While ravers rush to EDM (electronic dance music) events to dance and sweat, some may be wondering: Are raves even legal? One of the biggest events of the rave season is the Electronic Daisy Carnival (EDC), which kicks off today in Las Vegas. According to USA Today, some 345,000 people are expected to attend this rave party – not to mention the after parties. But with the constant presence of illegal drugs and their “underground” past, are raves themselves technically legal?...
Some small businesses may be eligible for tax credits under Obamacare for providing health insurance to their employees, depending on the size of the company and a few other factors. Businesses with 50 full-time employees or more will be required in 2015 to provide their employees with a minimum level of health insurance. What if your business has fewer than 50 full-time workers? Then you can choose whether or not to offer health coverage; if you do, then it’s possible you may even qualify for a tax break....
The New York Times reports that VMG Global has pleaded guilty to selling dietary health supplements that were laced with steroids. VMG Global, a sports nutrition company based in California, also does business as American Cellular Labs. The dietary health supplements in question are called Tren Xtreme and Mass Xtreme. Each product actually contained an anabolic steroid. According to the FDA, a “dietary supplement” is a product taken by mouth that contains a “dietary ingredient” intended to supplement the diet....
An employment lawsuit over wages against Domino’s Pizza has been granted class action status by a judge in the Federal District Court for the District of Minnesota. The lawsuit, originally brought by two drivers in Minnesota, claims that Domino’s under-reimbursed its delivery drivers for automobile expenses, causing them to receive less than minimum wage. Dominos is a Michigan based corporation. The plaintiffs claimed that in effect, the employees were required to subsidize the Domino’s business by paying for their own automobile and gas expenses....
Exploding toilets have injured more than a dozen people, leading to the recall of a product found in more than 2.3 million toilet tanks nationwide. The Sloan Flushmate III Pressure-Assist Flushing System, which uses air and water pressure to ensure a powerful flush, can burst inside toilet tanks, “releasing stored pressure,” according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. “This pressure can lift the tank lid and shatter the tank, posing impact or laceration hazards to consumers and property damage,” the CPSC announced in its recall alert, issued Thursday....
One of the biggest cruise ships in the world was forced to cancel its intended vacation route and head back to its home port yesterday. Royal Caribbean’s Anthem of the Seas was singing a different tune in the face of hurricane-force winds and giant waves that soaked cabins as high as the fifth deck. The ship had departed the New York area on Saturday for scheduled to be a seven-night round trip to Florida and the Bahamas....
In a bizarre string of events, a 10-year-old girl has been charged with first degree murder for the killing of a six-month-old boy in Chippewa County, Wisconsin. The laws in that state dictate that anyone 10 years old or above that is charged with first degree murder must be arraigned in adult court, regardless of whether or not the case will eventually end up in the juvenile system. The girl was brought into the courtroom in early November, sobbing and shackled....
We’ve heard of running a tight ship in the office, and it’s only natural to want to protect your company secrets. But an internal “spying program” that encourages employees to snitch on possible leakers? Prohibitions on writing about potentially illegal activities, even to in-house counsel? And a ban on writing “a novel about someone working at a tech company in Silicon Valley” without prior approval? That might be taking office secrecy a bit too far, Google....
How serious is an NDA? Some say it really doesn’t have much clout. Others will swear by a non-disclosure agreement. Many resort to NDAs as a method of protecting their inventions of business secrets. Is the NDA, even the most iron-clad NDA, the best way to protect an invention or idea? Not necessarily. A patent is usually the best way to protect an idea. But obtaining a patent is difficult and time consuming....
Complaining about work is as American as apple pie or Walmart, but there are very few legal protections that keep angsty employees from being fired. If you must rant about your work, but don’t want to be fired, keep these legal principles in mind. You may think that you’re in the clear to complain about work by keeping a careful eye on your Facebook privacy settings and crafting a nifty Twitter disclaimer, but you’re wrong....
Whether you’re an established business that doesn’t want its proprietary information used by a competitor, or an upstart that doesn’t want its secrets getting out, you may be looking at a non-compete agreement as a way to protect your trade secrets and maintain your customer base. And the key to creating an enforceable non-compete agreement is all in the craft. So, here are a few considerations to keep in mind when crafting your non-compete clause or contract:...
Do any of your employees have a disability and need accommodations to do their work? Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Acts requires employers provide qualified employees with disabilities with reasonable accommodations to remove workplace barriers. However, employers may want to know when is an accommodation reasonable, and when does it become unreasonable? Reasonable The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) provides some guidance on the definition of reasonable. The EEOC defines an accommodation as reasonable if it “seems reasonable on its face, i....
A motion that Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Stephen Reinhardt remove himself from the panel hearing arguments in the Proposition 8 appeal has failed. After considering the motion, Judge Reinhardt ruled he would not recuse himself and that he would absolutely be able to rule impartially, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. In their motion to disqualify Judge Reinhardt, lawyers for Protect Marriage (a group supporting the law) said the judge’s impartiality could “reasonably be questioned” due to his wife’s involvement in the issue....
Every business, no matter how very small, must get the proper permits before beginning operations. An example: a couple of 13-year-olds who were turned in for their illegal cupcake sales. To make matters worse, they were turned in to officials by a local city councilman. Chappaqua, New York, pre-teens Andrew DeMarchis and Kevin Graff had a good thing going, selling cupcakes, Rice Crispy treats, cookies and brownies, reports The Journal News....
No owner wants to think about burying his or her pet, but it’s often necessary to find a final resting place for your furry friend. But before you get a shovel and a large cardboard box for your pet’s backyard burial, you should know about the kinds of laws you may be violating. This is especially true if you’re thinking about burying your pet in a public park. Before you say your goodbyes, check out our legal how-to on burying your pet:...
It used to be detention and a trip to the principal’s office. Maybe suspension. But these days, school ticketing seems to have taken over traditional disciplinary measures in many of the nation’s educational institutions, throwing children as young as 5 in front of a judge. Citations, which can lead to hundreds of dollars in fines and community service, are given for running in the hallway, classroom disruption, and bringing soda to school....
Illinois has become the 20th state in the nation to legalize medical marijuana after Gov. Pat Quinn signed a bill into law Thursday. The new law is one of the strictest medical cannabis regulations in the nation. Its signing marks the launch of a four-year medicinal marijuana pilot program that will begin on January 1, 2014, reports the Chicago Tribune. What are the protections and limits of this newly approved law?...
The city of Chicago will pay $55,000 to settle a lawsuit brought by a woman who claimed she was Tasered by police when she was eight months pregnant. Last June, 31-year-old Tiffany Rent says she was shocked by police after she pulled into a handicapped spot in front of a Walgreens, reports NBC News. She got out of the car to readjust one of her two children in the car when a police officer starting writing her a ticket....
Cloud storage company Dropbox is revamping its service with small business owners in mind: It’s now offering separate business and personal accounts. According to The Verge, Dropbox has unveiled new “Dropbox for Business” accounts, allowing small business owners to manage their business accounts and to easily switch between work- and non-work-related “bins.” This is a welcome change for small employers looking for a cloud storage solution, but you’ll also want to consider some potential legal concerns raised by Dropbox for Business....
Miami-Dade County is leading the push for softer residency restriction laws for convicted sex offenders in order that they may find a place to live. A new sex offender law may help with housing options. Time Magazine reports that a new sex offender law will help clean up the eyesore of tents and shacks under a Miami bridge that has become living quarters for convicted sex offenders forced into homelessness....
