Punitive damages, also known as "exemplary damages," may be awarded by the trier of fact (a jury or a judge, if a jury trial was waived) in addition to "actual damages," which compensate a plaintiff f...

For the second time this year, the legislature made significant changes to the competitive bidding statute.  The most recent amendment expands the “piggybacking” exception, such that municipalities ma...

On Tuesday the chairman of the National Labor Relations Board announced that the DC Circuit Court of Appeals has temporarily enjoined the NLRB's rule requiring the posting of employee rights, which ha...

Fire districts and other municipalities in New York are no longer required to award purchase contracts to the “lowest responsible bidder.”  Although public works contracts are still required to be awa...

With hundreds of millions of users worldwide, the social media revolution has arrived.  Generally, social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn allow their members to share information to en...

Governor Cuomo rang in the New Year by signing an amendment to the Open Meetings Law designed to enhance public participation and transparency.  Effective February 2, 2012, the agendas as well as any ...

You are driving to an important evening meeting along the expressway, traveling at 55 miles per hour.  Suddenly, lights of another care are coming at you … and moments later you feel the jarring colli...

The purchaser of business goodwill will often require the seller to enter into an express "covenant not to compete" prohibiting the seller from engaging in the type of business that he sold. The sell...

Not if the municipality failed to include the criteria used to disapprove the low bid in the specifications.  So said the New York Court of Appeals in a decision handed down on June 9, 2011.  Over the...

It happens to everyone at least once in their lives.  You are involved in an automobile accident, have a dispute with the other party to the contract you signed, or see that a competitor’s business is...