Alabama 2023 Mileage Reimbursement Rate Update
Effective January 1, 2023, the mileage reimbursement rate for Alabama increased to 66.5 cents per mile.
Epa Investigates Alabama’s Management Of Sewer Infrastructure Funds
On October 3, 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) announced it was accepting for investigation an Administrative Complaint filed by the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Natural Resources Council against the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (“ADEM”). The Complaint alleges that ADEM engages in racially discriminatory practices against residents in the Black Belt region…
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Tennessee Supreme Court Rules The Economic Loss Doctrine Does Not Bar Fraud Claim By Subcontract Against A General Contractor
In Commercial Painting Co. Inc. v. Weitz Co. LLC, the Supreme Court of Tennessee ruled the economic loss doctrine does not extend to fraud related to construction contract disputes. The case arose from a contract dispute between a general contractor, The Weitz Company, LLC (“Weitz”), and its subcontractor, Commercial Painting Company, Inc. (“Commercial”). In 2004,…
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Georgia Supreme Court Rules Amendment To Statute Of Repose Does Not Have Retroactive Application
In Southern States Chemical, Inc. v. Tampa Tank & Welding, Inc., the Supreme Court of Georgia held statutes of repose differ from statutes of limitation, due to statutes of repose being substantive in nature, and amendments to statutes of repose do not apply retroactively. 888 S.E.2d 553 (2023). The Supreme Court of Georgia’s decision is…
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EEOC Issues Proposed Guidance On Workplace Harassment
On September 29, 2023, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) released its revised “Proposed Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace”. If successful, the proposed guidance would be EEOC’s first update on workplace harassment since the previous update in 1999. The new proposal considers recent changes in the law on issues of workplace discrimination and…
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Enhancements To The Expungement Process
Effective October 16, 2023, FINRA adopted amendments to its Codes of Arbitration Procedure (Codes) to modify the process relating to requests to expunge customer dispute information in the FINRA Dispute Resolution Services (DRS) arbitration forum. FINRA operates the Central Registration Depository (CRD), and customer dispute information maintained in CRD is reported through Forms U4 and…
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South Carolina Court Rules That A Contractor Sued By Purchaser Was Limited To Equitable Indemnity Claim Against Architect For Its Incurred Expenses
In BEI-Beach, LLC v. Christman, a contractor was sued by the purchaser of a development for construction defects and a South Carolina appellate court held that the contractor was limited to an equitable indemnity claim against the project architect to recover damages for design defects that caused the contractor to incur expenses resulting from having…
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Employment Protections To Expand Amid Data Privacy Regulations
Public interest continues to shift due to a growing belief that individuals own their personal information and have the right to control it. As such, human resource departments can expect to see more employment protections amid growing regulations affecting human resource data. Several states have enacted Privacy Acts, including Colorado, Utah, Virginia, California and Illinois….
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Epa And Army Corps Of Engineers’ Most Recent Regulations Defining Waters Of The United States Take Effect Immediately
On September 8, 2023, the Army Corps of Engineers and Environmental Protection Agency published new standards defining “waters of the United States” as it relates to regulations under the Clean Water Act. The new regulations took effect immediately to fill a void left by the Supreme Court’s ruling in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency, 598…
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Arbitration Award Affirmed By Alabama Supreme Court
Arbitration in construction and design disputes can be a tempting alternative to resolving disputes outside of the traditional setting of a courtroom. However, once an arbitration award is issued, there is a high bar to be cleared should a disgruntled party move to have it vacated. Escapes! To the Shores Condo. Ass’n, Inc. v. Hoar…
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