News & Insights

 

Our News & Insights

Search News & Insights

Keep Up To Date

For invitations to our events and updates on key legal issues and business concerns:

Please Click Here

Automobile Dealerships and Part Suppliers: Unintended Consequences in Whistleblower Rules?

Posted on December 15, 2016 by

OSHA enforces laws that protect whistleblowers under 22 whistleblower statutes ranging from the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act to the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment Reform Act for the 21st Century.  This article focuses on OSHA’s final rule under one of those statutes, the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (“MAP-21”), as […]

Be Prepared Before Your Borrower Files a Farm Bankruptcy

Posted on December 15, 2016 by

How prepared are you for a workout or Chapter 12 farm bankruptcy filed by your Borrower?  Make it your New Year’s Resolution to know the answer to these questions about your Borrower. Do you conduct regular file reviews?  Regular loan file reviews can be used as tools to increase certainty as to collateral priority and […]

2017 IRS Standard Mileage Rates Reflect Steady Gasoline Prices

Posted on December 13, 2016 by

On December 13, 2016 the IRS issued its standard mileage rates for 2017.  Each year (sometimes more frequently than that in times of price volatility) the IRS announces the standard mileage rates for determining the deductible cost for operating automobiles for various purposes, including business, medical, and charitable purposes.  Employers often base their employee reimbursements […]

2017 Standard Mileage Rates

Posted on December 13, 2016 by

The Internal Revenue Service has announced the optional standard mileage rates for computing the deductible cost of operating an automobile for business, medical, and moving expenses for 2017, and the reduced rates reflect the continued decrease in gasoline prices. Effective January 1, 2017, the optional standard mileage rates will decrease to 53.5 cents per mile […]

More Overtime or Not?

Posted on December 12, 2016 by

The table is set for a fight over whether or not more employees will be eligible for overtime pay as a result of the Department of Labor regulation changing the qualifications to be an exempt employee.  President-Elect Trump has nominated Andrew Puzder to serve as Secretary of the Department of Labor.  He has made it […]

Perceived National Origin Discrimination Can be Pitfall for Employers

Posted on December 9, 2016 by

I have always struggled with the notion of “perceived” discrimination and whether an employer has actually discriminated against an employee because they perceive the employee to be disabled or of a different national origin or something else.  The EEOC recently issued updated Enforcement Guidance on national origin discrimination and concluded that national origin discrimination includes […]

Cybersecurity Risk: Latest Guidance from Bank Examiners

Posted on December 1, 2016 by

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has indicated in a recent bulletin that its examiners will gradually incorporate a Cybersecurity Assessment Tool into its examinations of national banks and other institutions under its regulatory purview.  At the same time, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation issued a Financial Institution Letter informing banks of a Frequently Asked […]

Federal Judge Refuses to Block New OSHA Anti-Retaliation Rule from Taking Effect Tomorrow

Posted on November 30, 2016 by

A federal judge has refused to issue a preliminary injunction to block OSHA’s new anti-retaliation and discrimination rule from taking effect as scheduled.  This means that tomorrow, December 1, the rule prohibiting employers from retaliating or discriminating against employees for reporting workplace injuries and illnesses will take effect. Multiple plaintiffs have sued OSHA in federal […]

Breaking News: Texas Judge Delays Overtime Rule!

Posted on November 22, 2016 by

Late today, a Texas federal district court judge issued a ruling that DELAYS the Department of Labor’s proposed overtime rule that was set to go into effect on December 1.  This means that a hearing will be scheduled to determine whether or not the DOL exceeded its authority in issuing the Rule that would increase […]

HHS Releases Inflation Adjusted Federal Civil Penalties

Posted on November 18, 2016 by

The Department of Health and Human Services has issued new interim final rules to adjust a variety of Federal Civil Penalties for inflation.  The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 required the agency to promulgate a “catch-up adjustment” in these penalties through an interim final rule.  Additionally, HHS agencies were instructed […]