January 2012

Judges are easy targets.  They rule on issues that affect everyone.  They are limited by ethical rules in how or even if they can respond to political attacks.  So, sure, Newt Gingrich attacks Judge Fred Biery as part of his campaign for president.  Mr. Gingrich says he would "do no more than eliminate Judge Biery…

 Filing charges of EEOC complaints has reached an all-time high.  Though just a small increase over 2010, the filings reflect the state of the economy.  Filings generally rise when the economy worsens.  That is due, I believe, to employers taking advantage of the economic "cover" to get rid of employees and more terminations simply cause…

I served in the US Army, National Guard and Army Reserve for 28 years.  I served as an Infantry officer for most of that time.  As young Infantry officers, we studied leadership and group dynamics over and over.  Studying leadership has become a favorite past-time for me.  One fundamental principle of Army leadership is that…

 "Cease and Desist" letters can be rather assertive.  By definition, they assert someone’s rights.  But, they need not always frighten the recipient.  See this link for a response to one such cease and desist letter.  San Antonio’s own Freetail Brewing Company received a cease and desisist letter regarding its use of the name "Hoposaurus Rex."…

You work for a company for 30 years, acquire a skill, and then join a new, smaller company doing the same job.  You think you have reached a certain level of success.  But, no, you have not.  That is Teresa Jackson’s exprience.  She worked for the Scooter Store in Newe Braunfels, Texas for over 31…

 The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a decision regarding the ministerial exception to Title VII.  Title VII of the Civil Rights act of 1964 prohibits discrimination.  But, for decades, courts have excepted religious institutions from Title VII.  Based on the First Amendment, all circuit courts have recognized that a religious institution may discriminate based on…

Judge Sam Sparks, a U.S. District Judge in Austin, has addressed the very important issue of beer in Texas.  As the judge notes, no one would question the sincere interest of Texans in their beer.  Authentic Beverages Company Inc. filed suit regarding Texas’ beer statutes.  The statutes and regulations divide beer distributors into three tiers…

 A few months back, the US Army in Afghanistan started tweeting about events in that war zone.  They tweeted when the terrorists attacked civilians and killed women and children.  The Taliban responded with a tweet critical of US forces.  See report of one exchange between the good guys and the Taliban.  In this exchange a…

The National Labor Relations Board has issued a ruling addressing employment agreements with arbitration provisions. The agreement in this decision prevented an employee from filing a class action.  See NLRB decision.  The case concerned an agreement used by the homebuilder, D.R. Horton which provided that employees had to bring employment claims to an individual…