Articles
2014 Missouri Legislative Summary
The Missouri Legislature passed 211 pieces of legislation in the 2014 session. Six of those were joint resolutions, which will appear on the August or November ballot. Twenty-one were concurrent resolutions, which express the will of the Legislature but do not change...
Do Not Not Notice Notice Provisions in Commercial Leases, According to Recent Decision Finding Such to Be a No-No
In the case of Commercial Resource Group, LLC v. The J.M. Smucker Company, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit was faced with the sticky situation of determining whether The J.M. Smucker Company ("Smucker") should be required to pay rent for an additional...
Trust, But Verify: Liabilities of Nonprofit Board of Directors in Missouri
Unpaid directors, officers and volunteers of a Missouri nonprofit corporation enjoy immunity from certain acts other than those that are intentional or reckless. However, that immunity works only with regard to tort liability, not statutory liability that is imposed...
Legal Cards Stacked Against Trustee Involved in Self-Dealing: Jury Awards Nearly $1 Million in Damages
The Missouri Court of Appeals has upheld a jury verdict of $850,000 against a former co-trustee after a trust which he co-managed was depleted of over a million dollars without such monies going to the beneficiaries. The appeals court found sufficient evidence that...
Here’s a Riddle: What Takes More Than a Minute, But Less Than a Minute to Lose?
Why, it's your homeowner's association, condominium or subdivision minutes! Unlike earlier articles we have written about the necessity to memorialize and document actions taken by condominium and subdivision boards and their constituent members, there is an equally...
$1,000 Fine per Day for Misclassifying Illinois Employees Upheld by State’s Highest Court
The Illinois Supreme Court has upheld the constitutionality of the Illinois Employee Classification Act, which addresses the practice of misclassifying employees as "independent contractors" in the construction industry. However, the law broadly defines those...
Refusal to Sign New Non-Compete Agreement Did Not Bar Unemployment Benefits
Recognizing that where a non-compete agreement is presented "more as an ultimatum than as a matter to be negotiated," an employee's refusal to sign the non-compete did not constitute misconduct disqualifying one from unemployment benefits, the Missouri Court of...
IRS Reinforces Idea That Employers Should Not Unload Employees Into Health Insurance Exchanges
In May 2014, the IRS drove the point home that it will work toward implementing certain policy directives included in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by the enforcement of certain provisions of the ACA with violations thereof resulting in stiff penalties. Employers...
BYOD Is The New BYOB
Glass shards sprinkle across the hotel parking lot as a thief smashes the passenger window. A gloved hand scours underneath the seat and brushes the familiar smooth surface that can only mean another laptop. The end of the sales convention’s happy hour soon reveals...
City of Hot Springs in Hot Water According to Jury in FMLA Trial
A jury found that a city employee who was not rehired after his use of leave under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) regulations presented sufficient evidence of a retaliatory motive, awarding him $56,000 for lost compensation and $25,000 for emotional distress. The...
Legal Tightrope: Finding the Balance Between Competing Interests of Non-Compete Agreements
The Missouri Court of Appeals once again faced issues of whether an employer, a supplier of bags used to store and transport dry bulk goods, could enforce a non-compete agreement action against its former employee who resigned from his position as a salesperson. The...
Is the “Men in Black” Neuralyzer Handy? | Confidentiality and Inevitable Disclosure
If only we could easily forget those things that we want to forget. Sort of like utilizing the neuralyzer Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) and Agent J (Will Smith) used in "Men in Black" to erase memories. But we can't, and in fact, the law generally doesn’t want you to....