The Employment Law Alliance will present a complimentary webinar titled Webinar: Navigating New Legal Developments on Same-Sex Marriage, Transgender Rights and Pregnancy Discrimination: What Employers Need to Know.” The intended audience is in-house counsel, human resource professionals, and corporate executives and business owners.

The 90-minute webinar will be Thursday, Sept. 17, beginning at 3 p.m. Eastern time.

Topics will include:

• The transitioning legal landscape of transgender rights in the workplace
• Practical tips for accommodating transgender employees
• Key issues facing employers regarding same-sex marriage and employment
• The most recent developments in the law regarding pregnancy discrimination  and best practices for the treatment of pregnant workers

Register for the webinar.

Farrell Fritz’s Director of Finance, Michael (Mike) L. Fallarino, will be a recipient of Long Island Business News’ “CFO of the Year” award. He will be honored at a reception on Thursday, September 24, 2015 at 6 p.m. at Crest Hollow Country Club in Woodbury, NY.

Fallarino, a Levittown, NY, resident, joined Farrell Fritz in 1996. He has in-depth experience in all financial matters, including financial statements and analyses, budgeting, billing, accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, benefit administration, insurance and accounting systems, the firm said in a release.

The release continues:

Outside of work, Mike supports the Ronald McDonald House of Long Island. As current vice chairman, he sits on several committees, including the executive, finance and audit committees. Prior to joining the board of directors in 2012, he was a member of the business advisory board. Mike has also been an active member in his community, serving on many boards and organizations.

The CFO of the Year program will recognize Long Island’s top financial officers for their outstanding fiscal leadership and asset management, contributions to their company’s performance, their contribution and commitment to their profession and organizations, as well as their involvement in the community.

Minimum license quantities can become critical in an audit by Oracle, writes Julie Machal-Fulks in an article published in Scott & Scott’s Oracle Audit Blog.

For many Oracle products, like Database, the license agreement or ordering documents contain minimum license requirements. Often, quantities of licenses necessary to satisfy the minimum licensing terms varies based on the edition of the license in question. For instance, she writes, customers are required to purchase additional Oracle Database Standard One Edition and Standard Edition Named User licenses in increments of 5. Database Enterprise Edition requires customers to purchase 25 Named User licenses in increments of 25 per processor.

Read the article.

Hogan Lovells announcse that Peter H. Walsh will join the firm as a partner in the Litigation & Arbitration practice group, co-located in the firm’s Minneapolis and Denver offices.

Walsh joins Hogan Lovells from UnitedHealth Group (UHG), where he was Senior Deputy General Counsel and Chief of Litigation and Government Investigations. Before that he served as an Assistant United States Attorney in Denver.

“Peter’s significant experience as a public-company executive and government official and his proven ability to provide practical solutions to clients will be an invaluable asset to the firm,” said Dennis Tracey, head of Hogan Lovells’ Litigation practice for the Americas. “He is a strong and versatile litigator with true leadership skills and an extraordinary track record.”

During his eight-year tenure as a senior executive at UHG, a Fortune 14 international healthcare company, Walsh gained extensive crisis management and healthcare experience, the firm said in a release. He handled the most significant legal matters, including the largest stock-option backdating investigation in U.S. history, numerous congressional and government investigations and hundreds of cases ranging from regulatory enforcement proceedings to complex securities and healthcare class actions.

“Peter has earned tremendous respect in the Minnesota business community and beyond. He will be a valuable asset to our Minneapolis office and to our clients. I’m thrilled he’s part of the Hogan Lovells team,” said Norm Coleman, former Minnesota U.S. Senator and Of Counsel with Hogan Lovells.

As a prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado in Denver, Walsh obtained convictions in a variety of high-profile securities, tax, accounting, and other economic-crimes investigations and jury trials. Throughout his career, Walsh has worked closely with numerous federal and state regulators and law enforcement agencies, from the SEC, FBI and IRS to state Attorney’s General and local police.

“As a Minneapolis resident who spent nine years practicing law in Denver, Peter is well-equipped to collaborate with teams in both offices seamlessly,” said Cole Finegan, Hogan Lovells’ regional managing partner for the Americas as well as managing partner for the Denver Office. “His familiarity with the companies, challenges, and opportunities in both regions is truly unique.”

Walsh earned his B.A. in History from Middlebury College and his J.D. from Harvard Law School. He began his legal career in 1997 at Hogan & Hartson, which later became Hogan Lovells.

About Hogan Lovells

Hogan Lovells is a leading global legal practice providing business-oriented legal advice and high-quality service across its exceptional breadth of practices to clients around the world.

“Hogan Lovells” or the “firm” is an international legal practice that includes Hogan Lovells US LLP and Hogan Lovells International LLP. For more information, see www.hoganlovells.com.

D4, LLC has posted an on-demand webinar that explores ethical duties of counsel to understand clients’ use of technology, to find the right ESI, and to negotiate scope effectively.

The webinar’s panelists discuss attorneys’ ethical obligation to understand their client’s use of technology, as it relates to investigation, preservation, and analysis of data during discovery.

Viewers will learn ethical considerations of:

• Competence to identify and filter the right information
• Negotiating a proportionate scope of discovery
• Supervision of lawyers, vendors, and staff
• Using technology to manage costs
• Balancing fairness with “zealous advocacy”

Watch the on-demand webinar.

A federal appellate court has denied Google’s breach of contract claim relating to assignment of the invention of an employee of another company, reports Dennis Crouch in the patent law blog Patentlyo.

An employee of a non-profit company developed a personalized information service – the subject of the patent that he filed – as an outside project. Later he sued Google for alleged patent infringement. Google contacted the developer’s employer and obtained a quitclaim deed over “any rights” in the patent held by company. Then Google argued in court that the developer had breached his employment agreement by failing to assign rights to the patents to his employer.

The alleged breach of contract was in the 1990s, so the statute of limitations came into play. But the site of the suit, Delaware, has a “discovery rule” that tolls any statute of limitations for the period in which an injury is “inherently unknowable.” The district court and the Federal Circuit found in favor of the developer, Crouch reports.

Read the article.

Two recent cases confirm that incorporation of AAA Rules into an arbitration agreement evidences an intent to allow the arbitrator to determine what issues are arbitrable — including arbitration, reports The National Law Review.

“The question of whether parties to a dispute have agreed to arbitration is often termed a “gateway” issue to be decided by a court, unless the parties agree otherwise,” the story says. “Both the Commercial and Construction Arbitration Rules of the American Arbitration Association expressly grant to the arbitrator “the power to rule on his or her jurisdiction.”

In one of the cases, Fremont Cmty. Digester, L.L.C. v. Demaria Bldg. Co., Inc., 2015 WL 3917635 (Mich. Ct. App. June 25, 2015), the court noted that the AAA Rules authorize the arbitrator to decide matters relating to jurisdiction. “The Court of Appeals affirmed, defining the central issues as whether the new claims were within the scope of the letter agreement, recognizing that contract interpretation is an issue for the arbitrator,” according to the Review story.

Read the article.

A new company, Morae Legal, has begun operating, offering law department management consulting, outsourced legal services, discovery consulting and services, and claims management services.

“Law departments no longer have the luxury of viewing themselves as firefighters immune to the use of strategy, process and technology,” said Shahzad Bashir, Morae’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “Today, they face the same pressures and need similar solutions as the rest of the business.”

“Days when law departments could focus solely on legal advocacy and rely on the best legal outcome, no matter the cost, are long gone. Today, they must apply processes, data and metrics to make informed and better business and economic decisions,” he continued.

“Law departments looking to improve their business performance are looking for a full service integrated solution provider to turn to for advice, as their counterparts like the Chief Financial Officer or the Chief Information Officer have had. Today, Morae Legal is just that kind of provider for the Office of the General Counsel. And this is not theoretical. Morae Legal has been created from the ground up to be exactly that — a single integrated service provider to law departments.”

Visit Morae Legal’s website.

A complimentary on-demand webinar reviews the findings of two recent U.S. Department of Energy studies: the 2014 Wind Technologies Market Report and the 2014 Distributed Wind Market Report and features detailed analyses by Jose Zayas, director of the Wind and Water Power Technologies Office in the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

The Pew Charitable Trusts presented the webinar.

Michael Goggin, senior director of research for American Wind Energy Association, discussed the Wind Technologies report’s implications and the market impacts of pending policies, such as renewal of the production tax credit and implementation of the Clean Power Plan.

Daniel Shurey, an analyst with North American Wind, Bloomberg New Energy Finance, reviewed the current status of private investment in wind energy and other clean energy technologies, comparing trends in the U.S. with those in other countries.

Listen to the webinar audio or download presentation slides.

Lawyers with Gruber Hurst Elrod Johansen Hail Shank have recently scored big wins on the plaintiff side and the defendant side of the docket in civil litigation.

On the plaintiff’s side, the firm’s Trey Crawford was co-leader of the trial team that secured a $21.4 million civil damages award to a young woman who was sexually assaulted by the owner of a popular Addison restaurant. The bench ruling on behalf of the unidentified victim known as “Jane Doe” against the owner of Addison’s Pastazios restaurant received media coverage on multiple prints and broadcast outlets. To read the Dallas Morning News article, click here.

And on the defense side, the firm’s Orrin Harrison appeared in Law360 and in Texas Lawyer, which named him “Litigator of the Week,” commenting on the firm’s successful defense of Dillon Gage, a Dallas-based coin and gold wholesaler, against claims by the federal government that Dillon Gage fraudulently received more than $5 million from an Allen Stanford-affiliated company. Click here for the Texas Lawyer feature.

Zapproved has released its Third Annual Legal Hold and Data Preservation Benchmark Survey Report, the industry’s most extensive survey series focused on legal data preservation and collections practices, and the results show that processes still lack maturity.

More than 421 professionals dealing directly with litigation hold management participated in the Zapproved study.

One of the key findings shows that more than half of survey respondents still use manual processes for tracking litigation holds, and 3.5 percent communicate litigation holds verbally; nearly half of respondents now have a software system in place.

It also found that 34 percent of the survey respondents have had to defend their preservation efforts, a fact that underscores the importance of defensible processes. And 56 percent of respondents consider their organization to be “at risk” when it comes to legal holds.

The study also covers training in data preservation, benefits of automating the legal holds process, and more.

Download the complimentary report.

A recent 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision suggests that in certain circumstances overly broad language in a no-rehire provision may violate California law (namely, section 16600 of California’s Business and Professions Code) as a contract restraining the lawful practice of a profession, writes Daniel J. Kanter of Ogletree Deakins and published on Lexology.com.

“When resolving an employment dispute, employers often wish to include a ‘no-rehire’ provision in the settlement agreement,” he writes. “In a typical no-rehire clause, the parties agree that they wish to resolve their dispute and sever any relationship they may have now or in the future. The employee agrees that his employment has ended and promises not to seek reemployment with the company. Further, if the employee obtains reemployment with the company or any related entity, the employee agrees that his or her employment may be terminated immediately without any legal recourse.”

The article discusses the ruling and offers some key take-away conclusions.

Read the article.

Every foreign business person who enters into a contract with a Chinese company needs to consider a fundamental question: how will the contract be enforced, writes Steve Dickinson on the China Law Blog, published by Harris & Moure. in the article, he discusses how to be able to pursue a claim successfully against a Chinese company.

“First, there must be a written contract between the parties, executed by both parties in accordance with the requirements of Chinese law,” he writes.

“Second, the contract must be enforceable in China. As a practical matter, no Chinese court will enforce a foreign judgment and it can be quite difficult to get them to enforce a foreign arbitration award.”

Read the article.

Ipro Tech, LLC, a provider of eDiscovery software, has announced the release of its new automated workflow platform, Automated Digital Discovery (ADD®), designed to unify and simplify the eDiscovery process.

ADD was showcased this week at ILTACON in Las Vegas.

In a release, Ipro Tech said the ADD platform’s patent-pending technology automates key data management and production steps; avoiding common time delays, errors, and budget overruns. “Once the workflow and settings are configured for a case, all you will need to do is ‘add’ more data,” the release said.

Read the article.

Saxe Doernberger & Vita has released a comprehensive survey that examines several key issues relating to the scope and extent of workers’ compensation requirements and immunity across all 50 states.

This comprehensive survey examines several key issues relating to the scope and extent of workers’ compensation requirements and immunity across all 50 states. It discusses, among other topics, exclusive remedy protections and the application of such protections in the Consolidated Insurance Program (a.k.a “wrap up”) context.

For each state the survey reviews:
• Type of Workers’ Compensation Insurance (private or state funded)
• Workers’ Compensation Exclusive Remedy Statute
• Principal/Statutory Employer Doctrine
• Application of Exclusive Remedy Statute to Principal/Statutory Employers
• Application of Exclusive Remedy Statute to Wrap-Ups
• Subrogation Waiver Prohibition by Statute

Why This Survey is Important
A fundamental principle of workers’ compensation laws is that an employer who provides compensation to an injured employee (pursuant to the applicable state statute) is entitled to immunity from civil actions by that employee or his/her representatives (i.e., an employee’s exclusive remedy is workers’ compensation benefits). Under certain circumstances and in some jurisdictions, this immunity is extended to upstream parties such as a project owner or general contractor. This survey should help construction professionals begin to navigate the complex world of worker’s compensation immunity law.

Download a complimentary copy of the survey.

Saxe Doernberger & Vita P.C.
From the firm’s release: “Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C., is a national insurance coverage law firm focused exclusively on representing corporate policyholders. Our experienced trial lawyers are admitted in courts across the country and represent clients in multiple industries including construction, power and energy, real estate, and more. At its core, SDV’s practice is about the prevention and resolution of insurance disputes.”

A program planned by Farrell Fritz will cover trusts and estates, labor and employment, estate litigation and healthcare topics.

The seminar will be Nov. 4, 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., at the Long Island Marriott, 101 James Doolittle Blvd., Uniondale, NY 11553

Accountants will receive 4.0 CPE credits (1.0 Taxation; 2.0 Specialized Knowledge & Applications Related to Specialized Industries; 1.0 Advisory Services).

Speakers and topics:

Eric M. Kramer, CPA, Esq., Trusts & Estates Partner | Estate Planning for the Closely-Held Business

Learning Objectives:
– Discuss tax efficient methods of transferring a closely-held business
– Review the non-tax issues encountered among family members

Domenique Camacho Moran, Esq., Labor & Employment Partner | Wage & Hour Issues that Plague Employers

Learning Objectives:
– Summarize Department of Labor’s 2015 Proposed Rules
– Proper classifications of Interns
– Managing Wage & Hour Audits
– Review Recordkeeping Requirements

Eric W. Penzer, Esq., Estate Litigation Partner | Tips to Avoid Estate Litigation

Learning Objectives:
– Recognizing the signs of a will contest
– The effective use of “no contest” clauses
– Special considerations for testators with diminished capacity
– Choosing the right fiduciaries
– Post-death disputes over lifetime gifts
– Joint accounts, convenience accounts & Totten trusts
– Disputes over the “family business”

Jeffrey P. Rust, Esq., Farrell Fritz Healthcare Partner | The Medical Professional: Issues Regarding Ownership, Transition & Regulatory Compliance

Learning Objectives:
– Professional entities under New York Law
– Closure or sale of a medical practice
– Multiple owner professional practices
– The physician landlord and regulatory compliance

RSVP to Carmela Lamberta (clamberta@farrellfritz.com) by 10/21/15 with your complete contact information.

Registered NYS CPE Sponsor ID # 001975

Register for the seminar.

Piliero Mazza has posted a complimentary on-demand webinar that covers the ins and outs of contract terminations, both for convenience and for default.

Presenters are Jon Williams and Michelle Litteken, attorneys in the firm’s Government Contracts Group.

The discuss:

– The termination for default process and response strategies
– Converting a termination for default to a termination for convenience
– The termination for convenience process and response strategies
– An overview of appeals process

Watch the on-demand webinar.

Many attorneys representing a client who procures technology from a service provider know to request a security audit, but there is still confusion even among sophisticated technology attorneys about which security audit to request and how to interpret the report once it is received, writes Amanda Witt in an article in Big Data Law Tech blog at Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton.

The article, reposted by Lexology.com, describes the types of security audits and third-party security certifications that are most frequently requested by customers or offered by vendors.

“As concerns about the security practices of service providers continue to grow with the occurrence of each high profile security breach, the reliance on security audits and security certifications will continue to steadily increase.” she writes.

Read the article.

Cases that end up in court begin with eDiscovery and attorney review. In order for proper business and legal decisions to be made, court reporting companies must have a general understanding of the entire litigation process, particularly with respect to eDiscovery.

A complimentary webinar from eTERA will provide insight as to what eDiscovery is, why it matters to court reporting companies, and how partnering with an eDiscovery provider can help you add value to your clients and increase your revenue opportunities.

From an eTERA release:

As a leading eDiscovery company, eTERA Consulting has successfully worked with court reporting companies, and works closely with the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA). See a recent blog post by eTERA’s Vice President of Corporate Development, Joe Kanka about the benefits of partnering with an eDiscovery company.

This webinar will provide you with important information about the following:

• The Electronic Discovery Reference Model (EDRM)
• The link between court reporting and eDiscovery
• Why partner with an eDiscovery firm
• Why eTERA Consulting is the best partner for your team
• Examples of how this relationship has benefited partners and clients
• The various benefits you will receive as an All1ance One Partner
• How to get started as an All1ance One Partner

Date: September 9, 2015, 2:00 PM EDT

Register now: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3198207014052057602

Speakers:

Mary McGinness
Manager, All1ance One
eTERA Consulting

Mary McGinness is responsible for leading the partnership program in the U.S and overseas. She focuses on the identification, development, management, and executive relationships of eTERA’s network of partners and clients. Her responsibilities enable all parties to expand their client service offerings to corporate legal departments and law firms, collaborate effectively on opportunities, and create synergy that allows for future revenue growth. With a drive for success and a passion for building strong client relationships, Ms. McGinness is responsible for building a strong partner ecosystem that spans across a wide range of segments within the legal industry.

Mike Chagnon
Managing Director, Client Engagements
eTERA Consulting

Mike Chagnon is responsible for advising, coordinating and managing client engagements and resources across the entire EDRM including data collection, forensics, electronic discovery processing and litigation hosting. Mike also provides extensive training programs covering eTERA’s Forens1cs One and 1ntelligent One data management and reporting capabilities. Mike has an impressive track record leading cross-functional teams in throughout the entire project life cycle leading to the successful delivery of client solutions. In addition, Mike has successfully developed and managed a large network of strategic partnerships including forensic collection firms.

Jim Pelley
President and CEO
EcoScribe Solutions

About eTERA Consulting

Founded in 2004, eTERA Consulting is an international, award winning organization selected by clients to help solve the challenges of complex, big data projects in the areas of information governance, investigations, litigation, regulatory compliance, and security breach response. “Built by the clients, for the clients™,” eTERA has a successful track record providing customized data management solutions and services to Fortune 500 companies and the Am Law 100 at the intersection where legal, data analytics, security, and information technology meet.  eTERA’s experienced subject matter experts ensure client engagement success through application of best practices, leading technologies, and proven project management methodologies combined with exceptional customer service. Having passed the most stringent security audits, eTERA is trusted by the world’s largest insurance, financial services, pharmaceutical, and energy companies. eTERA was selected by the Legal Times in 2014 as Best End-to-End Litigation Consulting Firm and as the nation’s top End-to-End eDiscovery Company by the National Law Journal for four consecutive years. Headquartered in Washington DC, eTERA maintains offices in Chicago, Brussels, London, and Paris.

Oracle has recently increased its auditing efforts, and has aggressively targeted many of its customers for in-depth audits resulting in millions of dollars in financial demands.

Technology attorney Julie Machal-Fulks, Partner, Scott & Scott, LLP, will look at the legal implications of an Oracle audit in an informative webinar on Tuesday, Sept. 15 at 11 a.m. CDT.

Topics will include:

•Typical Oracle Licensing Metrics, including Unlimited License Agreements
•Oracle Audit Approaches
•Common Surprises in Oracle Audits
•Legal Implications and Minimizing Risks

Registrants who cannot watch the live webinar will receive a link to the webinar recording.

Register for the webinar.