In May 2003, Chapter 558 became effective in Florida. The statute requires that a residential claimant follow the procedures in the statute to notify the contractor and other responsible parties of defective construction and provides the contractor a method of resolving the construction defect dispute prior to litigation; a right to cure.

The Pentagon inspector general’s office has launched an inquiry into the hiring practices of defense contractors that recruit high-level military officials to work for their companies. (<I>See</I> <I>"Pentagon Probes Suppliers’ Hiring," Wall Street Journal, Jan. 12, 2004 at A3</I>) The investigation was prompted by the Boeing Company’s decision in November 2003 to terminate Michael Sears, the company’s chief financial officer, and Darleen Druyun, a Boeing vice president who previously had served

Can a school be held liable when a student sexually harasses a teacher? "Yes," says one federal court, building on earlier opinions from courts in New York and Illinois. In Plaza Torres v. Rey, 2005 WL 1581268, a case from the U.S. District Court in Puerto Rico, a female public school teacher alleged continuous sexual harassment by one of her male students.

In Overall v. University of Pennsylvania, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit concluded that statements made at an internal university grievance proceeding were not privileged and therefore could be the subject of a defamation claim under Pennsylvania law.

Plaintiff Larry Givens worked for three years as UCI’s Director of Facilities Management before UCI promoted him to Assistant Vice Chancellor of Facilities Management. Givens’ ten-plus years of employment with UCI passed without incident until 1997, when someone lodged an anonymous complaint accusing him of having an inappropriate relationship with a female employee. One year after UCI’s investigation into the allegation, Givens’ supervisor sent a memorandum of expectations that directed Givens

In a decision that will interest online brokers, auction sites, and listing services, a federal court in Florida recently allowed a business to extract data from a competitor’s Web site. Nautical Solutions Marketing, Inc., v. Boats.com, M.D. Fla, No. 8:02-CV-760-T-23TGW, April 1, 2004.

This case involved the interpretation of recently enacted California Civil Code Section 1950.8 pertaining to "key money" demanded by commercial landlords. The California Court of Appeal for the Second Appellate District examined the language of the statute and its legislative history, and ultimately ruled in favor of the landlord.

The past year in the retail industry saw continued low interest rates and availability of equity funds that resulted in fierce competition for buyers of real estate and lower rates of return. These and other converging and conflicting economic patterns have resulted in considerable obstacles for retail sales and development for some, and a great opportunity for others.

A restriction in a recorded memorandum of lease prohibiting a landlord from allowing another supermarket within five miles of the shopping center may be unenforceable by the tenant against successors of the landlord.

For several months, various Assistant United States Attorneys have stated informally that HIPAA’s criminal penalties apply to anyone violating the law – not just covered entities. In their view, workforce members, business associates and others who handle "protected health information," as that term is defined in HIPAA, should use caution to ensure the information is used and disclosed properly.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) published its final Stark Phase II regulations and set an effective date of July 24, 2004. Since these new regulations do not "grandfather" existing arrangements, physicians and healthcare providers must bring their existing arrangements into compliance by the effective date.

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) allows an eligible employee to take up to 12 weeks of leave in order to care for a parent with a serious health condition. A recent case decided in Maryland suggests that the definition of "parent" may be stretched to include family members who "act as a parent." (Dillon v. Maryland-Nat’l Capital Park & Planning Comm’n, No. 04-0994, (D.Md. 2005).

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed into law A. B. 1825, which requires certain employers to commence antiharassment training by July 1, 2006, and to conduct the training for supervisors every two years thereafter. The law applies to employers employing 50 or more employees regardless of the location of their employees.