Thought Leaders in Law & Business

Will noncompete agreements be banned in 2024?

In this episode of the Thought Leaders in Law and Business podcast, presented by Hodgson Russ and The Business Journals, Jodyann Galvin, a partner with the law firm, discusses the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) proposed rule to ban certain types of noncompete agreements across the nation and the likelihood it will become law in 2024.

“One in five employees has either a current noncompete obligation or has had one in the past, and many employees don't really understand what the contours of that obligation are,” Galvin said. “What the FTC concluded was noncompetes generally are bad for business, they're bad for innovation and they're bad for employees being able to move around in the fields they have chosen.”

The opinions about this hot topic vary widely and many commentators are questioning whether the FTC has the authority to be involved in a state matter, according to Galvin.

Listen to this podcast to learn more.

Accounting firms: How to defend against audit malpractice lawsuits (podcast)

As experienced litigators who defend accounting firms against allegations of audit malpractice, Hodgson Russ Partners Erin Teske and Mark Harmon have gained firsthand knowledge worth sharing.

“The public often has an unrealistic idea of the role auditors perform … They (accounting firms) have insurance and may be viewed as having deep pockets,” Teske said. For those reasons, she believes they can be easy targets for lawsuits.

In this episode of the Thought Leaders in Law and Business podcast, presented by Hodgson Russ and The Business Journals, Teske and Harmon share auditing best practices and how accounting firms can limit their exposure to lawsuits.

Post-pandemic unionization trends — and how to navigate a union organizing campaign (podcast)

Starbucks, Amazon, Chipotle, Trader Joe’s and other household names have been in the news lately for their union organization campaigns, a post-pandemic trend that likely won’t change anytime soon, according to Elizabeth McPhail, partner with Hodgson Russ. She said some of these unionization efforts are a “product of the social justice movements” and they’re changing labor union organizing.

In the latest episode of the Thought Leaders in Law and Business podcast, presented by Hodgson Russ and The Business Journals, Buffalo Business First Publisher John Tebeau interviews McPhail and her colleague Asia Evans, associate and member of the labor and employment practice at Hodgson Russ, on what employers should consider when navigating a union organizing campaign.

“When you get a union organizing campaign and they are coming with social justice issues and cultural connectivity (concerns), if the response is just, we're paying 50 cents an hour more than the competitor down the road and their union, and we're not union free, that is not a message that's going to resonate with employees,” McPhail said.

Listen to this episode to learn more about:

New organizing trends and how campaigns have changed post-pandemic.The importance of understanding employees’ wants and needs.Regulatory concerns to consider when responding to efforts to unionize.Anti-unionizing efforts that don’t violate labor laws.Bargaining with employees in good faith.Lessons learned from high-profile organizing campaigns (Starbucks, Amazon, etc.).The prominent senator Evans worked with during one of her internships.

Insider view on how the Supreme Court works these days: Q&A with Hodgson Russ General Counsel

Like most institutions, the U.S. Supreme Court is evolving, and the decisions being made these days have gained a lot of attention among business leaders and the public. Recently it has reinstated voting maps, struck down pandemic measures and reinstated relaxed environmental rules. In addition, the Supreme Court’s majority appears to have eliminated “irreparable harm” from the stay analysis, and instead it’s simply staying decisions the majority does not like.

In this episode of the Thought Leaders in Law and Business podcast, presented by Hodgson Russ and The Business Journals, Buffalo Business First Publisher John Tebeau interviews Hodgson Russ Partner and General Counsel Kevin Kearney on how the highest court in the land works these days.

Kearney has defended clients in securities and antitrust class actions, litigated a wide variety of corporate governance disputes and has real-world experience with the Supreme Court. He clerked for Judge James L. Oakes of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and for Associate Justice Harry A. Blackmun of the U.S. Supreme Court during the October 1988 term. After his federal clerkships, he served as a confidential advisor to Judge Howard M. Holzmann of the Iran/U.S. Claims Tribunal at The Hague, which dealt with a variety of public and private international law issues.

“It's important for folks to recognize the Supreme Court doesn't view its role as correcting error,” Kearney said. “The fact that a court below got it wrong is interesting, but it's not going to be a basis for the court to take a question. What the court's going to be doing is resolving conflicts and to deal with important federal questions.”

Listen to this episode to learn more about:

How the Supreme Court decides what issues and what cases it will hear.How the cert pool works in dividing up responsibilities amongst clerks of the court.The influence law clerks have, which is a controversial subject.The standards the Supreme Court applies when deciding to grant cert. What the “shadow docket” is and the court’s ability to enter extraordinary orders.

Legal challenges for cannabis industry continue (podcast)

As a partner who leads the cannabis and hemp group at law firm Hodgson Russ LLP, Patrick Hines is often approached at cocktail parties with questions about all the cannabis shops popping up. There’s a widespread belief they must be legal or they’d be shut down. However, that’s not necessarily true, he says. Hines dives into this hot topic with Buffalo Business First Publisher John Tebeau, in the latest episode of the Thought Leaders in Law and Business podcast, presented by Hodgson Russ and The Business Journals.

“They don't want to put people in jail for cannabis, but they've got to be able to enforce the law,” Hines says. “Right now, the law says, if you're going to sell commercial cannabis to people, it needs to be regulated and you need to have a license. A lot of people are saying, ‘Well, I'm just going to do what I'm going to do.’ And that puts a lot of competition into the marketplace.”

Listen to this episode to learn about the legal issues businesses need to pay attention to if they’re interested in doing any kind of business in this space.

Expert weighs in on key cannabis litigation to watch and the future of the industry (podcast)

Cannabis is a hot topic across the nation as states continue to roll out the regulatory landscape for recreational programs. The litigation going on in New York will likely impact the entire cannabis industry, according to Patrick Hines, partner and leader of the cannabis and hemp group at Hodgson Russ LLP. So far, the licensing process has been complicated with many starts and stops.

In this episode of the Thought Leaders in Law and Business podcast, presented by Hodgson Russ and The Business Journals, Buffalo Business First Publisher John Tebeau interviews Hines on where cannabis stands in New York, how the state got where it is today and the recent progress they’ve made.

Hines knows first-hand how complex complying with these regulations can be. He advises clients on a range of issues affecting the cultivation, processing, distribution and sale of cannabis and hemp products. Hines provides counsel to businesses seeking to operate or do any kind of business in the cannabis industry.

“All hemp is cannabis, but not all cannabis is hemp,” Hines said. “Hemp is not defined necessarily by being a separate species of plants. It's defined in the law by how much THC it has in it, specifically Delta-9 — tetrahydrocannabinol. If that's 0.3% or lower by dry weight, then it's hemp. If it's higher, then legally it's non-hemp cannabis and would still be a controlled substance as far as the federal government's concerned.”

Listen to this episode to learn more about:

Why it’s been difficult to create regulations around commercial production and cannabis sales since the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) was passed in New York in 2021.The different types of licenses that have been issued so far and why they’re limited.Key litigation to watch, including allegations the Conditional Adult Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) program is unconstitutional.The chances the federal government will legalize cannabis.How the Farm Bill presents an opportunity to further liberalize cannabis regulations in 2023.

From free speech to copyrighted images, here are some prominent court cases businesses need to know about (podcast)

With prominent court cases constantly in the news, it can be tricky to interpret how major court decisions involving the First Amendment impact businesses, individuals and the community. Aaron Saykin, partner, media and First Amendment practice leader at Hodgson Russ LLP, dives into this hot topic with Buffalo Business First Publisher John Tebeau, in the latest episode of the Thought Leaders in Law and Business podcast.

In part 1 of this conversation, when these two were together for the podcast’s premiere episode, they tackled Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, one of the most frequently cited and complained about statutes in Washington, D.C., from both parties, according to Saykin. This time, in addition to continuing the conversation about free speech, they cover defamation of character and fair use of copyrighted images.

“If you post something on a social media site — and you go into those terms and conditions — you are typically giving them a license to do certain things with that photo. It doesn't mean somebody else can come and take the photo and publish it somewhere else, and that's the vast majority of what you see cases on,” Saykin said. “But if you're an artist, I would be very careful of posting your copywritten work. Just by signing up and creating an account on that platform, you may be waiving a particular right.”

Listen to this podcast episode to learn more about several big court cases, including:

The “don’t say gay” statute in Florida (Disney v. DeSantis).The $787 million settlement Fox agreed to pay in the election defamation lawsuit (Dominion Voting Systems v. Fox News).“A one-of-a-kind case” when Sarah Palin’s campaign was falsely linked to the 2011 mass shooting in Arizona (Sarah Palin v. The New York Times).The fair use defense involving copyrighted photographs taken of Prince in the 1980s (Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts Inc., v. Goldsmith).

The latest on the Section 230 debate — and what it might mean for businesses (podcast)

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act is one of the most frequently cited and complained about statutes in Washington, D.C., from both parties, according to Aaron Saykin, partner, media and First Amendment practice leader at Hodgson Russ LLP.

The law was enacted in the 1990s and it shields online platforms — like Google, Yelp, Twitter, Facebook — from legal liability for posts published by their users. “This was the advent of the internet,” Saykin said. “I think forward looking members of Congress said, ‘We don’t want to cripple this new platform —this new level of innovation — with defamation suits.’”

In the premiere episode of the Thought Leaders in Law and Business podcast, presented by Hodgson Russ and The Business Journals, Saykin discusses this hot topic with host John Tebeau, publisher of Buffalo Business First.

“The Supreme Court has said certain types of speech can be regulated and treated differently like commercial speech. There's a different level of scrutiny for that. Things that are lewd, there's certain jurisprudence that allows the regulation of that. But just political speech and regulating that based on the content is fraught with peril for the government,” Saykin said.

Listen to this podcast episode to learn more about:

Why Saykin changed his career path from an investigative television reporter to lawyer.Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act — what it says, what it means, the benefits and the negatives.Exceptions to the law.The different reasons both parties want Section 230 changed.What the world might look like if the liability shield is repealed.

Introducing a new podcast: Thought Leaders in Law and Business

Starting this August, Hodgson Russ and The Business Journals are teaming up to launch a new podcast miniseries called Thought Leaders in Law and Business. Hosted by John Tebeau, publisher of Buffalo Business First, the show will examine our nation’s pressing issues and how they affect our communities, from the financial health of banking institutions to the legalization of marijuana and state residency taxes.