Welcome to LegalBriefs
Legal tips on how to prevent problems & avoid lawsuits
Provided as an educational courtesy by Business Attorney Alan Thayer. Your questions and comments are welcomed. Call 541-345-2325 or email Alan at alan@thinkILG.com.
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Thursday, May 2, 2013 at 10:27AM 
You, like other LegalBrief readers, may be a business owner, manager or supervisor. You may also be a parent. Some of the people you supervise are no doubt parents. Today’s kids are your future employees.
These are three good reasons to stay current on teenage trends. Here are 14 trends that should worry every parent, supervisor and employer.
Tuesday, November 20, 2012 at 09:53AM 
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has asked for authority to read emails without a warrant. An email privacy bill has been rewritten in the Senate to grant the NLRB, 21 other federal agencies and state and local law enforcement warrantless access to electronic correspondence.
Monday, July 2, 2012 at 04:37PM 
Imagine you are sitting in your home on a warm summer evening. The next thing you know, two flash-bang stun grenades fly through your front window. SWAT team members race in with automatic weapons drawn, force you to the ground and restrain you with handcuffs.
Friday, April 27, 2012 at 10:39AM 
Pressure by American Farmers caused the Administration to abandon new child farm labor rules late yesterday. LegalBriefs brought these rules to your attention on Wednesday. After previously announcing the rules would be reworked, the U.S. Department of Labor said it would not pursue the regulations again for the duration of the Obama administration.
What are the lessons for employers in other industries?
Thursday, April 26, 2012 at 04:10PM 
Today, a federal judge ruled a Florida state drug testing program unconstitutional. What does this mean for you? Fortunately, very little.
Thursday, April 26, 2012 at 04:08PM 
LegalBriefs told you how the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) adopted a rule requiring non-union employers to notify non-union employees of their right to join a union. Last week, our skepticism was shared by a federal appeals court.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012 at 01:07PM 
In the last two days, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has announced that sex changes are now covered under the discrimination protections of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Meanwhile, it was reported this morning that the US Department of Labor (DOL), is finalizing a rule that would prevent children under 18 years of age from working on farms, even their parents’ farm.
Thursday, January 12, 2012 at 09:06AM 
Oregon employers must display required state and federal employment posters in their workplace. For 2012, there are three revised state posters and one revised federal poster. There is also a new federal poster that you may or may not be required to post on April 30, 2012.
This is our 10th annual employer guide to required posters. You can use this guide to easily determine if you are displaying the required posters. We assembled all of these notices in one place so you can easily download what you need. This free guide is available at the link below.
Thursday, January 5, 2012 at 03:47PM 
Future issues of LegalBriefs will address how the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has gone from a purported arbiter of union elections and union issues to an outright advocate for the union agenda. Today, we are discussing the NLRB’s new employment poster notifying your employees of their right to form a union. The poster and when you will be required to display the poster are discussed below.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011 at 09:31AM 
If an employee uses your computer to (1) download sensitive data to compete with you, (2) access personal information on your customers, owners or employees, (3) destroy your valuable data or (4) disrupt your workplace as part of a union campaign, what can you do?
Recent federal cases decided this year now make clear that you can use the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), 18 U.S.C. 1030(g), to sue and file criminal charges against employees that steal or destroy your electronic data. This was not always the case. You must first, however, notify employees of restrictions on access to your computer data.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011 at 11:23AM 
When the Oregon legislature meets and there are no reports of major new requirements for Oregon employers, that is good news. And when measures that do pass have only a minimal impact on or actually help employers, that is great news.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011 at 08:27AM 
A long time LegalBriefs subscriber (and even longer time friend) suggested html emails look more professional. So we are giving it a try. Please give us your opinion by posting a comment.
Thursday, June 16, 2011 at 09:06AM 
It is softball season for my fourth grade daughter. Last year, at many of the games, one of the dads and I talked about problems he was having with an employee. Although we discussed a number of things he could do, there was a reluctance to take action.
At the first game this year, the issue of this one employee came up again. But guess what? The employee is still there, with much improved conduct, performance, attendance and attitude. What did they do?
Wednesday, June 8, 2011 at 09:16AM 
Your greatest risks as a business are employee wage and hour claims. In terms of number of claims and dollars involved, wage and hour claims have recently become a greater risk than discrimination, harassment, retaliation and other claims. Now your federal government is promoting an application that encourages and makes it easier for your employees to sue you.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011 at 01:40PM 
As we were sending the last LegalBrief today, Identity Theft…Now What?, the Associated Press (AP) broke a story about taxpayer identity theft. When taxpayers file for refunds, some find their money has been paid to someone else using their name and Social Security number.
Friday, May 27, 2011 at 01:50PM 
Over the last several years, we have received a number of calls about identity theft. For the most part, it has involved employees or family members of clients. What should they do? The article at the link below has several good ideas.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011 at 09:57AM 
You may be interested in an article posted on the Forbes magazine website this month. It reports on ways that lawyers, particularly those in firms with multiple lawyers and underemployed lawyers, inflate bills to their clients. You can find the article at the link below.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011 at 03:19PM 
You know that you should not discriminate as an employer. But what does that mean?
Oregon and federal statutes prohibit discrimination in terms and conditions of employment (hiring, promotion, compensation, benefits, discipline, firing, etc…) based on designated factors. A partial list of these factors (protected classes) is set out below.
Monday, April 25, 2011 at 03:56PM 
If you have a website, educational materials or marketing copy, you may have copyright questions Is a copyright notice required? How do you create a proper copyright notice? Does the year make a difference? Who should be listed as the copyright owner? What does copyright registration mean? How are you protected?
If you use original content in your business, you may be interested in the seven basic copyright tips listed below.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011 at 02:22PM 
Three business owners thought they were doing the right thing when they created their LLC. However, mistakes they made at the time and a decision made after the death of one of the three have harmed the business and everyone involved. You can learn from their mistakes.