Legal Updates Archive

In recent years, growing awareness of the ubiquity and possible dangers of PFAS — the class of compounds known as “forever chemicals” — has spawned an explosion in litigation and in new environmental statutes and regulations. This article, the first of two, explores the history of PFAS and the body of litigation these chemicals have elicited.

Paralleling this increase in litigation is an evolving regulatory regime that is in part based on existing environmental statutes and liabilities, and in part all its own. A PFAS regulatory regime targeted at removing PFAS from products, air, water and waste to prevent new PFAS pollution, managing PFAS when pollution has occurred, and cleaning up PFAS at particularly contaminated sites continues to be developed in Minnesota and at the federal level and is expected to increase (at least at the state level) in the years to come.

Given the recent uptick in immigration enforcement, there is a real risk that ICE may visit your healthcare facility. 

Upon taking office, President Trump directed federal agencies to freeze all new regulations pending review and to eliminate ten regulations for every new one going forward. As the new Congress convenes, federal legislators are moving to block certain recently enacted Biden era regulations through Congressional Review Act authority.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency recently published new water quality criteria for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) compounds on October 7 and December 26, 2024.

On December 9, 2024, the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed a district court’s summary dismissal of claims brought by local businesses against Pope County under the Minnesota Environmental Rights Act (MERA).

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has received enough petitions to reach the cap for the additional 20,716 H-2B visas made available for returning workers for the first half of fiscal year 2025.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the extension of Temporary Protected Status for El Salvador, Sudan, Ukraine and Venezuela. The extensions are effective for 18 months.

This article summarizes key highlights among the flurry of immigration-related actions since President Trump's inauguration on January 20, 2025.

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture is currently accepting applications for its Cooperative Development Grant Program.

In light of the Executive Orders by President Trump we are sharing with you guidance regarding what to expect and how to prepare for worksite visits from ICE, Wage and Hour Division or USCIS (FDNS).

Last week, the White House issued a number of executive orders with wide-ranging impact. Among them was an executive order reflecting, among other matters, the Trump Administration’s opposition to affirmative action and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in the workplace, entitled “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.”

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will soon be announcing the opening of the fiscal year (FY) 2026 H‑1B Lottery. We are anticipating the process will be similar to years past, whereby employers seeking to file FY 2026 H-1B cap-subject petitions, including those eligible for the advanced degree exemption, must first electronically register and pay a $215 registration fee for each electronic registration they submit to USCIS using a MyUSCIS registrant online account.

Today, the Iowa Supreme Court issued its ruling in MIMG CLXXII Retreat on 6th, LLC v. Miller unanimously finding that the CARES Act’s requirement that tenants of “covered properties” be issued a 30-day notice to vacate (in addition to the standard three-day nonpayment notice) has effectively lapsed and is no longer applicable to landlord-tenant relations in Iowa.

Minnesota’s Department of Employment and Economic Development has issued initial guidance for employers who do not want to participate in Minnesota’s Paid Leave Law program and instead offer an equivalent private plan. In this article, we summarize DEED’s recent guidance on private plan substitutions.

Building and maintaining an accessible, legally compliant website can be challenging. For years, technology vendor accessiBe advertised seemingly simple, quick and economical solutions, including a software plug-in tool called accessWidget.

Colleges and universities are warning foreign students to return to campus before President-elect Trump’s inauguration on January 20, 2025.

Effective January 13, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security will permanently increase the automatic extension period of work authorization to up to 540 days for eligible noncitizens who file a timely request to renew their work authorization.

The Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration will soon update the Adverse Effect Wage Rates for range and non-range H-2A applications

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services reminded stakeholders that a Form I-693, Report of Immigration Medical Examination and Vaccination Record, that is properly completed and signed by a civil surgeon on or after November 1, 2023, does not expire and may be used indefinitely as evidence.

The Department of Homeland Security announced a final rule, effective January 17, 2025, that will “significantly enhance U.S. companies’ ability to fill job vacancies in critical fields, strengthening our economy.”

DHS announced a final rule updating the temporary agricultural H-2A and temporary nonagricultural H-2B nonimmigrant worker programs. The rule, effective January 17, 2025, “seeks to strengthen worker protections and the integrity of the H-2 programs, provide greater flexibility for H-2A and H-2B workers, and improve program efficiency.”

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is now requiring certain applicants filing Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, to submit Form I-693, Report of Immigration Medical Examination and Vaccination Record, with their Form I-485 or the Form I-485 may be rejected.

The new edition of Form I-129 replaces the April 01, 2024, edition. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said there will be no grace period for the revised edition.

On December 31, 2024, the government filed an emergency application with the U.S. Supreme Court, to essentially again stay the nationwide injunction on the CTA.

On December 17, 2024, oral argument occurred before the Iowa Supreme Court in two identical cases the result of which is likely to bring much needed clarity to notice requirements under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security.

In advance of the upcoming holiday travel season and the incoming Trump administration on January 20, 2025, nonimmigrant employees, foreign students/scholars and their dependents (nonimmigrants) should take the following into consideration as they make their international travel plans.

USCIS and DOL have released the joint temporary rule implementing the process for employers who have a certified ETA 9142B with an employment start within FY 2025 (from October 1, 2024, to September 30, 2025) to apply for the 64,716 additional H-2B visa numbers.

A Minnesota Court of Appeals was recently tasked with deciding which statute provides for review of an amendment to a water appropriation permit.

On August 12, 2024, the Minnesota Court of Appeals reversed and remanded a district court’s entry for dismissal with prejudice for failure to comply with statutory service and publication requirements under the Minnesota Environmental Rights Act (MERA).

Former President Donald Trump’s election to a second term in the White House is sure to reshape immigration law and enforcement. What should employers expect, and how can they prepare?

The judge determined that the Biden administration lacked statutory authority for the program.

The Department of Labor proposes to amend the regulations consistent with recent federal litigation by clarifying existing requirements for employer-provided surveys for the H-2B program. DOL also proposes to add new requirements and eliminate Form ETA-9165.

The bulletin includes information on final action dates for employment-based visa preference cases, dates for filing of employment-based visa applications, diversity visa (DV) updates for December, and DV category rank cut-offs for January 2025, among other things.

The DHS, in consultation with the DOS, has announced the list of countries whose nationals are eligible to participate in the H-2A and H-2B nonimmigrant worker visa programs for the next 12 months.

The Department of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Department of Labor, will publish a temporary final rule on December 2, 2024, making available an additional 64,716 H-2B temporary nonagricultural worker visas for fiscal year 2025.

On November 27, 2024, the Department of Homeland Security published a notice designating Lebanon for Temporary Protected Status for 18 months. Accompanying the announcement is a Special Student Relief notice for F-1 nonimmigrant students from Lebanon.

The Department of Labor's Office of Foreign Labor Certification announced court orders issued by the Eastern District of Kentucky and Southern District of Mississippi associated with implementation of the 2024 Farmworker Protection Final Rule.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, on November 25, 2024, issued notice of its intent to adopt a series of new and amended rules that would convert a currently voluntary triennial program for reporting air toxics emissions into a mandatory annual program for most permit holders.

The State of Minnesota is less than one month away from banning the sale, offer for sale or distribution for sale of 11 categories of consumer products if those products include intentionally added per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances.

Purpose credit refers to loans made to purchase or carry certain securities that is secured by such stock allowing the borrower to leverage their investments. This practice poses risks, as it can lead to substantial financial losses if the value of the securities declines. Bankers are familiar with this topic, but from time to time it is good to go back to the basics to understand banks’ obligations related to purpose credit. 

The FTC has struck out in enforcing its final rule banning employment noncompetes, but there are more innings to go. Keep in mind that the rule would not have applied to entities exempt from the FTC’s jurisdiction. However, federal banking regulators retain discretion to apply the rule to entities under their jurisdiction.

With the proliferation of tools like Zelle, Venmo, CashApp, PayPal, and ApplePay, nearly every bank has now dealt with consumer fraud perpetrated through mobile payment apps, particularly with respect to P2P functionality. So, who bears the loss when a customer reports that they have been the victim of fraud perpetrated against their deposit account, debit card, or credit card linked to a P2P app? The analysis is more complicated than one might think, often leaving both banks and consumers disappointed and frustrated.

Iowa and Minnesota are not known for oil and gas production, and with good reason — there isn’t any. But despite a history of oil or gas production in either state, recent discoveries prompted the 2024 sessions of the Iowa and Minnesota legislatures to revisit their oil and gas statutes.

On Friday, November 15, 2024, a federal district court struck down the U.S. Department of Labor’s 2024 rule increasing the minimum salary required for the most common overtime exemptions under the Fair Labor Standards Act. 

Iowa landlords are likely to receive long-awaited clarity on notice requirements under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act from the Iowa Supreme Court in a pending appeal case where Fredrikson attorneys, Jodie McDougal and Jack O’Brien, filed an amici curiae brief on behalf of multiple statewide landlord associations.

On October 9, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a final rule under the 2018 Vessel Incidental Discharge Act (VIDA) governing the release of pollution to U.S. waters incident to the operation of ships, including unique requirements applicable to Great Lakers freighters.

On September 26, 2024, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission unanimously adopted the recommendations of the Minnesota Department of Commerce (DOC) and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) regarding how the Commission should interpret new or amended terms added to Minn. Stat § 216B.169.

Many employers are intimately familiar with the federal Family Medical Leave Act, which requires up to 12 workweeks of job-protected leave for qualified employees of covered employers. Here we discuss three common FMLA-related mistakes we encounter as business advisors. 

The Internal Revenue Service has announced the 2025 cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) for benefit plans.