The Guidance explains that when applying vaccine requirements, employers must consider requests for reasonable accommodations that are needed because of disability, pregnancy, childbirth, lactation, religious beliefs or observances, or status as a victim of domestic violence, stalking, or sex offenses. If an employee requests an exception to a vaccine requirement or additional time to provide their proof of vaccination for one of these reasons, the employer must engage them in a cooperative dialogue, or a good faith discussion, to see if a reasonable accommodation is possible. Employers may continue to allow workers who have requested an accommodation to enter the workplace while the request is pending.
Fraud
Fellig Schwartz, LLC also serves as Corporate Counsel and regularly advises and represents our business clients in the following areas...
On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission issued a final Rule banning non-competes nationwide to “promote competition” and protect “the fundamental freedom of workers to change jobs, increasing innovation, and fostering new business formation.” Under the Rule, existing non-competes for a vast majority of workers would no longer be enforceable after the Rule’s effective date in September 2024. The Rule carved out an exception as to existing non-competes for senior executives (workers earning more than $151,164 annually and who are in policy-making positions). Such non-competes which would remain in force, but employers would be banned from entering into or attempting to enforce any new non-competes, even if they involve senior executives. The Rule also required employers to provide notice to workers other than senior executives bound by an existing noncompete that they will not be enforcing any non-competes against them.
Business Disputes
Breach of Contract and Business Disputes as to all types of business contracts like vendor agreements, distribution agreements, consignment contracts, sales representative agreements...
Construction Contracts
Commercial leases, construction contracts, professional services contracts, shareholder/partnership agreements, employment agreements, severance agreements and non-competition agreements
Management-side Employment Matters such as terminations, layoffs, furloughs, avoiding discrimination, whistleblower, retaliation and wrongful discharge claims, family and medical leave compliance, short term and long term disability, COBRA and unemployment coverage, employment handbook manuals and policies, non-competition, confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements, wage and hour compliance, and employee privacy
Employment Contract
- negotiating and drafting severance agreements, employment agreements and independent contractor agreements for professionals and high level executives
Employment Litigation
Employment Disputes – defense against discrimination, retaliation, wrongful discharge and whistleblower claims, enforcement of restrictive covenants like non-competes and non-disclosures and prosecution and defense against tortious interference claims
Non-compete Agreement
Despite the FTC’s appeal, the FTC still cannot enforce the Rule against any employer. In the meantime, the FTC’s website cautions that the Texas district court’s decision does not prevent the FTC from addressing non-competes through case-by-case enforcement actions. Will the FTC’s zeal for banning or limiting the use of non-competes change in the upcoming months? Many predict the incoming administration will not pursue the appeal and/or may rescind the Rule. President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to run the FTC, Andrew Ferguson, who joined as a commissioner in April, has opposed much of the FTC’s rulemaking agenda under current Chair Lina Khan. Notably, Ferguson had dissented in the Rule to prohibit non-compete agreements, arguing the agency lacked clear authority from Congress.
Severance Agreement
A: It depends upon the circumstances. As long as severance is paid in a lump sum, is intended to recognize past years of service, or does not otherwise extend a person's employment, it should not affect eligibility for NJ unemployment. Severance is not income in lieu of notice (example, employer was contractually required to give 60 days prior notice of termination, but instead, terminated the employee without prior notice and paid the employee a sum equal to wages for the notice period). A person receiving income in lieu of notice is not usually eligible for unemployment benefits for those weeks because the payments are considered continuation pay or an extension of a person's employment. Similarly, if a person is terminated and the company pays severance in installments through the company's payroll, that is considered an extension of employment. Unemployment benefits will not be paid until after the severance pay runs out. For this reason, it would be best to ask for severance to be paid in a lump sum, at least from the employee perspective.
Sexual Harassment
Every New York State employer is required to adopt a sexual harassment prevention policy. An employer that does not adopt the model policy must ensure that the policy that they adopt meets or exceeds the following minimum standards.
Tom Fellig's practice concentrates on complex commercial disputes. His broad client base has driven a successful litigation and transactional practice in the areas of construction law, commercial real estate transactions, business contract and finance matters, business frauds, employment issues and creditor’s rights. Tom has repeatedly received the
Real Estate Transactions
Business Contracts and Transactions - negotiating, drafting and closing all types of business contracts and deals such as commercial real estate purchase and sale agreements and transactions, commercial leases, service agreements, distribution, consignment and manufacturing contracts, and securing and finalizing commercial financing and refinancing
As I reported in April 2013, New Jersey adopted the Revised Uniform Limited Liability Company Act effective March 2013, revising the charging order provision by allowing for the appointment of a receiver and, if a creditor could show that distributions under a charging order would not satisfy its judgment debt within a reasonable time, foreclosure of the member’s transferrable interest in the LLC. N.J.S.A. 42:2C-43 (2012).