Supreme Court to Hear Washington ‘Faithless Electors’ Case
Washington, DC – On May 13, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear two cases involving states ‘faithless electors’ where there have been attempts to penalize Electoral College delegates who fail to vote for the presidential candidate they were pledged to support. Electoral College delegates are selected by each party, and under state laws, they...
The Ever-Changing Landscape of PPP Loans
On April 23, 2020, in response to the hue and cry from many members of the public that large businesses such as the Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse had received PPP funds, the Small Business Administration announced that large businesses with adequate sources of liquidity would not likely be entitled to the funds through this new program.[1]...
Oregon State Bar: Construction Law Newsletter
NEW RETAINAGE REQUIREMENTS RAISE MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS Recent amendments to ORS 279C.570 and ORS 701.420 create new requirements for retainage withheld on public and private construction contracts. Effective January 1, 2020, if the contract price exceeds $500,000, the contracting agency, private owner, contractor, or subcontractor must place amounts deducted as retainage into an interest-bearing...
May 6, 2020 @
The Time to Give Back is Now!
GiveBIG Washington is a fundraising event that started with early giving on April 15th and will culminate with a 48-hour public campaign starting May 5th-6th. Through GiveBIG, individuals, businesses, and organizations come together to support nonprofits providing food, shelter, health and social services to communities in Washington. Williams Kastner strongly believes in the importance of...
May 7, 2020 @ 11:00 AM
Labor & Employment and Insurance Coverage Webinar: Best Practices to Return to Work During COVID-19
Thursday, May 7th 11:00 am – 12:15 pm Register Now Join our Seattle partners, Sheryl Willert, and Jeff Wells from our Labor & Employment group along with Insurance group partner Eliot Harris in a webinar discussion on the challenges to employers and insurers as businesses return to work in the coming weeks and months. We will highlight...
New Proclamation from Washington Governor Establishes Employer Obligations to COVID-19 At-Risk Employees
On April 13, 2020, Governor Inslee issued Proclamation 20-46 High Risk Employees- Workers’ Rights amending his previous February 29, 2020 Proclamation 20-05 which declared the outbreak of COVID-19 a public disaster. According to the new Proclamation, the threat of severe illness or death caused by COVID-19 to Washington State’s public and private sector workers who...
April 13, 2020 @ 11:00 AM
Webinar: COVID-19 Impact on Labor & Employment
Sheryl Willert Jefferey Wells Bryan Churchill April 13th 11:00 am – 12:15 pm Register Now Join our Seattle partners, Sheryl Willert and Jefferey Wells along with Portland Of Counsel, Bryan Churchill from Williams Kastner in a discussion on the current impact of COVID-19. Employers face a multitude of challenges as they navigate through COVID-19 and its effect on their workforce and businesses. We...
April 16, 2020 @ 12:00 PM
Webinar: Retain or Release? A Legal Look at Electronic Files
April 16th 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Register Now More and more of our work is going electronically, and it’s imperative to have best practices in place for electronic document retention as well as physical records. This discussion will focus on the best tips for document retention, with a particular focus on electronic documents. We’ll discuss issues...
Labor & Employment COVID-19 Updates
The rapid spread of coronavirus has widely affected employers throughout the U.S. We are closely monitoring the developing situation and will offer regular updates on labor and Employment guidelines and mandates. Employers face a multitude of challenges as they navigate through the outbreak of COVID-19 and its effect on their workforce and business. Below we’ve...
CORONAVIRUS-RELATED PAID LEAVE FOR WORKERS AND TAX CREDITS FOR SMALL AND MIDSIZED BUSINESSES
On Friday March 20, 2020, The United States Departments of Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, and the U. S. Department of Labor took action to implement complete federal coverage for small and midsized employers for payments they make to their employees as required by the Paid Sick Leave and expanded paid child care leave under the...
QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER WINTER 2020
OVERVIEW OF POTENTIAL COVERAGE ISSUES IN CLAIM RELATED TO THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC The rapid spread of coronavirus in the United States is causing businesses to shut their doors and people to remain at home as much as possible. In the midst of this truly unprecedented event in recent history, insurers should be prepared for a...
Williams Kastner’s Response to COVID-19 and Our Commitment to You
Our Commitment to Health & Safety While Maintaining High-Level Client Services At Williams Kastner, our firm culture is characterized by quality legal services, teamwork and the trusted relationships we form with our clients and the community. As we monitor and learn more about the spread of Coronavirus, we are committed to prioritizing the health and...