Mandatory Arbitration: Friend of Big Business and Enemy of Consumers? Virtually every consumer contract now contains a mandatory arbitration clause that reads something like this: “All claims and disputes arising under or relating to this agreement are to be settled by binding arbitration.” That sounds innocuous enough, at least until…
Seattle rolled over Denver in Super Bowl 48, but according to that most reliable source—somebody on the Internet, Challenger, Gray & Christmas in this case—the day after the Super Bowl costs American businesses $850 million in lost productivity. People call in sick because of overindulgence, or come into work hung…
Illinois has adopted several new laws which will affect Illinois businesses. Here are just a few: Texting and Cell Phone use has been banned while driving in Illinois. Illinois businesses that have employees using vehicles as part of their work should take measures to insure that employees do not violate…
The Lawyer Grinch has stolen what made the office holiday party fun. No more mistletoe. No more open bars. No more all-night bashes. No more “fun” gifts. No more firings for conduct unbecoming. No more lawsuits from molested interns and employees injured on the way home. No more sexual harassment…
In my 40+ years of helping people start new businesses, I have identified several potential problems that entrepreneurs often overlook in their eagerness to get their business up and running. Businesses succeed because of a number of variables, not all of which can be foreseen. But many of the problems could have been…
In this electronic world, signatures are still required to create a binding and enforceable contract. Many negotiations take place thru email or the web. Many contracts are negotiated without the parties ever having met face to face. Laws have adapted to the changing world, and these changes make it…
The Illinois Supreme Court overrules the Amazon Tax Law Illinois lawmakers’ attempts to level the playing field for Illinois small businesses took a major hit by our own Illinois Supreme Court last week. We all know that we don’t pay Illinois sales taxes on purchases made thru the web. Those…
It’s started. The federal courts are beginning to shut down. On October 7, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois issued an Order which stated that all civil cases involving the U.S. as a party are suspended and nothing will be done in those cases unless there…
Congress has breached its contract with the taxpayers. Can we sue? Client comes to me with a problem. She hired a consultant to take care of her company’s computers and telephone systems, and agreed to pay them a monthly retainer. She is paying for their services. But, the company shut…
Litigation Against Modern Day Pirates Pirates have gone from sailing to surfing. Surfing the Internet that is. They are no longer found sailing the open seas, but rather pillaging materials, many of which are copyrighted, off of the Internet. Modern day pirates are able to steal copyrighted materials because…