Client Alerts

This Health Care Alert is the first in a 2-part series on the issues regarding compelling vaccinations in the health care workplace. 

As you may recall, in March 2020, Butzel signed a letter in which over twenty law firms from across the United States urged the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that the federal government should not meddle in state non-compete laws. 

On Thursday, November 4, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) finally released its federal vaccine Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS).

The Internal Revenue Service has recently announced cost-of-living adjustments applicable to dollar limitations for retirement plans (and other items) for 2022.  Most of the retirement plan limitations will change for 2022 because the increase in the cost-of-living index met the statutory thresholds that trigger their adjustment.

While meeting in Italy as part of the G-20 Summit, U.S. and European negotiators have reached an agreement on section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum,  an area that has long been a source of friction.

On October 25, 2021, President Biden rescinded regional travel bans for foreign nationals physically present  in Brazil, China, India, Iran, Ireland, the Schengen Area, South Africa and the United Kingdom. Effective November 8, 2021 foreign nationals will need to be fully vaccinated for air travel to the United States. This includes air travel from Mexico and Canada.

One lesson to be drawn from the COVID pandemic is the recognition of the critical importance of broadband, which supports teleworking, remote education and telehealth services. 

As summarized in this E-News Alert, new Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) guidance seeks to clarify previously extended deadlines due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic for COBRA qualified beneficiaries to make COBRA elections and COBRA payments.

In a speech on October 4th on U.S. trade policy towards China at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, United States Trade Representative (USTR) Catherine Tai briefly mentioned that the USTR was considering a process for reinstating section 301 tariff exclusions that had been extended but expired, but gave few details of the timing or process.

A common assertion in trade secret actions is that the former employee’s new employment will inevitably lead him or her to rely on the employer’s trade secrets, known as the “inevitable disclosure” theory.

On September 9, 2021, President Biden signed Executive Order 14042, Ensuring Adequate COVID Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors. 

On August 18, 2021, Larry Dean Harmon pled guilty to conspiracy to launder money for his role in the operation of +$300 million-dollar bitcoin “mixing” service

Ever since Bitcoin’s meteoric rise to fame in 2012, cryptocurrencies have been used in an increasingly diverse array of transactions.  

We have all seen news reports of cyber-attacks on a company’s information system

On Thursday, September 9, 2021, the White House announced an impending regulation that will require companies with 100 or more employees to ensure their workforces are either “fully vaccinated” or test negative for Covid-19 at least once a week

The short answer is no—or, at least, not to the extent you might think.  It’s sometimes assumed that a company cannot have trade secrets in a patented design or product.  But that assumption isn’t quite accurate. 

Every fall, employers offering group welfare benefit plans with plan years on a calendar year basis start to turn their attention to renewing benefit offerings for the upcoming plan year. Plan administrators typically use this period to update plan documents and summary plan descriptions, distribute annual notices, and conduct nondiscrimination testing.

Earlier this week, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed into law two bills, House Bills 4219 and 4220, which will allow first-time offenders of “operating while intoxicated” (“OWI”) to have their OWI set aside (also called “expunged”) from their records.

Last year, nearly a quarter of all cyber incidents worldwide involved ransomware attacks, including attacks on businesses, schools, government agencies and critical infrastructure.  These attacks have generated a debate over whether, and under what circumstances, ransomware victims should be able to look to their insurers to reimburse ransom payments.

On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed into law the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARPA”), designed primarily to provide financial relief to millions of Americans as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.