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Search results for “independent contractors”

20 results

Employee vs independent contractor: the liability dodge that usually fails

Vicarious liability means you can end up paying for someone else's misconduct, and the old "they weren't really my employee" escape hatch is a lot weaker than people think.

ARTICLE by Danny Correia

independent adjuster

Like hiring a freelance mechanic instead of taking your truck to the dealership, an independent adjuster is a claims worker brought in by an insurance company on contract...

At-will employment: the "you can be fired anytime" rule has one giant catch

At-will employment is the default rule in almost every state, but it only really applies if you are legally an employee in the first place.

ARTICLE by James Thornton

Is it legal to make me sign a noncompete after I quit?

A major 2024 change put noncompetes in the spotlight: the FTC adopted a nationwide ban, but courts blocked that rule before it took effect for most employers. That means state...

Joint and several liability: the old rule that can leave one defendant holding the whole bag

Joint and several liability means an injured person may collect the full judgment from one defendant, but the real fight is how that rule collides with comparative fault, settlements, bankruptcy, and state law changes.

ARTICLE by Keith Ouellette

non-compete vs non-solicitation

Misreading these clauses can cost a worker a new job, trigger a lawsuit, or put a business's customer list and trade secrets at risk. A non-compete restricts where, when, or...

Habeas corpus is real, but proving you should be released is brutally hard

Habeas corpus lets a prisoner challenge unlawful custody, but modern federal habeas mostly turns on a punishing rule: it is not enough to show the state court was wrong.

ARTICLE by LaKeisha Davis

claims adjuster

Insurance companies often present this person as a neutral helper: someone "working on your claim" who just needs a statement, a medical release, or one more conversation to...

why can companies force arbitration instead of court?

The key thing to know is that many companies can require arbitration because federal law strongly favors enforcing arbitration clauses. Arbitration is a private dispute...

Can employees report illegal conduct without being fired?

Yes. What the insurance company does not want you to know about this is that whistleblower protection laws can block retaliation when a worker reports certain illegal conduct,...

A guide to RFRA and why Congress made it harder to enforce some laws

RFRA was Congress's response to a Supreme Court decision that weakened free-exercise protections, and it gives people a powerful way to argue that federal law burdens their religion too much.

ARTICLE by Sandra Fischer

coordination of benefits

A rule used when a person is covered by more than one insurance plan, telling the insurers which plan pays first, which pays second, and how much each must cover so the same...

ADA coverage looks narrow on paper, but the disability loophole mostly failed

The ADA has a definition that once let employers and businesses argue lots of people were not "really" disabled, but Congress and the courts largely shut that down.

ARTICLE by Brian Saarinen

What counts as employer retaliation for filing a workers' compensation claim?

What the ER doctor records is your injury, work restrictions, and likely cause; what the workers' compensation insurer does with that information is decide compensability and...

You'll usually see this on the declarations page of an insurance policy, in a denial letter, or when a claims adjuster says, "Only the named insured can make that change." It...

DMCA takedown notice

Not a court order, and not proof that someone actually infringed a copyright. It is a formal request sent under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA), usually...

How does a government tort claim work after a long-delayed injury?

A recent policy shift has made this more visible: federal agencies have tightened online claim procedures under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), so more people first learn...

bodily injury liability

Coverage that pays when you are legally responsible for hurting someone else. "Coverage" means part of an insurance policy, usually auto insurance, with a dollar limit. "Pays"...

Your gun rights may not save you - here is what Heller actually protects

Heller recognized an individual Second Amendment right, but people get burned when they assume that means every gun restriction in a lease, eviction case, protection order, or criminal case is automatically illegal.

ARTICLE by Keisha Williams

declarations page

One page can make or break how much money is available after a crash, fire, or other loss. If the numbers on it are wrong, too low, or missing a vehicle, driver, or address, an...