Corporate & Commercial

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The International Olympic Committee (“IOC”) is the governing body that manages most aspects of the Olympic Games, including the broadcast of any footage from the Olympic Games. In an effort to raise funds, the IOC sells its broadcast rights to various networks and these rights allow the networks to exclusively show the Games on television, radio, the internet, etc. This practice raises billions of dollars for the IOC and that money is, for the most part, allocated to maintaining the committee, as well as the event itself. For context, in 2014, NBC paid $7.75 billion for the rights to…
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Fashion as an ‘artform’ and fashion as an ‘industry subject to legal protections’ exist as two somewhat inconsistent concepts. In the artistic context, the garment as worn can be considered secondary to the creative vision of the designer. Pyer Moss’ recent collection comes to mind. Kerby Jean-Raymond, the tour de force designer of the Pyer Moss label, designed the garments in his recent collection to serve as statement art pieces rather than items of clothing to be worn. The collection was a celebration of inventions created by black inventors throughout history and included garments with outlandish embellishments such as…
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Covenants not to compete and non-solicitation agreements are frequent fixtures of employment agreements. They are also frequently found in operating, shareholder or partnership agreements. Though courts and legislatures across the country have become increasingly hostile to the notion of enforcing non-compete agreements against employees, courts have not displayed a similar reluctance to enforce restrictive covenants in shareholder disputes.

When shareholders have a dispute or desire to sell their interest in a company, restrictive covenants seek to protect the existing company and shareholders by placing limitations on what departing shareholders can and cannot do in terms of competing with the…
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How to protect your business in a lawsuit
If you find yourself in the unfortunate position of being sued, the first thing you need to do is contact a business attorney. It’s normal to feel overwhelmed, upset, and indignant, but if you want to keep your business and its reputation intact during this time, it’s important to follow every step of the process carefully.
Common types of business lawsuits include breach of contract, slip-and-fall accidents and other premises liability, and discrimination. If this information is incorrect in any way, you may move to dismiss the action in its entirety,…
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Repayment of Student Debt by Employers
Retaining employees, and attracting new ones, has always been at the forefront of employer’s minds, but never more so than right now.  An extension of the student loan repayment plan for employers is one attractive way to stabilize your workforce.
The CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act) extended tax-free employer sponsored student loan repayment through 2025.  This means that employers can give each employee up to $5,250 of non-taxable money to pay off student loans per year.  The amount the employer contributes is deductible by the employer and it…
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Recently, the Delaware Court of Chancery refused to dismiss an action for post-closing damages stemming from alleged breaches of fiduciary duty brought by former stockholders of Authentix Acquisition Company, Inc. In doing so, the Court rejected the defendants’ arguments that a provision in a stockholders agreement entered by the plaintiffs waived such claims for breaches of fiduciary duties.
The dispute arose out of the sale of Authentix to Blue Water Energy in 2017. The plaintiffs in the case were holders of common stock in Authentix. In connection with their investment in the company, the plaintiffs entered into a Stockholders Agreement…
Continue Reading Delaware Court Rules that Consent to Merger in Stockholders Agreement Did not Waive Right to Bring Fiduciary Duty Claims

Asset protection planning is taking proactive steps to protect your personal or business assets and income before there is a legitimate threat or claim against you or your business. This is not giving away or transferring your assets to other parties, that carries its own risks, nor hiding your assets, but organizing and compartmentalizing your assets in order to isolate and protect them from creditor claims. Some asset protection planning you can do include:

  • Insurance. Liability, property, life, auto, business, E&D, D&O, cyber and other types of insurance should be considered and acquired to protect you and your assets in

…
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The Metaverse
The metaverse isn’t just for gamers anymore.
With the rise of block-chain technology, cryptocurrencies, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs)—along with the increasingly realistic-looking realms created in virtual and augmented reality—these three-dimensional realms, best known for games like Fortnite and Roblox, are increasingly becoming a place to do business.
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A company sale is a transfer of ownership from the corporation to a buyer. Sales agreements may be for assets such as plant and equipment, intangible assets such as patents and copyrights or an interest in the shares of the corporation to new owners. A business sale is binding, and as such legal representation is necessary to ensure that both sides comply with all stipulations included in the agreement. Sales Contracts business sales are contracts. The corporation enters into a relationship to sell either a good or service to a buyer.
Business to business compared to business to consumer…
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In a recent decision, the Supreme Court held that a copyright applicant’s inadvertent mistake of law in a copyright registration application does not invalidate the application or corresponding registration. In so holding, the Court erased an earlier victory for fashion retailer H&M in a long running copyright dispute with fabric designer Unicolors, Inc. handed down by an appeals court. Before the Supreme Court’s decision, the Ninth Circuit court of appeals had ruled in favor of H&M nixing a $750,000 win for Unicolors.

To obtain special rights for copyright holders afforded by the Copyright Act of 1976, the creator must apply…
Continue Reading Supreme Court Rules that Inadvertent Mistake of Law Does not Invalidate Copyright Registration

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There are many different types of Illinois attorneys that practice law in many different areas of Illinois law. Each one specializes in a different area of the law that requires different types of legal advice from offices helping children to those that negotiate documents for businesses, or even those that provide separation and custody services.
The legal services field contains everything from corporate mergers & acquisitions to legal aid. When you need legal assistance, it is important to choose the right lawyer for your specific situation.
Illinois attorneys are admitted by the Illinois Supreme Court and regulated by the attorney…
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NFTs as a Business Asset
Simply put, NFT’s (or “tokens”) are digital assets. Various examples include movies, drawings, music, and digital artwork.
By their very definition, NFT’s are non-fungible, meaning that they cannot be traded for something else.  For example, Da Vinci’s original Mona Lisa is non-fungible; only one original version exists, and there will only ever be one.  Contrarily, U.S. dollars are fungible—trade one dollar for another dollar and you end up with the same thing.
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Many people are familiar with insurance companies denying claims for a variety of reasons. Every dollar they use to repair or replace property is a dollar they can’t categorize as a profit or distribute to their executives as a bonus, so it’s common for insurance companies to try to find ways out of paying for claims. What is less common is to hear a claims adjuster say they don’t believe your story because your area is supposedly rife with fraud. That’s exactly what Darryl Williams, a former property owner on the South Side of Chicago, heard when he filed a…
Continue Reading Customers and Employees Accuse State Farm of Racial Discrimination When Denying Claims

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Are you looking to set up a business partnership? Liability protection, income tax, and ventures that need a partnership agreement are key motivators for a new business. A business partnership is a relatively easy entity to set up, but it does have its drawbacks.
One primary drawback to setting up your business as a general partnership is that your personal liability as a partner is unlimited. This means that any debts of the corporate entity will be borne by the individual partners of the business.
If you’re considering setting up a business as a partnership, our law firm has helped…
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Preemption is familiar battleground for class-action litigants prosecuting or defending product mislabeling claims concerning the labels of federally regulated products. Plaintiffs asserting state law mislabeling claims must contend with the fact that federal laws often expressly preempt state law claims out of a desire to prevent states from imposing requirements different from or stricter than those found in federal statutes or regulations.
Recently, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals analyzed the issue of federal preemption in a case involving the labeling of poultry products. In the case of Cohen v. ConAgra Brands, the plaintiff filed a putative class-action lawsuit alleging…
Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Allows State Law Claims to Survive in Mislabeling Class Action

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An asset purchase agreement is a legal contract between two parties, in which one party agrees to sell and transfer ownership of certain assets to the other party. The purchased assets may be tangible or intangible and can include things like property, equipment, shares in a company, or intellectual property.
An asset purchase, or a stock purchase, often involves a good deal of legal work during the transaction, which takes months of negotiation, then due diligence regarding either the buyer or the seller represents exactly what specified assets are being sold, which intangible assets, any third party consents and other…
Continue Reading Asset Purchase Agreements: What is an asset purchase agreement?