News & Legal Updates Archive

McDonald Hopkins member Teresa Metcalf Beasley has been selected to serve on the transition team for Cleveland Mayor-Elect Justin Bibb.

Following the tragedy at Surfside many in South Florida braced for long and protracted litigation. Recently, several survivors and the family members of those who died filed a class action lawsuit against the construction team developing Eighty Seven Park, a luxury condominium next door to Champlain Towers South. 

On December 2, 2021, the Sixth Circuit ruled in a nationwide data security breach putative class action lawsuit against e-commerce provider StockX, deciding that an arbitrator - not the federal district court – will decide whether parties to an arbitration agreement have to arbitrate their dispute unless a party specifically challenges the delegation clause in an arbitration agreement.  The Sixth Circuit’s ruling affirmed the district court’s order compelling arbitration and dismissing the case.

Franchisors doing business in Michigan may need to revisit the forum-selection provisions in their franchise agreements based on a recent opinion arising out of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

This year, the FTC is beginning its periodic 10-year review of the FTC Business Opportunity Rule that was established in 2011, and changes may be to come in 2022.

Last summer, I stopped by Spice Catering Kitchen to meet Ben Bebenroth, founder of Spice Hospitality Group, Keep the Change Collective and other ventures which are headquartered at 5510 Tillman Avenue in Cleveland’s Detroit Shoreway neighborhood. Ben is a Cleveland pioneer in the food and restaurant industries, and I sought out his thinking on the effect of the pandemic on restaurants and their employees. In a wide ranging discussion on many topics, my takeaways from Ben included in the following observations:

A United States District Court Judge in Kentucky issued a decision temporarily blocking the enforcement of the Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccination requirement for federal contractors and subcontractors on all covered contracts in Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee.

A monthly segment from the McDonald Hopkins Public Law Group that asks local, regional and statewide leaders to pass along their wisdom on items of current and lasting interest. This latest installment asks Tim Hilk, President and CEO of YMCA of Greater Cleveland, to offer his words on what he has learned about Northeast Ohio since coming here in 2016, as well as his perspective on the Y's greatest challenges reaching its strategic objectives. 

McDonald Hopkins Chicago Managing Member David Agay has been selected by Crain's Chicago Business to its 2021 list of Notable Gen X Leaders in Accounting, Consulting and Law.

On November 19, 2021, the federal government published a Final Rule imposing new cybersecurity incident notification obligations upon certain banks and bank service providers. The Rule requires banking organizations to alert their primary federal regulator as soon as possible and no later than 36 hours after determining a notifiable computer security incident has occurred. 

Heather Shumaker has joined McDonald Hopkins LLC as an associate in the Litigation Department, adding her experience to the firm’s national Data Privacy and Cybersecurity Practice Group.  

In the third co-authored blog post of this series, EPOCH Pi and McDonald Hopkins highlight how environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles have an increasingly prevalent impact on the negotiation of M&A transactions. 

Are you planning to sell, transfer, or acquire a federal contracting business? Michelle Kantor, chair of McDonald Hopkins' Federal and Local Government Contracting & Procurement practice group, shares valuable information to help you through the process.

In today’s competitive marketplace, a strong intellectual property strategy—including one or more among patent, trademark, trade secret and/or copyright protection—can lay an important foundation for not only maintaining critical market share, but also generating corporate value in the near and long term. Here are a few tips for how to properly and safely use — or not use — intellectual property on social media to avoid derailing these goals.

Almost two months after President Joe Biden called for quick action on COVID-19 vaccine or testing rules, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) on November 4, 2021. With these new rules, employers with 100 or more employees have a tight timeframe to implement policies on vaccines, testing, and masking – assuming the rules are not halted by a legal challenge. McDonald Hopkins' Labor and Employment team has prepared an overview of the 490-page ETS to help employers understand the most critical details and answer the most important questions ahead of the upcoming deadlines for compliance.

McDonald Hopkins member Teresa Metcalf Beasley was among the 10 professionals who participated in the Technical Assistance Panel hosted by the Cleveland District Council of the Urban Land Institute on November 3-4 in conjunction with the City of Cleveland, Cleveland Metroparks, Port of Cleveland and Flats Forward.

The IRS announced cost of living adjustments affecting dollar limitations for pension plans and other retirement-related items for the 2022.

McDonald Hopkins LLC has been recognized among the nation’s “Best Law Firms” in U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers’ 2022 rankings. The firm is highlighted in 45 categories, including 23 rated as Metropolitan Tier 1 practice areas. McDonald Hopkins is also nationally ranked in six categories.

5 FAQs about gift cards, addressing whether gift cards have expiration dates, fees associated with the purchase of gift cards, what happens to unused gift cards, and what happens when the issuer goes out of business or files for bankruptcy.

Most companies know they can protect their inventions, brand names, logos and product packing through patents, trade secrets or trademark registration. But many draw a blank when it comes to securing the more abstract elements that make up their brands’ ethos and identity. Here are 3 suggestions for how to protect these intangibles. 

McDonald Hopkins would like to congratulate Richard Blake, Member and Chair of the firm’s Government Compliance, Investigations, and White Collar Defense Practice Group, and the entire defense team that worked to secure acquittals for our client following a 10-week trial in Cleveland. 

As employers await OSHA’s emergency temporary standard on vaccines or weekly testing, many are also anticipating a slew of religious exemption requests in response to vaccine mandates.  The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has clearly heard employers concerns and has now updated its COVID-19 technical assistance guidance to address the scope of the religious exemption under Title VII. 

Hannah Baker has joined McDonald Hopkins LLC as an associate in the firm’s Cleveland office. 

Neelraj “Raj” Arjune has joined McDonald Hopkins LLC as an associate in the firm’s Cleveland office.

In less than three months, the law regarding non-compete agreements will change – again. As addressed in our previous articles, numerous states have imposed regulations scrutinizing the level of restrictions placed upon employees in non-competition agreements in recent years.

In this article for Finishing and Coating magazine, McDonald Hopins' Hussein Jaward provides insight on obligations after a data security incident and the best ways to prevent or prepare for a cyber incident, as well as guidance on why taking as many preventative measures as possible will help your organization mitigate the effects of a cyber incident and recover quickly.

The second interim final rule implementing the No Surprises Act establishes procedures and timeframes for determining out-of-network payment rates, requires healthcare providers and facilities to inquire about an individual’s health coverage status and provide good faith cost estimates to uninsured and self-pay patients upon request, and establishes a patient-provider dispute resolution process for uninsured and self-pay patients.

The price of gas has more than doubled in the past year.  In the Northeast and Midwest, over a third of all electricity is generated from natural gas – consequently – we are starting to see electricity price shocks. 

In 2016, the Department of Justice Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission announced in its Antitrust Guidance for Human Resources Professionals that it intended to proceed criminally to enforce non-solicitation agreements between business competitors. In U.S. v. Surgical Care Affiliates and Scai Holdings, LLC (N.D. Tex. 2021), the DOJ finally carried through on that threat this year. Specifically, the DOJ filed its first-ever criminal indictment in federal district court, alleging that Surgical Care Affiliates, LLC (“SCA”) entered into an agreement with a competitor (“Company 1”) not to solicit each other’s senior-level employees, and that this agreement constituted an unlawful conspiracy in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act.

This blog post is the second in a series co-authored with EPOCH Pi, a Certified B Corp investment bank that helps purpose-driven clients prosper by combining traditional investment banking services with cultural integration tools that identify values-aligned partners.

President Joe Biden’s September 9, 2021 COVID-19 Action Plan laid out a broad strategy to get more people vaccinated. A key piece of that strategy is the Executive Order for Ensuring Adequate COVID-19 Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors (“order”) that requires employees of federal government contractors to be vaccinated, unless they fall within an approved exemption. Consistent with the president’s approach, the Safer Federal Workforce Task Force issued COVID19 Workplace Safety: Guidance for Federal Contractors and Subcontractors (“guidance”) on September 24 that spell out the steps of complying with the Order.

McDonald Hopkins is proud to announce the election of attorneys Karina Conley, John Gambill, Joseph Muska and Jake Weinberg to the firm’s membership. 

Edward A. Reilly, Jr. has joined McDonald Hopkins LLC as Of Counsel in the Business Department, adding his expertise to the firm’s litigation finance and general corporate teams. Reilly will be affiliated with the firm’s Chicago office and continue to reside and operate remotely from New York.  

The U.S. Safer Federal Workforce Task Force recently released new guidance on compliance with President Joe Biden’s Executive Order 14042 “Ensuring Adequate Safety Protocols For Federal Contractors,” which mandates COVID-19 safety protocols that all federal prime contractors and subcontractors must follow. 

As ransomware incidents skyrocket across the country, the U.S. government continues its efforts to combat cybercrime through all avenues. Most recently, sanctions were levied against cryptocurrency exchange for facilitating illegal financial transactions to sanctioned entities.  The recent sanctions indicate that, more than ever, businesses must take steps to both mitigate risk and properly handle cyber security incidents through an experienced response team when they occur.

A monthly segment from the McDonald Hopkins Public Law Group that asks local, regional and statewide leaders to pass along their wisdom on items of current and lasting interest. This latest installment asks Michael Deemer, President and CEO of Downtown Cleveland Alliance, about his vision for the organization, the greatest opportunities over the next 12-months, and how the organization plans to address the constant discussion of "downtown vs. the neighborhoods."

A monthly segment from the McDonald Hopkins Public Law Group that asks local, regional and statewide leaders to pass along their wisdom on items of current and lasting interest. This latest installment asks Brian Zimmerman, CEO of Cleveland Metroparks, about XYZ

The Illinois First District Appellate Court recently found that, depending on the type of alleged violation at issue, a limitations period of either one or five years applies to claims under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”). Although that highly anticipated decision adds some clarity in this evolving area of law, it is hardly the last word on the subject and is likely to be appealed to the Illinois Supreme Court.

On September 9, President Joe Biden announced the COVID-19 Action Plan which included broad-ranging initiatives designed to provide a path out of the pandemic.  The president’s Plan included an element most employers had not expected:  Employers with 100 or more employees must mandate vaccines or require weekly COVID-19 testing of unvaccinated employees. 

After taking a minute to process that announcement, employers and their human resource professionals did what they have done for the past 18 months during the pandemic, they started planning. 

If you have a net worth in excess of $12 million or have been considering tax reduction planning, please call your estate planning attorney as soon as possible. The opportunity to take advantage of the estate and gift tax exemptions at current levels and the benefits of grantor trust planning may disappear soon.

With an increased emphasis on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles growing across all industries, driven by demands from internal and external stakeholders, as well as the desire to compete for top talent in a competitive market, companies are recognizing they must start making ESG initiatives a top priority. 

Facing the raging delta variant and waning vaccination levels, on Thursday, September 9, 2021, President Joe Biden announced a wide-ranging COVID-19 Action Plan termed the “Path out of the Pandemic,” designed to fight the continued spread of COVID-19. McDonald Hopkins Labor and Employment team has prepared an overview of the six prong action plan and also insight for employers on what to do now.

Minglei Wu has joined McDonald Hopkins LLC as an associate in the firm’s Chicago office, adding her extensive international insolvency experience to the firm’s Business Restructuring Department.

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker recently signed Senate Bill 0672 into law, officially amending the Illinois Freedom to Work Act. Starting on January 1, 2022, Illinois employers will have additional factors to consider if they plan to enter into non-competition and/or non-solicitation agreements with their employees.

Florida recently added a new requirement for genetic counselors to obtain a license in order to perform genetic counseling services in the state, known as the Genetic Counseling Workforce Act. Through this law Florida has become one of a number of states in recent years to enact similar genetic counseling requirements,

This past month, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved new diversity rules to address widespread concerns about diversity and inclusion on JASDAQ's listed companies’ boards of directors.

As students across the country are returning to the classroom, the spike in the COVID Delta variant is reigniting the conversation about a need for paid sick leave for working parents who are forced to deal with school closures.

It is too soon to breathe a sigh of relief when it comes to tax increases attached to the budget reconciliation bill that has been introduced. Circumstances may change but not likely in the short term, and McDonald Hopkins Estate Planning & Probate team continues to monitor the situation. 

The tragedy at Champlain Towers in Surfside, Florida, has prompted concern for condo and building owners the country, many of who are now hiring consultants to inspect and prepare condo-building reviews to ensure the safety of their buildings. As evidenced by a recent complaint filed by an insurer in the Champlain Towers tragedy, those consultants and engineers hired to inspect and prepare those building reports need to scrutinize their and their client’s insurance policies to ensure they have the proper coverage.

Courtney Tito, a Member at McDonald Hopkins and Florida Bar Board Certified Specialist in Health Law, was profiled in Attorney at Law Magazine discussing her career and plans for the future.