LegalBrief FIRM NEWSLETTER
APRIL 2014
Table of Contents
BIG FIRM QUALITY. SMALL FIRM VALUE.
Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP, is a full-service business law firm that represents clients in a wide variety of legal matters including litigation, trials & appeals; corporate; mergers & acquisitions; private equity; intellectual property & technology; municipal, liability & government relations; labor & employment; real estate development; healthcare; wills, trusts & estates; matrimonial & personal injury matters including the defense of general liability, construction, premises liability and transportation cases. 




DISCLAIMER:
The information contained in this newsletter is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter. The Firm provides legal advice and other services only to persons or entities with which it has established an attorney-client relationship. No recipients of information from this newsletter, clients or otherwise, should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in this newsletter without seeking appropriate legal or other professional advice on the particular facts and circumstances at issue from an attorney licensed in the recipient's state. The content of this newsletter contains general information and may not reflect current legal developments. The Firm disclaims all liability in respect to actions taken or not taken based on any or all of the contents of this newsletter.
 
 
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CLIENT ADVISORY
New York Unemployment Law Update: Severance May Disqualify Individuals from Receiving Unemployment
By Arthur Yermash, Esq.
While employers are not obligated to issue severance payments (unless they have specifically agreed to do so in a written employment or other agreement), many do offer severance to terminated employees to shield themselves from potential litigation or as a courtesy for the employee's years of service. 
 
But there have been recent changes to the New York unemployment insurance law that all New York employers should be aware of before offering a severance package to a departing employee. Read more
NEGOTIATION UPDATE
Women in the Workforce: Lean In & Obama's Executive Order
By Joseph N. Campolo, Esq.
Earlier this month Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg released a new edition of Lean In, her 2013 best-selling book for working women, refocusing it for college graduates entering the workforce. A central theme of the book is negotiation-in particular, negotiating salaries.

"It never even occurred to me to negotiate my first salary," Sandberg writes in her book. "I waited for someone to tell me how much money I'd be earning so I could figure out where to live. I ended up supplementing my income by teaching aerobics classes on the weekend." Read More 
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY UPDATE
Preliminary Injunctions in Patent Cases
By Eryn Truong, Esq.
Preliminary injunctions are a powerful form of immediate relief, yet they are rarely obtained in patent cases.  Although the standard for obtaining a preliminary injunction in a patent case is no different than other cases, several factors contribute to making a preliminary injunction in a patent case more difficult to obtain.  
   
Generally, in order to obtain a preliminary injunction, a litigant must establish (i) likelihood of success on the merits of the underlying litigation; (ii) the existence of immediate and irreparable harm; (iii) the balance of hardships favors the litigant; and (iv) that the public interest is best served by granting the injunctive relief.  This legal standard applies to patent cases and there are no patent-specific rules. Read More 
COMMERCIAL LITIGATION UPDATE
When is a Sales Commission "Earned"?
By Jeffrey Basso, Esq.
Businesses involved in the sale of a particular product or service will, of course, employ salespeople to sell those products or services.   
In nearly all cases, sales representatives are paid some form of monetary commission based on their level of sales using some set of variables (i.e. percentage of each sale; percentage of each new contract; total number of sales, etc.).  While determining how a commission is calculated may be simple, figuring out when the commission is "earned" for purposes of it being a payable wage can sometimes be difficult in the absence of a written agreement or policy.  A recent decision in the Commercial Division, New York County dealt with precisely this issue. Read More
SCOTUS UPDATE
Delaware's Bid to Offer Confidential Arbitration Heard by Sitting Judges Officially Ends
By Lauren Kanter, Esq.
Delaware's unique effort to offer private arbitration presided over by sitting judges to those who could afford it officially ended last month when the United States Supreme Court declined to hear arguments as to whether lower court rulings barring the program should be reversed.

Delaware, which has long enjoyed a business-friendly reputation and whose Court of Chancery is well respected for its business expertise, established its controversial arbitration program in 2009. The program was limited to business disputes of at least one million dollars involving Delaware entities. Read More
WILLS, TRUSTS & ESTATES UPDATE
Everyone Needs a Will, But No One Wants to Do It
By Marty Glass, Esq.

 

I think this is something that I've known even before I started practicing as an Estate Planning attorney.  Matter of fact, it probably predates my practice by decades, if not centuries.  What am I talking about?  I'm talking about the tendency to hesitate (if not complete avoid) writing a Will.  Both in my practice and my everyday life, I hear from people who recognize and admit that they should put a Will in place, but despite their best intentions, they simply don't do it.  Why is that?  What keeps us from doing what we know we should do? Read More

 
FIRM NEWS
Long Island Legal: Show Premieres this Month
Join us every Friday at 10:30 am for our Long Island Legal show on TheDailyBlu.com. The talk show will stream live every week, as our firm partners and attorneys discuss legal issues and topics that impact our Long Island community and businesses. 
May 7th Executive Breakfast: Business Networking Skills 
Join us on Wednesday, May 7th at 8:30 am for our next Executive Breakfast Series event discussing Business Networking Skills & Relationship Building. Emil Everett, President of New Amsterdam, LLC will provide insight on how to strengthen your networking skills to maximize networking events and connections; develop a memorable introduction; create meaningful conversation; and create a networking plan of action to increase success. RSVP to vtringone@cmmllp.com to reserve your seat.
Malafi Appointed to NYS Pro Bono Scholars Task Force
Christine Malafi, partner at Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP was appointed by Chief Administrative Judge Gail Prudenti, to the New York State Pro Bono Scholars Task Force.The goal of the task force is to assist the State and all of its law schools in identifying pro bono placement programs and securing their availability to law school students. The Pro Bono Scholars Program was the focus of Chief Judge Lippman's State of the Judiciary Address given on Feb. 11, 2014.
CMM Sponsoring Imagine Awards on May 6th
Imagine
The annual event was created to offer formal acknowledgement to some of Long Island's most effective and innovative nonprofit organizations. Join us on Tuesday, May 6th at the Crest Hollow Country Club as Cerini & Associates awards this year's nonprofit finalists.
CMM Sponsoring BNL Event on May 7th
CMM is a proud sponsor of the upcoming "Doing Business with Brookhaven National Laboratory" on Wednesday, May 7, 2014. The U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory is hosting an inaugural Technology Commercialization & Partnerships/Small Business Program event. The free event will afford ample opportunity to interact with the BNL staff, with breakout sessions dedicated to sponsored research and procurement, as well as technology transfer, and how to engage scientific user facilities. 

Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP
4175 Veterans Memorial Highway, Suite 400
Ronkonkoma, New York 11779
Phone: (631) 738-9100
Fax: (631) 738-0659
www.cmmllp.com
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