ENTERTAINMENT LAW CIRCULAR
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In case you missed it, our firm partnered with
Slamdance Film Festiva
l
&
MovieMaker Magazine
to host a virtual legal clinic and answered producers' questions about their rights and obligations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Don't miss our next
LIVE event!
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Thursday, May 14th
11AM PDT
/ 2PM EDT
David Albert Pierce goes live again!
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WHAT'S NEW AT PIERCE LAW GROUP LLP?
-- April 2020 --
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Have you met our newest team members?
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Cassandra Johnson
An entertainment attorney at PLG, Cassandra handles both transactional and civil litigation matters. Cassandra's practice focuses on film finance, corporate entities and corporate governance, copyright, trademark and clearance matters, as well as talent negotiations. Cassandra received her Bachelors of Science from
Cornell University where she received numerous awards and accolades. Following Cornell, Cassandra received her Juris Doctorate from the
University of Pennsylvania Law School where she served as Associate Editor for the
Journal of Labor and Employment Law.
Cassandra is an Executive Board Member of the
Beverly Hills Bar Association Entertainment Law Section and a member of the
Association of Entertainment and Media Counsel.
When not working, Cassandra and her husband (who is also an attorney) spend their free time keeping up with their adorable twin toddlers-- one boy, one girl.
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Arya Mansour
As a new associate at PLG, Arya's practice includes transactional and civil litigation matters, involving entertainment, intellectual property, and labor & employment. Arya completed his Juris Doctorate at the
University of Maryland Law School at Baltimore. Arya received his undergraduate degree in Psychology from the
University of California, Los Angeles.
He is presently an active member of the
Beverly Hills Bar Association in the Entertainment Law section, and the
Los Angeles County Bar Association in the Entertainment as well as the Intellectual Property section.
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How are you, anyway?
We want to hear from YOU!
Please take a moment to complete our 2020 client survey:
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EMPLOYERS:
Know your Obligations
under the amended
CAL-WARN Act during COVID-19
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The
Federal WARN Act and the
California Cal-WARN Act are laws that require certain
"specific notices" to be provided to both employees
and
the state government when mass lay-offs occur. The federal law provides a specific exemption covering unforeseen events that trigger a
mass layoff, like the COVID-19 pandemic. But California law is not so clear as to whether the pandemic falls within the state's exception to CAL-WARN for "physical calamities."
David Albert Pierce lobbied the
Department of Labor Standards Enforcement to render an opinion letter, setting forth that the pandemic fell squarely within the definition of a calamity. Instead, the state chose to leave the issue undecided as to the meaning of "calamity." However, the Government issued an
Executive Order which provides a safe harbor for employers that don't wish to have to later argue that the pandemic falls within an exemption to the Cal-WARN notice requirements.
Cal-WARN applies to any employer that employs more than 75 full- or part-time employees over the last 12 months and who engaged in a mass layoff or plant closure (at one time or in stages over a 30 day period) involving 50 or more employees.
For those employers with that size of a workforce, visit the 'steps to comply' below, revealing the 'relaxed rules' of Cal-WARN during the pandemic.
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Pierce Law Group LLP can provide you with the necessary
Notice Requirements and draft the notice to both Employees and State Officials for those that are affected by Cal-WARN.
Are you an employer now subject to Cal-WARN, wishing to invoke the new safe harbor which will prevent your company from being subject to potential litigation brought by opportunistic class action lawyers?
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Independent Gig Workers' Guide to COVID-19 (2020)
We all know uncertainty is intuition's enemy, especially when it comes to finances. The good news is that on March 31st, the
US Chamber of Commerce issued a
Cheat Sheet for professionals looking for ways to navigate the new
Stimulus Package. Read all about it, and get even more
Disaster Loan Tips & Tricks at our firm's blog or by contacting a
Pierce Law Group attorney:
CONTACT AN ATTORNEY!
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State Tax Returns
While the Federal Tax Return deadline has been extended, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) urges taxpayers to check with their state tax agencies for those details. California, like the federal government has pushed its deadline to July 15, 2020.
Federal Tax Returns
For personal individual taxpayers, the original April 15, 2020 deadline for federal tax returns has been extended to July 15, 2020 to provide relief as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic. This relief applies to all individual returns, trusts, LLCs, and corporations.
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DISCLAIMER
We recommend that, while staying informed, you also contact your entity's
CPA
to ask about your precise tax filing requirements & how to prepare for a potential audit by the CA FTB.
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LEAVING CALIFORNIA?
Watch Out for an FTB Audit
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California has a 13.3% tax rate on high income earners, the highest tax rate in the nation. However, if you decide to leave California, you may continue to pay California taxes.
California's Franchise Tax Board (FTB) monitors the line between residents and non-residents vigorously.
The burden would be on
you to show that you are not a resident (a person in the state for other than a transitory or temporary purpose). If your job requires you to be outside of the state,
it typically takes 18 months to presume you are no longer a resident. Many items are considered to decide your residency, such as the location of your: home, family, bank account, professional and social organizations, voter registration, and driver's license.
The California FTB can also audit you for an unlimited amount of time, such as if you don't file an income tax return. For this reason, one strategy is to consider filing a non-resident tax return.
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AB-5 LEGISLATIVE EFFORTS
Who says lobbying can't be fun?
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On Wednesday, February 26th, David Albert Pierce joined forces with
Rana Ghadban
and J
acob Jauregui
of the
Hollywood Chamber of Commerce
in a meeting with
Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez
, in addition to key staff members of the
Cal Senate Labor & Employment Committee
in an effort to
lobby the
State Legislature in regards to amending the new law known as AB-5.
In specific, Pierce sought to have an express exemption to the bill for comedians and other live venue performers who have traditionally been treated as independent contractors and desire to continue to be treated that way.
David's client, comedian
Stephen Kramer Glickman
also joined in the lobbying efforts to provide practical insight as to why comedians should continue be recognized as independent contractors.
During our virtual legal clinic on April 9th, filmmakers were asking for the updates on AB-5, and wondering how legislation around COVID-19 will impact the original amendments to this bill. While the current law already has
some exemptions
, workers in non-exempt industries have been challenging the law since it took effect on January 1, 2020. While to COVID-19 pandemic has placed practically every other legal issue off the Legislature's immediate agenda, PLG-LLP continues to lobby to reform this bill and as life begins to return to normal, David will continue to pursue the discussions with key government officials about this issue.
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Stephen Kramer Glickman (left), comedian, & David Albert Pierce (right), outside of the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
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Stephen Kramer Glickman (left) with Hollywood Chamber of Commerce staff members: Jacob Jauregui, Director of Public Policy & Economic Development (middle), Rana Ghadban, President & CEO of the Chamber (right).
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RECENT DECISIONS RELEVANT
to the
ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY
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Who Wants Some Case Summaries?
Visit our website to view our Quarter One case summaries,
and more!
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MDAF Membership limited to attorneys who've won million dollar verdicts & settlements
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Don't forget to connect with us on social media!
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DISCLAIMER
The information you obtain in this newsletter is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. You should consult an attorney for advice regarding your individual situation. We invite you to contact us and welcome your calls, letters, and electronic mail. Contacting us does not create an attorney-client relationship. Please do not send any confidential information to us until such time as an attorney-client relationship has been established.
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