Recent Blog Entries

  • Don't Get Stuck in the Past, Innovate for the Future

    May 17, 2013

    Post by Neal S. Krokosky

    A critical attribute of a successful attorney is a desire to innovate. Rather than merely using the same strategy time-and-again, an attorney should ask: can I do this better? My interest in answering this question led me to write: Putting the Product in "Products Liability": Pleading Product Identification in a Federal Toxic Tort Lawsuit, which was recently published in the American Journal of Trial Advocacy. Read more »

  • New I-9 Form: “Use By” Date is May 7, 2013

    March 27, 2013

    Post by Anna M. Pepelnjak

    The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has issued a new version of the I-9 form, which employers must implement by May 7, 2013. As before, the I-9 has three sections. Section 1 gathers identifying information about the employee, requires citizenship (or non-citizenship) attestation and calls for status documentation. Section 2 collects information from the employer, including work authorization documentation. Section 3 asks for continued work authorization in the event of expiration of Section 2 documents. Read more »

  • Mistakes That Chinese (and American) Investors Often Make

    March 19, 2013

    Post by Sandy Swartzberg

    In the United States, it is sometimes easy to forget how complex our legal system is . . . at least from the perspective of other countries. During my years of practice, I have had many lawyers from abroad intern at my firm. Whether they were French, German or even English, they all had the same comment: “America, as far as its legal system, is basically fifty countries with a common foreign policy.” Read more »

  • The FMLA Turns 20, and Expands Once Again

    February 06, 2013

    Post by Anna M. Pepelnjak

    On February 5, 2013, the FMLA celebrated its 20th anniversary. The law’s coverage has expanded incrementally over the years, most recently through a Wage and Hour Division Administrator’s Interpretation regarding availability of leave to care for adult children. See: DOL Fact Sheet #28K. Read more »

  • BUT I WANT IT NOW – The Importance of Completing Legal Due Diligence

    January 23, 2013

    Post by Mark W. Siler

    If the fiscal cliff taught us anything it's that Americans love to procrastinate. Purchasers of businesses are no different. However, another effect of the fiscal cliff was that, following the 2012 Presidential election, many business transactions which may have normally occurred in 2013 were pushed into 2012 due to the uncertainty with respect to future tax rates and policies. This gave clients and their lawyers about 7 weeks to complete the transactions. Given the compressed time period, some normal steps in the process needed to be accelerated or skipped altogether.  Read more »

  • WBB Reporter Newsletter goes Digital

    December 11, 2012

    Weiss Berzowski Brady has published a quarterly newsletter, The WBB Reporter, for the past six years. The newsletter contains original article material written by our attorneys and features current events at the firm, enjoying a robust circulation.  Our most recent issue can be found here. Read more »

  • Retaliation in the Workplace (Again!)

    December 05, 2012

    Retaliation in the Workplace (Again!)

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    Employee’s Oral Complaint Alleging Wage/Hour Violation
    Protects the Employee against Retaliation
     
    Post by Anna M. Pepelnjak
     

    Employees who make oral complaints about wage and hour violations in the workplace are protected from retaliation, so long as the oral complaint provides the employer “fair notice” that the employee invokes a protected right.  This principle was clarified by the U.S. Supreme Court in Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp., 131 S. Ct. 1325, 1334 (2011) and rearticulated by the 7th Circuit in Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp., --- F. 3d --- (7th Cir., 11/30/2012).  Kasten involved an employee who was terminated for repeatedly failing to punch the company time clock. During the course of disciplines leading to his termination, Kasten orally complained that the time clocks were too far away from the employee donning/doffing area, claiming that this violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.  Read more »

Disclaimer

The comments and opinions expressed in this blog are intended for informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Reading or using the information in this blog does not create the existence of an attorney-client privilege. Due to the changing nature of the law, the blog posts may contain dated material. For an update on the current law and the application of the law to your particular facts and circumstances, consult a legal advisor. The information contained herein is not a substitute for obtaining legal advice from a qualified attorney licensed in your state.

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