Legal News

Employer sponsors of 403(b) retirement plans have until March 31, 2020, to amend their plan documents to comply with Internal Revenue Service (IRS) rules stating what provisions must be contained in those documents. The most reliable way to satisfy...By: Ward and Smith, P.A.

Filing a bankruptcy petition automatically halts efforts to collect pre-petition debts from the debtor outside of bankruptcy. If a creditor wants to continue a lawsuit against a debtor outside of bankruptcy, repossess collateral, terminate a lease,...By: Ward and Smith, P.A.

Hammertime Security is a nationwide cybersecurity firm whose in-house counsel faces a slew of tricky legal problems: - Managers posting unprofessional content on social media - Employees publicly complaining about company working conditions -...By: Ward and Smith, P.A.

On January 12, 2020, the United States Department of Labor ("USDOL") Wage and Hour Division announced a final rule regarding joint employment under the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"), to be published on January 16 of this year, and effective 60...By: Ward and Smith, P.A.

North Carolina has seen an increase in the need for building repair services following the damage caused by recent hurricanes, including Florence in 2018 and Dorian in 2019....By: Ward and Smith, P.A.

Business consultant Karen Albritton along with Ward and Smith attorneys Deana Labriola and Matt Thompson, all with personal experience in a variety of companies, discussed several of the tricky issues related to ownership transitions in closely held...By: Ward and Smith, P.A.

How does the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission evaluate discrimination complaints? What trends is it seeing in the cases it’s reviewing? And how do investigators assess claims involving sexual harassment and equal pay violations?...By: Ward and Smith, P.A.

The Internal Revenue Service announced on Wednesday, November 6, that several contribution limits in qualified retirement plans will increase next year. The IRS announced the increases as part of an annual adjustment for cost-of-living increases as...By: Ward and Smith, P.A.

Sadly, accidents happen, and individuals are injured across our state in all sorts of different ways. When the victim is a recent immigrant to the United States, they sometimes have questions about how immigration status affects their ability to...By: Ward and Smith, P.A.

A recent decision of the North Carolina Court of Appeals serves as an important reminder to avoid the temptation to overreach when seeking to protect your customer relationships. Restrictive covenants prohibiting competition and customer...By: Ward and Smith, P.A.