Considerations when Hiring Independent Contractors
If you or your business are considering using independent contractors and creating agreements for these relationships, you must be certain you are properly classifying your employees as such and not violating any state laws with regard to these employees. An Executive Order was issued in 2015 by former North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory that addresses this classification of employees and how to properly identify independent contractors. This Executive Order created the Employee Classification Section of the North Carolina Industrial Commission, and this particular entity serves the purpose of preventing unethical business practices that attempt to undermine North Carolina laws. Expanding upon previous efforts made by the state of North Carolina and the United States Department of Labor, the Employee Classification Section attempts to target the misclassification of employees as independent contractors. In order to determine an individual’s status as an employee versus an independent contractor, this regulatory entity will consider…
Read MoreMeet Joy Riebold, Rene Tobolski, and Sarah Fuller – Fall 2024 Student Attorneys!
Hello! My name is Joy Reibold. I am a current 3L at Elon University School of Law. I was born and raised in Indiana and attended Purdue University where I received my bachelor’s degree in Political Science. Before attending law school, I spent a year working as a secretary and legal assistant at a real estate law Firm in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. I then moved to North Carolina to pursue a career in law at Elon University. I am the President of Elon Law Fellowship of Christian Lawyers, and member of the Elon Moot Court Board, the Federalist Society, and Phi Alpha Delta, the law fraternity. Last year I was a Teaching Assistant for LMC and this year I am the Teaching Assistant for Evidence. In the Spring Semester, I was a Resident for Honorable Jeffery K. Carpenter at the North Carolina Court of Appeals where I reviewed appellate…
Read MoreMeet Shereena Kamal and Keira Connolly – Fall 2024 Student Attorneys!
Hello! My name is Shereena Kamal, and I am currently a 3L at Elon University School of Law. I earned my undergraduate degree from North Carolina State University, majoring in Political Science with a minor in Business Administration. Before and while at Elon Law, I gained hands-on experience in business operations, including LLC licensing and regulatory compliance. This included preparing Articles of Organization during LLC formations and managing the annual reporting requirements to maintain the company’s good standing. During my second year, I completed a residency in practice as an extern at Kontoor Brands, Inc., where I further developed my knowledge of trademark law. I worked closely with the legal team on trademark registration and enforcement, including conducting searches for potential conflicts and assisting with the preparation and filing of trademark applications. I am thrilled to be joining the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Clinic as a student attorney and look forward…
Read MoreMeet Fall 2024 Student Attorneys Kellyn Baker and William Shafer!
Hello! My name is Kellyn Baker, and I am currently a 3L at Elon University School of Law. I have moved around many times, but I claim Florida as my home and plan to return after graduating this December! Before starting at Elon, I attended the University of Mississippi for undergrad, where I obtained a Bachelor’s in Accounting, a Bachelor’s in Business Administration specializing in Global Supply Chain Marketing, and a Certificate in Manufacturing. This background is what inspired me to pursue a career in business law. After completing a capstone project where students were required to create a business and all business plans from the first idea to manufacturing to sales plans, I gained a great appreciation for what entrepreneurs and business owners go through to pursue their business dreams. Because of this, I wanted to pursue a career in which I was in the position to best assist…
Read MoreNot Like Us…But Similar to Us
vs. Revenge. Typically, a dish best served cold. But this revenge comes with a side of beef…and it’s piping hot. Over the past month, Grammy-award winning rappers Drake and Kendrick Lamar have lobbed unsavory insults and thrown vicious verbal jabs at one another through a series of diss tracks. What began as medium-rare beef has been rapidly overcooked, with mainstream media turning up the heat and propelling the feud into the public spotlight. While media moguls such as Fox and NBC have weighed in on the debate, social media influencers and online streamers have propelled the narrative around the beef to heights not seen in rap since the early 90’s and certainly not in the social media era. And all this is thanks to the protections of copyright law and the rights therein held by copyright owners. As social media and online streaming have started to monopolize the online media…
Read MoreSBEC attends Demo Day!
On the evening of May 20th, the Elon Small Business & Entrepreneurship Clinic attended LaunchLab Growth Spring Demo Day at Elm & Bain (https://elmandbain.com/) in downtown Greensboro. This event was an ideal opportunity for aspiring entrepreneurs to “pitch” their company to a panel of judges with the chance of winning $500 to put towards growing their business. Among the 11 entrepreneurs giving their pitch, there were companies centered around video gaming, guidance counseling, children’s clothing, and even dog training. LaunchLab Growth Spring Demo is an event held by the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce (https://greensboro.org/) that is free to attend and open to the public. Each small business owner and start-up has been preparing for this event every Monday for 14 weeks. Although there are no current openings for new companies looking to pitch their entrepreneurial ideas, event organizer, Kaitlin Conover is available to connect with anyone looking for more information…
Read MoreTikTok: Going Once, Going Twice, SOLD!
The race is on for interested buyers to potentially acquire TikTok, currently owned by Beijing-based ByteDance. Billionaire and former owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers is planning a consortium to buy TikTok’s U.S. operations with the investment bank Guggenheim Securities. This comes following the news from last month that President Biden signed legislation requiring the sale or ban of the social media app due to national security and data privacy concerns. The Chinese-controlled social media app will have up to one year to sell the app, then TikTok will be banned in the U.S. The greatest concern for legislators is the potential for China to collect intelligence on U.S. users or spread misinformation regarding sensitive topics such as the Israel-Hamas conflict. The pushback is intense since TikTok filed a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the law. However, with some big names like former Treasurer Secretary Steven Mnuchin and “Shark…
Read MoreSmall Business Compliance to Avoid Summertime Sadness
With Summer approaching, many Small Businesses are on the hunt for seasonal employees. Despite the numerous benefits seasonal employees provide employers, it’s important for Small Businesses to be aware of the potential risks associated with seasonal employment and healthcare coverage compliance. Understanding the requirements and demonstrating compliance is paramount for Small Businesses as they transition into Summer and the rest of the calendar year. Per the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (the “ACA”), “applicable large employers” (“ALE”) must provide group health plan coverage to their employees. ALE have at least fifty (50) full-time or full-time equivalent employees in the preceding year. To comply with the ACA, ALE’s must report their coverage offers to the IRS. ALE’s expose themselves to significant penalties if (i) they fail to offer the minimum essential coverage to at least 95% of employees and their dependents; or (ii) they offer coverage that is neither…
Read MoreNoncompetes, Mostly Dead!
The recent FTC ruling banning non-compete clauses could significantly impact North Carolina businesses. Employers have used non-compete clauses to prevent employees from working for competitors or starting similar businesses after leaving their current employment. However, the FTC has determined that these clauses can harm competition in labor markets by suppressing earnings and opportunities for workers. This new FTC rule eliminates nearly all non-competes, either direct or indirect, throughout the entire nation. The only major exceptions exist for the sale of a business, and a carve-out for “Senior executives” that make at least $151,164 and have policy-making roles—the President, CEOs, etc. with authority over business aspects. The FTC rule does change the way NC courts have interpreted non-competes. Previously, NC courts have not enforced overly broad territories or noncompete containing “indirectly competing” clauses. In the 2023 case of Prometheus Group Enterprises, LLC v. Gibson, the North Carolina Business Court warned against…
Read MoreCTA’s Constitutionality – the Government’s Position
In an effort to stop financial crimes, money laundering, and other illegal activities, the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) has been established to oversee commercial activities that can impact interstate commerce. These activities often take place under the cover of “shell companies” that are used by individuals that can help conceal their ownership of business activities. On March 2024, in National Small Business United v. Yellen, the Federal District Court for the Northern District of Alabama held that the CTA was unconstitutional. The prevailing argument asserted that Congress exceeded its enumerated powers upon its approval of the CTA. The court held that in case of the litigants, the Commerce Clause does not also extend to the substantive regulation of business entities and their engagement in commerce. However, FinCEN will continue to implement the CTA those not involved in the lawsuit. More recently, the Department of Justice appealed this ruling, and has…
Read MoreMeet Kirsten Tildon and Chuom Prak – SBEC Student Attorneys Spring 2024!
Hello World! My name is Kirsten Tildon and I am a current 2L at Elon University School of Law. I attended Towson University and majored in English and minored in Business Communications and Liberal Arts. After graduating from Towson and worked on DC’s Campaign to Reduce Lead Exposure and Childhood Asthma before moving to Greensboro to pursue a career in law. During my time at Elon Law, I have had the privilege of serving as the Business and Online Editor of We the People (Elon’s Constitutional law journal), Executive Vice President of the Federalist Society, Vice President and Co-Founder of The Board, and being a member of the Black Law Students Association, Phi Alpha Delta, Business Law Association, People Not Property, and Guilford County’s Teen Court program. I am also a Research Assistant for Professor Clodomir. My passion for justice and commitment to effecting change in the law motivated me to go to law school. I am…
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