Illinois Nursing Home Hit with BIPA Claims
Here’s an example that the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”) is not an idle threat. An Illinois nursing home was recently hit with a putative class action by employees who claim that daily biometric fingerprint scans violate their privacy rights under the law. The company on the defensive is Oak Park Rehabilitation & Nursing
Data Breaches: The Unfortunate Highlight of 2017
In 2017 data breaches were one of the most harmful threats to businesses. As discussed in previous articles, a data breach is an event where an individual or a business has its sensitive information exposed. This sensitive information is commonly referred to as Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and includes not just user names and street
Tax Incentives in the New Tax Cuts & Jobs Act
The new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”) provides tax incentives for making investments in low-income communities through Qualified Opportunity Zones. Qualified Opportunity Zones will be designated by nomination of census tracts qualifying as low-income communities as well as tracts that are contiguous with low-income communities. Governors of every state will have the opportunity
Florida Construction Law Statute of Limitations Update
Last summer, Florida Governor Scott signed a new bill into law which made important amendments to the statute of limitations for construction contracts. Under the previous statute, actions based upon the design, planning, or construction of an improvement to real property were required to be commenced within four years of an alleged construction defect. That
2018 California Employment Law Updates
Now that were in 2018, there were plenty of important updates in California Employment Law. Some of the key areas that Rock Fusco & Connelly would like to highlight are a ban on applicant’s compensation history, new training requirements for prevention of sexual harassment, protections for immigrant workers, and an update with regard to minimum
OMG! Is That E-mail or Text Message You Regret Sending Discoverable?
What is a written documentation policy? It is a set of rules and procedures that guide how a company manages, distributes, and stores various documents related to a project. It is best practice for a construction company to have a written documentation policy as it not only protects a company for any future litigation, but
Cook County Incentives Ordinance
On Wednesday, January 17, 2018, twenty-four Mayors throughout Cook County appeared before the Cook County Business and Economic Development Committee, to request a repeal of the new Cook County Incentives Ordinance 74-71(b)(2), which implemented new labor regulations and required Living Wage Incentives affidavits. The new affidavits required by Ordinance 74-71(b)(2) have made the already complex
False Claims Act Whistleblowers Continue to Falter
In recent years, the federal False Claims Act has produced many verdicts with price tags of hundreds of millions of dollars. However, in recent months federal courts have been reluctant to rule in favor of whistleblowers, causing speculation that the end of such FCA verdicts is looming. For example, recently the U.S. Court of Appeals
Indemnity Agreements in Illinois
Indemnity agreements often require precise language in order to specifically define the agreement’s parameters and avoid additional litigation of avoidable ambiguities or imprecisions within the agreements. An indemnity agreement is a contract that transfers risk from one party to another, and is mostly used in business or insurance contracts. In an indemnity agreement one party
Chicago: A Hub for Business Incubators
Business incubators are organizations geared at accelerating growth and success of either a startup or a company in its early stages. With entrepreneurship on the rise over the past few years, Chicago has become a hub for business incubators aimed at growing businesses, innovation, and economic development. Incubators in Chicago provide select businesses with centrally