North Texas Legal News
Original Commentary on Non-Compete and Trade Secrets Law
Tag: Dallas employment attorney
Texas Supreme Court Clarifies When Employers are Responsible for Employees’ Negligence
In Texas, an employer can be held liable for its employees’ negligence if, at the time of the accident, the worker was an employee (not an independent contractor) and was acting in the course and scope of his employment.
Can You Fire an Employee for Participating in Racist Behavior or Speech Off-the-Clock?
While employees have the right to express their opinions under the First Amendment, their employers have the right to fire them for expressing such opinions. In other words, the freedom of speech, when it comes to employment matters, is a myth!
Texas Supreme Court Nixes Employee’s Defamation Claim, Reinforces At-Will Employment Doctrine
Last week, the Texas Supreme Court declined to recognize a theory of compelled self-defamation, and, in rejecting it, joined an emerging majority of state courts that have considered the issue, including those in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Hawaii, Tennessee, Iowa, Pennsylvania, and New York.
Why the Appointment of Jeff Sessions as the New Attorney General May Lead to More Trade Secrets Litigation
On Friday, President-elect Donald Trump named Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions as his pick for the next Attorney General. Sessions is a former U.S. attorney and current senator with lengthy experience with the Justice Department. He is also known as a pro-business conservative, who on…
The Fifth Circuit Reminds that the Interactive Process Under ADA Is a Two-Way Street
The Fifth Circuit recently found in favor of the City of Austin for firing a disabled employee because he did not attempt to perform his new lighter-duty job in good faith. After the employee was injured on the job, the city offered him an administrative…
Breaking News: Texas and 20 States Sue the Department of Labor Over the Overtime Rules
A group of 21 states, including Texas, filed a lawsuit today in the Eastern District of Texas challenging the U.S. Department of Labor’s new overtime exemption rules that are supposed to go into effect on December 1, 2016, arguing the agency unconstitutionally overstepped its authority to…
At-Will Employment in Texas – What Does it Mean?
In Texas, employment is presumed to be at-will. This means that, absent a specific agreement to the contrary, employment may be terminated by the employer or the employee for any reason at any time. An employer may modify at-will employment but only if it…
Timing Isn’t Everything in a Pregnancy Discrimination Claim
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals recently joined the Second, Sixth, and Tenth Circuits in holding that where an employer shows that it had legitimate non-discriminatory reasons for firing a pregnant employee (e.g., non-performance), a mere fact that the employee was fired shortly after…
9 Basic Steps For Minizing Trade Secrets Theft From Your Company
Lawsuits involving trade secrets theft have become an almost weekly occurrence. In 2015, Fitbit, Nike, Angie’s List, and Oculus Rift became entangled in high-profile legal battles arising out of former employees and competitors allegedly stealing the companies’ trade secrets such as customer lists, software codes, and…
Small Business Corner: Limiting Competition Through Contract Provisions
Whether you are hiring a new employee or entering in a contract with your vendor or supplier, if you are planning on giving these persons access to your business’ confidential information, such as customer lists, financial information, proprietary training materials, etc., you should make…
Where CEO Drinks and Sleeps with Employees, A Company Is Not Required to Allow Him to “Cure” His Behavior Before Termination
In Duncan v. Woodlawn Manufacturing, Ltd., the company fired the CEO after he became intoxicated at a work dinner charged to a company credit card and asked a subordinate employee to kiss him. The CEO sued the company for breaching his employment agreement, which required a company…
Could Your Restaurant Be Violating A Federal Wage Law?
In the words of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, “this case concerns coffee and tipping.” More specifically, Montano v. Montrose Restaurant Associates, Inc. concerns a question of whether a restaurant violated Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) by requiring waiters to share their tips with the…
