Member Articles
The Employee Retention Tax Credit: Why Is My Refund Taking So Long? We have written previously regarding the employee retention tax credit (the “ERC”). The ERC was created by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, & Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”) and was expanded by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (the “Appropriations Act”) to provide a tax credit on a per-employee basis if employers had a sufficient reduction of revenue or had a partial or complete shutdown based on a civil authority order... |
D.C. Circuit Clarifies Boundaries of Protected Employer Expressions On June 1, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit overturned a NLRB determination that a manager’s incorrect blaming of a union for discrepancies in an employee’s paid-leave time constituted an unfair labor practice. The pivotal issue was whether the manager’s statements had a reasonable tendency to interfere with employees’ labor rights. As discussed below, the D.C... |
Allegations That COVID-19 was Physically Present and Altered Property are Sufficient to Sustain COVID-19 Business Interruption Suit On Wednesday, a federal judge in Texas denied Factory Mutual’s Rule 12(c) motion for judgment on the pleadings, finding that the plaintiffs adequately alleged that the presence of COVID-19 on their property caused covered physical loss or damage in the case of Cinemark Holdings, Inc. v. Factory Mutual Insurance Co., No. 4:21-CV-00011 (E.D. Tex. May 5, 2021)... |
EEOC Gives Okay for Employer's Vaccine Incentive Programs in Certain Instances Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has frequently released guidance on the many employment law compliance issues that have arisen as a result of the pandemic. The latest guidance issued by the EEOC concerns whether employers may implement vaccine incentive programs to encourage employees to get vaccinated without running afoul of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or the Genetic Information Discrimination Act (GINA)... |
Class Action Litigation Trends Warn of Renewed Focus on Overdraft Practices While overdraft litigation risks have threatened the financial services industry for some time, recent class action lawsuits have trickled down to community banks. One place in particular where exposure has expanded is the increased willingness of plaintiff’s counsel to challenge the use of form account agreements and disclosures, including reliance on Regulation E’s model consent form... |
Significant Accounting Deficiencies The challenges of addressing COVID-19, government closure orders, the Paycheck Protection Program, Main Street Lending Facilities and digital banking made this past audit season more challenging than most. Not surprisingly, it has given rise to quite a number of potential significant deficiencies.1 Significant deficiencies that are not addressed will no doubt become “material weaknesses... |
D&O Insurer Muted by “Uncertainty” in Contract Exclusion, and “Complicated” Endorsements, in Headphone Manufacturer’s Liability Claim The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a D&O liability insurer could not rely on ambiguous endorsements as a basis to deny coverage for claims brought by investors against its insured company and its CEO. Reversing the Eastern District of Missouri, the appellate court in Verto Medical Solutions LLC et al. v. Allied World Specialty Insurance Co., No. 19-3511 (8th Cir... |
Ninth Circuit Rules California’s ABC Test Is Not Preempted By The Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act In an April 28, 2021 decision, the Ninth Circuit determined that that the application of California’s ABC test (also known as AB-5) to motor carriers is not preempted by the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (“F4A”). The ABC test is a judicially-created independent contractor test that was ultimately codified via AB-5. For a more in-depth discussion of AB 5, visit our previous blog post here... |
The Trend Towards Legal Recreational Cannabis: Considerations for Employers In the first four months of 2021, Virginia, New Mexico, New York and New Jersey passed laws legalizing or decriminalizing, in some form, recreational marijuana. Exactly how these laws will affect employers in these states is still an open question, but for now, employers should understand the nuances of the laws so they can prepare for the emerging reality that is legal marijuana... |
Upcoming Fifth Circuit Hearing to Address FLSA Day-Rate Issues Most employers know the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) requires employees to be paid time-and-one-half for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek unless an exemption applies. But what some employers don’t realize is, for the most-commonly-used overtime exemptions to apply, employees must not only satisfy various “duties” tests, but they must also be paid on a “salary basis” at not less than $684 per week... |
Virginia Enacts Employment Protections For Medical Use of Cannabis Oil On March 25, 2021, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam signed into law new protections for employees related to the medicinal use of cannabis oil. Effective July 1, 2021, the newly enacted § 40.1-27... |
Virginia’s New Overtime Law Threatens Double and Treble Damages For Employers Who Don’t Pay Up Following the flood of employee-friendly legislation during the Virginia General Assembly’s 2020 session, which included a significantly strengthened wage payment law that we previously discussed, the 2021 session resulted in the passage of yet another new wage-related law that employers need to be aware of... |
Biden's Nominee to Lead OSHA May Signal Increased Enforcement Scrutiny President Joseph R. Biden on April 12 nominated current Cal/OSHA Chief Doug Parker to lead federal OSHA. If confirmed, employers should prepare for the potential that California-style enforcement may reach the federal law. President Biden has pledged to make improved working conditions a central tenet of his administration, including support for changes to federal OSHA and the National Labor Relations Act... |
Insurer Denies Coverage for Deal Litigation Despite Bank Purchasing Runoff Coverage for Pre-Acquisition Alleged Wrongful Acts Everest National Insurance Company has filed a lawsuit denying any obligation to cover a post-acquisition lawsuit by a credit union alleging fraud against two banks and their executives. The seller paid additional premium for an extended reporting period to report claims based on pre-acquisition wrongful conduct, but the insurer denied coverage on the ground that any claims asserted by the buyer are excluded under the D&O policy’s “insured vs... |
New California Bill Would Impose Strict Products Liability on All Online Retailers A new bill in the California Assembly has the potential to alter substantially the existing legal framework of products liability for online retailers. Assembly Bill No. 1182 (“AB 1182”), which was introduced on February 18, 2021, would impose strict products liability on online retailers who (1) communicate offers of sale and (2) facilitate payment between a third-party seller and a purchaser, even if the online retailer never takes physical possession of the product... |
Gig Employer Hit with Background Check Class Action Uber Technologies, Inc. has been sued in a class action lawsuit alleging the company’s use of criminal background checks discriminates against Black and Latinx drivers. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on April 8, challenges Uber’s “unlawful use of criminal history to discriminate against its drivers in New York City as well as its brazen noncompliance with human rights and fair credit laws... |
CFPB Proposed Rule: Slowing the Foreclosure Wave On April 5, 2021, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the “CFPB”) issued a proposed rule that would, among other things, establish a temporary COVID-19 emergency pre-foreclosure review period until December 31, 2021, for principal residences. Currently, the moratorium on foreclosures and evictions for Federal Housing Administration, US Department of Agriculture, US Department of Veterans Affairs, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac loans has been extended until June 30, 2021... |
Legal Considerations of Employer-Provided Covid-19 Vaccine Incentives Covid-19 has left employers who want their employees back in the office in a difficult position. With the pandemic still raging, many employees are fearful of returning to the office with unvaccinated peers. In order to ease their employees’ concerns and provide a safe work environment, some employers are offering incentives to get vaccinated... |
Retailers Beware: “You Can’t Say Your Products are Made in the USA When [They Are] Made Elsewhere.” Gennex Media LLC, a customizable product online marketplace, and its sole officer and shareholder Akil Kurji, have agreed to an FTC consent decree resolving allegations the company falsely claimed its Brandnex novelty products were “Made in USA,” “USA MADE,” and “Manufactured Right Here in America!” when, in many instances, they were wholly imported from China... |
Delaware Issues Landmark Decision Supporting D&O Coverage for Fraud On March 3, 2021, the Delaware Supreme Court issued a landmark victory for policyholders in the insurance dispute concerning Dole Food Company, Inc. under a directors and officers liability policy, in RSUI Indem. Co. v. Murdock, et al., No. 154, 2020, 2021 WL 803867, at *1 (Del. Mar. 3, 2021). Dole’s dispute was with its eighth-layer excess insurer, RSUI Indemnity Company, which provided $10 million excess of $75 million... |
Department of Labor Expands Unemployment Insurance Eligibility To Include Workers Who Declined Work Due to Pandemic Safety Concerns
The U.S. Department of Labor recently issued guidance to state unemployment insurance agencies, expanding the categories of workers that are eligible for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance. The PUA program was created in March 2020 to provide payments to certain people affected by COVID-19, as well as independent contractors and gig workers who do not usually qualify for unemployment insurance. While funded by the federal government, states are responsible for administering it... |
CA DFEH Issues Guidance on Mandatory Employee Vaccination California employers may mandate employee vaccination under new guidance from the State’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH). With the opening up of California businesses and expansion of vaccine eligibility, a key question facing employers has been whether they can require their employees to get vaccinated... |
California Bill Proposes To Require Employer-Subsidized Backup Childcare Benefits Closures of schools and day care centers during the COVID-19 pandemic have put heightened focus on the child care challenges faced by working parents. The California legislature is aiming to address these challenges by introducing a bill that, if passed, would require employers to provide subsidized backup child care benefits to employees... |
Changes Afoot at the NLRB Under the New Administration
With the ushering in of a new administration, several changes have quickly taken place at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Within hours of taking office, the Biden administration removed Trump appointee NLRB General Counsel Peter Robb and replaced him with interim General Counsel Peter Ohr. (Ohr may only serve as acting General Counsel for 40 days, per the National Labor Relations Act, unless the administration submits a nomination to the Senate... |
Year in Review: Top Insurance Cases of 2020 Not surprisingly, COVID-19 business interruption insurance disputes dominated media headlines for most of 2020. Nonetheless, there were a number of other insurance rulings that will undoubtedly shape the coverage landscape. Policyholders enjoyed a number of significant wins including significant victories related to COVID-19 business interruption cases. The start of a new year gives us an opportunity to highlight some of 2020’s most notable coverage decisions... |
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