For many, the thought of buying a new car evokes a compulsory flood of emotion. Those emotions likely differ for each reader, but for most, they will include a healthy mix of excitement, pride, fear and anxiety. Since we here at Setliff Law prefer to focus on the positive, we assume that when you close your eyes and imagine yourself sitting in your choice of new car or truck (without consideration of financial constraint, of course) your sensory perception is… Read More

Thanks to a new set of rules recently passed in New York City, drivers for ride-hailing applications like Uber and Lyft are about to be guaranteed a minimum hourly wage. The new rule, passed by the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission, mandates a wage floor of $17.22 per hour after expenses—or $26.51 per hour before expenses—a move that is estimated to raise the average rate of pay by approximately $9,600 per year for the over 77,000 ride-sharing drivers… Read More

Internships are a rite of passage for many who want to gain experience and make valuable connections. If interns are paid, the internship typically functions like an entry-level position with an expiration date. However, it can get a trickier for companies that hire unpaid interns, since different rules apply. In the past, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) made it almost impossible for “for profit” employers to establish unpaid internship programs that did not violate the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”).… Read More

In January, Timothy L. Brooks, a federal judge in the Western District of Arkansas, doubled down on his October 19th Memorandum Opinion in the case of Browne v. P.A.M. Transport, Inc., in which he stated that the Defendant, P.A.M Transport, Inc., was required to ensure all of its drivers were paid at least minimum wage under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). The Memorandum Opinion can be found here: https://cases.justia.com/federal/district-courts/arkansas/arwdce/5:2016cv05366/50562/82/0.pdf?ts=1540016189. In affirming his October opinion, which focuses primarily on over-the-road… Read More

In a previous article, we updated you on New Prime, Inc. v. Oliveira, a case that was argued before the United States Supreme Court on October 3, 2018. Generally, this case concerned how the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) applies to independent contractor agreements in the transportation industry. On Tuesday, January 15, 2019, the Supreme Court issued its opinion – a unanimous decision in favor of the transportation worker. To some, this decision comes as a bit of a surprise as… Read More

Until recently, California had rules essentially requiring that truck drivers take one 10 minute rest break every four hours, and one 30 minute meal break after every five hours of driving. Federal Law, however, required a 30 minute break after every eight hours of driving. The result was some confusion over which law applied in California, and arguably, whether both applied in California, possibly resulting in 90 minutes of break-time in a 10 hour period. American law recognizes a concept… Read More

Discovery serves an important role in litigation. The purpose of discovery is to clarify the issues between the parties, ascertain facts relative to those issues and obtain the fullest possible knowledge of the facts and issues before trial. Indeed, whether circumstances tend to lend credence to a favorable settlement or a trial, utilizing effective discovery techniques can generate valuable leverage in any case. Among the tools an attorney may employ in pursuit of facts are requests for admissions, written interrogatories,… Read More

"Never write if you can speak, never speak if you can nod, never nod if you can wink." —Attributed to the 19th century Boston political boss Martin Lomasney. The words of 19th-century Boston political boss Martin Lomasney have never rung truer than in today’s modern age of email communications. More than ever, the words we type in daily emails run the risk of eventually becoming available for public consumption. Beyond the embarrassment and bad press, lies the potential for such… Read More