Most employers are expected to pass on the IRS’ offer to temporarily delay collecting Social Security taxes.  For background, both employers and employees are generally required to pay a Social Security tax at a flat rate of 6.2% (for a total of 12.4%) on all wages.  In a separate article from our Corporate and Securities Blog, we discussed how the CARES Act allows employers to delay paying the employer’s portion of Social Security taxes.
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Continue Reading To Defer or Not Defer? IRS Issues Guidance Temporarily Delaying the Collection of Social Security Taxes

In prior posts (here and here), we raised questions that companies may want to ask when evaluating their arbitration clauses and making changes to them.  In this third installment, we look at what companies should be doing to ensure that they can present proof of their arbitration agreements if ever required to do so in court.  Your company may have a perfect arbitration clause, but if a customer claims never to have signed the arbitration agreement or not to have seen the website providing notice of the terms and conditions, you will have to present evidence that the customer is wrong.…
Continue Reading Avoiding Formation Challenges To Your Arbitration Clause With Consumers

Given the prevalence of trade secret misappropriation litigation among members of the fashion, beauty, and retail industry, those in that industry should (1) take care to protect their trade secrets from misuse by others and (2) consider steps to try to reduce the risk of misappropriation claims against them by others.  Both situations – loss of a valuable trade secret and burdensome litigation – can be devastating to a business.  We offer here some potential measures that businesses can take to attempt to avoid such undesirable situations.…
Continue Reading Members Of The Fashion and Retail Industry: Trade Secret Claims Are In Vogue These Days

Arbitration clauses with class action waivers remain one of the most effective tools that consumer-facing companies can employ to fend off consumer class action litigation.  Yet many companies stumble both in getting their customers to agree to the arbitration clause and in drafting a clause that captures all claims that they might face.  As we continue to work, shop, and engage with the world from home, companies should perform a quick “health-check” of their arbitration clause, asking themselves at least the following questions:…
Continue Reading An Arbitration Clause Health Check

In a post from our Class Action Defense Law Blog, we highlighted some questions that companies may want to ask when evaluating whether their arbitration clauses are enforceable.  If changes need to be made to those clauses, then companies should consider how to implement those changes so as to ensure those are enforceable too.  The following is what you should be thinking about and asking.…
Continue Reading Questions To Ask When Changing Your Arbitration Clause

World renowned beauty brand and Sheppard Mullin client Glossier is standing behind its values with a new initiative to provide grant funding to beauty companies owned by Black entrepreneurs.…
Continue Reading Highlighting Initiatives Fighting Racial Inequity: Glossier Supports Entrepreneurs and Sheppard Mullin Trains Police Departments

On March 22, 2020, Governor Cuomo issued an executive order that closed all non-essential businesses in New York State (the “Order”).  In connection with the Order, New York City restaurants were forced to reduce their operations to pick-up and delivery only.  On June 8, 2020, New York City entered into Phase I of the New York State reopening plan.  It is anticipated that sometime between June 22, 2020 and the beginning of July, 2020, New York City will enter into Phase II.  During Phase II, restaurants will not be allowed to serve patrons indoors, but will be permitted to commence service to patrons outdoors.
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Continue Reading A Streamlined Process: Expedited Temporary Outdoor Dining Permits For NYC Restaurants

This post originally appeared on the Council of Fashion Designers of America website, CFDA.com.

Before the COVID-19 outbreak, fashion retail already faced difficult times with numerous bankruptcies, such as Barneys, Sonia Rykiel, Roberto Cavalli and Diesel.  Now with COVID-19, fashion retail confronts a “perfect storm” — the hurricane of the disruption of brick and mortar retail caused by omnichannel retailing and the Nor’easter resulting from the shutdown of all retail stores and lockdown of consumers in the US.  It is anticipated that retail bankruptcy filings will proliferate in the wake of COVID-19 and, as a result, it is important to have a basic understanding of the bankruptcy process and concepts for fashion businesses, including Chapters 11 and 7, critical vendor status, how to file a claim, and what strategies can be used to sell to an entity once it has filed for bankruptcy.…
Continue Reading Fashionista’s Guide to Bankruptcy: What Every Designer Needs to Know to be Protected in Times of Economic Uncertainty

This post originally appeared on the Council of Fashion Designers of America website, CFDA.com.

You’ve worked so hard to get your foot in the door with that prized retailer, striving mightily to please them. They’ve finally supported your line and you just shipped them a big order for Fall 2020. But that same retailer has now filed Chapter 11. What can you do to protect your inventory in the bankruptcy proceeding? Should you continue to do business with the retailer during the bankruptcy? And what can you do to avoid these problems in the future with other retailers? This article will briefly address these questions and provide some basic strategies to help guide the designer/manufacturer in these difficult times.…
Continue Reading Protecting Your Inventory and Getting Paid