Expert Analysis

• Prepping For 2026 Shifts In Calif. Workplace Safety Rules

  

  California's Division of Occupational Safety and Health is preparing for significant shifts and increased enforcement in 2026, so key safety programs — including injury and illness prevention plans, workplace violence plans, and heat illness prevention procedures — must remain a focus for employers, says Rachel Conn at Conn Maciel.

• 1st-Of-Its-Kind NIL Claim Raises Liability Coverage Questions

  

  The University of Georgia Athletic Association recently sought to compel arbitration against former UGA football player Damon Wilson in a first-of-its-kind legal action for breach of a name, image and likeness contract, highlighting questions around student-athlete employment classification and professional liability insurance coverage, says Sarah Abrams at Baleen Specialty.

• 9th Circ. Ruling Upholds Employee Speech Amid Stalled NLRB

  

  The Ninth Circuit's recent decision in National Labor Relations Board v. North Mountain Foothills Apartments shows that courts are enforcing National Labor Relations Act protections despite the board's current paralysis, so employers must tread carefully when disciplining employee speech, whether at work or online, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.

• Handbook Hot Topics: An Employer-Friendly Shift At NLRB

  

  As the National Labor Relations Board is expected to shift toward issuing more employer-friendly decisions, employers should still monitor NLRB trends concerning handbook policies before making substantial changes to protocol and continue to align policies with employees' rights under the National Labor Relations Act, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.

• What To Know As Rulings Limit NLRB's Expanded Remedies

  

  Two recent appellate decisions strongly rebuke the National Labor Relations Board's expansion of remedies beyond reinstatement and back pay under Thryv, which compensated employees for all direct or foreseeable pecuniary harms, signaling increased judicial skepticism toward the board's broadened remedial authority, says Shay Billington at CDF Labor.

• NLRB Memo Shifts Tone On Defenses Against Union 'Salting'

  

  The current Starbucks strike demonstrates the potential effects of salting, in which applicants seek employment in order to organize a union, and recent guidance from the National Labor Relations Board suggests that previously rejected employer defenses may now gain traction, says Daniel Johns at Cozen O'Connor.

• How To Prepare If Justices Curb Gov't Contractor Immunity

  

  Given the very real possibility that the U.S. Supreme Court will determine in GEO v. Menocal that government contractors do not have collateral immunity, contractors should prepare by building the costs of potential litigation, from discovery through trial, into their contracts and considering other pathways to interlocutory appeals, says Lisa Himes at Rogers Joseph.

• What To Mull After 9th Circ. Ruling On NLRB Constitutionality

  

  The Ninth Circuit recently rejected three constitutional attacks on the National Labor Relations Board in NLRB v. North Mountain Foothills Apartments, leaving open a debate about what remedies the NLRB can award employees and creating a circuit split that could foretell a U.S. Supreme Court resolution, say attorneys at Proskauer.

• Strategic Use Of Motions In Limine In Employment Cases

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  Because motions in limine can shape the course of employment litigation and ensure that juries decide cases on admissible, relevant evidence, understanding their strategic use is essential to effective advocacy and case management at trial, says Sara Lewenstein at Nilan Johnson.

• How Employers Should Reshape AI Use As Laws Evolve

  

  As laws and regulations on the use of artificial intelligence in employment evolve, organizations can maximize the innovative benefits of workplace AI tools and mitigate their risks by following a few key strategies, including designing tools for auditability and piloting them in states with flexible rules, say attorneys at Cooley.

• H-1B Fee Guidance Is Helpful But Notable Uncertainty Persists

  

  Recent guidance narrowing the scope of the $100,000 entry fee for H-1B visas will allow employers to plan for the hiring season, but a lack of detail about the mechanics of cross-agency payment verification, fee exemptions and other practical matters still need to be addressed, say attorneys at Klasko Immigration Law Partners.

• AG Watch: Illinois A Key Player In State-Level Enforcement

  

  Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has systematically strengthened his office to fill federal enforcement gaps, oppose Trump administration mandates and advance state policy objectives, particularly by aggressively pursuing labor-related issues, say attorneys at Troutman.

• What's At Stake In High Court Pension Liability Case

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court’s upcoming decision in M&K Employee Solutions v. Trustees of the IAM National Pension Fund will determine how an employer’s liability for withdrawing from a multiemployer retirement plan is calculated — a narrow but key issue for employer financial planning and collective bargaining, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.