DLM Legal Welcomes Adam Watts, Stephanie Lunder, and Jim Meehan

Posted on January 20, 2012 by admin

At the close of 2011, DLM Legal made three new hires as the firm continues to grow.

Adam Watts joins the firm as an Associate Attorney focusing on business litigation. Adam is a 2010 graduate of The University of Akron School of Law. While in law school, he served as a Litigation Clerk with Bridgestone Americas and as a Legal Assistant with Weltman, Weinberg & Reis in their Cleveland office. Prior to joining DLM Legal, Adam worked as the Director of Recruiting for an executive research and recruiting firm.

Adam earned his undergraduate degree from John Carroll University in 2001 and his master’s degree in public administration from Cleveland State University in 2003. Prior to attending law school, Adam served in local government administration for communities in Illinois and Tennessee.

Adam enjoys spending free time with his wife Melanie and their two sons, Brady and Jonathan.

Stephanie Lunder was brought on staff as an Executive Legal Assistant. Stephanie graduated summa cum laude from Lake Erie College in 2011 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Legal Studies and a minor in Entrepreneurship.

As a student, she interned with Attorney Jim O’Leary in the Lake County Court System. Stephanie also interned for the Center for Entrepreneurship at Lake Erie College where she examined Ohio law as it relates to starting a new business.

Outside of work, Stephanie enjoys spending time with friends and family and being involved in her church.

Jim Meehan was hired as DLM’s Law Clerk. Jim is currently in his third year of law school at The University of Akron School of Law. He graduated cum laude from Case Western Reserve University in 2009 where he majored in Psychology and History. During the summer of 2011, Jim interned at Community Legal Aid of Akron.

In his spare time, Jim enjoys traveling and following Cleveland professional sports.

Employer and Former Employee Battle over Twitter Account

Posted on January 11, 2012 by admin

The mobile phone company Phonedog.com has sued one of its former employees, Noah Kravitz, in a California federal court under the allegation that Kravitz violated trade-secrets law when he continued to use a Twitter account which included approximately 17,000 followers Kravitz amassed while working for Phonedog.

Phonedog is arguing that Kravtiz’s Twitter account qualifies as a customer list under trade-secrets law and is therefore company property. Trade-secrets law would prohibit a non-employee’s personal use of a customer list. Phonedog seeks damages of $2.50 a month per follower for eight months ($340,000 total). Furthermore, the company is asking the court to bar Kravitz from continued use of the account.

Many employers have encountered issues with former employees accessing work-related social media accounts and are anxiously awaiting a ruling. Legal experts believe the outcome will hinge on ascertaining the purpose for which the account was created. If the court finds that Phonedog commissioned the account to communicate with existing customers and to gain new customers, then Phonedog is more likely to prevail.

To read more about case, check out the following piece on it from the New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/26/technology/lawsuit-may-determine-who-owns-a-twitter-account.html?_r=1

Ohio Among 8 States Raising Minimum Wage

Posted on December 29, 2011 by admin

Beginning Sunday, January 1, 2012, Ohio’s minimum wage will rise from $7.40 per hour to $7.70 per hour. Minimum wage for employees who receive tips will increase 15 cents an hour to $3.85. These increases stem from a 2006 amendment to the Ohio constitution that provides for gradual increases in minimum wage to account for inflation.

Only Ohio employers with annual gross receipts of $283,000 are required to comply with the new minimum wage laws. Employers with annual revenue below $283,000 must pay at least the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. Ohio is one of 17 states with a minimum wage above the federal requirement.

Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Montana, Oregon, Vermont and Washington comprise the seven additional states raising minimum wage at the start of the new year. The increases for these states range from 28 cents to 37 cents per hour.

If you have any questions on how these new laws affect you or your business, feel free to contact DLM Legal at info@dlmlegal.com or 216.635.0002.

DLM Legal Holiday Open House

Posted on November 30, 2011 by admin

On Wednesday, December 14, DLM Legal will host a Holiday Open House from 3pm to 7pm in its new office at 25 South Franklin Street in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. The firm welcomes its colleagues and friends to attend and celebrate the season with hors d’oeurves and refreshments.

For directions to the office, follow this link. Limited parking is available next to the building. Metered and free parking is available on nearby streets.

Challenging Mortgage Loan Kickbacks

Posted on November 28, 2011 by admin

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments this morning in First American Financial Corporation v. Edwards. This case arose in 2006 when Tower City, a title agency representing Denise Edwards during her purchase of a home, referred Edwards to First American Title Insurance. Edwards brought a class action lawsuit against First American under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) when she learned that First American was paying a substantial amount of money to Tower City so that Tower City would refer home buyers specifically to First American. RESPA prohibits the payment of kickbacks in connection with “a federally related mortgage loan.”

First American moved to dismiss the case on the grounds that Edwards suffered no direct injury (e.g. lower-quality service from First American) as a result of the kickback and thus she had no standing to sue the company. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court’s ruling that RESPA provides a sufficient basis on which Edwards can sue First American. In its opinion, the Ninth Circuit cited Warth v. Seldin, which held that a statute like RESPA can create legal rights and provide a remedy when those rights are invaded. RESPA allows for plaintiffs like Edwards to recover a penalty of up to three times the amount paid for the service without having to prove a specific injury resulting from the kickback. The Supreme Court will now have the final say on whether Edwards can challenge First American’s kickback payment under this provision of RESPA.

To learn more about the arguments in this case, visit the Supreme Court of the United States Blog at http://www.scotusblog.com/?p=132413.

Supreme Court to Rule on Health Care Reform

Posted on November 14, 2011 by admin

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court announced that it will review a Florida lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Obama administration’s Affordable Care Act. The challengers, who include Republican governors and attorney generals from 26 states, contend that Congress has exceeded its authority under the Constitution by passing the Act and requiring individuals to carry health insurance or pay a penalty. The Court is expected to hear oral arguments on the case in March and to issue a ruling in June.

For more details on the case, visit the official blog of the U.S. Supreme Court at http://www.scotusblog.com/2011/11/court-sets-5-12-hour-hearing-on-health-care/

Affordable Care Act Survives D.C. Federal Appeal

Posted on November 9, 2011 by admin

On Tuesday, November 8, the United States Court of Appelas for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld as constitutional the Obama administration’s 2010 health care reform legislation known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Notably, Judge Laurence H. Silberman, a conservative jurist appointed by Ronald Reagan, authored the majority’s opinion.

The central challenge to the Act focuses on whether Congress has the authority, under the Constitution, to require individuals to buy health insurance no later than 2014 or pay an annual penalty for failing to do so. Judge Silberman’s opinion reasoned that there is no absolute right to freedom from federal legislation and that Congress has the power to forge national solutions to national problems, even when those solutions affect individuals locally. In a dissenting opinion, Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh argued that the courts lack jurisdiction to review the law until the penalites actually take effect in 2015.

The United States Supreme Court will decide on Thursday whether to hear the same challenge to the Act. As of now, two federal appellate courts have upheld the law while another has struck it down. This split increases the likelihood that the Supreme Court will issue certiorari on the case.

BWC Safety Intervention Program Awards $217,000 to Ohio Businesses

Posted on October 31, 2011 by admin

The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) Safety Intervention Program recently announced that it awarded $217,000 in grants to Ohio businesses for the month of September 2011. The Ohio BWC created this program to offer businesses incentive to engage in practices that will reduce workplace injuries and illnesses.

Private and public employers in Ohio are eligible for the grants. Businesses seeking funds from the program must first pledge an amount which the BWC will then match 2-to-1 for maximum grants of $40,000. For some examples of the ways in which Ohio businesses used their grant money to improve workplace safety, visit: https://www.ohiobwc.com/home/current/releases/2011/102711.asp

If you have questions concerning your business and the ways in which it can utilize resources such as the BWC Safety Intervention Program, DLM Legal can help. Contact us at info@dlmlegal.com or 216.635.0002.

Changes in Federal Health Care Reform Act

Posted on October 17, 2011 by admin

Last week, the Obama administration announced that the Affordable Health Care Act will no longer cover the cost of long-term, in-home services for individuals unable to care for themselves. This part of the Act was known as the Community Living Assistance and Supports (CLASS) program. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services dropped CLASS from the legislation after it learned the program would exceed the spending limitations set forth in the Act. These limitations hold that any program implemented by the Act must remain fiscally solvent and pay for itself for at least 75 years.

CLASS was to be funded by workers who agreed to sign up for the program and pay premiums on it. If too many people chose to opt-out of paying those premiums at any given time, the program would struggle to stay afloat financially. Experts believe the loss of CLASS will create heavier Medicaid-related burdens on the federal government.

Susan Dentzer, Health Affairs editor-in-chief for PBS’s NewsHour, offered some insightful commentary on the CLASS program and its fate: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2011/10/what-the-death-of-the-class-act-means-for-long-term-disability-care.html

“Grow Ohio” Program Lowers Workers’ Comp Rates for New Employers

Posted on October 10, 2011 by admin

The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation has devised a program, known as Grow Ohio, designed to promote job creation within the state. Under Grow Ohio, companies new to Ohio since July 1, 2011 will be given a 25 percent discount on their workers’ compensation premiums.

Grow Ohio will also provide new employers the opportunity to opt into the Group Experience Rating Program, which is normally not accessible to new employers until the first full policy year following the date they obtained workers’ compensation coverage. Depending on the specific characteristics of the business, this option could reduce premiums up to the maximum allowable amount of 51 percent.

New businesses will have 30 days to decide whether they will participate in the Group Experience Rating Program. At the end of this 30 day period, the 25 percent discount from the Grow Ohio program will be automatically applied.