News + Insights

Legal Showdown Continues: FTC Appeals Court Ruling Against Non-Compete Ban

Written By S. McKinley Gray, III and Genesis E. Torres

In late August, the Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") indicated that it likely would appeal the Texas District Court's ruling, which blocked the FTC's Non-Compete Rule nationwide. True to its word, the FTC has appealed the…

A Short Refresher On Discrete Legal Issues During Natural Disasters

Written By William A. Oden, III and Genesis E. Torres

As they say, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.  In that spirit, what follows are certain pay and leave issues employers may confront during times of natural disaster – all of which are better to …

The Continued Attack on Non-Competes

Written By Justin T. Hill and Devon D. Williams

Under California law, it has been the longstanding policy that non-compete restrictions are generally void and unenforceable, subject to narrow exceptions.  At the end of 2023, California signed two more bills into l…

Proactive Policies: Navigating Ethical Challenges and Legal Compliance for Employer

Written By Avery J. Locklear

For employers, ethical issues can shake up every aspect of an organization.  Scandals can be detrimental to an organization's success and its public perception.  Particularly, in recent years, misconduct tied to…

Does Your Organization Use Non-Compete, Non-Solicitation, and Nondisclosure Provisions? Employer Best Practices for Restrictive Covenants in NC

Written By X. Lightfoot and Emily G. Massey

It is no hidden secret that many employers use various restrictive covenants to protect their trade secrets, confidential information, goodwill, and customer relationships.  For example, employers often use non-compe…

Time is of the Essence: A Conversation with the EEOC

Written By Devon D. Williams

Participants in Ward and Smith's Employment Law Symposium received updates on topics important to the EEOC, from jurisdictional issues and governmental agency partnerships to documentation procedures, pronoun use, and reta…

The Roadmap to Successful DEI Initiatives in Organizations

Written By William A. Oden, III

Two Ward and Smith attorneys and Luaskya Nonon, the Deputy General Counsel and DEI Task Force Chair for Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions, shared insights on how organizations can implement Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion…

Boldly Go: A Day in the Life of Human Resources

Written By X. Lightfoot

Two Ward and Smith labor and employment attorneys evaluated a real-life scenario many employers face while managing employees in the modern business environment. The roundtable discussion, part of Ward and Smith’s E…

Not So Fast: Limits of "Settlement Negotiation" Protections

Written By Isabelle M. Chammas and Joseph A. Schouten

Understanding How and Why "Settlement Negotiations" May Be Used Against You To promote honest and open discussions in resolving disputes, courts have adopted rules to specifically safeguard the information disclosed and e…

Déjà Vu: Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Dissolves Stay of OSHA COVID-19 "Emergency Temporary Standard" for Large Employers

Written By Chris S. Edwards, S. McKinley Gray, III, and Grant B. Osborne

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. observed that democracy is messy and hard. The serial legal battle over COVID-19 and what the federal government can and should make employers do about it illustrates the point. Late on Friday, Dec…

Once More, with Feeling: Fifth Circuit Re-Affirms Stay of ETS and Then Loses Jurisdiction of the Case

Written By Chris S. Edwards, S. McKinley Gray, III, and Grant B. Osborne

Litigation usually proceeds at a maddeningly glacial pace. Not this time. The Past The Occupational Safety and Health Administration's ("OSHA") well-publicized and controversial Emergency Temporary Standard ("ETS") was i…

OSHA Issues Long-Awaited COVID-19 "Emergency Temporary Standard"

Written By S. McKinley Gray, III and Grant B. Osborne

Good (and Not So Good) Things Come to Those Who Wait Yesterday, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration ("OSHA") of the U.S. Department of Labor ("DOL"), at long last, issued an "Interim final rule" regarding th…

To North Carolina Governmental Employers: Heads-Up – "Unreasonable Employee Discipline" Can Now Get You Sued

Written By Grant B. Osborne

No good deed goes unpunished. Little did City of Durham Police Sergeant Michael Mole' know, in his first crack at negotiating on his own the surrender of an armed and barricaded suspect, that he would be fired because he …

Busy as a Bee: LARPing a day in the life of HR

Written By Hayley R. Wells

Three Ward and Smith labor and employment attorneys walked through a series of challenging, real-world scenarios that many employers are facing. The webinar, part of Ward and Smith’s 2021 Virtual Employment Law Symp…

Year in Review: Ward and Smith's Top Articles of 2020

Written By Laura V. Hudson

Over the past tumultuous year, Ward and Smith attorneys authored more than 190 articles to help our clients stay abreast of ever-changing COVID-19 impacts. That quantity of writing is unprecedented, and led to an inc…

Political Speech in the Workplace (And What – If Anything – To Do About It)

Written By Justin T. Hill and Grant B. Osborne

Politics could hardly be more conspicuous these days. A monumental presidential election looms on the horizon, and it seems that everyone has an opinion. Many who do have jobs and bring those opinions into the workplace. …

An Employee Cannot be Fired, or Otherwise Discriminated Against, for Being Gay or Transgender

Written By X. Lightfoot and Hayley R. Wells

Today, the Supreme Court of the United States ("SCOTUS") decided in Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia that the protections of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act ("Title VII") extend to individuals who are discriminate…

Enhanced Unemployment Assistance Under the CARES Act

Written By William S. Durr

As the pandemic rages on, the number of North Carolina workers applying for unemployment benefits is staggering.  Between March 16, 2020 and the end of the day on March 25, 2020, the N.C. Division of Unemployment Sec…

"Hold On, Help Is on the Way:" U.S. Senate Passes Second COVID-19 Relief Bill

Written By Emily G. Massey, William A. Oden, III, and Devon D. Williams

On March 18, 2020, the United States Senate passed a second round of relief legislation as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, this time to provide relief to American employers.  The measure passed with 90 senators vo…

What the EEOC Wants You to Know About the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and COVID-19

Written By Emily G. Massey

On March 18, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") published its "Q&A About the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and COVID-19."  The Q&A confirms much of what we gleaned from previous EEOC gu…

Reminder to North Carolina Employers: Take Time to Thoughtfully Craft Your Restrictive Covenants!

A recent decision of the North Carolina Court of Appeals serves as an important reminder to avoid the temptation to overreach when seeking to protect your customer relationships. Restrictive covenants prohibiting competit…

Attorneys Provide Updates on Rapidly Changing Aspects of Employment Law

Written By Hayley R. Wells

Several Ward and Smith attorneys provided updates on some of the fastest-changing areas of employment law during the firm’s 2019 Employment Law Symposium. In a rapid-fire session, they covered several topics, includ…

NC Attorney General Talks Opioid Epidemic at Employment Law Symposium

Written By S. McKinley Gray, III

North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein identified opioid abuse and cybersecurity as top challenges businesses face, while also giving attendees at Ward and Smith’s 2019 Employment Law Symposium a look at the broa…

From Facebook to FMLA to Furry Friends—Frequently Asked Questions in Employment Law

Written By Emily G. Massey

The questions we receive as labor and employment attorneys vary based on many factors such as organizational changes a business is experiencing, new laws or regulations that affect employer obligations, and certain trends …

Pray for a Good Harvest, but Keep at Your Plow – And Know Enough Employment Law to Stay Out of the Ditch

Written By Grant B. Osborne

Employers in agribusiness face the same risks as those in any other business, but perhaps more than most if faced with frequent employee-turnover and employees with little loyalty to those for whom they work. Former emplo…

In-House-Counsel Seminar Insights: Ethics and Professional Responsibility in the #MeToo Era

Ward and Smith employment law attorneys Ken Gray and Emily Massey gave corporate attorneys at the firm’s 2018 In-House Counsel Seminar a refresher in the law and ethics surrounding employment discrimination and workp…

How To Avoid Becoming A #MeToo Statistic In 2019

Written By S. McKinley Gray, III

A new lawsuit for sexual harassment is filed almost on a daily basis somewhere in the United States.  Most of these lawsuits could have been avoided with (1) proper groundwork on the front end, (2) an impartial inves…

Employer Survival Toolkit for Natural Disasters and Inclement Weather

Written By Emily G. Massey

One month after North and South Carolina experienced the devastating effects of Hurricane Florence, many people and businesses are still suffering from the aftermath. The businesses that were not affected or have since re…

Oden's "Top 4" Issues for Employers for 2018 (So Far)

Written By William A. Oden, III

What follows are the "Top 4" issues or some variation/combination (in no particular order) that I have discussed with employers so far in 2018. Some may seem like common sense for the more seasoned Human Resource Director…

Key 2018 Legal Updates for Employers: Report from Ward and Smith's 2018 Employment Law Symposium

Written By Emily G. Massey

This is the third in a series of articles summarizing key topics addressed at the Ward and Smith, P.A. 2018 Employment Law Symposium held in Wilmington, North Carolina. Ward and Smith's 2018 Employment Law Symposium kicke…

Employment Law Symposium: Preventing and Dealing with Workplace Harassment

Written By William A. Oden, III

This is the second in a series of articles summarizing key topics addressed at the Ward and Smith, P.A. 2018 Employment Law Symposium held in Wilmington, North Carolina.   Sexual harassment i…

Employment Law Symposium Insights: Dealing with Workplace Discrimination

Written By Devon D. Williams

This is the first in a series of articles summarizing key topics discussed at Ward and Smith's 2018 Employment Law Symposium. Recently, Thomas M. Colclough, deputy district director of the United States Equal Employment …

Play by the Rules, Especially if They Are Your Rules: NC Supreme Court Creates New Constitutional Claim for Governmental Employees

Written By Grant B. Osborne

"We hold it to be self-evident that all persons … are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, [and] the enjoyment of the fruits of their own labor …." …

Social Hosts Beware: "One More for the Road?" May Be a Bad Idea

Written By Grant B. Osborne

Everyone was having such a good time, too . . . The company was hosting its annual holiday party.  The company had arranged to hold the event that Saturday night in a hotel ballroom.  Moods were festive, especia…

The EEOC on Pregnancy, Reasonable Accommodation, and Religion

Written By Emily G. Massey

Recent Views from the EEOC Charlotte District Office Thomas M. Colclough, Deputy District Director of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Charlotte District, spoke on October 6th at Ward and Smith's Labor &…

How to Survive a North Carolina Department of Labor OSH Investigation

Written By William A. Oden, III

Introduction Your business may be subject to an investigation by the North Carolina Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Division ("OSH") at any time.  Investigations may occur because of an on-the-job…

Pretty Fast for Government Work: United States Department of Labor Files Notice of Appeal of Order Enjoining Enforcement of “Final” Overtime Rule

Written By Grant B. Osborne

On November 22, 2016, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas granted a momentous preliminary injunction stopping the United States Department of Labor ("DOL") from implementing and enforcing its…

Being Dismissive: The Realities of Having a Lawsuit Dismissed

Written By Allen N. Trask, III and Jeremy M. Wilson

We often hear the phrases "frivolous case" or "thrown out of court," and, as these sayings imply, we make broad assumptions about the procedural and substantive validity of a lawsuit based on our subjective (and …

Losing Control: The USDOL's Latest Independent Contractor Test

The use and misuse of independent contractor status has been one of the most talked about issues facing businesses over the past decade.  Major newspapers have published exposés, lawmakers have threatened new l…

Unpaid Interns: Does The Law Actually Require That They Be Paid For Their Work?

Written By Devon D. Williams

Do you have students and recent graduates eager to learn about your company and industry just to get a leg up for future employment prospects? Did you know that unless you are careful, you may have to pay them even if they…

Fair Labor Standards Act: Narrow Exceptions For Volunteers And Interns

How do you react to dedicated employees who love their work so much that they offer to perform extra work "off the clock"?  Or, if you run a nonprofit organization, what do you say when your accounting clerk volunteer…

Restrictions on Employees' Post-Employment Work in North Carolina: The Balancing of Interests

The use of "covenants not to compete," or "non-compete agreements," which limit former employees from working for a competitor are gaining in popularity and are used in a wide variety of industries and by service providers…