Non compete agreements (NCA), confidentiality agreements, and trade secrets practices are under attack in many states and Amazon’s recent lawsuit to enforce its NCA will tell us much about how the Washington courts will view the claims.
Business
Supreme Court of the United States Recognizes Business Owners Have Religious Rights Too
The final Supreme Court opinion of the term held that forcing closely held, for-profit corporations to pay for contraception is a violation of their sincerely held religious beliefs and is illegal under federal law under Hobby Lobby v. Sebelius.
New Washington Law Extends Rights for Religious Practices
Governor Jay Inslee has signed in to law a bill that assures state employees (and public school students) two days off per calendar years for religious holiday. Our business clients, particularly those with heavy weekend and holiday need, may wish to anticipate similar requests being made to them as well for unpaid holidays as a “reasonable accommodation” for religious practices.
Seattle Minimum Wage Update
Lauren Parris Watts reviewed the implementation of the newly passed Seattle $15 Minimum Wage Ordinance at the latest Helsell Fetterman Employment Law Breakfast on June 3. We promised to keep out attendees informed about ongoing developments on this issue. The following is a quick rundown of the known challenges to the Ordinance.
Should I Register My Trademark?
Business owners often ask me if they should “trademark” the name of their business. The good news for many of them is that they already have a trademark. There is no such thing as “trademarking” your company’s name. When you choose a name under which you will provide a particular good or service, you are adopting a trademark. In the U.S., you obtain rights in that trademark by using the mark in commerce in connection with the sale of goods or services. You do not have to register your trademark to have rights in it.
New Carbon Monoxide Requirements Start on January 1, 2013
New Washington State building codes make carbon monoxide detectors a requirement for all rental property on January 1, 2013
Four Steps to Better Contracts – Save Money & Avoid Headaches!
Lauren Parris and Catherine Vuong co-authored a post for Telefini Small Business Blog
New Form of For-Profit Corporation: the Social Purpose Corporation
The Social Purpose Corporation allows officers and directors to make decisions that advance the corporations social values without risk of legal liability.