"I think one of the best indicators of career satisfaction for an on-demand GC is that, like me, many lawyers choose this role at the pinnacle of their in-house careers. I am able to continue pursuing a professionally challenging career, while maintaining control over my time and my life," explains Outside GC Member, Lakshmi Sarma Ramani, in her recent article published in the ACC Docket's July/August issue. 

Open source software (“OSS”) is now ubiquitous, providing community-vetted solutions to common requirements in the software industry. The widespread use of OSS is especially common with start-ups who are driven by the need to develop a minimum viable product as fast as possible in order to quickly enter the market and acquire market feedback.

Massachusetts has a new law that prohibits employers from requiring that certain types of employees sign non-competition or “forfeiture for competition” agreements (collectively “non-competition agreements”) and establishes minimum requirements that non-competition agreements must meet to be enforceable. The new law will take effect on October 1, 2018 and apply to agreements executed after that date. 

Tax-exempt organizations must become increasingly aware of the regulatory landscape in which they operate. In this ACC Docket article, Lakshmi Sarma-Ramani, a Member with our Washington D.C.-based team, provides an overview of state oversight areas that carry registration or reporting requirements. 

U.S. companies handling the personal data of EU residents should now be familiar with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the new data protection law covering all countries in the EU, which went into effect on May 25, 2018. News about the GDPR has been plentiful, including Outside GC’s own alerts. However, compliance with EU privacy laws does not end with this regulation. There are other EU legislations covering privacy matters outside of the GDPR, such as the E-Privacy Directive 2002/58/EC of 2002 (a/k/a the “Cookies Directive”) and the “national derogations” of individual EU member state laws which impose additional responsibilities for U.S. companies that use the personal data of its residents as part of their business activities.

New York legislators have recently taken significant steps towards strengthening the sexual harassment laws in both the state and New York City. Employers in these areas should familiarize themselves with the state’s and the city’s new legal requirements and begin immediately to prepare for compliance.