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Most people don't go through life thinking about how they're going to win a lawsuit two years down the road from the very first moment someone has somehow injured them. But employers, insurance companies, and customer service representatives certainly do. After all, who really thinks that the countless phone calls that you make to your bank, cell phone company, home security company, or cable operator really are recorded just for "quality assurance?"

On April 16, in Genesis HealthCare Corp. v. Symczyk, the US Supreme Court made it more difficult for employees who are entitled to back wages to band together in such a lawsuit. In a 5-4 opinion, the Court upheld the dismissal of the named plaintiff's claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act because the employer had successfully mooted her claims by offering back pay and attorney's fees.

Franchisees are protected by the North Carolina Business Opportunity Sales Act

News and Observer reports that the N.C. House approved a measure Tuesday to ease restrictions on homebuilders by limiting local inspections and delaying new construction rules.

The Triangle Business Journal recently reported that North Carolina securities regulators have filed a temporary cease-and-desist order against the owners of an online company that is not registered to sell securities in the state.

Last week, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held oral argument in three separate cases that involve drugs, alien smuggling, and gang-related extortion. The issue before the court was whether police could obtain from cell phone companies cellular tower records that show the placement and receipt of a suspect’s phone calls without first obtaining a warrant (and demonstrating probable cause).

A Federal Judicial Conference Committee has updated the model jury instructions used by judges in an effort to keep jurors from communicating or researching information about cases.

The North Carolina ACLU has weighed-in on federal prosecutors' inaction despite misapplication of North Carolina law.

A snapshot of the preliminary stages of a federal prosecution.

A Look at Two Significant Criminal Law Cases Recently Decided by the Supreme Court