As promised, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2257 which effectively rewrites Assembly Bill 5, the flawed law which sought to codify and clarify the California Supreme Court’s ruling in Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court and took effect on January 1, 2020.  AB 2257 became effective upon signature.

At approximately 14 pages in length, neither employees nor employers are likely to find AB 2257 any less confusing than its predecessor.  It does, however, make it easier for several categories of professions to work as independent contractors if certain conditions are ...

On September 21, 2020, the Food and Drug Administration announced a proposed rule to establish additional traceability recordkeeping requirements for companies who manufacture, process, pack, or store foods that the FDA has included on its Food Traceability List. This is an effort by the agency to help control outbreaks of foodborne illness.

The Food Traceability List was first created in 2014 and currently includes: shell eggs, cheeses, nut butters, cucumbers, fresh herbs, leafy greens, melons, peppers, sprouts, tomatoes, fruits and vegetables, bivalve mollusks (oysters ...

There have been a number of high-profile insurance coverage cases arising from losses due to cyber fraud – especially data breaches, "spoofing'' and payment instruction fraud. While cyber insurance is specifically designed to address these kinds of losses, insureds covered under traditional insurance products such as commercial general liability, errors and omission and crime poli­cies have continued to seek coverage under those policies for cyber-related losses.

For example, in a case filed on Nov. 15, Target seeks recovery for its cyber fraud-related losses from its ...

Governor Newsom has signed Senate Bill 1159, a law that effectively codifies and expands his earlier Executive Order N-62-20, which had expired on July 5, 2020. Effective immediately, this bill defines “injury” for an employee to include illness or death resulting from COVID-19 under specified circumstances. In particular, the employee must have tested positive for or was diagnosed with COVID-19 within 14 days after the employee performed services at the employee’s place of employment and the work must have been performed on or after March 19, 2020, and on or before July 5 ...

When considering an employee layoff or business shutdown, as we reported here, employers should keep in mind that longer layoffs in California will trigger Cal-WARN Act rules. Unlike its federal counterpart, California’s WARN Act has no exception for unforeseen business circumstances and requires every facility that employs or employed 75 or more persons within the last 12 months to give 60 days’ written notice to the employees and certain government officials before any mass layoff that will result in a loss of employment for 50 or more people in any 30 day period. Cal-WARN also ...

On September 18, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced additional flexibility for manufacturers to comply with the agency’s updated Nutrition and Supplement Facts labeling requirements. Those requirements go into effect on January 1, 2021. 

The Nutrition and Supplement Facts labeling requirement marks a significant change in requirements for conventional foods and dietary supplements to provide updated nutrition information on the label to assist consumers in maintaining healthy dietary practices. The final rule updates the list of nutrients that are ...

On September 17, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB-685, which creates new COVID-19 reporting requirements for employers, increases mandatory public disclosure of COVID-19 outbreaks, and expands the powers of Cal/OSHA to cite and shut down employers with worksite infections in a streamlined process.

The law requires all public and private employers that find out about workplace exposure to COVID-19 to provide written notification to employees and contractors who were on the premises at the same worksite during the infectious period within one business day of ...

On September 9, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed three bills into law that were designed to provide support for small businesses, including restaurants and other food and beverage companies. 

SB 1447 authorizes a $100 million hiring tax credit program for qualified small businesses. The hiring credit will be equal to $1,000 for each net increase in qualified employees, up to $100,000 for each qualified small business employer.  To qualify for the credit, the business’ gross income must have declined at least 50% over this time last year.

AB 1577 excludes Paycheck ...

Until a recent appellate ruling, it appeared that, under California law, if a debtor made a transfer without receiving “reasonably equivalent value” in exchange, that transfer, by itself, could be — but need not be — a basis for finding there was “actual fraud” rendering the transfer voidable under the California Uniform Voidable Transfer Act (“UVTA”).

Not anymore. In Universal Home Improvement, Inc., et al. v. Robertson, et al., 51 Cal. App. 5th 116 (June 24, 2020, modified July 21, 2020), the 1st District Court of Appeal held that, “[t]he ‘badges of fraud’ do ...

International treaties and conventions such as the Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters, November 15, 1965, 20 U.S.T. 361, T.I.A.S. No. 6638 (“the Hague Service Convention”), and the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, June 10, 1958, 21 U.S.T. 2517, T.I.A.S. No. 6998 (“the New York Convention”) are considered to be federal law and hence prevail over inconsistent state common law. U.S. Const., art. VI, cl. 2: American Ins. Assoc. v. Garamendi, 539 U.S. 396 (2003). For ...