• posted: Jul. 26, 2017
• Hester Nguyen
• Real Estate
• commercial lease,  landlord-tenant law,  leasing

All business, big and small, have had to negotiate a commercial lease at some point in time.  While most encounters are uneventful, some businesses are faced with unreasonable landlords that Read More

• posted: Jul. 19, 2017
• Tod C. Gurney
• Business
• Business Judgment Rule,  corporate governance,  duty of loyalty,  personal liability

A career as an officer, director, or shareholder of a corporation brings great opportunity to be a lauded visionary, strategic thinker, and the leader of a profitable venture, with accompanying Read More

• posted: Jul. 18, 2017
• Melinda Garcia
• Employment Law,  Labor Law
• California Labor Code,  employment contracts,  non-compete agreements

Companies that have headquarters outside of the Golden State typically have employment contracts that purportedly are governed by the substantive law of the state in which the enterprise is headquartered. Even Read More

• posted: Jul. 11, 2017
• Tod C. Gurney
• Employment Law,  FMLA
• FMLA,  CFRA,  A Better Chance,  civil lawsuits

California-based employers who employ 50 or more workers face regulations beyond the federal employment laws through the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), which expands employees’ rights under the Family Medical Read More

• posted: Jul. 05, 2017
• Melinda Garcia
• Employment Law,  Employee Rights
• wage & hour laws,  California Court of Appeals,  class action suit,  commissioned employees,  rest breaks,  Stoneledge Furniture

Earlier this year, a California Court of Appeals held in Vaquero v. Stoneledge Furniture LLC that an employer violated state law by not paying commissioned employees for their rest breaks. Under Read More

• posted: May 23, 2017
• Melinda Garcia
• Business,  Business Partnerships
• beneficiaries,  repurchasing shares,  shareholder agreements,  shareholder disputes,  shareholders

When a shareholder of your corporation dies, it can spark a lot of questions, such as who gets his or her remaining shares? If a relative inherits them, can you Read More

• posted: May 16, 2017
• Amanda Rydza
• Employment Issues,  Employment Law,  Trade Secrets,  Risk Management,  NDA
• Trade Secrets,  Anthony Levandowski,  trade secret act,  Uber,  Waymo

On February 23, 2017, Waymo, LLC (owned by Google’s parent company), filed a lawsuit against Uber Technologies, Inc., Ottomotto LLC, and Otto Trucking, LLC.  The basis of Waymo’s lawsuit is Read More

• posted: May 15, 2017
• Melinda Garcia
• Employment Issues,  Labor Law,  Wage & Hour,  Employee Rights
• wage & hour laws,  California labor laws,  employment law,  Nike

The most recent lawsuit brought against retail giant Nike proves that no company, no matter how big or small, is immune to California’s labor laws. This past week, Nike was Read More

• posted: Apr. 20, 2017
• Melinda Garcia
• Uncategorized,  Employment Issues,  Sexual Discrimination
• Employment,  harassment,  employee,  employer,  Sexual Discrimination

You may have seen in the news that 21st Century Fox, the parent company of Fox News, has terminated newscaster Bill O’Reilly’s employment in the wake of sexual harassment allegations Read More

• posted: Apr. 18, 2017
• Melinda Garcia
• Employment Issues,  Trade Secrets,  NDA,  Rights
• Employment,  employee,  employer,  Trade Secrets,  NDA

At Garcia & Gurney, ALC, our Pleasanton business attorneys routinely help corporations protect their intellectual property through the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDA). While many business owners are aware that Read More

• posted: Apr. 17, 2017
• Tod C. Gurney
• Uncategorized,  Contracts,  Commercial Common Sense Test,  Contract Disputes
• Business,  Breach of Contract,  Commercial Common Sense Test,  Contracts

When it comes to commercial contract disputes, there is a lot that a judge will consider before making any determinations. One factor a judge will consider is whether or not Read More

• posted: Apr. 13, 2017
• Melinda Garcia
• Employment Issues,  Employment Law,  Employee Rights,  CFRA,  Labor Code,  Veterans
• employee,  Business,  Labor law,  Wage & Hour,  CFRA,  Veterans

We are only into the first quarter of 2017, and already California’s lawmakers have proposed new legislation for business owners. As of right now, the laws are still in the Read More

• posted: Apr. 12, 2017
• Tod C. Gurney
• Uncategorized,  Labor Law,  At Will Employees
• Business,  At Will Employees,  Layoffs

Layoff, reduction-in-forces (RIF), downsizing: Employers use these terms all the time to let employees go, but no matter how they phrase it, the bottom line is that you are out Read More

• posted: Apr. 11, 2017
• Melinda Garcia
• Employment Law,  Business,  Wage & Hour,  Healthcare Workers,  Employee Rights
• Employment,  Business,  Labor law,  Wage & Hour,  Healthcare Worker

On October 5, 2015, California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law a bill confirming that hospital employees and other employees in the healthcare industry can continue to waive one of Read More

• posted: Mar. 30, 2017
• Tod C. Gurney
• Uncategorized,  Employment Issues,  Employment Law,  At Will Employees
• Employment,  employee,  At Will Employees

All employers throughout California operate under the presumption that employees are employed “at will,” meaning that either the employer or the employee may terminate the employment at any time and Read More

• posted: Mar. 28, 2017
• Melinda Garcia
• Business,  Contractor vs Employee,  Employee Rights,  Independent Contractors
• Business,  Employee Classification,  Independent Contractors

Many business owners hire independent contractors because it reduces overhead costs and liability. At least, that is what many business owners believe. While it is true independent contractors are not Read More