The transportation industry awaits a decision by the Ninth Circuit in Commissioner for the State of California v. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Nos. 19-70413, 18-73488, 19-70323 and 19-70329, as to whether the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Order in December 2018 that California’s meal and rest break rules are preempted by the Federal
Frantz Ward Litigation Group
Hirer Beware! Employee’s Use of Former Employer’s Trade Secrets Leads to Verdict Against New Employer
Reposted from a Litigation client alert.
A recent $44 million jury verdict in state court in Chicago serves as a stark warning to companies who hire employees that might bring trade secrets from their former employers to their new position. The lesson: take concrete steps to ensure a new employee doesn’t share or use those…
Federal Court Upholds Attorneys’ Fee Award Against Former Employees in Ohio Non-Compete Case
Although some departing employees are willing to risk violating their non-competes when they leave a company, a recent court decision reinforced one of the significant dangers that those employees can face in doing so. In this decision, a federal appeals court in Ohio ruled that a former employee who violates a non-compete can be forced…
Cannabis Cultivator Prevails in Landmark Civil RICO Trial
Last week, a closely-watched trial involving a Colorado cannabis cultivator sued by a neighbor ended with a jury finding in the cultivator’s favor. In Reilly v. 6480 Pickney, LLC, the Reillys complained that their property’s value had decreased due to odor emitted from the cultivator’s property (an unfortunate, if not new…
Court Ruling Protects Transgender Employees From Discrimination And Rejects Employers’ Religious Beliefs As a Rationale For Mistreatment
On March 7, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit determined in a landmark ruling that federal law protects transgender individuals from employment discrimination. The Sixth Circuit also determined that private employers cannot use their religious beliefs to justify discrimination against transgender individuals.
The Sixth Circuit’s decision case in the case…
Cole Memo and Other Marijuana-Related Enforcement Guidance Rescinded by the Department of Justice Creating Greater Uncertainty for State-Legal Marijuana Businesses
On January 4, 2018 the Department of Justice rescinded Obama-era guidance to United States Attorneys, including the 2013 memorandum issued by then-Deputy Attorney General James Cole, calling previous guidance “unnecessary” in light of general principles governing federal prosecutorial discretion. Up until this point, the 2013 Cole Memo was widely viewed as the biggest reason…
“Ban the Box” Not Always the Safest Policy
On November 21, 2017, the Financial Industry Regulatory Agency (“FINRA”) fined J.P. Morgan Securities, LLC, $1.25 million for HR due diligence failures from 2009 until May of this year. Pursuant to federal securities laws, broker-dealers must fingerprint certain non-registered associated persons to help determine if any of them have been convicted of a disqualifying criminal…
Growing Season is Near
Today, the Ohio Department of Commerce announced the 12 Level I medical marijuana cultivator provisional license recipients (with one recipient having a possibility of choosing from two different locations) and the 12th recipient of the Level II cultivator provisional license.
In awarding the medical marijuana cultivator licenses, the Department appears to have placed a…
Jeff Sessions Again Fails to Clarify Comments on Marijuana
What was scheduled as a hearing by the House Judiciary Committee regarding Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ testimony about possible Russian Government contacts with the Trump Campaign, also included another hot-button issue: Jeff Sessions’ views regarding marijuana.
Representative Steve Cohen, a Democrat from Tennessee, stated some of the purported benefits of marijuana, and his hope…
Ohio Releases Dispensary Applications As the Federal Government Continues To Send Conflicting Signals on Legal Marijuana
The Ohio Board of Pharmacy has released model dispensary applications
Today the Ohio Board of Pharmacy released, through the Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program Website, the application materials for Ohio dispensaries. The Board will accept applications electronically beginning on November 3 at 8:00am and ending on November 17 at 2:00pm.
Similar to what the Department…