Articles

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…

On April 20, 2016, the New Mexico Mining Commission (“NMMC”) conducted a hearing to consider a rule change to the New Mexico Mining Act Reclamation Program (“MARP”) regulations.  The New Mexico Mining Association (“NMMA”) proposed the rule change to expand eligibility for…

New Mexico employers that offer or are considering offering a wellness program should be aware that on May 16th, 2016, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) published the final version of two rules that regulate employer-sponsored wellness programs.  The rules provide…

The U.S. Supreme Court has unanimously held that a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (“Corps”) “approved jurisdictional determination” (“approved JD”) under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (“CWA”) is a final agency action judicially reviewable under the Administrative Procedure Act[1. 5…

On May 23, 2016, the United States Supreme Court decided that an employee’s time to file a discrimination charge for an alleged constructive discharge begins to run on the day that the employee quits his or her job (or gives notice of…

The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (the “DOL”) issued its final rule Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales and Computer Employees on May 17, 2016 (the “rule” or “final rule”).  The rule significantly impacts who…

Three companion decisions in Atlantic Richfield Co. v. U.S. et. al., Case No. 1:15-cv-00056, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico, provide insight on the CERCLA statute of limitations, potential pitfalls in pleading CERCLA claims, and the defense of…

On March 1, 2016, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld the United States Fish and Wildlife Service’s (“Service”) decision to not list the dunes sagebrush lizard.[1. Defenders of Wildlife, v. Sally Jewell, 2016 WL 790900 (D.C. Cir….