The President of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López-Obrador, submitted a Bill on November 12th, 2020 before the House of Representatives of the Mexican Congress, in order to amend the Federal Labor Law, Social Security Law, Worker Housing Law (INFONAVIT), Federal Tax Code, Income Tax Law and the Value Added Tax Law. The main purpose of this initiative is to eliminate the abuse of subcontracting. The Bill argues that “outsourcing” or “insourcing” are detrimental to worker’s rights and facilitate tax evasion through simulation practices reporting lower wages.

One of the many challenging issues faced by companies doing business overseas is managing legal risk in employment matters. Assume that your TX based company does business in Mexico and decides to transfer a key executive from the US to Mexico. The transfer seems good business judgment until something goes wrong and the corporation decides to terminate that executive.

On Tuesday, March 24, 2020, the US Department of Labor issued a bulletin that provides a bit of grace for employers as they work to comply with the new sick leave and family medical-leave laws that went into effect last week. In sum, the Department will not bring an enforcement action against an employer for violations of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act if the employer acts reasonably and in good faith to comply. The attached bulletin provides the criteria the Department will consider in determining whether the employer acted reasonably and with good faith. The non-enforcement period expires on April 17, 2020, so employers have a limited window to get into compliance. If you have questions about the Act or how recent events may impact your business, please call James in the Houston metro area at 832.764.7202 or Patrick in the San Antonio area at 210.504.4401.

This summary provides an overview of some novel business issues our clients are experiencing amidst the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The following information is for illustration purposes and not legal advice. If you need more specific guidance on one of the issues discussed in this presentation, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Plan, Prepare and Respond to Coronavirus Disease 2019 Older adults and people who have severe underlying chronic medical conditions like heart or lung disease or diabetes seem to be at higher risk for developing more serious complications from COVID-19 illness. Find more information here. This interim guidance is based on what is currently known about the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will update this interim guidance as needed and as additional information becomes available.

The Anadarko Change of Control has left many of its legacy employees questioning next steps. Many of these employees have found the transition to Occidental to be bumpy—having had their positions reduced and their duties transferred away. Many of these employees want to know their options and determine their eligibility for Change of Control Separation Benefits so that they can terminate employment and move forward. Alison Wills can assist with this transition. Alison is familiar with this Change of Control and how it impacts legacy Anadarko employees. If you need a thorough review of Change of Control documents, an analysis of your eligibility for Good Reason termination and entitlement to Separation Benefits, and representation in releasing claims, please contact Alison at awills@lkclawfirm.com or by telephone at (832) 764-7203.

While a bank loan and a commercial mortgage backed security (CMBS) loan are similar in many ways, they are not created equal and come with some disadvantage to the Borrower. Traditionally, the CMBS loans have enticed commercial real estate borrowers by offering lower interest rates (not always the case), higher loan-to-value (LTV) ratios, and a seemingly endless availability of capital. If you are contemplating a CMBS loan, you should be aware of the disadvantages and some ways that you can mitigate those disadvantages.

Patrick Cohoon with Leger Ketchum & Cohoon recently secured a Firm client’s trial court victory in an appeal made to Texas’ Fifth Court of Appeals in Dallas. In the underlying suit, the client’s principal was personally targeted for liability under commercial leases. Mr. Cohoon obtained dismissal of the suit in Travis County’s 201st District Court based on special appearance. Plaintiff appealed based on an undisclosed-principal theory. After briefing and oral arguments, the court agreed with the Firm’s client and upheld the trial court’s dismissal with prejudice.

Leger Ketchum & Cohoon’s litigation group successfully prosecuted a Federal Torts Claims Act (“FTCA”) case against the United States of America. Attorneys J. Patrick Cohoon and Alison R. Wills represented F.E.I. Company in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania before the Honorable Yvette Kane. F.E.I. owned and operated a cold storage warehouse and stored amenable meat and poultry products for its customers’ supply chain needs. The United States Department of Agriculture (“USDA”), as part of its regulatory powers, detained products in F.E.I.’s warehouse. Leger Ketchum & Cohoon established that the USDA was negligent in failing to remove the detention order in a timely manner and in violation of the USDA’s own policies and regulations. As a result of this unlawful extended detention period, F.E.I suffered harm, for which it was compensated. FTCA claims are complicated legal matters that require careful exhaustion of administrative remedies and litigation in federal courts. Contact Leger Ketchum & Cohoon to discuss your litigation needs and strategies.

There has been a lot of buzz about the self-storage market in the U.S., but you have to ask yourself when will the market be saturated? Only 8% of the U.S. population use self-storage and that is expected to conservatively grow to 9%. I have watched 3 new properties be built close to my home and it was amazing to see them go up so quickly and I often wonder how quickly they fill up.