OregonSaves is a relatively new program offered by the state for eligible employees who don't have access to retirement plans at work. To be eligible, an employee must be at least 18 years old, have earned income, be employed in the state of Oregon, and be eligible for a Roth IRA (traditional IRAs will be offered at a later date). [...]
Businesses are understandably upset when they discover that someone is posting negative online reviews or other disparaging comments about their products, services or operations on social media. Some companies have tried to protect themselves against negative reviews by adding clauses to their terms of service and other contracts that prohibit customers from making disparaging comments. Other companies take a different [...]
This year, the Oregon Legislature enacted a number of employment-related laws. Recent alerts have discussed the new laws regarding noncompetition agreements and pregnancy accommodations. Other new laws relate to discrimination, sexual assault, breast-milk expression, immigration records, and pay equity requirements. Oregon Workplace Fairness Act (SB 726) Limits on Severance Agreements Beginning October 1, 2020, this Act prohibits employers from entering [...]
Gold Value International Textile, Inc., which does business as Fiesta Fabric ("Fiesta"), designs and sells fabric. It sued a clothing manufacturer, Sanctuary Clothing, LLC ("Sanctuary") for copyright infringement, claiming that Sanctuary copied Fiesta's fabric design and used the infringing fabric to make blouses. Sanctuary then filed a counterclaim, asking the court to invalidate Fiesta's copyright registration for the fabric design [...]
Vulgar Trademarks Erik Brunetti is an artist and entrepreneur who in 1990 co-founded a streetwear clothing line sold under the trademark FUCT. In 2011, faced with a flood of FUCT counterfeit products being sold on the internet, Brunetti filed an application for registration of the mark. The US Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) refused to register Brunetti's mark based on [...]
Businesses often want to have a trademark that describes what they're selling, but in order to be protectable, a trademark must be "distinctive." That is, it must be used to identify the source of the product or service, not just describe it. Courts classify marks into categories of distinctiveness. The most distinctive marks are those that are arbitrary or fanciful. [...]
Noncompetition Agreements Last month, Governor Kate Brown signed House Bill 2992, which requires employers to provide each employee with a signed, written copy of the terms of their noncompetition agreement within 30 days after the termination of employment. At this time, it is unclear whether a copy provided on the employee's last day would be considered to comply with this [...]
When reading documents from your lawyer, you may find a number of legal terms that you do not recognize. Some of the legal terms you're most likely to encounter when involved in a legal dispute are: Mediation, Arbitration and Trial Mediation is an attempt to settle a legal dispute with the help of an impartial mediator (or referee), who tries [...]
You're angry. Your employer fired you, or your neighbor plays loud music every day, or you slipped walking into the grocery store. Should you sue? Maybe not. Before filing a lawsuit, there are a number of things you should think carefully about, including these risks. 1. No matter how good your case appears to be, you might lose. 2. Even [...]
This week, the US Supreme Court resolved a division among circuit courts as to whether a trademark license agreement remains in effect when a trademark owner files a bankruptcy petition and rejects the trademark license in accordance with the Bankruptcy Code. Section 365 of that code lets a debtor either assume or reject any "executory contract," which is a contract [...]
