Two Nilan Johnson Lewis associates - Allyson Petersen and Pharaoh Lewis - were recently featured in the Minnesota State Bar Association's (MSBA) Profiles in Practice, a showcase of Hennepin County attorneys with diverse and distinguished careers. More >
Minneapolis law firm Nilan Johnson Lewis announces it has added Mai Lee Yang as an associate, effective immediately. Yang brings more than five years of legal services experience to the firm. Her practice has focused on assisting health care companies, providers, insurers and plans, as well as medical device manufacturers, clinical laboratories and other clients with compliance and transaction needs involving federal and state laws, regulations and sub-regulatory guidance. More >
For employees boisterously raising employment-related concerns on behalf of a larger group, when might their words or actions be so hostile or offensive that they lose the protections of federal labor law? The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) hopes to shed new light on this issue soon, as its open-comment period on the subject closes in November. More >
A recent Minnesota Court of Appeals decision affirmed that funds like endowment funds, held by charitable organizations, will generally be considered gifts and not contracts. More >
New pay equity requirements have already taken effect in 2019 in Alabama, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Oregon, and the State of Washington. And this trend isn’t slowing down, as even more requirements are slated to take effect in fall 2019 and beyond, including in Colorado, Oregon, New York, and New Jersey. Employers should take care to review their recruiting, interviewing, and other hiring practices—many of these new laws join the growing, nationwide trend banning pre-employment inquiries about salary history. More >
In recent years, some investors have grown increasingly vocal about pay equity issues, with a few investor funds calling on companies to publish compensation data by gender. While the intentions are commendable, its approach is problematic because the median pay gap is easily misinterpreted as a measure of “all things being equal.” More >
The Minneapolis Wage Theft Prevention Ordinance will go into effect on January 1, 2020, requiring employers to provide wage notices and comply with various recordkeeping requirements for employees who work at least 80 hours per year in the City of Minneapolis. We've highlighted the FAQs and Rules that differ from the guidance provided on the state wage theft statute More >
Manufacturers of personal transportation and other micromobility devices—as well as providers of sharing networks for such devices—can save hundreds of thousands of dollars in litigation fees by taking proactive steps to avoid potential legal claims and successfully defend against claims that do occur. One area where manufacturers and retailers can mitigate risk is in their customer and vendor contracts. More >
The U.S. Department of Labor announced a proposed rule that would allow employers who do not take a tip credit to establish a tip pool to be shared between (1) workers who receive tips and are paid the full minimum wage and (2) employees who do not traditionally receive tips, such as dishwashers and cooks. While this is an important change to federal wage-and-hour laws, the critical point for Minnesota restaurateurs is that this proposed rule, if enacted, does not affect Minnesota’s unique tip-pooling laws and regulations. More >
Approximately two years ago, a number of employers received charges of discrimination alleging that they discriminated against applicants by restricting the recipients of employment advertisements on Facebook. The EEOC just found reasonable cause on the first seven such charges; and more probable cause determinations seem likely in the near future. Employers who have not yet been targeted should take steps now to prepare. More >
