Did you know that “zipper” was once a registered trademark? In fact, the original product was generically known as a “hookless slide fastener” until B.F. Goodrich coined the catchy “Zipper” brand name.

Business disputes are a common (if unwelcome) part of operating any commercial enterprise and sometimes parties end up in court. Even if you believe a lawsuit is completely frivolous, attempting to ignore a legal proceeding is never a good idea. Once a judgment is entered, the creditor has a number of tools at its disposal to attempt collection. The most common is the Citation to Discover Assets and its cousin, the Third Party Citation. Served upon the Judgment Debtor – either by serving an officer of the company or by serving its Registered Agent – a Citation carries the full force of law.

On March 22, 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision that an employee who makes an oral complaint, rather than a written one, is still protected by the anti-retaliation provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The case, Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp., involved an employee who verbally complained to his employer about the placement of the time-clock used by employees, claiming that the location prevented workers from receiving credit for the time they spent donning and doffing work-related protective gear. The employee also claimed that his subsequent termination was retaliatory and that the real reason the company fired him was because he told his supervisor and a member of the company’s human resources department that he thought the placement of the time-clock was illegal and that he was considering bringing a lawsuit about it.

More than two years ago, Congress passed the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA), which went into effect on January 1, 2009. In March 2011, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued regulations interpreting the ADAAA’s requirements. As we discussed in the Fall 2008 issue of Golan & Christie’s newsletter, the ADAAA was a significant change from the ADA in two major respects: 1) in order to determine whether a person’s impairment qualifies as a disability, an inquiry must be made without regard to any “mitigating measures” that the person takes to correct their impairment. For example, a person with a seizure disorder who is able to control his condition with the help of medication may still be considered disabled if he would meet the test for disability without medication; and 2) where a person brings a claim based on being “regarded as” disabled and some prohibited action was taken against him as a result, it will not be a defense to say that the actual or perceived impairment does not qualify as a disability.

• Don't Let Your Registered Trademark Go Unprotected
• Golan & Christie Is Pleased To Welcome A New Attorney To The Firm
• Failing To Respond To A Court Citation Or Summons Can Land You In Jail
• Employment Law Alerts

No business can completely avoid litigation – it’s simply a cost of doing business – but there are easy steps that can help control costs of future litigation. By investing a small amount of time and money now, you can improve your business practices and curb future litigation costs at the same time:

Illinois has recently joined a growing number of states which allow same-sex couples (and opposite-sex couples who have elected not to become married), to have the same rights and obligations as couples who are married, by entering into a Civil Union.

The new healthcare law now requires health insurance plans to cover employees’ children until the age of 26. This requirement applies to all health insurance plans renewing on or after September 23, 2010. If your health insurance plan renewed on January 1, 2011, this includes you. Eligible children of employees are enrolled retroactively to the first day of plan coverage..

A Union employee posted a negative comment about her supervisor on her own Facebook page, using her own home computer to do so. Co-workers responded to the comment supportively, which led to further negative comments from the employee herself. When the company learned of the comments, it fired the employee, stating that the postings violated the company’s internet policies. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) investigated the incident, and, in a groundbreaking move, determined that the Facebook postings were “concerted activity,” protected by federal law. The National Labor Relations Act, enforced by the NLRB, restricts employers’ attempts to interfere when employees work together to improve the terms and conditions of their workplace, and the NLRB argued that restricting an employee’s personal use of Facebook and the Internet to communicate with co-workers outside of work was a violation of the law. The NLRB announced on February 7, 2011 that it had reached a voluntary settlement with the employer, prior to a hearing on the complaint.

In a decision issued on February 8, 2011, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit (which covers Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana) upheld a jury’s verdict holding an employer liable for race discrimination for terminating an employee based on the recommendations of the employee’s manager who, unbeknownst to the employer, harbored racial bias against the employee.

New questions are appearing this year on the annual reporting form to the Internal Revenue Service, Form 990 (Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax). For the first time, the IRS is asking that each tax-exempt organization disclose whether or not that organization has each of the following

A clever name, logo or phrase can go a long way to identifying your service or product. You can protect these “trademarks” by registering them with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. However, the rules governing the registration of trademarks can limit your choices.

• Controlling Costs Of Future Litigation
• New Illinois Civil Union Law Impacts Estate Planning Considerations
• Employment Law Alerts
• Written Policies Required For Nonprofits
• The Do’s And Don’ts Of Choosing A Trademark

Credit is necessary and affects our daily lives. Not only do you need credit to obtain a loan to buy a home or car, but your credit score is an important factor in renting an apartment, the cost of insurance premiums and whether you and your family are eligible for certain student loans.

Historically, most estate plans revolved around the nuclear family structure of husband and wife who were married for the first time and children that were born of that marriage. Over the course of the last 20 plus years, divorce rates have increased, more opposite-sex couples are opting to live together without getting married and there is a greater awareness of same sex couples who are committed to each other. In these situations, the traditional approach of estate planning is not always appropriate.

Starting January 1, 2011, Illinois will join just four other states (Hawaii, Louisiana, Oregon and Washington) that prohibit employers from conducting credit checks on job applicants and employees as part of the process for making employment decisions.

On September 27, 2010 President Obama signed into law the Small Business Jobs Act. As part of a larger bill, the legislation contains new (and extensions of existing) tax incentives for small businesses, including extended bonus depreciation, increased Code Section 179 start up expenditures, 100% capital-gains exclusion for “qualified small business stock,” reducing the holding period for avoiding S corporation built-in-gain tax, extending the carry back period for eligible small business credits, providing retroactive 6707A penalty relief for failure to report “listed” and “reportable” transactions, and allowing self-employment deductions for health insurance costs in computing FICA taxes.

The United States Department of Labor (DOL) recently released an announcement to clarify the definition of “son and daughter”under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to ensure that an employee who assumes the role of caring for a child receives parental rights to family leave regardless of the legal or biological relationship. The FMLA allows workers at covered employers to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave during any 12-month period to care for loved ones or themselves. The 1993 law also allows employees to take time off for the adoption or the birth of a child.

Starting on January 1, 2011, employers in Illinois will be subjected to harsher penalties under state law for failure to pay wages due to employees. The amendment to the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act, which is being referred to as the “Wage Theft Enforcement Act,” will also make it easier for employees to bring claims for unpaid or late wages before the Illinois Department of Labor or in court.

For many of you in Cook County, the receipt of the 2nd installment 2009 bills after the election came as an unpleasant surprise. The total 2009 taxes due were often higher than the year before despite property values being down.

• New Law Prohibits Credit Checks On Illinois Employees
• New Tax Incentives Under The Small Business Jobs Act
• U.S. Department of Labor Expands Application of Family Medical Leave Act
• Illinois Law Amended to Impose Harsher Penalties for Failing to Pay Wages
• 2009 Cook County Tax Bills Are Up

• How a Mechanics Lien Can Help You Get Paid For Your Work
• Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009
• Real Estate Taxation
• Golan & Christie Scores a KO In Case of First Impression

• How to Avoid the Pitfalls of Debt Collection
• Government Incentives to Hire New Employees
• Employment Law Alert

• How to Choose a Successful Product Name
• Golan & Christie Attorneys included in 2010 Illinois Super Lawyers List
• Employment Law Alert