Last week the new USPTO Director, Katherine Vidal, issued an interim procedure for the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) that oversees post-grant proceedings.
In a decision as complicated as the PAGA statute itself, the United States Supreme Court just held that the Federal Arbitration Act partially preempts California’s “Iskanian rule” that prohibits submitting individual PAGA claims to arbitration.
Last week, the U.S. House and Senate released a discussion draft of the American Data Privacy and Protection Act (ADPPA). This is the first bipartisan data privacy bill released at the federal level. The introduction of the ADPPA comes in the wake of a profusion of comprehensive state data privacy laws passed and considered over the last few months. To date, five states have passed comprehensive privacy laws, including Connecticut just last month. If passed, the ADPPA would largely preempt state privacy laws, with some narrow exceptions.
On June 1, 2022, the Ohio General Assembly passed Substitute Senate Bill Number 225 (S.B. 225) to expand the Ohio Opportunity Zones Tax Credit Program and the Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credit Program and amend certain other provisions.
On Wednesday, June 1, the Ohio General Assembly passed HB 430 that, among other things, includes a statewide prohibition against local rent control ordinances and regulations. The bill has been sent to the governor for his signature.
On May 18, 2022, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) issued the next generation of the Industrial Stormwater – General Permit, also known as the Multi-Sector General Permit (MSGP).
Earlier this week, in the latest of a line of cases expanding the scope of potential liability for California employers in wage-and-hour litigation, the California Supreme Court ruled that premiums owed to employees for violations of the meal and rest break requirements constitute wages under California law.
Scott Ziance, partner in the Vorys Columbus office and Jon Stock, of counsel in the Vorys Columbus office co-authored an article for Area Development titled “Putting Your Best Foot Forward: Presentation of Incentives Information to the Media”.
On May 4, 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ordered Bank of America to pay a $10 Million civil penalty for its improper garnishment practices.
Currently, seven states require employers to provide (either proactively or upon request) a position’s wage or salary information to applicants, and, in some cases, to employees.
On May 3, 2022, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the Department of Homeland Security is temporarily amending existing regulations providing for the automatic extension of certain Employment Authorization Documents (EADs).
Under Washington law, employers are already prohibited from requiring employees sign nondisclosure agreements that restrict their ability to disclose workplace sexual harassment and assault.
Like the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Ohio’s overtime law requires that employees be paid 1.5 times their regular hourly rate for hours worked in excess of 40 in a workweek.
Judge Alan Albright, District Court Judge for the Western District of Texas, granted summary judgment in a patent infringement lawsuit brought against Bumble Trading LLC (Bumble), the dating app company, finding the patents asserted against it were invalid under the rarely-used “original patent” requirement of 35 U.S.C. § 251(a).
New York recently amended the state’s Civil Rights Law to require employers to provide their employees with prior notice of any telephone, email or internet monitoring.
In April 2022, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that employers are strictly liable under the Massachusetts Wage Act for treble damages when making late final wage payments.
On April 7, 2022, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) released a Financial Institution Letter requesting that all FDIC-supervised institutions that intend to engage in, or that are currently engaged in, any activities involving or related to crypto assets provide notice to the FDIC.