Member Publications

Contracts made over a ‘boozy’ lunch. Are they valid? Yes! This was settled by Rees J in White Pointer Investments Pty Ltd v Creative Academy Group Pty Ltd [2023] NSWSC 817. In this case, the parties engaged in a ‘boozy’ and ‘lengthy’ lunch at which an agreement was reached. In summary, it was agreed that White Pointer Investments Pty Ltd (White) would source sites for childcare centres, and Cr…

In a new rule issued on October 26, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (“Board” or “NLRB”) greatly expanded its definition of “joint employer” to include any business that merely possesses the authority to control an essential term and condition of employment of another business’s employees – even if it never exercises that control. Under the Board’s prior rule, an entity would only be deeme…

On Tuesday, November 7, Ohio voters passed Issue 2 by a sweeping 14-point margin to legalize marijuana for adult use in the Buckeye State. Ohio will now become the 24th state in the country to regulate adult use marijuana, and marks the tipping point where now more than 50% of citizens in the United States will live in a jurisdiction with regulated adult use sales. Frantz Ward Cannabis Practice C…

ABSTRACT: Many more employers will have bargaining obligations under the NLRB’s new joint employer rule. On October 27, 2023, the NLRB published a final rule for determining joint-employer status under the National Labor Relations Act. This rule rescinds the NLRB’s 2020 rule, which required a threshold of “substantial direct and immediate control over essential terms and conditions of employment…

Knoxville Shareholder Chris McCarty recently published an opinion piece for Education Week on better legal options for schools trying to address threats of violence. Read the article The Troubling Legal Gap in Schools’ Ability to Prevent Mass Shootings here.…

Trial Court Erred in Awarding Directed Verdict for Undercapitalized Contractor Defendant The recently decided Ruben Estrada v. DJ Exteriors, LLC et al. (2023 Tenn. App. LEXIS 91) involves a contractual dispute between a contractor and subcontractor. DJ Exteriors, LLC, a limited liability company specializing in masonry, siding, and roofing, was owned by three members – Dustin Jones, James Reedy, a…

With recent mass shooting events dominating news headlines across the United States, it can seem as though gun violence has become ubiquitous in American life. And statistics sadly confirm that mass shootings have become a daily occurrence, with 2023 on pace to be one of the worst years for mass shootings in the U.S. on record. According to data from the Gun Violence Archive, a non-profit that tra…

Last week, in Gibson et al. v. MGM Resorts Int’l et al.,1 the United States District Court for the District of Nevada dismissed a putative antitrust class action without prejudice against Cendyn Group, LLC (“Cendyn”), a private company that provides technology for the hospitality industry, and the operators of several hotels on the Las Vegas strip, including the Bellagio, Wynn, Caesar’s Palace, MG…

The recent decision of the Federal Labor Court (BAG, decision of May 9, 2023 - 1 ABR 14/22) for employers in whose companies a works council has been constituted can have significant consequences in the future. I. Right to Information of the Works Council The works council of a waste disposal service provider wanted to ensure that the company fulfilled its various obligations towards severely di…

Here is an issue that comes up with surprising frequency. A client learned of a pending lawsuit that could affect his rights, but he was not named as a party to the action. The question was put to me, “what options do I have?” The litigation answer that was directly on point was “intervention.” The client’s response, predictably, was “what is that?” Intervention is exactly what the word suggests…