ACC St. Louis October Newsletter

Monthly News & Updates

October 2023

Upcoming Events

See what's happening

in the coming weeks:

10.17.23 | ACC St. Louis Pro Bono Legal Clinic: Estate Planning for Veterans| 3-7:00 pm CDT | Vet Center - 287 N. Lindbergh Blvd. - 63141 | Register

ACC St. Louis Board Member Danielle Langeneckert, Named to

St. Louis Business Journal's

40 Under 40 Class of 2023!

Danielle Langeneckert, ACC St. Louis Treasurer, and Vice President, Integrated Participant Solutions with The Resource Group, has been named one of the St. Louis Business Journal’s annual 40 Under 40 Awardees!

The 40 Under 40 program has been recognizing and celebrating young professionals who are making a difference in the St. Louis region through their work and community involvement for 28 years. With the help of six past awardees, the St. Louis Business Journal reviewed more than 350 nominations to select the winners of the 2023 program.

Danielle has been an active ACC St. Louis member for seven years, serving in roles on both the Board of Directors and the Communications Committee.

We would all like to congratulate Danielle on this great accolade, and are happy to have her on our ACC St. Louis team as she makes her mark on both the St. Louis business and social communities!

NLRB Adopts Union-Friendly Election Procedures

By: Monika Bidner - Associate, McMahon Berger,

and John Marino - Partner, McMahon Berger

On August 24, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) announced a new final rule for representation election procedures that restores the prior “ambush” election rules from 2014.[i] The rules, which have been the subject of numerous legal disputes, represent yet another setback for employers. The new final rule sets aggressive deadlines for employers and forces regional directors to run elections as quickly as possible.

The 2014 “Ambush” Election Rules

As a brief history, in December of 2014, the NLRB issued final “ambush” election rules.[ii] These rules reduced the amount of time between the filing of a petition and a union election.[iii] According to the NLRB, the 2014 rules removed unnecessary barriers to the fair and expeditious resolution of representation cases[iv] and assisted in “achiev[ing] timely, efficient, fair, accurate, uniform, and transparent resolution of representation cases.[v] The rules, which leaned in the unions’ favor, set aggressive deadlines for holding elections and implemented new procedures to be followed after a petition was filed. Essentially, the “ambush” rules placed additional burdens on employers and made it easier for unions to successfully organize.

Review of Fall Social at Top Golf

ACC St. Louis members gathered on the evening of Thursday, September 14th, to socialize while testing out their golf swings and enjoying food and beverages at Top Golf in Chesterfield. We thank event sponsor, Littler, for their vital support of this successful gathering.

"It was a beautiful St. Louis evening for some good food, networking and practice swings!," said Jennifer Denny, Senior Litigation Counsel at Cardinal Financial. "Early fall is a great time for a semi-outdoor social outing, and the members of ACC St. Louis and our host, Littler, showed up to make the most of the beautiful weather. The bays were full of friends and colleagues, catching up and keeping in touch. Many thanks to all who showed up for a memorable evening!"

Approximately 50 ACC St. Louis members took part in this year's event, and enjoyed nice weather and camaraderie.

Chrissy Teske, Associate General Counsel-Corporate Securities at Edward Jones, agreed that the event went well amidst a lot of networking. "The event was very well attended, and outside of our Holiday Social, is the most well-attended Social Event of the year," said Teske. "Member feedback for this annual event in overwhelmingly positive due to location, the activity involved, and food."

(Above: ACC St. Louis members tee off and enjoy food and beverages while socializing with colleagues at the chapter's Fall Social at Top Golf - Chesterfield.)

Nominations Are Now Open for the

St. Louis Business Journal Corporate Counsel Award Celebration Scheduled for March 2024!

The timing of the Corporate Counsel Awards for 2024 has changed, and is now scheduled for a March 12, 2024, presentation instead of the summer months.

These annual awards recognize outstanding work by corporate attorneys at both public and private companies of all sizes and industries in the St. Louis metropolitan region.

ACC St. Louis members are encouraged to NOMINATE fellow legal professionals to be considered for recognition among the best and brightest legal minds in the corporate landscape. The awards will span all levels of the corporate legal department structure, from in-house generalists and specialists to chief legal officers and general counsel, who work in nonprofit organizations or in public or private companies of any size in any industry.

Winners will be honored in a special awards section in the March 22 issue of the St. Louis Business Journal.

Are You Using Biometric Technology in Illinois? Tread Carefully!

By: Greg Abrams, Partner

Products using biometric technology – such as fingerprints or facial scans – have become more widespread over the last decade, and this trend shows no signs of slowing. According to one source, the global biometric technology market size was valued at $34.27 billion in the U.S. in 2022, with expected 20% growth into 2030. But this increased prevalence of biometrics brings potential legal risk. And perhaps nowhere is this threat greater than in Illinois.

This article discusses the Illinois law regulating biometrics, its potential landmines, and recent court developments in this area.

Background to the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act

In 2008, Illinois enacted the Biometric Information Privacy Act, or “BIPA.”[i] The catalyst was when a company went into bankruptcy, and consumers feared what may become of the purported biometric data, which by its nature is unique and unchangeable, that this company maintained. As the Illinois legislature explained, “biometrics are unlike other unique identifiers that are used to access finances or other sensitive information. For example, social security numbers, when compromised, can be changed. Biometrics, however, are biologically unique to the individual; therefore, once compromised, the individual has no recourse, is at heightened risk for identity theft, and is likely to withdraw from biometric-facilitated transactions.”[ii]