Business Law Resources | Blog for Business Law

— By Gerry RichardsonFebruary 26, 20190 Comments

THE LONG VIEW: LEGAL AUDITS ALLOW BUSINESS OWNERS TO AVOID CATASTROPHES AND TO ACHIEVE SUCCESSFUL EXIT STRATEGIES

Many businesses grow and earn profits from year to year, but still face existential threats if legal problems happen. Others have owners who have reached a point in their lives where they want to exit their business to start a new chapter in their lives. …

— By Don V. KellyJanuary 29, 20190 Comments

Potty-Mouthed Trademarks — Supreme Court to Decide if Federal Prohibition Against Registering Them is Constitutional

It has not been two years since the Supreme Court issued its opinion in the case of Matal v. Tam – a case touching upon an issue near and dear to all of us – free speech. That case involved the situation in which, Simon…

— By Don V. KellyJanuary 22, 20190 Comments

The Ongoing Ambiguity Over Which Inventions Are Patentable And Which Are Not – The Patent Office’s New Guidelines

On January 7, 2019, the United States Patent and Trademark Office issued new 2019 guidelines on how it will go about determining whether an invention is one which the law allows to be patented. If you have been following the news on this topic then…

— By Gerry RichardsonJanuary 15, 20190 Comments

WHAT IMPACT WILL MEDICAL MARIJUANA HAVE ON MISSOURI WORKPLACES AND DRUG TESTING BY EMPLOYERS?

On November 6, 2018, Missouri voters approved Amendment 2, the Medical Marijuana and Veteran Healthcare Services Initiative by a margin of 66% to 34%. It legalized marijuana for medical purposes. Basically, the amendment allows licensed physicians to recommend marijuana use to patients with any one…

— By Alex HurstNovember 15, 20180 Comments

A Rose by Any Other Name: Making Sure Your Trade Name Smells as Sweet

What’s in a name? Quite a lot, actually. Most entrepreneurs are aware that their businesses’ trade name has value as a trademark or service mark and that using someone else’s name could expose them to liability for infringement, but that’s only part of the story. …

— By Gerry RichardsonMarch 29, 20170 Comments

Employer Forms Disclosing & Authorizing Background Checks Must Exclude Liability Waivers

Good Reasons Support the Use of Background Checks in the Hiring Process. Many employers run background checks on job applicants before they make an employment offer. Doing so enables such employers to confirm the truthfulness and accuracy of background information provided by job applicants, such as…

— By Ron HackMarch 20, 20170 Comments

Big change in Missouri Personal Jurisdiction Law for Non-Missouri Corporations

The Missouri Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision filed on February 28, 2017, held that non-Missouri corporations would not be held subject to the personal general jurisdiction of Missouri courts in civil suits, unless the corporation was organized under Missouri law, had its principal place…

— By Larry SewellFebruary 20, 20170 Comments

Rescuing Your Defined Contribution Retirement Plan

A plan sponsor of a preapproved, prototype or volume submitter defined contribution plan, including a profit-sharing, 401(k) or money purchase plan, was required to amend and restate the plan’s governing documents by April 30, 2016. See the article “Deadline Looming for Changes to Your Company’s…

— By Gerry RichardsonOctober 20, 20160 Comments

OSHA Raises Penalties, Adopts Electronic Recordkeeping, and Expands Anti-Retaliation Rules

OSHA Raises Maximum Penalties by 178% The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) has taken several actions in recent months that will significantly affect employers for years to come. First, it revised its Field Operations Manual by raising penalties to adjust for inflation for violations of the…

Business Law Resources Labor and Employment Law

— By Gerry RichardsonJuly 12, 20160 Comments

EEOC Study of Workplace Harassment Urges Employers to Do More Prevention

Recently, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued the results of a study of workplace harassment. The agency convened a task force to conduct this study in January 2015. The task force issued a report in June 2016. Task Force Report. It concluded that since…