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Competing Values: Health v. Democracy
August 16, 2021 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsA summary of the war between state and local responses to COVID-19 By Jonathan S. Petree Attorney at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. August 16, 2021 On May 18, 2021, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued an Executive Order banning mask mandates. Executive Order GA-36 prohibits governmental entities in Texas—including counties, cities, school districts, public health authorities, or government officials—from requiring …
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Mask On | Mask Off | Mask On
August 13, 2021 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Jonathan S. Petree Attorney at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. August 12, 2021 On May 18, 2021, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued an Executive Order banning mask mandates. Executive Order GA-36 prohibits governmental entities in Texas—including counties, cities, school districts, public health authorities, or government officials—from requiring or mandating mask wearing. 1 Pursuant to Governor Abbott’s Executive Order, no …
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Case Law Update: Interpretation and Applicability of Force Majeure Clauses and Common Law Doctrines During the COVID-19 Pandemic
April 7, 2021 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Amy Kearney Attorney at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. April 7, 2021 As courts around the country grapple with the legal implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on contractual disputes, some clear trends have emerged. This article will first summarize case law originating from New York, as the majority of applicable cases have, to this point, been litigated in New …
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Employee Leave Laws Impacted by Latest COVID Package
March 18, 2021 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Jennifer Ryback, Shareholder at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. March 18, 2021 As discussed in a previous article, The Families First Coronavirus Response Act: A Summary for Employers,[1] the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) imposed two leave mandates on employers with fewer than 500 employees—(1) under the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (EPSLA), a two-week emergency paid sick …
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COVID-19 Vaccinations from the Employer Perspective
March 15, 2021 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Jennifer Ryback Shareholder at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. March 15, 2021 When news broke that the first COVID-19 vaccination was ready to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration, there was uncertainty about whether employers could require employees to be vaccinated. On December 16, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (the “EEOC”) provided guidance on that question …
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Reopening the Economy: Part 7
March 5, 2021 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Preston W. Rose Attorney at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. March 5, 2021 Texas Governor Greg Abbott has removed state restrictions on businesses and ended the statewide mask mandate. Taking effect on Wednesday, March 10, 2021, Executive Order No. GA-34 will allow all businesses to operate at 100% capacity and will remove the statewide mask mandate, except in “areas …
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Reopening the Economy: Part 6
September 18, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Preston W. Rose Attorney at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. September 18, 2020 After months with little to no new guidance regarding business closures, on September 17, 2020, Texas Governor Greg Abbott released Executive Order No. GA-30, which updates the COVID-19 guidance for Texas businesses.[1] This new guidance is based on a new region-specific scheme that is dependent upon the …
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PPP Updates: Deadline Extended, Partial Loan Forgiveness
July 2, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Jack Gannon Jr. Attorney at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C July 2, 2020 The application deadline for the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) has been extended from June 30 to August 8 of this year, giving borrowers additional time to apply for PPP loans. The relevant bill was passed by the Senate on June 30 and then by the House …
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Reopening the Economy: Part 5
June 26, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Preston W. Rose Attorney at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. June 26, 2020 On June 26, 2020, Texas Governor Greg Abbott released Executive Order No. GA-28 reinstituting stricter rules for Texas businesses.[1] This comes on the heels of the Governor’s announcement a day prior, which paused further phases of reopening and placed a ban on elective surgeries in certain counties. …
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Reopening Update: What Employers Need to Know
June 24, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Amy Kearney Attorney at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. June 24, 2020 On June 18, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) issued guidance to assist both employers reopening non-essential businesses and their employees returning to work amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The full text of the guidance can be found at the following link: …
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OSHA Guidance for Construction Employers and Workers
June 12, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Christopher M. Anaya Attorneys at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. June 12, 2020 OSHA recently announced the launch of a webpage with coronavirus-related guidance for construction employers and workers, which can be found at the following link: https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/covid-19/construction.html. The webpage includes a disclaimer to make clear that the information provided is intended to assist employers in providing a safe …
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Important Updates Regarding Your PPP Loan
June 10, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsIn an earlier article, we summarized key information that borrowers under the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) need to know. Despite initial guidance and instructions from the Small Business Association (“SBA”) and the United States Department of the Treasury (“U.S. Treasury”), many questions were left unanswered and uncertainty ensued. Ongoing concern regarding the underlying PPP framework has lingered. Recent developments have …
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Reopening the Economy: Part 4
June 8, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Preston W. Rose Attorney at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. June 8, 2020 On June 3, 2020, Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced Phase 3 of his plan to reopen Texas.[1] For a summary of Governor Abbott’s previous guidance, please see my earlier articles: Reopening the Economy: Part 1, Reopening the Economy: Part 2, and Reopening the Economy: Part 3. …
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Reopening the Economy: Part 3
May 19, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Preston W. Rose Attorney at McGuire, Craddock & Strother May 19, 2020 On May 18, 2020, Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced Phase 2 of his plan to reopen Texas.[1] For a summary of Gov. Abbott’s previous guidance, please see my earlier articles: Reopening the Economy: Part 1 and Reopening the Economy: Part 2. Some of Gov. Abbott’s changes go …
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Reopening the Economy: Part 2
May 8, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Preston W. Rose Attorney at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. May 8, 2020 On May 5, 2020, Texas Governor Greg Abbott released additional statewide guidance pertaining to the reopening of the Texas economy.[1] For a summary of Governor Abbott’s previous guidance, please see my earlier article: Reopening the Economy: Part 1. Some of Governor Abbott’s changes go into effect …
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Now That You Have Your PPP Loan, Here’s What You Need to Know
May 4, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsWe previously provided a brief summary of the loan initiative created by the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”). Businesses across the country are now receiving their PPP loan funds, and with the recent increase in aggregate appropriation levels from $350 billion to $670 billion, an influx of additional …
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Reopening in the Wake of COVID-19: What Employers Need to Know
May 1, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Jennifer Ryback and Amy Kearney Attorneys at McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. May 1, 2020 The timeline[1] for reopening workplaces in the wake of COVID-19 will look different for each business and will need to be individually tailored depending on the business’s industry and geographic location, among other factors. As essential businesses continue to operate and nonessential businesses begin …
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Reopening the Economy: Part 1
April 30, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Preston W. Rose McGuire, Craddock & Strother, P.C. April 30, 2020 With some areas in the United States starting to see gradual decreases in hospitalizations and other coronavirus (“COVID”) statistics, many business owners are starting to wonder how the economy will start reopening after government mandated restrictions begin to ease. This article will provide a general overview of the …
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An Update on Construction as “Essential”: CISA Publishes Guidance on the Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce, Version 3.0
April 23, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Chris Anaya McGuire, Craddock & Strother April 23, 2020 As you may know, Governor Greg Abbott recently issued an Executive Order relating to the statewide continuity of essential services and activities during the COVID-19 disaster. The Executive Order clarified the meaning of “Essential Services” by adopting the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Guidance on the Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce, …
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New Dallas County Ordinance Requires Public to Wear Face Masks at Essential Businesses
April 16, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Jennifer Ryback McGuire, Craddock & Strother April 16, 2020 Dallas County has amended its “Safer At Home Order” to require cloth face coverings in certain situations, effective at 11:59 p.m. on Friday, April 17. To read the full text of the Amended Order, visit: https://www.dallascounty.org/Assets/uploads/docs/covid-19/orders-media/041520-DallasCountyOrder.pdf. To the greatest extent possible, the Amended Order requires some form of covering over …
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Construction as “Essential”: Reconciling Governor Abbott’s Executive Order with the Dallas County Amended Order
April 3, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Chris Anaya McGuire, Craddock & Strother April 3, 2020 Last month many local jurisdictions enacted shelter in place orders. These orders differed in their definitions of essential businesses and services, which created confusion for businesses that operated in more than one jurisdiction. On March 31, 2020, Governor Greg Abbott issued Executive Order GA 14 (the “Order”) relating to statewide …
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Summary of Keeping American Workers Paid and Employed Act (“KAWPEA”), a part of the CARES Act
April 2, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsGrady Dickens McGuire, Craddock & Strother April 2, 2020 KAWPEA allocates $349 billion to a program administered by the Small Business Administration. The program is structured as a loan, but it acts more like a grant program with the intention to encourage employers to retain their employees during the COVID-19 pandemic. This memo will provide a broad overview of KAWPEA …
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Application of Force Majeure Clauses and Common Law Doctrines of Impossibility and Frustration of Purpose in the Wake of COVID-19 under Texas, New York, and Delaware Law
April 1, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsBy Lauren Smyth & Amy Kearney McGuire, Craddock & Strother April 1, 2020 In an effort to minimize the financial ramifications of the global coronavirus or “COVID-19” pandemic, clients and practitioners alike are turning to contractual provisions and common law doctrines to defer, and even excuse, performance of contractual obligations. The first two sections of this article briefly summarize the …
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THE DOL ISSUES GUIDANCE ON THE FAMILIES FIRST CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE ACT (“FFCRA”)
March 25, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsJennifer Ryback McGuire, Craddock & Strother March 25, 2020 The Department of Labor has published a number of resources on the new FFCRA, which can be accessed here: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/pandemic. Notably, the Questions and Answers make clear that the effective date of the FFCRA is April 1, 2020, which is different than the April 2, 2020 originally anticipated. The Questions and …
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THE FAMILIES FIRST CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE ACT: A SUMMARY FOR EMPLOYERS
March 19, 2020 - Posted in: COVID-19 NewsJennifer Ryback McGuire, Craddock & Strother March 19, 2020 President Trump signed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) into law on March 18. The FFCRA’s provisions will go into effect within 15 days and will be effective through December 31, 2020. Congress is expected to consider additional measures related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Below is a summary of the …
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