Littler's Workplace Policy Institute Insider Report details key labor, employment, and benefits news and events at the federal, state, local, and global levels. The July edition of the Insider Report includes a discussion of legislative and litigation efforts to block recent federal agency rulemaking, White House and DOL initiatives to promote equal pay and target sex discrimination, key end-of-term Supreme Court actions, and new state-level employment laws and ballot initiatives. The Report contains the following sections: Insider Briefing . In the weeks...

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In one of those weird 21st century fads (think "virtual pets") people around the US are taking to the streets, looking for Pokémon characters through their smartphone apps. (Didn't they know they've been lurking in Times Square for years?) The game was launched by Nintendo whose stock price was up more than 30% yesterday based on the popularity of the game. For the last several years, investors have seen yields on government bond go from real to virtual. Yesterday, investors might...

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The Brexit: Introduction On 23 June  2016,  the majority of the voters in the United Kingdom (hereafter also "UK") opted to leave the EU ("Brexit"). This is a landmark event as no nation has ever left the EU. In this Alert we will briefly discuss certain possible tax consequences of the Brexit. In view of the many variables involved, however, this tax Alert may often only offer speculation on possible outcomes. Timing and strategic considerations on submitting the Article 50 Notice The rules...

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Markets in June were dominated by the approach of the UK EU referendum on June 23 and the sharp reaction to the vote to leave. While there will be more focus on other things in July, market movements are still likely to be dominated by the aftermath of the UK vote for “Brexit”, mainly because the market reactions to the vote were so sharp and large. Main market movements in June GBP/USD fell 18 figures to 1.32 – the lowest level...

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The people of the United Kingdom (UK) have spoken on the issue of whether the UK should leave or remain in the European Union (EU). In a referendum held on June 23, 2016, British voters by a narrow margin voted for the UK to leave the EU. The UK’s decision to withdraw from the EU (a process colloquially termed “Brexit”) will likely have significant consequences in ways both known and as yet unknown. What will Brexit mean for companies...

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The White House rules out moving a bilateral trade deal with Britain to the front of the line. Top U.S. and European officials vowed to press ahead with a massive transatlantic free trade deal on Monday despite Britain’s historic vote last week to exit the European Union. In making the pledge, a White House spokesman said that the United States would not prioritize a bilateral trade deal with Britain ahead of a Europe-wide pact — suggesting that London would have...

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What would have normally been headlines on Friday turned out to be mere parentheticals in light of the fallout from Thursday's Brexit vote. One of the two stories that were largely overlooked was a much weaker-than-expected durable goods orders, which by itself might have given the Fed more pause over whether to raise rates this summer. On the positive side of the ledger, all 33 of the top US banks passed the quantitative portion of their stress tests. The results...

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The United Kingdom voted by referendum to leave the European Union. The turmoil resulting from this historical news will most likely lead to uncertainty for the years to come.Luxembourg, as a founding member of the EU, will closely contribute to the upcoming discussions on the future of the UK/EU relationship and we, at Arendt, have looked at the various options that could shape the future of this key relationship.Standstill period leading to withdrawal The UK will not leave the EU...

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The U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) issued a broad Exclusion Order upholding trademark protection of the diamond-patterned outsole portion of the shoe company’s famous Chuck Taylor sneaker.  The Exclusion Order has the effect of barring imports of sneakers that infringe on the Converse diamond-patterned outsole. The decision is considered a partial victory for defendants Walmart, Sketchers and New Balance, which were accused of infringing the trademark of the midsole – which consists of a rubber band around the front of...

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