On October 1, the EPA lowered the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ground-level ozone to 70 parts per billion (ppb), from the current level of 75 ppb set under President Bush in 2008. Ground-level ozone is a main component of smog and can produce a number of harmful effects on the respiratory system, including ...
When the National Labor Relations Board implemented its new union election rule in April of this year, the prediction was that the new procedure would shorten the time between the date of the filing of the election petition and the date of the election, something which labor unions and their supporters favored but which the ...
By Carl Eppler
Recently, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued an opinion that further defines the intersection of the “fair use” defense to copyright infringement and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (15 U.S.C. § 512) (the “DMCA”). In Lenz v. Universal Music Corp., No. 13-16106, 13-16107 (9th Cir., Sept ...
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has completed its mailing of the 2015 Employer Information Report (EEO-1) survey notification letters. All companies that filed the EEO-1 report for the 2014 reporting period should have received the 2015 EEO-1 notification letter by this time.
The EEO-1 survey must ...
The National Labor Relations Board’s (“NLRB’s”) revised joint-employer standard spells trouble for businesses that rely on temporary employees or contingent workers and businesses that use the franchisor-franchisee model. Citing the dramatic growth in contingent employment relationships, on August 21 ...
Late Thursday, a federal judge in North Dakota blocked the EPA’s Clean Water Rule, set to go into effect today, that would expand federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act. U.S. District Judge Ralph Erikson of North Dakota issued a preliminary injunction finding that the 13 states suing to block the rule are likely to ...
On August 21, 2015, in Home Care Association of America v. Weil, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit cleared the way for the implementation of regulations extending the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (“FLSA’s”) minimum wage and overtime provisions to many home care workers. The ...
On Tuesday, the Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") proposed regulations to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and volatile organic compounds from the oil and natural gas industry. The regulations are part of the Obama Administration’s plan to cut methane emissions from the oil and gas sector by 40 to 45 percent ...
Most lawyers (let’s be honest…all litigation lawyers) have had the unfortunate experience of getting an unfavorable ruling from a court, which they then have to pass on to their client. Those situations always make me psychically ill. I cannot imagine the torment Delta Airlines, Inc.’s counsel was in when they ...
On August 17, 2015, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) unanimously dismissed a petition by Northwestern University’s football team players to be categorized as “employee(s)” as that term is defined under the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”). The NLRB declined to assert jurisdiction over ...