STATUTORY CLOSE CORPORATIONS

Any corporation may elect to be treated as a “close corporation” under California law. This Newsletter shall discuss the formation of a close corporation, and the advantages and disadvantages of being a close corporation. Formation of a Close Corporation. In order to be a close corporation, the name of the corporation must contain the word “corporation,” “incorporated,” “limited,” or some abbreviation of these words. The articles of incorporation must contain an express provision that theRead More…

PROTECTING A COMPANY’S TRADE SECRETS

A company’s trade secrets are valuable assets. Under California law, a “trade secret” is information that is not generally known to the public or to other persons who can obtain economic value from its disclosure or use, and which is the subject of efforts that are reasonable under the circumstances to maintain its secrecy. Thus, unless a company takes affirmative steps to maintain the secrecy of its information by adopting a trade secrets protection program,Read More…

TRADEMARKS AND SERVICEMARKS

This Newsletter shall discuss the procedure under California and Federal law for protecting trademarks and servicemarks, the protection afforded by registering a trademark or servicemark, and how a trademark or servicemark is maintained or abandoned. Definitions. A “trademark” is any word, name, symbol or device, or combination of these items, used by a manufacturer to identify his goods, and distinguish them from those manufactured or sold by others. A “servicemark” is used in the saleRead More…

RECORDATION OF TRADEMARK REGISTRATIONS WITH THE UNITED STATES CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION

The United States Customs & Border Protection (“CBP”), a bureau of the United States Department of Homeland Security, now maintains a trademark recordation system for trademarks currently registered with the United States Patent & Trademark Office (“USPTO”). The CBP’s aggressive intellectual property enforcement program devotes substantial resources to target, intercept, detain, seize, and forfeit shipments of goods that violate USPTO trademark registrations on the principal registry.

California Adopts Stricter Test for Independent Contractors

On April 30, 2018, the California Supreme Court, in the c a s e Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court, adopted a new, stricter test for determining whether workers are employees or independent contractors under California wage orders. Under the new standard (the “ABC test”), workers are presumed to be employees unless the employer demonstrates each of the following factors:

AVOIDING LIBEL & SLANDER IN THE WORKPLACE

A California employer who terminates an employee may face, among other things, a lawsuit from the terminated employee in the form of an action for libel or slander, or for violation of the California Labor Code. Libel and Slander. In the employment context, “libel” is a false and unprivileged writing which has a tendency to injure the person in his occupation; and “slander” is a false and unprivileged oral statement which imputes a general disqualificationRead More…

LIE DETECTOR TESTING OF EMPLOYEES

The right of an employer to conduct lie detector tests is controlled by the federal Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988 (“EPPA”) and by the California Labor Code. Since the EPPA generally imposes greater obligations on employers seeking to engage in polygraph testing than the California Labor Code, this Newsletter shall focus exclusively on the EPPA rules. The EPPA makes it unlawful for an employer to require, request, or suggest that any job applicant orRead More…

THE U.S. FAMILY MEDICAL LEAVE ACT AND THE CALIFORNIA FAMILY RIGHTS ACT

The U.S. Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (“FMLA”) and the California Family Rights Act (“CFRA”) provide rules governing the rights of employees to take time off from work for family medical reasons. This Newsletter shall briefly discuss the employees’ rights under these laws. Covered Employers. Both FMLA and CFRA apply only to private employers with 50 or more employees and public agencies regardless of the number of employees.

CALIFORNIA WORKPLACE VIOLENCE SAFETY ACT

California has enacted the Workplace Violence Safety Act (the “Act”) permitting an employer, whose employee has suffered unlawful violence or a credible threat of violence from any person, which can reasonably be construed to be carried out at the workplace, to obtain a temporary restraining order and an injunction on behalf of the employee prohibiting further unlawful violence or threats of violence. Prior to this law, employers could not obtain a temporary restraining order orRead More…

EMPLOYMENT REFERENCES

A common question faced by employers is whether to give a former employee a favorable letter of reference to assist the former employee in obtaining a new position. This issue is particularly difficult when the employee was not an outstanding employee or if the employee was terminated for cause.