Thanks to DeSantis, Florida is no California wasteland of wokeness

As Published in the Miami Herald

An op-ed by Tripp Scott's Ed Pozzuoli

The Golden State continues to generate explosive costs of living, including gas prices over a dollar more than the national average and electricity costs 33% above the nation’s norms.

Pictured: A homeless man moves his belongings from a street near Los Angeles City Hall, background, as crews prepared to clean the area. RICHARD VOGEL AP Photo

Why Should My Company “Outsource” A General Counsel?

By William C. Davell

This month’s legal opinion is provided by Tripp Scott's Director Matthew Zifrony.

TSE's Candice Ericks Named One of City & State's Women Power 10

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., January 25, 2023 – Tripp Scott today announced that Candice Ericks, Director of Government Relations for TSE, the governmental affairs division of Tripp Scott, was named one of City & State Florida's Women Power 100. 

City & State is the premier media organization dedicated to covering Florida, New York and Pennsylvania's local and state politics and policy. Its in-depth, non-partisan coverage serves Florida’s leaders every day as a trusted guide to the issues impacting Florida. City & State Florida's Women Power 100 list is comprised of elected officials and high-powered lobbyists, leaders from the worlds of business, nonprofits, media, social justice, conservative think tanks and what we call the “persuasion industry”: public relations, strategic messaging and fundraising.

Florida had the red wave no other state saw. Here’s what we did right

Ron DeSantis was reelected by almost 20 points as the “red wave” crashed through Florida. However, that wave failed to extend nationally. Why?

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Biden Administration's Proposed New Independent-Contractor Test Can Impact Your Company's Bottom Line

A SPECIAL REPORT featuring analysis from Tripp Scott's Paul O. Lopez and Brittany Hynes

Companies routinely use independent contractors for special projects and isolated assignments as a way to cut down on the normal costs connected to hiring full time W-2 employees.  However, companies often misunderstand what a true independent contractor is versus a W-2 employee. 

This can place a bullseye squarely on a company’s back either through a Department of Labor (“DOL”) audit of its classification of laborers or through federal lawsuits filed under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) for alleged unpaid wages and overtime owed to misclassified independent contractors who are alleged to be employees.

The Biden administration’s Labor Department is looking to make it tougher to classify a worker as an independent contractor by modifying the current U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (“WHD”) regulations “to be more consistent with judicial precedent and the act’s text and purpose.” Employers need to be aware of these changes and the potential impact it will have on their labor costs if fully implemented.