A charging lien protects the interest of a lawyer in fee that is to be paid from a contingent-fee recovery. A statutory lien may be enforced through a petition filed in an underlying action. The amount of a charging lien, and the lawyer’s compensation, is determined using principles of quantum…
Independent Contractor, or Not … Divining the difference between the traditional employee and an independent contractor has an inherent level of uncertainty, particularly in this era of gig workers and home offices brought about by the Covid pandemic. Shortly before the end of the Trump administation, the Department of Labor…
In most lawsuits, there is a presumption that the matter will, in most circumstances, go to trial. A party involved in a dissolution action involving a closely held New York corporation needs to request a hearing, however, or risk having the matter resolved in a summary fashion. That is the…
Key employees of a company may be bound by restrictive covenants that are included in an agreement to sell the entity, but do not reference them individually. A court should consider whether the restrictive covenant of a key employee was a significant element of the transaction and necessary to protect…
A restrictive covenant that is in force during a vesting period for securities granted as part of an employee incentive program may present an issue for enforcement, if not tied to to the protection of an employer’s legitimate interest. A court considering a preliminary injunction request blue-penciled the duration of…
Restrictive covenants that limit the ability of former employees to compete have been the subject of legislative limits in a number of states, including Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rode Island, Virginia and Washington. Bills that would limit the enforceability of restrictive covenants in New…
An email from the sole owner of a limited liability company announcing that employees had become partners with a profit interest was not sufficient to constitute admission as a member of the LLC. The fact that the party claiming an equity interest in an LLC had refused to execute an…
Accounting firm is compelled to repurchase the equity of departing shareholder who moved practice to competitor firm. A shareholder agreement that is integrated and intended to be the parties’ complete agreement may preclude a claim for breach of corporate by-laws. A shareholder in an accounting firm organized as a professional…
Although a former executive was bound by a restrictive covenant, the fact that his duties after joining a competitor were directed to a different market made the scope of the restrictions unreasonable. A restrictive covenant that is not narrowly tailored to protecting specific interests of the former employer at stake…
An executive with national responsibilities may be subjected to a broad geographic restriction in an employment restrictive covenant. Courts can and will enjoin a former executive from working for a competitor to prevent irreparable harm to the executive’s former employer when the restriction is reasonable. Misappropriation and use of a…