News Type: Articles

An article by Bryan Johnson titled, “Real estate wholesaling in Illinois: An investment strategy under scrutiny,” was published in RE Journals on February 12, 2020.

Lara Shortz’s article, “Salary Inquiries Becoming a Thing of the Past,” was published in October 2017 in the California Hotel & Lodging Association Newsletter.

From the article . . .

Attention employers in San Francisco, you are the latest to be prohibited from asking questions about a job applicant’s compensation history, a move designed to close the gender pay gap.

The Parity in Pay Ordinance, which takes effect next year (July 2018), will ban employers (hotel and resort owners/operators among them) in the City by the Bay from seeking such information during the hiring process. Indeed, under the new law – which defines employers to include job placement and employment agencies (e.g., recruiters and executive search firms) acting on behalf of their company clients – salary history cannot be considered or relied upon by an employer in determining whether to extend a job offer or in formulating its terms. That being said, if a prospective employee voluntarily discloses his or her salary history without prompting, an employer may take steps to confirm the information and use it when making hiring decisions.

Being an employer in the hospitality space is not easy, that is for sure.

In a commercial landscape in which “see you in court” is an all too frequent refrain, legal exposure is a constant concern for hotel owners, operators and management. But this worry can be reduced if hoteliers avail themselves of a handful of safeguards that can significantly lower the risk of costly and time-consuming workplace litigation.

Here, we outline five simple steps that can be taken to prevent potential employee-related problems.

In the wake of the #MeToo movement, it is increasingly common in corporate transactional documents to see buyers and related parties include so-called “Weinstein” clauses. Such provisions typically request that a target company represent and warrant whether its officers or executives have been the subject of allegations of sexual harassment or misconduct, and if the company has entered into any settlement agreements regarding these kinds of claims.

The purpose of a Weinstein clause is to provide assurance that the target company (including its officers and executives) is not a hotbed of sexual harassment or a ticking time bomb of claims waiting to explode, which would no doubt result in liability, embarrassment and potential loss of value for the acquiring parties. This primer on drafting and negotiating Weinstein clauses should help deal teams balance these risks.

When considering their real estate portfolios, every investor should be asking themselves one very important question: have I chosen the best method to hold title in and to my real property assets? And to answer that query, investors should be aware of all their options, including the Series LLC.

The estimate is staggering: $30,000,000,000. That’s a lot of zeros and a forecast of annual legal cannabis sales by 2025—this as more and more states legalize marijuana for medical or recreational use. No question, the cannabis business is booming, which is something of a given. Less obvious is what you, as a budding cannabusiness entrepreneur, should consider in making cannabis your business. Toward that end, there’s a broad range of issues to think about.

Pete Seeger, the legendary American folk singer, offered a great distinction between education and experience. “Education,” he said, “is when you read the fine print; experience is what you get when you don’t.” The point being: it is extraordinarily important for parties to an agreement to review and comprehend its terms, or else difficulties may well ensue. But achieving the requisite level of understanding is frequently easier said than done.