Friend Hudak Harris

There are a lot of factors that an employer must stay on top of to make sure his or her business is a success. Some of these are internal to the business (such as trying to produce and sell quality products and services while keeping costs down), while others require focusing on external factors (keeping an eye on trends in the economy and the relevant industry, as well as staying abreast of what the competition is doing). Given all this, it can be all-too-easy to give short shrift to an area of your business that is not only crucial to your success but also a minefield of potential liability and compliance issues – namely, your workforce and your employment practices.

“Additional terms and conditions apply” is a phrase we have all heard from a voice-over on a late-night infomercial hawking vegetable juicers or subscriptions to a knife-of-the-month club. But just what are “terms and conditions” and how are they different from a normal contract? How can you make sure that your business’s “terms and conditions” are binding and enforceable? What if you want to change your “terms and conditions” from time to time?

No matter what type of commercial property you may be considering, whether office building, apartment, warehouse, or shopping center, the savvy prospective buyer needs to undertake a thorough investigation of a variety of elements that affect the value of that property. This is the due diligence process, and a buyer’s careful and comprehensive performance of this phase can mean the difference between a successful purchase and severe buyer’s remorse.

Your business is growing and fortune is shining. Out-of-state opportunities are increasing. Perhaps you are considering expanding operations. If you haven’t already, you’re likely to end up serving the world’s sixth largest economy—California. And who wouldn’t want to be in California? It has nearly 40 million consumers.
Before heading out with your sunscreen and order book, there are a few intricacies of California law that any out-of-state business should keep in mind when doing business with California-based employees and parties.

Does your company use form service agreements, purchase contracts, or online terms to conduct its business with customers? If so, you should review those documents immediately to make sure you are compliant with the new Consumer Review Fairness Act of 2016 (CRFA), which makes it unlawful in many cases to use your “standard terms” to control what your customer says about you, your products, or services.