This week, the U.S. Supreme Court decided a case that involves two hot topics in employment law: arbitration agreements and noncompetes. In Nitro-Lift Technologies, LLC v. Howard, two employees who worked in Oklahoma signed a noncompete with their employer at the time, Nitro-Lift. The noncompete included an arbitration clause. The…
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Welcome, guest blogger Arun Prakash! Arun is a Vice President with Virgo Capital, a private equity firm based in Austin, Texas, focused on acquiring small software and technology-enabled services companies. More information on Virgo Capital can be found at www.virgocapital.com. As someone who regularly discusses buying and selling of companies with…
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Welcome, guest blogger Dr. Andrew Cook! Andrew is a senior director in the Economic Consulting segment of FTI Consulting. He specializes in economic and statistical analysis to clients involved in litigation, arbitration, mediation and other contexts where parties are engaged in complex business disputes. Andrew is a labor economist with significant experience…
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I have a fear of fashion. I don’t like to wear things that are too loud, too big, or, as my best friend with the opposite fashion sense likes to say, too “look-at-me.” Yesterday I wore a scarf. It was borderline traumatic. I have another friend, Carol—a shopping expert—who helps…
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Picture this: you have a small business with more than fifteen employees. Tough economic times require you to lay someone off. You lay someone off who happens to be female. She sues for sex discrimination. You now have to hire an attorney to defend the claim. The attorney wants a…
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This week, I was on the national Internet radio program Money for Lunch, talking about hot topics in labor, employment, and business law. The first question I was asked was whether, in Texas, an employer can make an employee or potential hire turn over his/her social media password(s). In a…
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Mediation often occurs at the beginning of the EEOC process, before a lawsuit has been filed or discovery has been conducted, creating unique challenges for employers. Here are my top 5 tips for a successful EEOC mediation. 1. Get the information you need to make a business decision. How strong…
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In Marsh USA Inc., et al. v. Cook, --- S.W.3d ---, 2011 WL 2517019 (Tex. June 24, 2011) (not yet released for publication), the Texas Supreme Court held that providing stock options to an employee is sufficient consideration to support a noncompete. According to the majority opinion, because the stock…
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