Last year, we told you about a lawsuit brought by three California cities against Monsanto Company, alleging that Monsanto is liable for PCB (polychlorinated biphenyl) contamination in San Francisco Bay. The cities—San Jose, Berkeley, and Oakland—sued Monsanto for allegedly creating a public nuisance not by discharging PCBs, but just by manufacturing them.
In September 2016,…
As has been our tradition, January is the time to predict the big developments in the coming year which will impact on manufacturers. Notwithstanding my “Lawyer’s Shrug,” here is my take on 2017.
Minimum Wages. Even though President Trump ran on a populist platform to raise wages for American Workers, I believe it unlikely…
As is our annual tradition, this is the first in a series of posts that provide industry and legal outlooks for manufacturers as we head into 2017. I will start with corporate compliance and litigation. Matt will follow with labor/employment. And, Megan will conclude the series with Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S).
Here are issues…
I am a really big fan of the NPR radio show, “Car Talk,” where two Boston auto mechanics took callers’ questions and tried to answer them. Since the November 8 election, I have freely adapted one of their signature phrases – I call it the “Manufacturers’ Lawyers’ Shrug.” Basically, when I attend any event and…
Last week, a federal court dismissed claims brought by three California cities against Monsanto that were aimed at forcing Monsanto to pay for polychlorinated biphenyl (“PCB”) contamination in San Francisco Bay.
The cities—San Jose, Berkeley, and Oakland—each filed lawsuits against Monsanto alleging that Monsanto was liable for PCB pollution in the Bay, not because Monsanto…
Last year, we told you about a district court case in which air emissions from a lead smelter that ultimately settled on the land and in a water body gave rise to liability under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, 42 U.S.C. § 9601 et seq. (“CERCLA”). Last week, the Ninth Circuit…
This week, we thank members of Robinson+Cole’s Business Reorganizations and Bankruptcy Group (Patrick Birney, Steve Boyajian and Mike Enright) for this post:
Suppliers and vendors sometimes find themselves unpleasantly surprised by the bankruptcy of a customer, leaving a trail of unpaid invoices and little hope of recovery. To make matters worse, after…
In May, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) published its amended regulation regarding the so-called “White Collar” exemption from the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). As a result, manufacturers may either have to boost the wages of some employees or radically change the manner in which those employees are compensated.
Under the FLSA, employees must…
Last month, we posted about the United States Senate’s passage of the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016. Breaking news: It passed. Thanks to members of our Labor & Employment (Ian Clarke-Fisher) and Intellectual Property Litigation groups (Jim Nault) for this guest post.
On May 11, 2016, President Barack Obama…
Manufacturers should take note of two recent developments in the human resources world. One expected. The other not.
Frequent readers of this blog may recall that in January I predicted the United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) would make good on its goal of updating the “Persuader Rule.”
By way of background, the Persuader Rule…
