Among industry classification systems, Harmonized System (HS) Codes are commonly used throughout the export process for goods. The Harmonized System is a standardized numerical method of classifying traded products. The HS is administrated by the World Customs Organization (WCO) and is updated every five years. It serves as the foundation for the import and export classification systems used in the United […]
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Economic Duress and Equitable Estoppel
13340 MDR LLC v. PREFERRED BANK, Cal: Court of Appeal, 2nd Appellate Dist., 5th Div. 2019 A claim of economic duress often arises when a party is attempting to avoid a contract modification or a settlement and release. (Rich & Whillock, Inc. v. Ashton Development, Inc. (1984) 157 Cal.App.3d 1154, 1158.) The party asserting duress need […]
Transfers to Defraud Creditors
Under some circumstances a creditor may sue to set aside a transfer of property by a debtor, where the transfer defrauds that creditor. (Civ.Code, § 3439 et seq., the Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act.) A well-established principle of the law of fraudulent transfers is, “A transfer in fraud of creditors may be attacked only by one […]
Bereavement Leave
Assembly Bill No. 1949 CHAPTER 767 An act to amend Sections 12945.21 and 19859.3 of, and to add Section 12945.7 to, the Government Code, relating to employment. [ Approved by Governor September 29, 2022. Filed with Secretary of State September 29, 2022. ] AB 1949, Low. Employees: bereavement leave. Existing law, commonly known as the California Family Rights Act, which is a part of the California […]
Substantive unconscionability in the context of an arbitration agreement
TAMANAHA v. DroneBASE, INC., Cal: Court of Appeal, 2nd Appellate Dist., 3rd Div. 2022 We begin by reviewing general principles of unconscionability. “`One common formulation of unconscionability is that it refers to “`an absence of meaningful choice on the part of one of the parties together with contract terms which are unreasonably favorable to the […]
Colorado’s new non-compete / confidentiality agreement law
Effective August 10, 2022 Section 8-2-113 – Unlawful to intimidate worker – agreement not to compete – prohibition – exceptions – notice – definition (1)Legislative intent. The general assembly intends to preserve existing state and federal case law in effect before the effective date of this act that: (a) Defines what counts as a covenant not to […]
Employer’s duty to issue wage statements
Valdivia v. TICKET CLINIC, Cal: Court of Appeal, 2nd Appellate Dist., 3rd Div. 2022 Section 226, subdivision (a) states that an “employer, semimonthly or at the time of each payment of wages, shall furnish to his or her employee, either as a detachable part of the check, draft, or voucher paying the employee’s wages, or […]
Jones Act and Unseaworthiness
The Dutra Group v. Batterton, 139 S. Ct. 2275 – Supreme Court 2019 The seaman’s right to recover damages for personal injury on a claim of unseaworthiness originates in the admiralty court decisions of the 19th century. At the time, “seamen led miserable lives.” D. Robertson, S. Friedell, & M. Sturley, Admiralty and Maritime Law […]
Admiralty and Maritime Jurisdiction
Jerome B. Grubart, Inc. v. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co., 513 US 527 – Supreme Court 1995 A federal court’s authority to hear cases in admiralty flows initially from the Constitution, which “extend[s]” federal judicial power “to all Cases of admiralty and maritime Jurisdiction.” U. S. Const., Art. III, § 2. Congress has embodied […]
Artists’ Moral Rights
Carter v. Helmsley-Spear, Inc., 71 F. 3d 77 – Court of Appeals, 2nd Circuit 1995 The term “moral rights” has its origins in the civil law and is a translation of the French le droit moral, which is meant to capture those rights of a spiritual, non-economic and personal nature. The rights spring from a belief that […]