, and its largely Republican legislature are likely to pick up where the last session left off with regard to Marcellus Shale issues ...
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) finalized reporting requirements for the petroleum and natural gas industry sector under its Mandatory Greenhouse Gas (“GHG”) Reporting Rule, which are located in Subpart W of 40 C.F.R. Part 98 (“Subpart W”) on November 8, 2010 ...
February 20, 2011, will bring a significant additional burden for many employers using the H-1B, H-1B1 Chile/Singapore, L-1 or O-1A category to sponsor a worker. Petitioners, even those entities not typically involved with technology subject to U.S. Government export rules, will be required to make an export control compliance statement under penalty of perjury on USCIS Form I-129. The statement is to certify that the foreign employee will not be allowed access to controlled U.S ...
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission received more than 12,000 charges in 2009 from employees claiming sexual harassment—a 6 percent increase from three years ago. Although harassment claims are on the rise, Haynes and Boone continues to secure significant sexual harassment victories for its clients, and employers overall ...
On November 9, 2010, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued its much-anticipated final rule implementing Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (“GINA”), which applies to all employers covered by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”), namely, employers with fifteen or more employees, as well as unions, employment agencies and labor management training programs ...
In a move that indicates significant regulatory changes may be coming to deepwater operations, federal authorities are eyeing new rules curtailing venting of natural gas in the Gulf of Mexico ...
In line with the national long term program to improve the mining and energy sectors to support the development of the country, as well as to ensure that the supply of energy and mineral resources to the domestic market can be met, the Government of Indonesia has been working hard to expedite the process to issue new regulations in the mining and energy sectors ...
This paper discusses electricity sector developments in Alberta and British Columbia that continue to break new ground particularly in view of the recent prominence of renewable energy, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions issues and export market development initiatives for the export of electricity from clean or renewable sources.To read this paper, click here ...
On December 2, 2010, the Supreme Court of Canada dismissed leave to appeal from the Federal Court of Appeal's decision in Standing Buffalo Dakota First Nation v. Enbridge Pipelines Inc., 2009 FCA 308. Lawson Lundell acted for the Respondent, the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), and took an active role in successfully defending the appeal proceedings.Standing Buffalo Dakota First Nation v. Enbridge Pipelines Inc ...
1.Redundancies in Japan 1 ...
by Andrew B. McCallister, as published in IOGA of West Virginia newsletter, November 2010Over the past two years the Environmental and Safety Committee has spent considerable time monitoring and advocating IOGA members’ interests with respect to various state and federal efforts to create new regulations or modify existing regulations of oil and gas development activities ...
A new version of the “Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act,” or DREAM Act, was filed on November 30, 2010. The DREAM Act was introduced for the first time in 2001, and has undergone many changes since its inception. The essential premise of the bill is to provide a path to lawful permanent residency for individuals who entered the U.S. as minors and do not have legal status ...
The U.S. Supreme Court began its new 2010-2011 term on October 4, 2010 with a number of employment-related cases on the docket, many of which have already been orally argued, that could potentially impact employers concerning such matters as arbitration, retaliation, immigration, and employee benefits ...
Signaling a possible further relaxation of the strict in-person non-immigrant visa interview requirements, the U.S. Embassy in London has indicated that beginning in December the Visa Reissuance Program may be extended to include key business categories such as “H” and “L” and exchange visitors/students under “J” and “F.” The U.S ...
On October 15, 2010, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (“BOEMRE”) issued a final rule that makes mandatory and expands API RP 75, a voluntary industry standard initially promulgated in the 1990s, that addresses the management of safety and environmental risks associated with Outer Continental Shelf (“OCS”) operations and facilities ...
On July 28, 2010, the Tribunal administratif du Québec (“TAQ”) confirmed a decision of the Régie des rentes du Québec (the “Régie”) which had refused to register adverse amendments(1) made to a pension plan despite the consent given to the amendments by the sole member of the plan.(2)The purpose of the amendments was, on the one hand, to replace the 2% pension benefit formula with a 1 ...
Last August 3, the Honourable Paul Mayer of the Superior Court of Québec dismissed the motion for authorization to institute a class action filed by Mr. Michel Dell’Aniello (“Dell’Aniello”) against Vivendi Canada Inc. (“Vivendi”), the succ essor of his former employer (Seagram) ...
Underscoring that PERM (Program Electronic Review Management) is a system of bright-line rules that leave little, if any, opportunity to correct errors once an application is filed, the Department of Labor (DOL) held on October 27, 2010 that the failure to include the business name on the Notice of Filing (Notice) is fatal to the entire PERM labor certification application ...
The new filing fees announced by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) earlier this year will go into effect on November 23, 2010. Anticipating these changes, which include fee increases and reductions, is important not only to budget planning for sponsors but also for ensuring that your petition is not rejected by the USCIS mailroom as “improperly filed ...
by Peter R. RichCompanies seeking business in the heart of the Marcellus Shale natural gas reserves will find a skilled and experienced workforce. However, as any business owner knows, mistakes made in the hiring process can be costly. With that in mind, we offer the following comments on five specific aspects of Pennsylvania and West Virginia law that are applicable to hiring ...
Rio Tinto Alcan Inc. and British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority v. Carrier Sekani Tribal Council, 2010 SCC 43 On October 28, 2010, the nine justices of Supreme Court of Canada issued a unanimous judgment in this appeal that confirmed the decision of the British Columbia Utilities Commission (the “Commission”) to accept the 2007 Electricity Purchase Agreement between BC Hydro and Rio Tinto Alcan Inc. for filing ...
The Obama-appointed NLRB has now issued its first significant batch of decisions1 serving notice, as is typical in the transition from one administration to the next, of a shift in the interpretation of the labor laws. The decisions include a new standard regarding secondary boycotts and union bannering; potential reconsideration of prior precedent; and a differing application of the law to facts than the predecessor NLRB ...
Both British Columbia ("BC") and Alberta have long-held political cultures that nourish a sense of alienation from the traditional Canadian power centres in eastern Canada, which has in turned fostered strongly iconoclastic public policies on a range of issues. Coupled with significant differences in geography and geology, these iconoclastic tendencies have resulted in electricity polices that have in recent years dramatically diverged ...
