A New York company ran a loan-application website. As part of the application process, users had to click a box to get from one screen to the next. Above the box it said, “Clicking the box below constitutes your acceptance of … the borrower registration agreement.” The borrower registration agreement wasn’t on the page, but the words “borrower registration agreement” were a hyperlink to another page that included the complete contract. In fine print, the contract

A software company called TIBCO tried to protect itself by including a non-compete clause in its employment agreements. It also required that any disputes over the employment relationship go to arbitration rather than being tried in court. When an employee left to work for a competitor, TIBCO filed a lawsuit and asked for an emergency injunction so it could immediately stop the employee from competing against it. But the court said – surprise! – that it

Your competitor’s advertising makes false claims about how great its products are – or worse yet, disparages your own products. What are your options? You have a range of alternatives, from complaining to a private or government agency to filing a lawsuit. Here’s a look at some of the choices. If your competitor is saying things it shouldn’t, the simplest approach is to complain to the Better Business Bureau’s National Advertising Division, or NAD. The NAD

A company called Multi Time Machine makes high-end military-style watches. It refuses to sell them on Amazon. If you search for the company’s watches on Amazon, you’ll get a long list of competing watches. Is this illegal? Possibly, according to a federal appeals court in San Francisco, which allowed a lawsuit against Amazon.

Two years ago, retailer Neiman Marcus suffered a data breach that resulted in some 350,000 customers having their credit card information compromised. About 9,200 of those customers ended up with fraudulent credit card charges. That’s bad enough – but Neiman Marcus was then sued in a class action by customers who didn’t have any fraudulent charges on their cards. These customers said Neiman Marcus should nevertheless compensate them for the time and money they had spent

The Schick razor company recently complained to the National Advertising Division (an ad industry regulatory body administered by the Better Business Bureau) about ads created by the Dollar Shave Club. Schick believed the ads accused name-brand razor companies of engaging in price-gouging and ripping off customers by charging extra for useless features. One Shave Club ad showed a razor customer at a drugstore receiving a “free gift” of a kick in the groin along with his

The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision extending same-sex marriage to every state will have a big effect on many employee benefit programs. Prior to the ruling, most states (and the federal government) recognized same-sex marriage. If all of your employees live in states that previously recognized gay marriages, then no changes are required. But if any of your employees live in previously “non-marriage” states, then the ruling will make a difference. If some of your workers

Social media is a relatively new field, and the law is just beginning to catch up with all the issues that are being raised for businesses. Here’s a quick checklist of concerns. It’s by no means exhaustive, which is why a thorough legal review of a company’s social media practices is always a good idea. Do you look at employees’ (or job applicants’) personal social media accounts? These days, many employers want to keep tabs on

Many businesses have a buyout agreement that says that if one owner retires or resigns, the others can buy out his or her interest at a certain price. These agreements are a smart idea for retaining control of a company. But you should keep in mind that they can sometimes be used in ways you wouldn’t expect.

If you provide bonuses, awards, gifts or prizes to employees or customers, it’s important to understand the tax consequences. It’s particularly important if the recipient is going to have to pay a tax – you’ll want them to understand this fact from the start, so they don’t get an unpleasant surprise later. In general, any gifts made by a company to an employee are considered wages. They’re subject to both employment tax and income tax, and