CALIFORNIA EXPANDS FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE
Beginning January 1, 2021, California employers with five employees or more must provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected family and medical leave to eligible California employees during each 12-month period. Senate Bill 1383, recently signed into law by Governor Newsom, significantly expands the California Family Rights Act. Under...
AB-2257 Exempts More Occupations from California’s Strict Independent Contractor Law
On September 4, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom approved AB-2257, which expands the occupations and business relationships that are exempt from the “ABC test,” which was established by AB-5. In 2019, the California State Assembly passed AB-5, enacting stricter laws to avoid the misclassification of workers as independent contractors, which effectively...
Top Priority of 2020: Workplace Diversity?
The year of 2020 has brought about many unexpected challenges. Although the COVID-19 pandemic might have presented some particularly unique challenges, many did not expect issues of discrimination to also be at the top of the list of 2020 concerns. As fights against racism, sexual abuse, police brutality, gender discrimination,...
The Future of Uber and Lyft
In a ruling stemming from a lawsuit brought by the city attorneys of San Diego and two other cities and the state, a California appeals court extended the length of time Uber and Lyft will have to comply with an order requiring them to reclassify rideshare drivers as employees. If...
Trademark Trolls and Re-Branding
Are you thinking about re-branding your business? In the United States, trademark protection follows the concept of "use it or lose it" - when considering re-branding, it is important to remember that "trademark trolls" may be able to claim your intellectual property even if you have a registered trademark. This...
How You Can Help the San Diego Craft Beer Industry
San Diego is the craft beer hub of the US. It’s one of the things that makes San Diego so unique. With the customer service industry taking the brunt of the COVID-19 economic slowdown, local breweries find themselves in an incredibly tough position. POTENTE is a huge supporter of this...
U.S. Supreme Court Validates Contraceptive Mandate Exemption for Religious Employers
On July 8, 2020, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the provision in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA) that exempts employers with religious and conscientious objections from providing employees healthcare coverage for contraception, is lawful. After the ACA was passed, the final rules required...
U.S. Supreme Court Extends Title VII Coverage to Gay and Transgender Employees
On June 15th, the United States Supreme Court ruled Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 extends to gay and transgender workers. In a 6-3 decision, the Court held that along with race, color, national origin, religion and sex, employers are now prohibited from discriminating based upon an...
REVOCABLE TRANSFER ON DEATH DEEDS
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...
EARPLUGS
I was walking my dog, Neko, around my neighborhood the other day. As we made our way down the sidewalk, it was almost as if her presence triggered a motion-sensor for barking from other dogs in their own yards and from their own windows. I noticed Neko was surprisingly not...
AMERICA’S FINEST CITY HALF-MARATHON AND 5K ON AUGUST 19TH
As you know, our law firm is a board member and sponsor of the MEYROW FOUNDATION, a non-profit that raises money and awareness for those individuals and families afflicted with Parkinson’s Disease. Throughout the year, we have sporting events to increase this awareness. One of these events is the America’s...
10 Common Mistakes with Estate Planning—the good news is that all of these mistakes are easily avoidable!
Even though a business may be an individual’s most valuable asset, he or she fails to implement the proper succession plan; Failing to consult with a professional and utilizing an online, “do-it-yourself” website; Not properly funding or transferring assets to the trust and exposing your estate to probate; Thinking a...