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Recent Blog Posts
Call of Duty — to Protect the Right of Publicity?
By: Sharon Adams Oct. 23, 2014 The recent case of Noriega v. Activision Blizzard presents the question: Does infamy give rise to the right of publicity? Manuel Noriega, the former Panamanian dictator, filed suit against Activision Blizzard, Inc. in July of this year, claiming that Activision’s use of his image […]
California’s New Mandatory Paid Sick Leave Law
By Daniel Richardson Beginning July 1, 2015, nearly all California employers will be required to provide full-time and part-time employees with a minimum of three days of paid sick leave per year. The Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014, signed into law by Governor Brown on […]
Obtaining ® For Your Trademark – Classification is Crucial – New Trademark Guidelines Regarding Service Mark Classification
By: Sharon Adams Every trademark application must identify the exact mark, and the goods or services that are associated with the mark. The Trademark Examination Guide (released in August 2014) makes clear that improper classification of the goods or services may result in rejection of the trademark application. The Guidelines […]
Obtaining ® For Your Trademark – Classification is Crucial – New Trademark Guidelines Regarding Service Mark Classification
By: Sharon Adams Every trademark application must identify the exact mark, and the goods or services that are associated with the mark. The Trademark Examination Guide (released in August 2014) makes clear that improper classification of the goods or services may result in rejection of the trademark application. The Guidelines […]
The First Amendment for Customers
By: Andrew K Jacobson California Governor Jerry Brown has signed new legislation that voids language in contracts that prevents a consumer from commenting on the performance of a product or service. New Cal. Civ. Code § 1670.8 states that a“contract or proposed contract for the sale or lease of consumer goods […]
PATENT PENDING — what it is and how to obtain
By: Sharon Adams A product may be labeled as “patent pending” once a patent application has been filed, and until a patent is issued or the application is abandoned. This includes all types of patent applications, including provisional applications. Filing the application is all that is required. If a patent application is abandoned for any […]
Is Bitcoin in Your Wallet?
By: Daniel Richardson Although virtual currencies are not new they have rapidly evolved in recent years and their use is entering the financial mainstream. Bitcoin is the most widely used of the virtual currencies and is accepted by over 10,000 online retailers including Overstock.com and Expedia.com. So, what is Bitcoin? Is it currency, property, a […]
License to Extort Stopped
by: Andrew K Jacobson One characteristic of mobsters is the threat of something bad happening if you don’t do what the mobster wants you to do. It is even an unforgettable part of The Godfather: when the Hollywood studio head wouldn’t let Johnny, Don Corleone’s godson, star in a movie, he wakes up with the […]
Now for The [Good] News…
by: Andrew K Jacobson The news has been dreary for some time now, and September has not been friendly in the recent past. Under all that gloom, it is easy to forget that there is a lot of good news out there: Lower Crime. Accounting for population growth, violent crime is down 48 percent over the […]
Cell Time
Employers have long known that they have to reimburse employees for out-of-pocket expenses like mileage or meals with clients. Now employers can add cell phone costs, when an employee uses his or her own cell phone and plan.
Employers have long provided landlines and cell phones to their employees. However, cell phones are already in nearly every pocket or backpack. Employers are increasingly relying on the employees’ personal phones for contact, even if the employee is not regularly out in the field.
Cal. Lab. Code § 2802(a) states: “An employer shall indemnify his or her employee for all necessary expenditures or losses incurred by the employee in direct consequence of the discharge of his or her duties, or of his or her obedience to the directions of the employer . . . .”
Cal. Lab. Code § 2802(c) defines “necessary expenditures” as “all reasonable costs, including, but not limited to, attorney’s fees incurred by the employee enforcing the rights granted by this section.”
In August, 2014, the Second District Court of Appeals in California ruled that employers have to reimburse employees who use their own cell phones as part of their job.
