On March 17, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an Executive Order suspending some of the notice requirements under the California WARN Act ("Cal-WARN"), the state counterpart to the Federal WARN Act. The order came in response to the sudden onslaught of workplace closings across California due to COVID-19. Under the Cal-WARN, employers with 75 or more employees must give 60-days' written notice to employees and unions before layoffs occur ...
On March 18, 2020, Governor Gretchen Whitmer issued Executive Order 2020-15 which permits all public bodies in the State of Michigan, with the exception of the State Legislature, to meet during the COVID-19 state of emergency (“COVID-19 Emergency”) by electronic means until April 15, 2020 ...
As Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 continues to spread, the general advice from Governments around the world is to avoid any contact with others as much as possible. In this context, we feel that organizations would most benefit from implementing electronic signatures in order to keep their activity going during this unfortunate state of play. Electronic signatures in Romania are mainly governed by the EU Regulation no ...
Brief guide to the law against sexual harassment at workplace, clarifying some misconceptions The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (“POSH”) was enacted in 2013. Seven years since then, fears of misuse are rife. Are the fears legitimate? It is perceived that women are dangerously armed with a one-sided law. Men feel oppressed as there is no specific forum for redressal of their grievances ...
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (“MCA”) has issued an advisory that is applicable to all Indian companies and limited liability partnerships (LLPs) registered with the MCA. As per the said advisory, all companies and LLPs are required to take the following immediate steps in order to aid social distancing for reducing transmission of COVID-19: To follow “Work from Home” as a temporary measure until March 31st 2020 ...
Faced by the spreading SARS-CoV-2 epidemic, the Polish Parliament and President rushed through aSpecial Coronavirus Act. The act is intended to clarify and supplement regulations on prevention of the spread of infectious diseases in Poland. But by giving total primacy to protection of the public interest, the act ignores the issue of the rights and freedoms of persons subjected to various forms of compulsory treatment (hospitalisation, quarantine, and epidemiological supervision) ...
The Ministry of Development has announced that it will develop adraft special law to introduce comprehensive support for entrepreneurs whose activities will be affected by the spread of Covid‑19. At present, the specific form of these regulations is not known, but according to the announcement, the draft is to be submitted to parliament on 25 March and introduced on 1 April ...
Numerous sectors of the economy have been paralysed. The problem is not just closings or restricted access to arange of services, but also absence of staff due to illness, quarantine or childcare. Consequently, businesses cannot operate normally or perform their obligations on time. Alack of supplies by one company often carries over to an inability of its customers to fill their own orders. This bogs down the whole economy ...
As the impact of the coronavirus continues to grow and develop, government watchdogs are on high alert for fraud and scams that may arise. The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Whistleblower Center sent a letter to Attorney General William Barr asking him to establish a nationwide task force to monitor and investigate fraud under the False Claims Act (FCA) ...
While many people begin to work from home in an effort to practice social distancing, it is important to remember that corporate needs still arise for many individuals and their businesses. Effective 5:00 p.m. on March 18, 2020, the Kentucky Secretary of State’s office closed to walk-in services. Additionally, Kentucky government agencies, including the Secretary of State’s office, have been asked to reduce staffing by 50 percent and work remotely ...
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced during a March 19, 2020 teleconference for physicians and teaching hospitals that it does not have the authority to postpone the statutory timeline for the Physician Payments Sunshine Act (Sunshine Act) ...
Every state has an Open Meeting Law, or Sunshine Law requiring public bodies to take official action and conduct deliberations in open meetings. Open meetings are defined as an in-person meeting open to the public with a certain number of legislators or board members physically present to establish a quorum and participate in the meeting ...
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced in a press conference on March 17, 2020 that all elective surgeries would be postponed in the State of Ohio effective at 5:00 p.m. on March 18, 2020 until further notice. The Order, issued by Director of the Ohio Department of Health Amy Acton, is available here: (https://content.govdelivery.com/attachments/OHOOD/2020/03/17/file_attachments/1403950/Director%27s%20Order%20non-essential%20surgery%203-17-2020.pdf) ...
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports swimming is the fourth most popular recreational activity in the United States and the most popular recreational activity for children (ages 7 to 17). Statistics further show 36 percent of children and 15 percent of adults go swimming at least six times a year in the United States ...
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced Friday on Twitter that the U.S. will extend the tax filing deadline of April 15, 2020 for 2019 individual and business tax returns until July 15, 2020. Earlier this week, the Internal Revenue Service announced that the payment deadline for any 2019 individual income tax due, including 2020 first quarter estimated payments due April 15, 2020, was deferred until July 15, 2020 ...
As the coronavirus (“COVID-19”) pandemic continues, many public companies are examining how best to accommodate their upcoming annual shareholder meetings in light of complying with government orders and recommendations limiting public gatherings and non-essential travel. Accordingly, many corporate executives are now considering moving their annual shareholder meetings to a virtual or “hybrid” format in light of current public health and safety concerns ...
Updated: April 4, 2020 On March 19, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom and the Director of the California Department of Public Health ordered all Californians to stay home “except as needed to maintain continuity of operations of the federal critical infrastructure sectors ...
According to press reports, most Germans are willing to accept limitations on the extent of the protection of their personal data vis-à-vis public authorities and agencies in order to tackle the coronavirus crisis. However, that alone is not an adequate justification for measures that employers may take during a coronavirus pandemic to prevent an outbreak in their company ...
The main doubts of company directors about the consequences ofthe current Covid-19 pandemic in relation to insolvency, the PER, and the RERE. As a result of the spread of the Covid-19 virus, the World Health Organization declared a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) on 30 January 2020 and a pandemic on 11 March 2020 ...
On March 18, 2020, the State Medical Board of Ohio (“Board”) held a special meeting, which resulted in the temporary suspension of certain regulatory enforcement activities in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Telemedicine Effective immediately, the Board will suspend enforcement of any regulations requiring in-person visits between providers and patients ...
The rapid spread of COVID-19 and the swift and sweeping action from government agencies at all levels are having a ripple effect on markets. These events are causing significant disruption in most industries, including the cancellation/postponement of major conferences and events like South by Southwest, March Madness, and Facebook’s F8, and Mobile World Congress. One impact is that many companies are struggling to meet their obligations under their contracts ...
Introduction While the long-term litigation effects of the COVID-19 pandemic may not materialize for months – or even years – it is important for tort litigation attorneys and their clients to begin preparing now for potential legal issues that may arise. This bulletin is intended to serve as a non-exhaustive list of tort-focused legal considerations for health care providers, product manufacturers, and their attorneys in the new and ever-evolving COVID-19 landscape ...
We invite you to read our news alert about the State of Catastrophe declared by the Chilean government and the economic measures announced today by the country's Ministry of Finance to face the covid-19 pandemic. A) State of Catastrophe is declared in Chile: Below, please find a summary of the main consequences of the “State of Catastrophe” decreed by H.E. the President of the Republic of Chile: I. Background. On 18 March 2020, H.E ...
In response to the severe public health emergency and the economically-damaging nationwide confinement measures triggered by the Covid-19 (“Covid-19”) outbreak in Italy, on 17 March 2020 the Italian government has adopted Law Decree #CuraItalia1 (the “Decree #CuraItalia”) ...
