Author: Modrall Sperling

On February 5, 2016, The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“FWS”) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service (“NOAA”) finalized two rules and a draft policy that renovate how the agencies implement critical habitat designation requirements under the…

The New Mexico Court of Appeals recently considered the legal standard applying to employee reverse-discrimination claims under the New Mexico Human Rights Act (“NMHRA”).  Reverse discrimination occurs when a member of a majority group is discriminated against on the basis of a…

The United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) published its updated Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) overtime regulations on May 18, 2016.  The new regulations increase the salary requirements for employees who are exempt under the FLSA—and, thus, not entitled to overtime wages. …

How a business classifies a worker has a dramatic impact on both the worker and the business. For example, in New Mexico, pay received by independent contractors is subject to gross receipts tax unless a statutory exemption or deduction applies to a…

As we previously reported in our Fall 2015 ERN,[1. See Joan Drake and Deana Bennett, The Clean Water Rule: Troubled Waters Ahead for the EPA and Corps, Energy Resources Notes, Fall 2015, at 2-6.] several industry and environmental groups have challenged the Environmental Protection Agency’s Final…