HKH Law LLC

10/04/2023

The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the decision of the lower district court in the case The American Alliance for Equal Rights v. The Fearless Fund, which challenges corporate diversity programs under the Civil Rights Act of 1866 (prohibiting racial discrimination in contracts). It will be fascinating to see if this case makes it to the Supreme Court.

"The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta ruled on Saturday to temporarily block the Fearless Fund from running its Strivers Grant Contest, which awards $20,000 grants to small businesses that are led by at least one woman of color and other requirements." https://www.npr.org/2023/10/03/1203221945/affirmative-action-black-female-entrepreneurs #:~:text=The%2011th%20U.S.%20Circuit%20Court,of%20color%20and%20other%20requirements.

08/22/2023

Companies should be sure to have an experienced employment lawyer review their DEI policies and practices, especially after the recent Supreme Court decision in Fair Admissions v. Harvard which ended affirmative action in college admissions. Edward Blum, an activist behind the Harvard and other anti-affirmative action cases, brought suit recently against Atlanta VC company Fearless Fund challenging a minority grants program.

Some efforts have been overzealous to the extent they could be viewed as giving a discriminatory preference for a particular minority or group. I thought, 'Holy cow, where was their in-house counsel on this? Where was their outside counsel?' Shawe Rosenthal lawyer Fiona Ong recalled about one partic...

09/08/2022

Big employment news in the broadcast journalism industry in Canada, a beloved female journalist lisa laflamme, 58, was abruptly terminated after 35 years with CTV, Canada's largest privately owned television network. Perhaps because broadcast journalists are so visible and their success relies on the public's perception of who can be most trusted, this industry unfortunately ranks as one of the lowest in terms of diversity. In addition to obvious ageism, there is a race/gender component as 77% and 61% of newsroom staff are White and male, respectively, which means newsroom staff are more likely to be White men compared to American workers in ALL other industries and occupations combined according to Pew Research Center. Despite the statistics (and gray hair), however, LaFlamme was extremely successful in her role.

Thankfully it appears in the world of TV, movies, music and even sports, decision makers are more quickly embracing diversity to ensure important perspectives and stories aren't left out, which ultimately helps their bottom lines. Unfortunately, it appears both here and in Canada that change is coming at a slower pace in journalism. Contact HKH Law LLC for your employment law needs!

The chief executive of a Canadian news network pushed back against allegations that s*x, age or gray hair were factors in the abrupt dismissal of the veteran journalist, Lisa LaFlamme.

08/29/2022

Elon Musk, co-CEO of Neuralink, recently had twins with a Neuralink executive and direct report through the use of IVF, with the female executive claiming she had no intimate relationship with Musk. Do you think this violates a company's or policies?

According to a 2018 survey update conducted by Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc., more than 50% of companies had some kind of policy and 78% of companies explicitly discouraged close, personal relationships between subordinates and supervisors. Many companies have such HR policies in place for good reason:

- it can help create a clear for employees on proper vs. improper conduct;

- it can help minimize *xualharassment and other unwanted behavior;

- it checks against and based not on work performance but on personal allegiance and affiliation;

- it provides an extra protection against unbalanced power dynamics (supervisor to subordinate); and

- can help a company mitigate against unknown legal and other risks.

Perhaps Musk and this executive did not engage in a "close, personal relationship" as outlined in Neuralink's HR manual; however, given the executive is now a co-parent with Musk, that still creates a strong personal relationship with a financial component that appears to me to suggest a potential conflict of interest. It's important for companies to annually review their and policies, make updates and provide trainings to ensure your company stays up to date with changes in employee needs and overall culture. Contact HKH Law LLC for your employment law needs!

Elon Musk's decision to have children with one of his top executives at Neuralink pushed the limits of corporate governance norms, according to nine corporate governance experts.

08/18/2022

A free event next Wednesday, August 24th, to discuss the legal and health ramifications of the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade and a woman's prior constitutional right to seek a legal abortion. Thanks to GAWL - Georgia Association for Women Lawyers, Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys, Georgia Hispanic Bar Association, Veritext Legal Solutions and Georgia Asian Pacific American Bar Association (GAPABA) Women's Leadership Network for sponsoring the most important constitutional debate going on in America today! Register for this free event here (CLE pending): https://www.gawl.org/events/demystifying-dobbs-v-jackson-its-legal-and-health-ramifications-in-georgia

08/16/2022

HKH Law LLC is proud to sponsor the Korean American Bar Association of Georgia's 10th anniversary celebration next week! Attorney Helen Kim served on the founding board, and we will continue to support KABA's mentorship of young, Korean-American lawyers and law students with the goal of building a more inclusive legal community in Georgia. Congratulations KABA-GA!

08/09/2022

HKH Law LLC is proud to represent various nonprofits in Atlanta with their corporate governance and employment law needs. Nonprofits are businesses with even higher duties of transparency and accountability than for-profit businesses because funds are raised on public trust. A recent story of a local AAPI human service nonprofit in Georgia highlights the unfortunate impact on staff, clients and the community when inappropriate controls and practices are in place. Please contact HKH Law LLC if your nonprofit needs assistance!

The nonprofit’s board of directors hired the Krevolin & Horst law firm to conduct an investigation into concerns over mismanagement of money.

08/03/2022

Did you know that HKH Law LLC can create customized contracts to fit your business needs? Our business clients include supermarkets, restaurants, health service providers, nutritional supplements, franchisors, faith organizations and more! Here is a review from a pet sitting business client we assisted recently:

Helen was amazing! She brought enthusiasm, legal skill and a passion for animals to the process of creating a custom contract for my pet sitting business. She took the time to listen to my concerns and crafted a contract that can grow with me as my business evolves.

Contact [email protected] for your business contract needs!

11/10/2021

Congratulations to attorney Helen Kim, who will be honored tomorrow as a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion awardee by the Atlanta Business Chronicle! Are you a nonprofit or for-profit business that believes diversity and inclusion are integral to good business practices? Do you want a trusted employment and business attorney who also understands the importance of diversity and fairness on the job? Please check out Helen's Q&A with the Atlanta Business Chronicle below, and contact us if you need help!

I am thrilled and humbled to be honored as a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion awardee this year by the Atlanta Business Chronicle, our city's business newspaper...

07/10/2021

Yesterday, HKH Law LLC attorney Helen Kim Ho co-hosted a meeting between the leading candidate for Atlanta City Council President, Doug Shipman, and representatives of various Korean small business associations. HKH Law LLC is proud to service the commercial and personnel needs of for-profit and non-profit small businesses (ranging from 5 ~ 200+ employees), which includes government relations and lobbying.

Did you know that immigrant entrepreneurs make up 21% of all US small business owners, employ 8 million people and generate $1.3 trillion in sales according to the New American Economy? Small business entrepreneurs are truly the backbone of our economy, and our firm is passionate about advocating for the equitable treatment and distribution of incentives to immigrant small business owners who are often on the margins when “deals” are made. Thank you to our co-host Mr. Baik Kyu Kim and gallery owner Yu-Kai Lin (both of whom are also immigrant small business entrepreneurs!), and to all the small business leaders who participated today!

06/15/2020

Historic and now a clear expansion of Title VII to provide workplace protections for LGBTQ and trans workers! “[E]mployers are prohibited from firing employees on the basis of homos*xuality or transgender status.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/15/us/gay-transgender-workers-supreme-court.html?smtyp=cur&smid=fb-nytimes