A recent Supreme Court decision re-emphasizes the need to exercise caution before taking any steps to commercialize an invention before filing a patent application.

The Court has overturned over thirty years of precedent in holding that property owners cannot sue subcontractors for implied warranty of habitability claims.

Employers now enter a period of uncertainty with regard to the collection of employee health information for the purposes of voluntary health plans.

New DDA/TIF reporting and public informational meeting requirements pursuant to the Recodified Tax Increment Financing Act, effective January 1, 2019.

Covered employers should begin the process of reviewing their current policies and procedures and considering how they can best implement all required changes.

Bill 47 relaxes demands on employers by repealing or altering many of the changes that came into effect under the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act of 2017.

The Department of Education has issued a proposal to amend the federal regulations governing Title IX compliance, representing a sea change from prior guidance.

Michigan voters have approved legalizing the possession, use and cultivation of marijuana. What does this mean for employers?

Though faced with an uncertain future, the Act could prove challenging for many employers to implement, especially those who have established time-off policies. 

The Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (ECRA) will have a foundational and emerging impact on the future of U.S. export controls and foreign direct investment.

Amendments by the SEC mean that issuers or obligated persons of municipal securities will be required to add two new events to the list of reportable material events in their continuing disclosure undertakings entered into after February 26, 2019.

The Polish government is planning another attempt to adopt in Poland an institution similar to the one popular in western Europe, a so-called REIT (real estate investment trust) – a company whose purpose is to invest in real property.

The new policy will have a significant impact on student, vocational and exchange visitor communities.

The National Labor Relations Board has issued a proposed new rule designed to overturn the broad standard for finding joint employer status.

We have prepared this guide to provide a short summary of the current campaign finance laws applicable to public school ballot proposals as well as answers to commonly asked questions.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that it is extending and expanding its temporary suspension of premium processing for "cap-subject" H-1B petitions.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) does not bar agreements stating that individual arbitration is the "only forum" for employment claims, the Sixth Circuit recently held in Gaffers v. Kelly Services.

New guidelines will have implications for a number of employment-based immigration, family-based immigration and naturalization cases.

Sellers with sales into Michigan exceeding $100,000 or 200 or more transactions in the prior calendar year will be required to remit sales or use tax beginning October 1, 2018.

The Michigan Supreme Court has upheld the authority of Michigan school districts to ban firearms on school property and at school functions. The Court held that while the Legislature has the power to preempt school districts from adopting policies that regulate the possession of firearms, it has expressly chosen not to exercise that authority.

Standard & Poor's raised its credit rating for the State of Michigan's general obligation bonds from AA- to AA. How will this upgrade affect local borrowers?

On July 20, 2018, Bill Schuette issued Attorney General Opinion #7305, concluding that the Michigan Civil Rights Commission exceeded its authority with its interpretation of the Michigan Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

A new Michigan law may streamline real estate transactions by allowing remote electronic notarization.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) announced a new pilot program to increase the use of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and offer parties greater control over the resolution of their cases while saving both time and money.

Employers are at an increased risk of age-discrimination litigation due to changing workforce demographics. Here are some practical considerations for employers.

In a 5-4 decision, the United States Supreme Court has held in Janus v. AFSCME that public sector unions cannot require non-union bargaining unit members to pay union dues.

The U.S. Supreme Court has held that administrative law judges (ALJs) of the Securities and Exchange Commission are "Officers of the United States" under the Appointments Clause of the U.S. Constitution, and are not mere employees.

In South Dakota v Wayfair, the U.S. Supreme Court has struck down a decades-old requirement that a seller must have a physical presence within a state to be required to collect sales tax.

The Michigan House of Representatives has taken the final step to repeal the Prevailing Wage Law.

The U.S. recently announced some important updates related to U.S. sanctions affecting Iran and Russia.

China has recently strengthened its commitment to significantly ease market access to its financial sector. This article summarizes the opening-up measures being developed for foreign investors and the business scope in each relevant financial sector.

The Michigan Civil Rights Commission has voted to expand its interpretation of the Michigan Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act ("ELCRA") to include discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

A recent amendment to Poland's National Court Register (KRS) introduced several significant changes affecting foreign companies operating in Poland.

Enforcement of the European General Data Protection Regulation is starting on May 25. The regulations set new and higher standards for the privacy rights of individuals in the EU.

Singapore-based Broadcom Ltd. attempted to acquire U.S.-based Qualcomm Inc. through a hostile takeover. CFIUS provided a national security impact assessment to the transaction parties for the potential Broadcom acquisition of Qualcomm, stating that a successful hostile takeover by Broadcom of Qualcomm could pose U.S. national security risks.

The Supreme Court held that automobile service advisors are exempt from overtime rules under the Fair Labor Standards Act. While the opinion, which was issued on April 2, 2018, will certainly impact car dealerships and repair shops, it could have far-reaching implications on other classes of employees.

Tax increment authorities and municipalities face new transparency and reporting requirements under a recently signed law.

According to “Automated Vehicles: Liability Crash Course,” a report we released in collaboration with J.D. Power, the global leader in consumer market research, consumers are suspicious of technology failures and, relatedly, they desire to resolve ADS product liability claims out of court.

A joint white paper by Miller Canfield and J.D. Power explores the legal liabilities in automated vehicle crashes.

Reporting requirements for employers increased this week with regard to third-party placement of H-1B foreign workers. Previously, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) required H-1B employers to provide evidence of employment relationships with vendors and end-clients where H-1B workers are placed. However, a newly released memo indicates that USCIS will have the discretion to scrutinize these contractual relationships even more so than before.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has revived a broad, union-friendly joint employer test, at least for now. In December 2017, the board issued its decision in Hy-Brand Industrial Contractors, which put in place a narrow definition of joint employer status, requiring that there be actual exercise of control by one entity over another, rather than a mere right to do so. Hy-Brand expressly overruled an earlier NLRB decision, Browning-Ferris Industries, which introduced the looser standard. On Feb. 26, 2018, the board vacated Hy-Brand due to conflicts of interest by one of the members who participated in the decision, and announced that as a result, Browning-Ferris remains good law. 

The U.S. Supreme Court has reversed a U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals decision holding that that former employees of CNH Industrial N.V. were entitled to lifetime, vested healthcare benefits. The opinion, issued yesterday, reaffirms the court's prior opinion that ordinary principles of contract interpretation apply when determining the duration a collective bargaining agreement entitles employees to benefits. In 2015, the Supreme Court rejected the 6th Circuit's reliance on retiree-friendly inferences from UAW v. Yard-Man in M&G Polymers USA v. Tackett. Since then, lower courts within the 6th Circuit have inconsistently applied Tackett. 

Miller Canfield Senior Counsel Donald Moore has been working in Afghanistan since 2007. He advises international and Afghan clients in areas such as banking, defense and security, finance, insurance, construction, media, mining, oil and gas, and transportation. He is supported by the Miller Canfield global cross-border transaction team and the ITAR and CFIUS teams.

Our clients across the United States include municipal and state government, governmental agencies, hospitals and health systems, public schools and universities, downtown development districts, real estate developers, construction companies and financial institutions.

The role of the Trustee comes with significant responsibility. As Trustee, Miller Canfield will perform all services in accordance with your directions and the terms of the Trust Agreement. Miller Canfield has an established group of dedicated trust administration professionals monitoring each relationship where a Miller Canfield attorney is serving as Trustee.

Flushing Community Schools recently finalized a public-private partnership (P3) project with solar power company Standard Solar Inc. This transaction, the first-of-its-kind for a public school in Michigan, is anticipated to provide the school district with significant savings while making a long-term commitment to renewable energy to power school district buildings.  

A commercial real estate receiver’s powers will be clarified when Michigan’s Uniform Commercial Real Estate Receivership Act (the “Act”) becomes effective in May. The legislation, signed by Gov. Rick Snyder on Feb. 6, 2018, effects many sweeping changes and answers a question plaguing courts: Can a state receiver court sell property free and clear of liens and redemption rights?

Our AV team works with clients worldwide to solve their most pressing legal issues in this game-changing, rapidly evolving industry.

Legislation enacted in 2017 and amended last month significantly expands the range of prohibitions on a school district’s ability to influence the future use of real property that it sells or transfers. When disposing of real property, school districts often desire to obtain affirmative covenants restricting the use of the property to types of uses which support its interests, such as a residential development project to add families to the community. Prior to this recent legislation, Section 1260 of the Revised School Code prohibited school districts from using negative deed restrictions prohibiting the use of disposed property for any lawful public education purpose and further prohibited school districts from refusing to lease or rent property to a party solely because the party intended to use the property for an educational purpose. 

A taxpayer may claim a credit against its federal income tax liability for research expenses paid or incurred during the tax year. The definitions of research expenses for financial reporting purposes and federal income tax purposes are different. Because of the difference, a taxpayer was not able, in an IRS audit, to substantiate its tax credits for research expenses by showing the IRS the research expenses in its financial statement.

On May 25, 2018, the European Union’s new data privacy regulation, known as the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679) (“GDPR”), will become effective. Not only does the GDPR regulate processing personal data by an E.U. controller or processor, but also requires non-E.U. entities, such as non-E.U. companies, universities, investment funds and charities, to comply with the GDPR.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act enables investors to delay paying the tax on capital gains. If a taxpayer generates a capital gain and invests that amount in a qualified opportunity fund within 180 days, the tax will not be due until the fund investment is sold or exchanged or, if earlier, Dec. 31, 2026.

H-1B petitions subject to the Fiscal Year 2019 cap (FY 2019) must be received by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) during the first five days of April 2018.

The Department of Labor ("DOL") has formally endorsed a test used by several appellate courts in order to determine if an intern qualifies as an employee under the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"), resolving the ambiguity between the DOL's enforcement position and the standards applied by the courts when reviewing claims for wages and overtime by individuals classified as interns.

Employers with operations in Ontario should be aware of some newly enacted changes to the Employment Standards Act. Changes include higher wages and increased time off.

The U.S. House and Senate have approved the reconciled tax reform bill that was reported out of the House and Senate Conference Committee last week. The major changes under the tax reform bill will affect corporations, businesses and individuals, but there are several provisions regarding the issuance of tax-exempt debt that may impact the future issuance of such debt by municipalities and school districts.

Year-end NLRB decisions signal an intent to overturn Obama-era decisions that reversed or modified long-standing NLRB precedent. As cases come before the Board, employers need to stay alert on how the pendulum changes will affect their labor and employment practices.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act denies any deduction for settlements and payments related to sexual harassment or sexual abuse if the settlement or payment is subject to a non-disclosure agreement.

The minimum wage will increase to $9.25 on Jan. 1, 2018.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) has overruled two precedents that had been particularly nettlesome to the employer community.

Many recent press reports have warned of the negative affect tax reform could have on charter schools around the country. These reports focus on the proposed elimination of private activity bonds (“PABs”) under the House tax reform plan and the effect it would have on charter schools.

Sworn in less than a month ago, National Labor Relations Board’s new General Counsel Peter B. Robb is wasting little time setting a new direction for the NLRB.

Poland recently amended its Corporate Income Tax law, effective Jan. 1, 2018. The Polish Government announced that the objectives of the amendment are to ensure that taxes paid by large companies, especially multinational companies, are linked to the actual source of their earned income, and to implement the EU's Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive ("ATAD Directive").

The Supreme Court has issued orders allowing the Trump Administration to enforce a ban on travel to the United States while the Ninth U.S. Circuit and Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rule on its legality.

Disagreement among congressional committees about the federal income tax credit for research expenses is worrisome to taxpayers who may find it more difficult to qualify for the credit.

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed its Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “House Bill”), and while much of the national media has focused on its impact on corporate and individual tax rates and deductions, the bill also contains provisions which would eliminate the ability to issue tax-exempt bonds for certain types of projects or for certain refinancings of existing bonds.

As the Senate continues to work to modify the House version of a sweeping tax reform bill, non-profit hospitals face having to pay higher interest rates to borrow if certain types of tax-exempt bonds are eliminated.

Recently, many revisions to U.S. sanction programs (both implemented and under consideration) have been the topic of much public discussion. Often, the legal status or these revisions may be difficult to determine. The U.S. sanctions programs are administered and enforced by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). The following provides a chronological overview of key announcements and updates to U.S. sanction programs recently occurring within recent month

President Donald Trump issued his Presidential proclamation, “Enhancing Vetting Capabilities and Processes for Detecting Attempted Entry Into the United States by Terrorists or Other Public-Safety Threats" on Sept. 24, 2017. This order updated and expanded the preexisting immigration order signed on March 6, 2017. Absent this expansion, the order was set to expire on Sept. 24.

After further review, the ruling of a Texas district court was overturned by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday, resulting in the dismissal of Ezekiel Elliott’s case against the NFL, and clearing the way for Elliott to begin serving a six-game suspension.

The State of Illinois now requires all employers in Illinois with 25 or more employees to offer a retirement plan to their employees or offer a state-run plan to their employees if they do not maintain their own retirement plan effective July 1, 2017. The program was in fact not implemented by the July 1, 2017 date at least partially because Congress removed in May a safe-harbor regulation issued by the U.S. Department of Labor last year which would have made implementation easier. Regardless, Illinois Treasurer Michael Frerichs has stated that Illinois intends to move forward with the implementation of the law.

Effective Oct. 3, 2017, employers may request to upgrade pending H-1B petitions with premium processing or file new H-1B petitions using the premium processing service.

As candidates begin to ramp up fundraising efforts ahead of the November 2018 elections, state and local candidates in Michigan has amended the Michigan Campaign Finance Act to allow candidates to directly solicit contributions for an independent political action committee.

Pres. Donald Trump added new countries to the list of those whose citizens face travel restrictions into the United States. Foreign nationals from Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Venezuela, Yemen and Somalia will now face some form of travel restriction to the United States to “address the threats that the countries’ identity-management protocols, information-sharing inadequacies, and other risk factors pose to the security and welfare of the United States.”

The U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights ("OCR") this morning formally rescinded its April 4, 2011, Dear Colleague Letter as well as the April 29, 2014, Questions and Answers on Title IX and Sexual Violence. Together the two documents had set forth detailed requirements for schools to respond to allegations of sexual harassment, sexual assault and other sexual misconduct. In rescinding the documents, the OCR indicated it would largely revert to pre-2011 guidance, specifically its 2001 Revised Sexual Harassment Guidance together with a Q&A on Campus Sexual Misconduct also issued this morning. The new Q&A relaxes several of the requirements imposed in 2014 and sends signals that the Department will be more open to claims of discrimination brought by students accused of sexual misconduct. 

USCIS announced it has resumed premium processing for all H-1B petitions subject to the Fiscal Year 2018 cap. Effective September 18, 2017, employers may request to upgrade pending cap-subject petitions with premium processing. USCIS guarantees a 15-calendar day processing time upon receiving an employer’s request for pre

The U.S. Department of Transportation ("DOT") released its revised federal policy for automated vehicles, entitled "Automated Driving Systems 2.0: A Vision for Safety" (the "Voluntary Guidance") on September 12, 2017, and at the same time announced it is working on a 3.0 version to be released next year.

The higher salary requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) white collar exemptions that were set to take effect December 1, 2016, have been ruled invalid by a U.S. District Court in Texas. The same court preliminarily enjoined the implementation of these regulations on November 22, 2016. That decision is presently on appeal to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Although the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) requested that the district court delay its final decision on the merits of the case until after the court of appeals rules on the preliminary injunction, the district court declined to do so and issued its final decision on August 31, 2017.

The Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) issued a memorandum yesterday to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) informing the agency that it is initiating a review of the effectiveness of the pay data reporting requirements of the revised EEO-1 form which went into effect on September 29, 2016. As a result, the EEO-1 pay data reporting requirements are stayed indefinitely.

USCIS announced it will expand the in-person interview process for certain beneficiaries of permanent residency applications.  

As noted in our December 9, 2016, Client Alert, the Supreme Court in Salman v. U.S. ruled that the required “personal benefit” to the person disclosing inside information (the tipper) does not need to be “pecuniary” or something of a “similarly valuable nature.” Instead, the Supreme Court relied on its prior opinion in Dirks v. SEC, and found that a “gift” of inside information provided to the tipper’s family member or friend can be inferred by a jury as intent by the tipper to “provide the equivalent of a cash gift,” which is the personal benefit to the tipper. Salman, 137 S. Ct. 420, 427-28 (2016). “In such situations, the tipper benefits personally because giving a gift of trading information is the same thing as trading by the tipper followed by a gift of the proceeds.”  Id. at 428. The Supreme Court in Salman overruled as “inconsistent with Dirks” the Second Circuit’s 2014 holding in U.S. v. Newman that “the tipper must also receive something of a ‘pecuniary or similarly valuable nature’ in exchange for a gift to family or friends.”  Id. at 428. The Supreme Court did not directly address the other requirement in Newman that a non-pecuniary, non-monetary “personal benefit” can only be established with “proof of a meaningfully close personal relationship that generates an exchange that is objective, consequential, and represents at least a potential gain of a pecuniary or similarly valuable nature.”  U.S. v. Newman, 773 F.3d 438, 452 (2nd Cir. 2014) (emphasis added).

This is Part II of a four-part series discussing the new AIA 2017 forms. Part I discussed the agreements between the Owner and Contractor (A101-2017 and A102-2017); Part III will discuss the Owner—Architect forms (B101-2017, B102-2017 and B103-2017); Part IV will discuss miscellaneous new forms, including the new insurance exhibits and consultant forms.

USCIS announced it will resume premium processing for certain cap-exempt H-1B petitions effective July 24, 2017.

The Department of Labor (DOL) recently announced that it had submitted a proposed Request for Information, related to possible new overtime rules, to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. The OMB review has now been completed and the DOL published the Request for Information on July 26, 2017. The DOL noted that the purpose of the Request for Information was to gather information for formulating a proposal to revise the white collar exemption regulations. The Request for Information seeks answers to 11 questions and is the strongest indication yet that the current DOL leadership will abandon the new salary basis regulations issued under President Obama.

USCIS has implemented a revised Form I-9 effective July 17, 2017. Employers have until Sept. 17, 2017, to discontinue use of the Nov. 14, 2016, edition of the Form I-9 but employers are urged to use the new version of the form as soon as possible. The new form has been updated to allow employers to accept Form FS-240, Consular Report of Birth Abroad as an acceptable List C document. The I-9 employer handbook has also been updated to reflect this change.

As previously reported, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals is currently reviewing a challenge to the recent Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA") overtime changes. Previously, a Texas district court entered an injunction preventing the Department of Labor ("DOL") from implementing new regulations regarding the determination of who is exempt for overtime purposes. On June 30, the DOL filed its reply brief with the Court of Appeals, stating that although it was no longer defending the overtime rule set to become effective on Dec. 1, 2016, it believed the district court erred in concluding that the DOL had no authority to set white-collar salary limitations. Therefore, the DOL requested that the court rule in its favor on that issue and reject the district court’s issuance of the injunction, which, it argued, “would call into question any salary-level test adopted by the [DOL].”  

The United States Supreme Court has allowed portions of President Trump’s travel ban to take effect; citizens from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen may be denied admission to the United States if they lack any bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States. On the other hand, the opinion stated that the travel ban may not be enforced against foreign nationals who have a credible claim of a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States.

Brownfield redevelopment authorities and developers and owners of transformational brownfield redevelopment projects are eligible for substantial tax incentives under legislation signed by Governor Snyder on June 8, 2017.

The U.S. Department of Labor has indicated that the department will move in a new, more employer-friendly direction, leaving many businesses feeling hopeful. On June 7, 2017, the United States Department of Labor issued a press release rescinding the Department’s 2015 administrator’s interpretation memorandum regarding Independent Contractor classification under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and its 2016 administrator’s interpretation memorandum regarding joint employer status under the FLSA and the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Workers Protection Act.

The U.S. Supreme Court continues to limit the timeframe in which the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“S.E.C.”) can seek to levy monetary penalties in enforcement actions it brings against violators of the federal securities laws. Most recently, the Court limited to five years the window of time in which the S.E.C. can bring a claim to “disgorge,” or take away, ill-gotten gains from a defendant’s securities fraud. These rulings may result in quicker or more aggressive enforcement actions by the S.E.C. against companies or individuals accused of securities fraud, even perhaps before investigations are complete. The holdings may also affect the willingness of corporate or individual defendants to enter into “tolling agreements” with the S.E.C. that would toll (or stop) the limitations period while the parties discuss a potential resolution or settlement.

Information provides the cornerstone to the modern economy. Information flows across information technology networks similar to water naturally flowing down our mountains, into our streams and rivers, and out to the oceans. Within organizations, however, information must be damned to restrict access and the release of export-controlled information.

On Thursday, May 25, 2017, Governor Rick Snyder signed a bill to extend the deadline for filing Personal Property Tax (PPT) statements to claim the exemption for manufacturing personal property until tomorrow, Wednesday, May 31, 2017.  

[This is Part I of a four-part series discussing the new AIA 2017 forms. Part II will discuss the general conditions to the construction contract (A201-2017); Part III will discuss the Owner—Architect forms (B101-2017, B102-2017 and B103-2017); Part IV will discuss miscellaneous new forms, including the new insurance exhibits and consultant forms]

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued Revenue Procedure 2017-13 (Rev. Proc. 2017-13) on Jan. 17, 2017. The procedure provides more flexible, modern rules for structuring management contracts involving tax-exempt financed facilities. Twenty years after the IRS released Revenue Procedure 97-13 (Rev. Proc. 97-13), which helped to establish the previous safe harbor framework for management contracts, Rev. Proc. 2017-13 modifies, amplifies and supersedes Rev. Proc. 97-13, Notice 2014-67, and the most recent safe harbor published in Notice 2016-44.