Thanksgiving and the Winter Holidays are less than one week from kick-off. And while most of us look forward to the feasting, imbibing, present-wrapping, and decorating, one oft-overlooked side effect of the winter holidays is its impact on our pets. With so much holiday cheer distracting us, we often times Read more…
Administrative hearings come in all varieties ranging from a local government building permit issue to a Medical Board license revocation case. More often than not the nature of the rights at stake in the administrative hearing are quite significant. In particular, the California Administrative Procedure Act governs the rights of Read more…
Today is election day – so don’t forget to vote! Even though the Presidential, Senate, or Congressional elections may be a foregone conclusion (depending upon your location), there are a number of hotly contested ballot propositions and voter initiatives worth reviewing and contributing to their ultimate fate. For assistance on Read more…
Simas & Associates, Ltd. is open Monday through Thursday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and Fridays, 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Special appointments for advice and consultation can be made after hours and on weekends. In November, Simas & Associates, Ltd.’s offices will be closed on the following dates in Read more…
It is important for all members in an animal health care team to understand and know their roles. Often a Registered Veterinary Technician (“RVT”) and an unregistered veterinary assistant’s (“assistant”) roles can overlap but a veterinarian or a RVT, may be subject to discipline by the Veterinary Medical Board (“VMB”) Read more…
Litigation is expensive and time-consuming. It often draws out disputes over a number of years. It has a tendency to lead to a litany of unintended consequences that leave all participants bitter in the end. As a result, it is unsurprising that alternative dispute resolution (“ADR”) has proliferated as a Read more…
In 2009, President Barack Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into law. In almost every campaign speech since, the President has claimed that the act bestowed equal-pay rights for women. Specifically, he has said, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act “is a big step toward making sure every Read more…
Governor Jerry Brown signed SB 323, the California Revised Uniform Limited Liability Company Act (popularly known as RULLCA), into law on September 21, 2012. The law, which will take effect on January 1, 2014, will apply to all existing California limited liability companies (LLCs) as well as all foreign LLCs Read more…
Many employers define different classes of employment within their organization. These classes – full-time, part-time, exempt etc. – are used to determine benefits which are offered to different types of employment given their skills, tasks, responsibilities, and hours worked. For purposes of these distinctions, full-time employment warrants the most benefits Read more…
In 1990, Congress amended the ADEA by adding the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA) to clarify the prohibitions against discrimination on the basis of age. OWBPA establishes specific requirements for a “knowing and voluntary” release of ADEA claims to guarantee that an employee has every opportunity to make an Read more…