October 2015

16 Oct The Reply That “The Accuser Is Lying” Is Not As Safe As You Think

Posted at 21:45h in Litigation by Ken White

When a client is accused of wrongdoing, the press often contacts attorneys for comments. Some attorneys choose the safe route and respond, “no comment,” which is not ideal for public relations. Other attorneys steer a middle course with measured words to the effect of “the...

14 Oct Does Dodd-Frank Protect Internal Whistleblowers? Best Business Practices Should Resolve the Circuit Split

Posted at 21:46h in Securities Litigation & Regulation by Ron Wood

The current pace of Dodd-Frank Act whistleblower awards should sound a clarion call to employers to do all they can to promote good corporate behavior and welcome employee concerns when raised. Doing so would reduce employees’ motivation to blow the whistle outside the company to...

13 Oct Government Code Section 1090, Prohibiting Conflicts of Interest, Is Now Even More of a Hazard For The Unwary

Posted at 21:47h in Criminal Defense by Ken White

California Government Code Section 1090 (“Section 1090”) – which prohibits public officials and public employees from “making” public contracts in which they have a financial interest – is notoriously vague, broad, and malleable. The California Legislature recently aggravated those troublesome qualities by expanding Section 1090...

07 Oct California’s New Fair Pay Act Makes It Harder For Employers To Justify Wage Disparities

Posted at 21:48h in Litigation by Karineh Tarbinian

California’s employee-friendly state legislature recently approved SB 358, the Fair Pay Act (“CFPA”), which is designed to reinforce the state’s existing equal pay laws and narrow exceptions that have historically made enforcement difficult. Governor Brown signed the bill into law, and the CFPA will be in...

06 Oct The Challenging Role Of Court-Appointed Counsel For Conservatees

Posted at 21:49h in Probate, Trusts & Estates by Mark Flory

Family members often initiate conservatorships to protect loved ones who have become unable to manage their own personal, medical, and financial affairs. These concerned family members petition for court intervention out of good motives: to protect an aging parent or other loved one who may...

05 Oct Recent Employment Law Developments May Signal a Union Comeback

Posted at 21:51h in Litigation by Laura Payne

The last 30 years has seen a significant decline in union membership by workers in the United States, with a resulting decrease in the political power of unions. But a recent legal shift toward empowering collective bargaining may point towards a recovery. The National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”)...

05 Oct BWO Partner Ken White On the FTC’s New Stance Against Consumer Non-Disparagement Clauses

Posted at 21:50h in Uncategorized by Ken White

Today I appeared on AirTalk on KPCC to discuss the FTC’s new lawsuit against a company that tried to enforce a non-disparagement clause against consumers giving them bad ratings....

02 Oct Fraudulent Marriages Remain Risky Avenue to LPR Status

Posted at 21:51h in Immigration by Victor Herrera

Many immigrants share the dream of achieving lawful permanent residency (or “LPR”) in the United States. There are limited means of getting LPR status: work visas, family visas, the visa lottery, or one of the unusual categories such as “T” (human trafficking victim) or “U”...

01 Oct SEC Yields To Due Process Pressure, But Tries To Play It Cool

Posted at 21:52h in Securities Litigation & Regulation by Ron Wood

After more than a year of legal challenges and public criticism about the inadequacy and fairness of rules governing proceedings held in its administrative court, the SEC finally caved. But it doesn’t want it to appear that way. The recent announcement of its proposal to amend a number of substantive...