Business
USPS Updates Postmark Procedures: Impact on Nonprofits
In December 2025, the United States Postal Service (USPS) updated its procedures for how mail will receive a postmark. The postmark generally includes the date and location where the postmark was applied and has previously been used to demonstrate when a piece was mailed. Under these new practices, mail will receive a postmark at the […]
Force Majeure Clauses Gain Prominence During COVID-19
The COVID-19 epidemic brought to the forefront a contractual concept known as “force majeure.” The term “force majeure” is a French phrase that means “superior or irresistible force.” In contract law, a force majeure clause excuses or delays a party from performing its contractual obligations under the contract due to unforeseen events or circumstances. This […]
Avoid the Pitfalls of Careless Contract Drafting
Each day millions of businesses, individuals, and non-profits make law that spells out their rights, duties, and obligations. They do this by entering contracts. A contract is an agreement between two or more parties containing legal obligations that carry the force of law. It can be surprising how little attention is paid to contracts before […]
Beware of Work-for-Hire Nuances
The term “work-for-hire” is often loosely used to refer to an agreement with an author, musician, or other independent contractor to create a copyrighted work. “Work-for-hire” agreements are routinely entered for the purpose of vesting ownership of the work with the party paying for the work. The term “work-for-hire” has a precise meaning under the […]
Brexit Changes European Trademark Registration Strategies
With the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union becoming official on January 31, 2020, trademark owners should evaluate their trademark registration strategies to ensure their marks remain protected throughout Europe. While the U.K. was a member of the E.U., trademark owners were able to protect their marks in the U.K. and all other E.U. […]
COVID-19: Family and Medical Leave Legislation
On Wednesday, March 18th, the President signed into law the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCR). The FFCR applies to all employers with 500 or fewer employees and contains three primary sections related to employers: Emergency Family and Medical Leave Act Expansion; Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act; and Tax Credits for Paid Sick and Paid […]
Illinois Employment Law for 2020
2019 was a busy year for the Illinois legislature with respect to state employment law changes. Below is a summary of the most important pieces of legislation affecting employers in 2020: Amendments to the Equal Pay Act of 2003 Made effective on September 29, 2019, the intent of the legislation is to address pay disparity […]
New Proposed Fair Labor Standards Act Overtime Rules
The Department of Labor (DOL) finalized its proposed rules for overtime eligibility. As some may recall, the DOL attempted to issue new overtime rules back in 2015, but those overtime rules were enjoined by a federal district court in 2016. Below is a summary of the final 2019 overtime rules:
Nonprofits and Taxable Parking Expenses
Navigating the Possibility of Incurring UBTI UPDATE: The Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2019 retroactively repealed the tax on employee parking benefits for nonprofit employers by striking paragraph 512(a)(7) from the Internal Revenue Code. An organization that paid the tax may be eligible for a refund. To claim a refund, the organization […]
Law Suit Shows the Danger of Disregarded Employment Law
President Trump Sued for Unpaid Overtime In July 2018, President Donald Trump learned the danger of disregarding employment law when he was sued by his long-time, personal chauffeur for unpaid overtime. In this case, Trump did not abide by state and federal wage and hour rules. Reportedly, chauffeur Noel Cintron was “forced to work thousands […]