Akerman LLP

In collaboration with the world’s most successful enterprises and entrepreneurs, Akerman LLP is a client-driven enterprise. As ranked within the top 100 U.S. law firms, they assemble hand-picked teams for every engagement for navigating change, seizing opportunities, and to assist in overcoming barriers on innovation. With more than 700 lawyers and professionals across 25 offices, Akerman works to create better opportunities for the future through their financial services, real estate, and other dynamic sectors.

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HR Defense

California’s Arbitration Agreement Ban on Hold

February 20, 2020

A controversial California law that would have prevented employers from requiring arbitration agreements as a condition of employment has been enjoined from taking effect by a federal district judge. Assembly Bill 51 (AB 51) was set to take effect last month, but the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Retail Federation, National Association of Security Companies, and several other trade organizations, challenged the statute, claiming it was preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA).…

Health Law Rx

FTC Commissioners Call for Study on the Competitive Effects of Consummated Healthcare Transactions that Did Not Previously Receive Regulatory Review

February 12, 2020

The Federal Trade Commission announced on February 11, 2020 that it had issued Special Orders to five large technology companies, requiring them to provide information to the FTC concerning all corporate acquisitions they have completed over the last ten years that had not previously been required to be submitted for review by the FTC under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act (HSR). The request is intended to focus, for the most part, on transactions where the companies avoided…

HR Defense

What Employers Need to Know about Coronavirus

February 11, 2020

Although there have only been a handful of confirmed cases of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV or the “coronavirus”) within the United States so far, employers are nevertheless well-advised to take affirmative steps to protect their employees from this rapidly spreading respiratory illness – even if the employers do not have any operations or employees based in China, where the illness is believed to have originated.…

Health Law Rx

OCR Fee Limits for Third Party Directive Record Requests Struck Down

February 4, 2020

On January 28, 2020, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued a notice (the OCR Notice) regarding individuals’ right of access to health records in response to a January 23, 2020 court ruling in the Ciox Health, LLC v. Azar, et al., No. 18-cv-0040 (D.D.C. Jan. 23, 2020) case. OCR noted that despite the modifications contained in the 2013 Omnibus Rule issued on January 25, 2013, the…

HR Defense

Federal Contractors To Be Limited On Criminal Background Checks

By Melissa Torres

January 30, 2020

Private employers with federal contracts will soon be prohibited from requesting criminal history information from candidates at the onset of the hiring process; instead, they will have to wait until after an offer is made. The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act of 2019 (Act) was discreetly tucked into the Defense Spending Bill approved on December 20, 2019. The Act is part of a growing national trend of “Ban the Box” laws, referring to…

HR Defense

Calif. Enacts Expansive Protections for Breastfeeding Employees

January 22, 2020

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On the heels of a new federal law requiring certain public federal buildings to provide lactation spaces, California has enacted one of the most expansive sets of protections for breastfeeding employees in the country. The California law which became effective January 1, 2020, includes provisions regarding break time, policy requirements, and specifications regarding the lactation room.…

HR Defense

Department of Labor Opinion Letters Provide Employers a Roadmap to FLSA Compliance

By Paul J. Rutigliano

January 13, 2020

Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division issued two new opinion letters which clarify how employers should calculate the overtime rate when employees are paid lump-sum bonuses and when employers can pay consultants on a per project basis while avoiding overtime requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). While DOL Opinion Letters are not binding on any court, they are helpful guidance, particularly for employers, on how the DOL…

HR Defense

New Year Cheer from the NLRB

January 6, 2020

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) delivered two New Year’s gifts to employers regarding deferral to arbitration and restrictions on union buttons.…

Health Law Rx

Sutter Health Settles California Attorney General Antitrust Case With Cash and an Agreement to Make Significant Changes to its Operations

January 6, 2020

The terms of a settlement that resolved antitrust litigation between the State of California and Sutter Health, the largest health system in Northern California, have now become public, almost two months after the settlement put an end to the case. The settlement, which was inked only days before a trial in the case was set to begin, includes both the payment of a significant sum of money by Sutter Health and an agreement to accept…

HR Defense

Preregistration Process Brings Revamp and Uncertainty to H-1B Visa Program

By Rachel L. Perez

December 30, 2019

U.S. employers wanting to hire foreign professionals should identify those eligible for H-1B sponsorship as soon as possible to allow sufficient time to navigate newly required procedures in March 2020, including using the H-1B electronic registration system. Employers petitioning for cap-subject H-1B hopefuls are now required to register electronically and pay a $10 registration fee between March 1 and March 20, 2020 to be entered in the yearly draw.…

Akerman LLP

Akerman LLP Blogs

Blog Authors

California’s Arbitration Agreement Ban on Hold

FTC Commissioners Call for Study on the Competitive Effects of Consummated Healthcare Transactions that Did Not Previously Receive Regulatory Review

What Employers Need to Know about Coronavirus

OCR Fee Limits for Third Party Directive Record Requests Struck Down

Federal Contractors To Be Limited On Criminal Background Checks

Calif. Enacts Expansive Protections for Breastfeeding Employees

Department of Labor Opinion Letters Provide Employers a Roadmap to FLSA Compliance

New Year Cheer from the NLRB

Sutter Health Settles California Attorney General Antitrust Case With Cash and an Agreement to Make Significant Changes to its Operations

Preregistration Process Brings Revamp and Uncertainty to H-1B Visa Program

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