COVID-19 Triggers Savings
Your Trademark and the COVID-19 Outbreak
Written by Alesha M. Dominique and Sofia Castillo
This week, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced that it considers the effects of the Coronavirus outbreak to be an “extraordinary situation” within the meaning of 37 CFR 2.146 for affected trademark applicants and trademark owners. In response, it is waiving the petition fees (set by regulation, rather than statute) that it normally charges to revive an abandoned trademark application and to reinstate a canceled or expired trademark registration if they were abandoned or canceled/expired as a result of the impact of the Coronavirus outbreak. Other trademark-related deadlines and fees will not change.
Specifically, the USPTO is waiving the petition fee to revive an abandoned application or to reinstate a canceled or expired registration if it was abandoned or canceled/expired “due to an inability to timely respond to a trademark-related Office communication as a result of the effects of the Coronavirus outbreak.” A petition must be accompanied by a statement that explains “how the failure to respond to the Office communication was due to the effects of the Coronavirus outbreak.” Continue reading “COVID-19 Triggers Savings”
Governor Newsom Suspends Key Provisions of Cal-WARN
Written by Brian Ragen and Daniel Innamorati
On March 17, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order EO N-31-20 suspending key provisions of the California Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (“Cal-WARN”) in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Why This Matters
The Executive Order effectively eliminates Cal-WARN’s requirement that employers provide 60 days’ notice for mass layoffs, relocations and cessations of business related to COVID-19. These events have become widespread as business shut their doors for public health reasons, and compliance has been rendered virtually impossible in many instances.
Continue reading “Governor Newsom Suspends Key Provisions of Cal-WARN”
Merger Modifications
DOJ and FTC Announce Temporary Modifications to Certain Filing and other Procedures under the Hart, Scott Rodino Act (“HSR Act”) For Pendency of COVID-19 Event
Written By Anthony Adler
On March 13, 2020, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced that they have adopted a series of temporary changes to their civil merger investigation processes, which will remain in place during the pendency of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) event. These changes will ensure that the DOJ and FTC will be able to continue operations as their employees carry out their duties under a mass telework directive in accordance with health guidance from the CDC, WHO, and other health authorities. These temporary measures include the following: Continue reading “Merger Modifications”
Shareholder Distancing
Shareholder Meetings in the Age of “Social Distancing” and COVID-19
Written by Blake Baron
Background
On March 13, 2020, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) published guidance to assist public companies, investment companies, shareholders and other market participants affected by COVID-19 in connection with their upcoming shareholder meetings. The SEC explained that this guidance was designed to allow these companies to continue to hold their meetings, including through the use of technology, and engage with shareholders under social distancing circumstances, while still complying with the federal securities laws.
Shareholder Meetings – The Impact of COVID-19 and the Natural Transition to Virtual Meetings
Generally, public companies and investment companies are required to hold annual meetings of security holders, with the federal securities laws requiring the delivery of proxy materials to the voting shareholders. Over the past few years, more and more companies have been transitioning to either complete “virtual” shareholder meetings or “hybrid” meetings, which avoid the need for in-person shareholder attendance. Continue reading “Shareholder Distancing”
COVID-19 Client Communication
As the COVID-19 crisis rapidly evolves, the health and safety of our employees, clients and our communities remain our highest priority. We wanted to share with you what we are doing as a firm. We have instructed attorneys and staff in all of our offices to work remotely (with rare exception for certain critical functions). This is happening seamlessly as part of our business continuity plan. We have been working round-the-clock in counseling clients on today’s mission-critical issues, from employment to immigration to tax, as it relates to the outbreak of COVID-19. Like you, we are constantly monitoring the situation, and we will provide additional updates in the coming days and weeks as appropriate. In the meantime, we want you to know that our thoughts are with you and your families, and we hope that you remain healthy and safe.
In an effort to support you during these uncertain times, we have assembled a firm-wide COVID-19 response team from all of our practice areas. For the coming weeks, and starting today in this alert, we intend to send a consolidated communication alert on a regular basis that touches on breaking news and relevant items that could affect you or your business across a range of topics. If there is anything else that we can do to help you during this challenging time, please do not hesitate in reaching out.
Coronavirus Business Interruption
Written by Jean Pierre Nogues and Daniel M. Hayes
Escalating health concerns, governmental restrictions, empty shelves at retailers, supply chain disruptions, and wild gyrations in the financial markets. The COVID-19 virus and steps taken to reduce its spread are impacting more businesses in more ways each day.
In order to put yourself in the best position to weather this storm and recover as quickly as possible, it is vital that you consider and fully understand the defenses you or your business partners may have under your contracts, and whether you have any insurance coverage for your COVID-19 losses. Continue reading “Coronavirus Business Interruption”
Federal Tax Payments May Be Delayed 90 Days
Written by David Wheeler Newman Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced that individual taxpayers may defer payment of tax bills up to $1 million for ninety days, interest and penalty free, as part of a coronavirus stimulus bill announced by the administration on March 17. According to the Secretary, the $1 million limit is intended to provide relief to small businesses and pass-through entities like partnerships … Continue reading Federal Tax Payments May Be Delayed 90 Days
Telecommuting? Buckle Up
Are Your Employees Telecommuting Now? COVID-19 and Cybersecurity Concerns for Businesses
Written by Jeremy Mittman and Susan Kohn Ross
A topic of immediate concern to businesses that has not received a great deal of attention (but should) is cybersecurity. There are unscrupulous people out there who will try to take advantage of the situation! This is especially worrisome with the increased usage of telecommuting to facilitate business continuity.
Within the Dept. of Homeland Security sits the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency or CISA which is “responsible for protecting the Nation’s critical infrastructure from physical and cyber threats.” CISA, through its National Cyber Awareness System, released Defending Against COVID-19 Cyber Scams, see here for the full text. In short, beware of emails with malicious attachments and hyperlinks. Also be careful about social media pleas, texts and calls having to do with COVID-19.
The NCAS recommends:
Best Practices for Maintaining Employee Privacy Regarding COVID-19
Written by Jeremy Mittman and Susan Kohn Ross
The situation surrounding COVID-19 is, to the say the least, fluid and scary. The ultimate outcome of the disruption to the business community is also unclear. There are nonetheless a couple of topics we can talk about right now with some degree of certainty on which businesses may want to focus as we all struggle to deal with the very human toll of this pandemic. One is employee privacy and is addressed in this edition. The cybersecurity topics worthy of immediate attention will be covered in a subsequent blog post.
We start here with the confidentiality obligation of employers regarding information about the health of their employees. If someone on your staff becomes infected, as a general proposition, as the employer, you may not share that information with other employees. The Centers for Disease Control published an Interim Guidance for Businesses and Employers, and stated: “If an employee is confirmed to have COVID-19, employers should inform fellow employees of their possible exposure to COVID-19 in the workplace but maintain confidentiality as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act.” Since COVID-19 has spread to many different countries, the privacy laws in those countries also need to be considered. For example, the European privacy law – the GDPR – addresses privacy around health data, plus local public health authorities in those countries will have their own protocols to follow.
Continue reading “Best Practices for Maintaining Employee Privacy Regarding COVID-19”
Ninth Circuit Ends Lawsuit Involving Copyright Protection for Characters, Leaving Plaintiffs in a Bad Mood
Written by Robert H. Rotstein
On March 16, 2020, the Ninth Circuit ended a lawsuit alleging that Disney’s Inside Out infringed plaintiffs’ alleged copyright in characters known as “The Moodsters.” Daniels, et al., v. The Walt Disney Company, et al., Case No. 18-55635 (9th Cir. Mar. 16, 2020). The Court elaborated on the standards governing character protection and enunciated a rigorous standard for pleading “idea submission” claims in federal court.
Plaintiffs’ five characters are color-coded anthropomorphic emotions, each representing a different emotion. Between 2007 and 2009, Plaintiffs allegedly pitched The Moodsters to Disney. In 2015, Disney released Inside Out, a film that centers on five anthropomorphized emotions that live inside the mind of an eleven-year-old girl. Continue reading “Ninth Circuit Ends Lawsuit Involving Copyright Protection for Characters, Leaving Plaintiffs in a Bad Mood”
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