Blogs

Employment Law

Sea Change in Virginia Non-Competition Law

Virginia courts continue to view non-compete agreements skeptically, but recent case law may make it more difficult for employees to defeat those restrictions at the earliest stages of litigation. In this Bean, Kinney & Korman article, James V. Irving explains how the Virginia Supreme Court’s decision in Assurance Data, Inc. v. Malyevac shifted the procedural landscape by holding that employers should generally have the opportunity to present evidence supporting the reasonableness of a…

September 24, 2013

Construction

Newberry Station: Political Contributions vs. Political Realities

Political contributions and developer-politician interaction are facts of life in the development community. And it makes sense too – developers bring many benefits to communities, such as housing, work space, shopping, and contributions to community amenities, while politicians help marshal the project in a manner they believe will benefit constituents. To be sure, there must…

September 11, 2013

Business and Financial Services

A Tactical Approach to Defending Virginia Non-Competes

Virginia civil procedure provides a defendant with two principal avenues to challenge the sufficiency of a plaintiff’s claim. The first, a demurrer, contends that even if all well-pled facts are true, the complaint is inadequate. The court will not look beyond the four corners of the complaint in judging a demurrer. In contrast to the first challenge, a plea in bar provides a defendant with the opportunity to offer evidence to defeat the plaintiff’s claim by proving or disproving a distinct…

September 1, 2013

Business and Financial Services

Proactive Steps to Protect Trade Secrets

Trade secret protection depends as much on preventive measures as it does on the underlying value of the information itself. In this Bean, Kinney & Korman article published in the BKK Business Law Newsletter, James V. Irving explains that the Virginia Trade Secrets Act protects confidential business information only if three conditions are met: the information qualifies as a trade secret, the owner takes reasonable steps to maintain secrecy, and the person using the information knows or should…

September 1, 2013

Employment Law

Fourth Circuit Joins D.C. Circuit in Striking Down NLRB’s Employee Rights Notice Posting Rule

In June 2013, the Fourth Circuit joined the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in vacating the National Labor Relations Board’s “notice posting rule” (the “rule”). The controversial rule would have impacted nearly six million employers, the majority of which are small businesses. The rule issued by the National Labor…

August 16, 2013

Divorce and Family Law

Divorce and the Professional: Division of Property and Business Interests

Divorce can create especially difficult property division issues for professionals, business owners, and individuals with stock options or ownership interests in closely held companies. In this Bean, Kinney & Korman article, James W. Korman explains that equitable distribution laws can treat business interests, stock, deferred compensation, and professional practices as marital property subject to division. The article notes that even where one spouse built the business independently,…

August 7, 2013

Estate Planning

Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act

Transfer-on-death deeds can allow real property to pass directly to named beneficiaries without going through probate, creating a simpler option for certain estate plans. In this Bean, Kinney & Korman article published in the BKK Wills, Trusts & Estates Newsletter, Jonathan C. Kinney explains that Virginia’s adoption of the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act allows real estate to be handled in a manner similar to bank or brokerage accounts with transfer-on-death or pay-on-death…

August 2, 2013

Estate Planning

Basic Information About Durable General Powers of Attorney

A durable general power of attorney can be one of the most important estate planning documents because it allows a trusted agent to manage financial and legal matters if the principal becomes incapacitated. In this Bean, Kinney & Korman article, the analysis explains that Virginia’s Uniform Power of Attorney Act changed several important rules governing these documents. Powers of attorney are now presumed durable unless stated otherwise, copies may be accepted in place of originals, and…

August 1, 2013

Estate Planning

Per Stirpes Means Per Stirpes, Correct?

The phrase “per stirpes” does not always produce the same inheritance result because some states follow a traditional definition while others use the modern approach contained in the Uniform Probate Code. In this Bean, Kinney & Korman article published in the BKK Wills, Trusts & Estates Newsletter, Jonathan C. Kinney explains that the traditional per stirpes method begins dividing an estate at the generation closest to the decedent, even if everyone in that generation has died, while the…

August 1, 2013

Tax Law

When You Thought It Was Safe to Go Back in the Water – Estate Tax Revisions

Federal estate tax changes in 2013 reduced uncertainty in some areas, but they also made clear that additional revisions could still be on the table. In this Bean, Kinney & Korman article published in the BKK Wills, Trusts & Estates Newsletter, Jonathan C. Kinney explains that the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 set the federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax exemption at $5.25 million per person, indexed for inflation, while increasing the top estate tax rate to 40…

August 1, 2013