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Business

FTC Issues Ruling to Ban Noncompete Agreements Nationwide

The FTC has banned non-compete agreements in the U.S. labor market, effective April 23, 2024. The FTC expects the rule to boost competition and worker mobility, impacting all employment contracts except certain executives. Businesses must comply immediately and revise contracts.

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Business

What Is The Difference Between an S Corp and C Corp?

Both are corporations offering limited liability, but they differ on taxation, formation and ownership. C corps face double taxation and unlimited shareholders; S corps pass income through and cap owners at 100.

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Business

How To Avoid Using a Descriptive Trademark

Trademarks sit on a continuum from generic to arbitrary. Descriptive marks are weak and hard to register, so a suggestive or arbitrary mark gives the brand you built far stronger protection.

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Business

The Decision in Google v. Oracle

The Supreme Court held that Google's copying of Oracle's Java APIs was fair use, but deliberately left open whether APIs can be copyrighted at all. A far narrower decision than the tech industry expected.

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Business

Pre-Incorporation Contracts: Avoiding Promoter Liability

A promoter who signs a contract before the corporation exists stays personally liable, even after the company adopts the agreement. Only a novation moves that liability onto the corporation.

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Business

Can Computer Code be Copyrighted?

Google LLC v. Oracle America asks whether the Java APIs are protected by copyright and, if so, whether Google's use of them was fair use. A look at the arguments before the Supreme Court and what is at stake.

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Business

Sarbanes Oxley & SEC Blackout: Safeguarding Confidentiality

Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires companies to report on their internal control over financial reporting. As the SEC has made clear, disclosing a material weakness is not enough on its own.

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Business

The Tort of Appropriation

Using a person's name, voice, photograph or likeness in advertising without permission can amount to misappropriation. This article covers the right of publicity, what the law protects, and how to avoid a claim.

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Business

McConville v. SEC: Widening the Net through Falsities and Scienter

The appellate court upheld the SEC's findings that a company's former CFO made false statements with scienter. The case shows that poor recordkeeping, not just deliberate deception, can draw SEC scrutiny.

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Business

OCIE Risk Alert Cautions Registered Funds to Address Deficiencies

An SEC risk alert sets out the problems examiners find most often in registered funds: gaps in compliance programs, misleading investor disclosures, weak advisory contract review, and code of ethics failures.

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