Member Articles
- Planning to develop land?
- National Policy Statement for fresh water reforms
- Decade of aquaculture roadblocks soon to be lifted
- New Environmental Protection Authority established The Government is continuing to work through its environmental reform agenda at a brisk pace. This month it has finalised a National Environment Standard for contaminants in soil and a National Policy Statement for Fresh Water. Significant progress has also been made on two key pieces of legislation this month, with the Aquaculture Amendment Bill passing its second reading and the Environmental Protection Authority Act passing into law... |
Update: Equal rights to survivor’s benefits for civil partners? Last year, we reported on the Employment Tribunal’s decision in Walker v Innospec Limited (ET 2411316/2011) that a pension scheme’s failure to provide survivor’s benefits for civil partners equal to those provided for spouses was unlawful discrimination... |
Your Contracts: a Systematic and Disciplined Approach is Called for
Every day, and several times a day, we enter into contracts without knowing it or without considering and controlling their effects. This bulletin provides a brief and non-exhaustive summary to help you better understand, prepare for and monitor your contractual environment... |
"A Cost-Effective Approach to Protecting Innovation in Healthcare" by Nate Bailey and Nicolo Davidson Executive Nashville With healthcare costs expected to soon exceed twenty percent of the United States economy, the healthcare industry represents fertile ground for innovation. From medical devices and pharmaceuticals to methods for managing patient data, new technologies continue to improve patient care and outcomes. Such innovation is vital for ensuring that the healthcare industry continues to meet the demands of aging populations in the 21st century.http://executivenashville... |
"Additional Rent" and a Tenant's "Proportionate Share"
Most commercial leases contain terms that require tenants to pay additional rent. Additional rent is usually a share of the costs and charges incurred to operate the property. These costs can include municipal taxes, insurance premiums, repair and maintenance costs and common area utility charges. In any given year, these charges change and fluctuate. Landlords often provide an annual estimate which tenants pay subject to a year-end reconciliation... |
"Anti-Money Laundering - Argentine Chapter" (published in Getting the Deal Through, Anti-Money Laundering Guide 2015). Domestic legislation1. Domestic law.Identify your jurisdiction’s money laundering and anti-money laundering (AML) laws and regulations. Describe the main elements of these laws. Law 25,246, enacted in 2000, was the first to regulate both criminal money laundering (by means of inclusions of specific money laundering and terrorism financing offences in the Argentine Criminal Code (ACC) and antimoney laundering provisions... |
"Blockchain Technology and Applications for Healthcare" Kristen Johns on the Nashville Medical News blog The underlying technology behind the digital currency, Bitcoin, is piquing interest across Nashville’s healthcare industry, largely due to its potential to change the way data is shared. Blockchain, or distributed ledger technology, is a decentralized database that securely records transactions and can also allow for the transfer of an asset such as data or currency.https://nashvillemedicalnews... |
"Commission Free to Gag" Last week the Court of Appeal confirmed the extensive nature of the Commerce Commission’s (Commission) gagging powers. The scope of such powers may come as a surprise to many. On 10 March the Court of Appeal allowed the Commission’s appeal and rejected Air New Zealand’s (Air NZ) cross appeal in the “gagging orders” case... |
"Close Enough for Jazz Characterizing the Disposition of Criminal Cases in News Reports" by Robb Harvey and Kevin Elkins in Communications Lawyer The pressure of the 24/7 news cycle leaves media professionals with competing demands of getting the news out quickly and ensuring that the published/broadcast story is right. The “substantial truth” doctrine provides some comfort but is no guarantee against a lawsuit... |
"False" Self-Employment and the Gig Economy - Where are We Now? The question of 'employment status', continues to concern many employers working within today's 'gig economy'. The UK Supreme Court recently provided guidance on the correct "label" to be bestowed on 'gig economy' workers. Pimlico Plumbers recently lost an appeal in the UK Courts against a finding that one of its plumbers was a "worker" for the purposes of relevant UK employment legislation – not a self-employed independent contractor... |
"How to De-stress a Distressed Senior Living Company" Co-Authored by Jeffery D Parrish and John C Tishler External pressures, such as lower reimbursement rates and an overall shift in policy by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and state Medicaid agencies have put significant financial and operational pressure on skilled nursing and other senior living operators in the United States... |
"Hurricane Harvey" and the Winds of Change Have we reached the tipping point in the fight against sexual harassment in the workplace? In late August 2017, Hurricane Harvey struck the Caribbean and the United States, causing unprecedented devastation and destruction. Less thantwo months later, a very different “Hurricane Harvey” followed, one that precipitated a renewed global consciousness over issues of sexual harassment... |
"How to Transform International Registrations Under the Madrid Protocol" By Robert P Felber Jr INTA Bulletin The Madrid system for the International Registration of trademarks is a convenient and economical system for applicants in member countries to secure trademark registrations in other member countries throughout the world. There are 98 contracting parties to the Madrid Protocol, covering 114 countries, including the United Kingdom, the United States, Mexico, China, and much of Europe and the Pacific Rim (http://www.wipo.int/madrid/en/)... |
"Peer-To-Peer" Insurance: A Grassroots Revolution? After the hospitality sector, transportation of passengers and corporate financing, insurance could be the next sector to see its business model influenced by the sharing economy. In the past few years, numerous start-up companies have launched businesses in "peer-to-peer" ("P2P") insurance on risksharing platforms, claiming to reduce bureaucracy and costs, and insure risks not covered by the traditional markets... |
"Legal and Marketing Departments Must Work as a Team for Brand Protection and Promotion in the Sports Industry" by Kevin Brown in Professional Sports and the Law In the pre-digital age, companies that strategically focused on brand protection and promotion often included only those companies selling directly to consumers - typically through more limited print and radio/television media. Company lawyers and their marketing counterparts might communicate on an as-needed basis when direct legal threats to the brand arose (from customer class actions or competitor advertising claims) or for more routine trademark enforcement measures... |
"Right to be Forgotten" - Search Engine Operators Must Comply with Requests to Delete Links to Personal Data The use of the Internet without the use of search engines, which list links to Internet pages after keywords have been entered, is almost unthinkable. In the context of the search results, however, websites may appear that contain personal data and thus fall within the scope of the GDPR... |
"Night of the Living Trademark Zombie Trademarks in the United States" by Robert P Felber Jr and Julian L Bibb IV INTA Bulletin The February 2016 resolution of the five-year-old trademark dispute between Macy’s Inc. and Strategic Marks, LLC in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California (Macy’s Inc. et al. v. Strategic Marks, LLC, Case No. 15-0612, N.D. Cal. 2016) is a reminder that zombie trademarks still walk among us... |
"Twenty Years" is Actually "Six Years" for Contractors and Manufacturers in North Carolina This year the North Carolina Court of Appeals issued an opinion that effectively nullifies many construction warranties. In Christie v. Hartley Construction, Inc., et al., No. COA12-1385, the Court limited warranties for construction defects to six years, even when the contractor or product manufacturer expressly provides a longer one. Plaintiffs George and Deborah Christie contracted for the construction of a custom home in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, in 2004... |
"Passthrough Partner Cancellation of a Nonlapse Restriction Compensation Surprise" by J Leigh Griffith Taxes - The Tax Magazine A large percentage of closely held businesses restrict or even prohibit the owners’ ability to transfer their equity interests. Often these restrictions require the owner to sell the equity back to the entity or the other owners at a formula value, for example, book value, that is not anticipated to be a true fair market value. These and other permanent restrictions on equity interests are called nonlapse restrictions because by their terms they never go away or “lapse... |
#MeToo: It May Be Happening in Your Workplace Too The resurgence of the #MeToo campaign highlights that sexual harassment comes in all variations, affects all classes of people, and cuts across all industries. While employers could dismiss the social media moniker as a “them” not an “us” problem, they do so at their peril. People, some of whom may be your employees, are talking, posting, and tweeting, and employers would be wise to listen and revisit their anti-harassment policies... |
"IRS Taking Harder Look at Non-Profit Hospitals" Don Stuart Quoted in FierceHealthcare The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is ratcheting up surveillance of non-profit hospitals regarding their levels of community benefits and patient financial assistance. The IRS reviewed 692 hospitals in fiscal 2016, which ended late last month, Bloomberg BNA has reported. Of those, 166 were referred for a closer “field examination... |
#NotHere: 5 Steps to Prevent Harassment in the Workplace in Wake of the #MeToo Movement One year later, the #MeToo movement has caused a seismic cultural shift in American society and in the workplace. It continues to gain momentum and attracts wide-sweeping media coverage keeping the issue of sexual misconduct against women at the forefront of our national dialogue... |
"Provisional Patent Applications A Cost-Effective Approach for Protecting Innovation" by Nate Bailey TICUAWaller Legal Notes Institutions of Higher Education serve a key role in fostering new ideas and spurring innovation. Recognizing the value of such innovation, the Bayh-Dole Act of 1980 permits universities to own patents directed to the technologies they develop. While some large research institutions pursue patents to protect their inventions, many colleges and universities forego patent protection based on the perception that patent applications are cost-prohibitive. http://www.ticua... |
$39 Million Jury Verdict in False Claims Act Suit against Tuomey Healthcare Last week, a federal jury in South Carolina found that Tuomey Healthcare System, Inc. violated the Stark Law and the False Claims Act by submitting false claims for reimbursement to the United States, resulting in $39 million in damages to the government. United States ex rel. Drakeford v. Tuomey Healthcare Sys., Inc., No. 3:05-2858-MBS (D.S.C. May 8, 2013)... |
"Limiting Liability Exposure for a Private Family Trust Company" by John Bunge Waller Private Family Trust Company Research Provisions in a trust instrument can expressly limit and define the scope of the PFTC’s fiduciary duties, including the Prudent Investor Rule and the duty to inform and report. Generally, the ability to limit fiduciary duties is subject to “mandatory” rules dictated by state statutes or common law. Some states have stringent mandatory rules, while other states seek to maximize the trust settlor’s freedom of disposition and freedom of contract... |
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