Hewlett-Packard sues Mark Hurd claiming that his new job as CEO for Oracle will require him to disclose trade secrets. Apparently, HP never required Hurd to sign a non-disclosure or non-compete agreement. So, HP is suing under the theory of inevitable disclosure of trade secrets. HP filed suit in California, which according to one observer
Majority of Americans Oppose Mandatory Arbitration
A majority of Americans oppose forced arbitration accoding to a recent survey. See HR Lawyer post. In a nationwide survey of 800 citizens, 59% opposed forced arbitration clauses in employment and consumer contracts. 59% support the Arbitration Fairness Act, a proposed statute in Congress. Support crosses political and gender boundaries. Even after voters hear
Mandatory Arbitration Fails to Live up to Expectations
Ohio Employer’s Law Blog points out that according to a recent article, mandatory arbitration does not live up to its expectations. See blog post. Jon Hyman at Ohio Employer Blog refers to a recent ABA article finding that in one study, mandatory arbitration was 30% more expensive and 25% longer than traditional litigation. The
Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Employer on Arbitration Agreements
The US Supreme Court issued a ruling in Rent-A-Center West v. Jackson. The Supremes have found that an arbitrator should resolve issues regarding the enforceability of an arbitration agreement, and not the courts. See decision. This is an unfortunate decision. Simply based on policy grounds, arbitrators earn income by hearing arbitrations. So, they have
City Manager Demands Severance Pay
City Manager who "terminated" his employment under clouds of a scandal demands his severance pay. See San Antonio Express-News story. Ron Cain, who was City Manager for the town of Windcrest, a San Antonio suburban city, stepped down at the suggestion of the City Council. This was all prompted by a scandal involving his
Former Employee Emails Linkedin Contacts and is Sued
So, you have a LInkedin account. As with most users, many of your contacts are co-workers. You leave your employer and send messages to your contacts on Linkedin. Is that a problem? It is a problem, if you have a non-compete with your former employer in which you agreed to not contact former your former
Deductions from Paycheck Must be Authorized
A frequent issue arises concerning the right of an employer to deduct debts from an employee’s paycheck. Texas Workforce Commission recognizes three occasions when an employer may make such deductions: 1) in response to an order from a competent court, such as for child support; 2) state or federally mandated withholdings; and 3) when authorized
How to Read an Employment Contract
My colleague in California, Gene Lee, has written a couple of nice entries about how to read an employment contract. See this post for part 1 of his series on reading contracts. Note the information regarding which state law governs the contract. In today’s business world, employment contracts frequently involve two, three states or more.
Texas Supreme Court Accepts Non-Compete Issue for Review
Texas law on non-compete agreements is stricter than many states. In Texas, the non-compete can be enforceable only if the employer provides some sort of confidential information in exchange for the non-compete agreement. Typically, the employer provides some trade secret or other proprietary information. Mike Maslanka pens another excellent post and discusses the state
KBR Drops Petition for Cert in Jones Case
Halliburton/KBR has dropped its petition for certiorari to the US Supreme Court in the Jamie Leigh Jones case. See report. Ms. Jones is the lady who was raped in Iraq by KBR co-workers. She retutrned to the US to find that she had sgned an arbitration agreement which would have prevented most of