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News/Blog

Open Gates and Inartful Contracts

We have had a record-setting year for rain here in Virginia.  And when you have a small horse property on red clay, on the side of a hill, that means MUD. A lot of MUD.  The paddock that I use for my two retired horses has two gates. Both gate areas are the muddiest they have ever been despite my remediation efforts, so I alternate gates when turning the retirees in and out. Recently, in an early morning, pre-caffeine haze, I apparently lost...

Managing Collective Actions: What Is A “Collective”?

The simple answer to this question is: “a herd of cats.”  However, because this is the first in a series of posts discussing the effective management by counsel of collective actions, a more thorough answer is probably in order. Introduction Employees who wish to bring a representative action under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and Age Discrimination in Employment Act (“ADEA”) must do so under the collective action mechanism...

Advocating For Students With Disabilities

Last week the Supreme Court decided Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District, which held that the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”) requires schools to provide students with disabilities an Individualized Education Program (“IEP”) reasonably calculated to enable a child to make progress appropriate in light of the child’s circumstances.   The decision was a victory for students with disabilities because it...

Protect Your Brand: Trademarks for Small Businesses

We are all familiar with iconic brands like Coke® and McDonald’s® Just hearing the name Coke will bring back old jingles, and all of us recognize the golden arches from a mile away. These brands have been carefully cultivated over decades through high dollar advertising and by using the protections afforded by trademark registration. The advantage for large corporations is clear, but what about small businesses? Should you register a...

4th Circuit Issues New Test For Joint Employer

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals recently issued two opinions, Salinas v. Commercial Interiors, Inc. and Hall v. DirecTV, LLC , in which it set forth a new rule for determining whether two or more entities are jointly and severally liable for the failure to pay workers overtime compensation or minimum wages. The “joint employer doctrine,” which is derived from the Department of Labor (“DOL”) regulations, has long been used to hold...

Preliminary Injunctive Relief

PRELIMINARY INJUNCTIVE RELIEF LEGAL AND VETERINARY JOURNAL HORSE INTERNATIONAL March 2016 Mr. L.M. Schelstraete Active in the fields of company law and equine law. Within the equine law practice, Luc Schelstraete provides services to Dutch yet often also foreign equine businesses, riders, horse owners and equine authorities. In this issue we take a look with our readership across the Atlantic Ocean. The US based alliance partner of EEL Mrs...

Protecting Wages for Tipped Employees

The Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), which governs overtime compensation and minimum wages, provides special rules for paying employees who receive tips from customers. The FLSA obligates all employers to pay employees a minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.  Under limited circumstances, however, an employer may pay tipped employees $2.13 per hour, and apply up to $5.12 per hour from the tips the employees receive. Under the FLSA, “tipped...

Supreme Court Nominees and Stare Decisis

Controversy always surrounds the pick of a new United States Supreme Court Justice. There are predictions from all corners regarding the political stance of a potential Justice and how that stance might impact future decisions of the Court. Often missing is a discussion of the bedrock principle of stare decisis. Translated from Latin, stare decisis means to stand by things decided. It is a legal principle meaning that courts make rulings based...