Monthly Archives: November 2016

2016 Super Lawyers

Lindner & Marsack, S.C. proudly announces that seven of its attorneys have been acknowledged as 2016 Super Lawyers or Rising Stars by Super Lawyers Magazine.  “We appreciate the support of the legal community and our clients in acknowledging the quality of the legal services we provide,” said Thomas W. Mackenzie, President of the firm.  He added, “the Super Lawyers designation is a way to recognize the accomplishments of attorneys who work hard every day to find solutions to the problems confronting employers.  We have a great team.”

The individual attorneys recognized as Super Lawyers in 2016 included Douglas Feldman, Daniel Finerty, Thomas Mackenzie, Gary Marsack, Jonathan Swain and Oyvind Wistrom.  The list of Rising Stars (under 40 years old or less than ten years of practice) included Chelsie Springstead.

TEXAS COURT ISSUES NATIONWIDE INJUNCTION, BARRING THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR’S PERSUADER RULE

By: Thomas W. Mackenzie

Yesterday (November 16, 2016), the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a permanent injunction barring enforcement of the U.S. Department of Labor’s “Persuader Advice Exemption Rule.”  As we have reported in previous E-Alerts, this rule would have required employers and their attorneys to report expenditures incurred in resisting union organizing efforts.  Historically, reporting was only required when a law firm engaged in active persuader activity such as giving a speech to the employer’s employees in a union organizing drive.  Under the new rules, an attorney would be required to report if he or she engaged in speech writing, letter drafting or supervisor training. The rule was unquestionably designed to discourage law firms from representing employers in union organizing campaigns.

In arguing that the law was unlawful, the plaintiffs claimed, in part, that the reporting requirements invaded the attorney-client privilege.  The Texas judge issued a preliminary injunction on June 27, 2016.  The injunction was made permanent by the decision issued yesterday.  The decision will unquestionably be appealed.  However, it is unlikely that a decision at the appellate level will be issued before President Elect Trump takes office and a new Secretary of Labor is appointed.

The new requirement was challenged in multiple court cases by business groups and, in a case currently pending in Minnesota, by the Worklaw Network, an association of management-side labor and employment law firms of which Lindner & Marsack is the Wisconsin representative.

Although it is impossible these days to predict anything with certainty, the so-called “Persuader Rule” would appear to be in critical condition and unlikely to be enforced in the foreseeable future, if ever.

EMPLOYERS TO BEGIN USING REVISED FORM I-9

November 14, 2016

By:  Laurie A. Petersen and Samantha J. Wood

Today, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a revised version of the Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9.  While this revised form is available now for use, employers may continue using the March 2013 version until January 21, 2017.  After January 21, 2017, employers MUST use the revised form, available at: https://www.uscis.gov/i-9

The revised Form I-9 is much more user-friendly, containing the following changes:

  • Electronic buttons that allow users to: access the full instructions, print the form, and clear the form to start over.
  • Electronic buttons that provide drop down instructions.
  • Prompts and validations to ensure information is entered correctly.
  • Drop down lists and calendars.
  • Section 1 asks for “other last names used” rather than “other names used.”
  • Additional space to allow the entry of multiple preparers and translators and an additional box labeled “I did not use a preparer or translator.”
  • A supplemental page for the preparer/translator.
  • A dedicated area for including additional information rather than having to add it in the margins.
  • The removal of the requirement that immigrants authorized to work provide both their Form I-94 number and foreign passport information.
  • A new “Citizenship/Immigration Status” field.
  • A quick response (QR) code, which is automatically generated when the employer prints the form.

If you have questions about this material, please contact Laurie A. Petersen or Samantha J. Wood by email at lpetersen@lindner-marsack.com or swood@lindner-marsack.com, or any other attorney you have been working with here at Lindner & Marsack, S.C.

Governor Walker Officially Proclaims November 14-18 Kids’ Chance Awareness Week

Kids’ Chance of Wisconsin, a non-profit organization that provides scholarships to children of seriously injured workers in Wisconsin, got a nod from Governor Scott Walker’s office with the official proclamation of November 14-18 as Kids’ Chance Awareness Week in Wisconsin.

Lindner & Marsack, S.C., along with other partners, helped establish Kids’ Chance in Wisconsin in 2013. Lindner & Marsack shareholder Douglas Feldman is a founding board member and Kids’ Chance of Wisconsin president. “When the family of a child in Wisconsin is affected by a serious workplace injury, we work to ensure that child is still able to pursue and achieve their educational goals,” Feldman says.

Kids’ Chance Wisconsin is the statewide affiliate of the national Kids’ Chance organization. Kids’ Chance Awareness Week is designed to increase visibility through special outreach events that help spread the word about Kids’ Chance scholarship opportunities. For more information about Kids’ Chance Wisconsin visit http://kidschanceofwi.org/.