Tag: Employment Contracts

State of Play: Examining NIL Laws and Regulations Today

Over a year has passed since student-athletes gained the right to enter endorsement deals with businesses across the country. The name, image, and likeness (NIL) era, as it has been termed, has caused both excitement and confusion. So, what laws, regulations, and policies apply to these NIL deals? Let’s take a look. State Laws Control […]

Understanding the NRLB’s New Joint Employer Rule Proposal

Over the last decade, there has been a significant amount of litigation over how to determine if multiple companies are joint employers of a workforce. Joint employer status can create significant liability issues for the secondary employer in areas such as wages and safety matters. The rules governing that determination may be about to change.

Focus on Noncompetes Increases After the Great Resignation

We’re hearing from business clients what we’re all seeing in the headlines: Employees are hard to hire and retain these days. “The Great Resignation” is a new phrase used to describe the unprecedented level of employee movement in the past year. A natural consequence of this phenomenon is that noncompete agreements are being tested now […]

Can Hypotheticals Render Restrictive Covenants Unenforceable?

On July 14, 2022, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals ruled in favor of a former employee in a dispute over whether two uniquely worded restrictive covenants against him violated Wisconsin law. The case presents new considerations regarding what employers can and cannot include in noncompete clauses with severed employees.

Don’t Wait Too Late to Arbitrate, Warns Supreme Court

The Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) favors the enforcement of arbitration agreements, but employers can’t wait too long to compel arbitration. Courts often apply a contract “waiver” rule if employers sit on their rights too long (meaning the court finds a party waived its right to arbitrate if it failed to start the process soon enough). […]

4th Circuit Providing Lesson on Drafting Employee Agreements

The U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals (which covers Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia) recently issued a published decision on an employer’s second appeal of a judgment in favor of its former employee on claims of breaching an employment agreement and misappropriating trade secrets under the Maryland Uniform Trade Secrets Act […]

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Trump Campaign Case Offers Lesson on Value of Carefully Written Employment Contracts

A recent New York trial court decision demonstrates the importance of carefully drafting employment contracts. In the high-profile case, Judge Arlene P. Bluth sided with the employee in rejecting the employer’s attempt to force an employment claim into arbitration. On the surface, the case is notable because the defending party was the Trump for President […]

Silence as acceptance when company sold

By Keri Bennett Canadian employees may believe that a change in ownership of a company results in a change in the terms of employment and requirement for a new employment contract. Not so. In Whittemore v. Open Text Corporation, the Ontario Superior Court made it clear that the original terms of employment remained valid after […]

When do employees have a duty to mitigate termination claim?

by Keri Bennett It has been a fundamental principle of employment law that terminated employees generally have an obligation to seek alternate employment to minimize or mitigate their resulting losses. Their right to get from the terminating employer the pay they would have received during a period of reasonable notice is usually net of any […]

Canadian Courts Split on Post-Employment Restrictions

by Thora A.Sigurdson Canadian courts continue to struggle with clauses in employment contracts that contain post-employment noncompetition and nonsolicitation clauses, known as “restrictive covenants.” This is an important issue in Canada, where there is no concept of “at will” employment, and all employees are deemed to have some form of employment contact. But not all […]