There, in the very title of this article is the first and fundamental conundrum—can we, should we, call it a “Christmas party”?Boldly, I say yes.There is certainly a school of thought that, for the sake of inclusiveness and sensitivity to diversity, would rename the event generically and perhaps even put it off until bleak January.However, that certain feast celebrated shortly after the Winter Solstice has been known as “Christmas” for centuries, and the word pervades culture and commerce from some point in time soon after Halloween until on or about the feast of the Epiphany.The “Christmas party” to many is that “one crowded hour of glorious life,” which the poet says “is worth an age without a name,” aka the otherwise nameless, uninspiring “holiday party.”
In 1983, the North Carolina Supreme Court decided N.C Dept. of Corrections v. Gibson, 308 N.C. 131 (1983). Gibson frequently appears in wrongful discharge in violation of North Carolina public policy (“WDPP”) briefs, especially when the plaintiffs’ claims rely on the North Carolina Equal Employment Practices Act (“NCEEPA”) for their underlying public policy. Gibson adopted Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964’s “evidentiary standards and principles of law insofar as they are not in conflict with [North Carolina]’s statutes and case law.” Attorneys almost always cite Gibson for the “evidentiary standards” bit—they are about to fill ten pages with McDonnell Douglas burden shifting analysis and need a reason for doing so. The “principles of law” language often goes untouched.
But that wasn’t the case in Stasinopoulous v. L.M. Sandler & Sons, Inc. et al, 5:18-cv-245, where the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina looked to federal principles of law and held that pregnancy-based discrimination qualifies as sex-based discrimination under the NCEEPA.
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00Laborhttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngLabor2018-12-07 10:04:172018-12-07 10:04:17District Court Holds that Pregnancy Fits Within the NCEEPA’s Prohibition of “Sex” Discrimination
When most people think about cybersecurity, they think of breaches of consumer personal information. And who can blame anyone for that, just look at the headlines for the latest breach of a major hotel chain and FIVE HUNDRED MILLION customer accounts. But one aspect of cybersecurity that is arguably more important than breaches of consumer information is theft of trade secrets. You may have heard the statement from then FBI Director Robert Mueller that there are only two types of companies, “those that have been hacked and those that will be.” What you may not realize is that his oft-quoted statement was made in the context of imploring businesses to report security breaches that involved trade secrets. Director Mueller had to make that plea because there were no requirements for businesses to report security breaches if they did not implicate certain information, such as consumer financial information or protected health information. This kept theft of trade secrets out of the public eye and in many cases unknown to anyone but the victim.
The Domestic Violence Issues Committee of the Family Law Section is currently considering revisions to GS 50B-3(b), inspired by a 2014 Court of Appeals decision. In Rudder v Rudder, 234 N.C. App. 173 (2014), the Court of Appeals expressed some doubt whether the time limitations of G.S. 50B-3(b) apply to ex-parte orders entered pursuant to G.S. 50B-2. In Rudder, the court granted Plaintiff an ex parte order, which was extended for over 18 months and expired without entry of a DVPO. Two days after expiration of the ex parte order, the parties appeared in court on Defendant’s motion to return firearms, at which point the court granted Plaintiff a one-year DVPO. On appeal, the Court held that “upon expiration of the ex parte order after more than a year, the trial court no longer had jurisdiction under the original complaint to enter an order further extending the DVPO.”
This year, 2018, marks the 60th anniversary of the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (“New York Convention”). Last June, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (“UNCITRAL”) hosted a special event, understandably in New York, to commemorate the diamond jubilee of what one late Swedish arbitration lawyer, Dr. J Gillis Wetter, referred to as early as 1990 as “the single most important pillar on which the edifice of international arbitration rests”.
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00International Practicehttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngInternational Practice2018-12-05 13:17:312019-04-17 13:27:10The 60th Anniversary of the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards: A Middle Eastern Retrospect and Emirati Prospect
This year, the YLD Wellness Committee instituted a Wellness Challenge between the Mountain, Piedmont, and Coastal regions of the state. Each quarter, the attorneys in their respective regions will be highlighted for their efforts to engage in wellness activities such as physical and financial fitness, nutrition, mindfulness, and meditation. This quarter we are shining a spotlight on the Mountain region, which includes Charlotte. Next up will be the Piedmont region — Raleigh, Greensboro, and the surrounding areas — from January 2019 through March 2019. Then, the Coastal Region — Wilmington, Elizabeth City, and the surrounding areas — will participate in the challenge from April 2019 through July 2019. The region with the most engagement receives a free networking event sponsored by the NCBA YLD. Follow the challenge on Twitter at #YLDWellness.
If you, or any YLD-eligible attorney you know, has participated in any wellness initiative, please send either pictures or a brief description of the activity (or both!), outlining the nature of the activity and who participated to your YLD Wellness Committee Co-Chairs Neubia Harris or Kevin Pratt at [email protected] or [email protected]. You may also contact them with any questions or concerns about the challenge.
https://www.ncbarblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/YLD-Wellness-FBLI-1.jpg7171200NCBA YLDhttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngNCBA YLD2018-12-05 12:37:012018-12-05 16:33:43A Lesson On Mindfulness and the YLD Wellness Challenge
On June 8, the North Carolina Supreme Court affirmed the 2016 decision of the North Carolina Court of Appeals in Kimberly Rice Kaestner Family Trust v. North Carolina Department of Revenue holding that N.C.G.S. § 105-160.2 is unconstitutional under the due process clauses of both the U.S. Constitution and the North Carolina Constitution where taxation of the trust is based solely on the beneficiary residing in North Carolina. The Court of Appeals had in turn affirmed the 2015 decision of the North Carolina Business Court, which ruled on the same grounds.
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00TAXhttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngTAX2018-12-05 12:07:172018-12-05 12:07:17Taxation of Trust Income Deemed Unconstitutional: NC Supreme Court Decision in Kaestner
Please mark your calendar for Feb. 22, 2019, for “In Tune or Off Key – Law, Government, Constitutional Rights and Responsibilities,” this year’s Section CLE. Together with the Government & Public Sector Section, the Constitutional Rights & Responsibilities Section is sponsoring this program, which is described below. The program will offer six hours of CLE credit, including one hour of ethics credit. Learn more and register here. The Section will also host a social gathering (venue TBD) from 5:15 to 6:30 the evening before. We hope to see you at both events!
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00ConstitutionalRightshttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngConstitutionalRights2018-12-04 16:11:472018-12-05 09:53:33Save the Dates: Section Social and CLE Feb. 21-22
Did you know that it is very easy to edit a PDF document unless you take steps to secure it? You can convert a PDF to Word in MS Word 2016 or in Adobe Acrobat and other PDF conversion applications. You can also easily edit a PDF in Acrobat. If you want to secure a PDF there are many ways to do so, but the strongest security is to apply a watermark, disable copying and printing, and apply a digital signature. This three-step process will create a document that is very difficult to alter or reproduce.
To create a PDF document that would be difficult to tamper with, including reproducing from a screenshot, you can take a three-step approach:
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00Catherine Reachhttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngCatherine Reach2018-12-04 11:52:422018-12-04 12:39:38How To *Really* Lock Down a PDF Document
Did you know that Fastcase7 has a feature called Type-Ahead? Like a Google search, when you enter a word or phrase Fastcase 7 will immediately show you matches for terms of art and case names. Switch to Fastcase 7 by toggling the orange button from FC in the upper right corner of the screen when you are logged into Fastcase. Want to learn more? Schedule a consultation with new CPM Director Catherine Sanders Reach.
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