Whether sifting from mineral remnants in a pan or receiving stock certificates from a Silicon Valley company – California has been the beacon of investment and good fortune throughout our nation’s history. However, as Benjamin Franklin said, “…in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and...
Effective January 14th, 2017, the USPTO will be implementing fee changes to their paper and electronic filing systems. The full list of changes can be found by clicking HERE. Additionally, below we have highlighted the changes that most effect those who file electronically. TEAS Regular application filing fee is raised by...
Last week, a Texas federal judge halted the implementation of a federal overtime rule, which would have substantially increased the federal salary threshold for overtime pay exemptions. The Texas court granted a national injunction – which is a legal term basically meaning ‘maintaining the status quo’ –preventing the salary threshold...
If you are a business owner with multiple locations or you’re looking to expand your current operation to new locations, it is important to know if you’re considered a franchise or not. It does not matter what label the parties to an agreement put on a transaction (i.e., license, joint...
November 8th is a little over forty days away. While the debate earlier this week focused on who was going to take the oval office in November, California has another big decision to make – whether to legalize the recreational use of marijuana. Although California has repudiated marijuana legalization for...
By 2023, California’s minimum wage will reach $15.00 an hour, making it the highest minimum wage in the country.[1] While the benefits and burdens of this increase are mostly speculative, the empirical examples of wage increases in West Coast cities may illuminate an otherwise murky future for small businesses. Like...
According to critics, California is one of America’s worst states for business incorporation due to its economy, tax system, and highly regulated environment. Just this past month, in the CNBC’s 2016 ranking of all 50 states according to “60 measures of competitiveness,” California was placed at No. 32, and in his “Rich States,...
With the recent decision by voters in the United Kingdom (UK) to leave the European Union (EU), questions, concerns, and issues accompany the “Brexit.” On June 23, 2016, voters in the UK decided that their country will no longer be a part of the EU—this vote is known as the...
This year’s Supreme Court docket could mean a great deal to trademark attorneys—and the National Football League team, Washington Redskins. In re Tam is currently pending before the Supreme Court, and this case addresses the constitutionality of a part of trademark law—§2(a) of the Lanham Act—that denies registration to marks...
Yesterday, San Diego voters approved the “City of San Diego Earned Sick Leave and Minimum Wage Ordinance”, No. O-20390. With the proposition’s passage, employers are to compensate employees working within the City of San Diego with a minimum wage of $10.50 per hour upon the Ordinance’s effective date (i.e., as...
On January 1, 2016, a new California law went into effect that authorizes the use of a transfer on death deed (“TOD deed”) to allow an owner of certain types of real property to transfer that property to a named beneficiary that is revocable up until the grantor’s death. This...
Final Rule: Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales and Computer Employees under the FLSA On May 18, 2016, the Department of Labor’s final rule updating the overtime regulations, which will automatically extend overtime pay protections to over 4 million workers within the first year of...
