The new overtime regulations issued by the U.S. Department of Labor, which take effect December 1, will impact many law-firm employers to the extent they have traditionally been paying, or not paying, employees with certain job responsibilities for hours worked in excess of 40 per week. In general,  executive, administrative, and professional ("EAP") employees are exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act's overtime provisions. According to the DOL's fact sheet, the Department has historically required three tests to be met before the FLSA's EAP exemption applies. See https://www.dol.gov/whd/overtime/final2016/overtime-factsheet.htm. To qualify for the exemption, employees must (1) be paid a fixed, predetermined salary; (2) the amount paid must meet a specific minimum salary level; and (3) the employee's job duties must primarily involve executive, administrative, or professional duties. The new rule raises the minimum salary from a weekly amount of $455 ($23,660 annually) to $913 per week ($47,476 annually), doing away with the requirement that the rate be an annual salary as opposed to a fixed hourly rate. Teachers, lawyers, and doctors are considered bona fide professionals under the rule; whether they make $913 per week is irrelevant. Law firms need to audit positions within their ranks to determine both whether the weekly amount and the duties tests are met.

Asked and Answered By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC Q. I am the managing partner of a 12-attorney firm in Providence, R.I. In our recent partner meetings we have been discussing ramping up marketing. How much should we be spending on marketing?

Chief Circuit Judge Kathryn E. Creswell is pleased to announce that following a tabulation of ballots by the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts in Springfield, the Circuit Judges of the Eighteenth Judicial Court, DuPage County, Illinois have appointed Bryan S. Chapman to the position of Associate Judge. Mr. Chapman fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Associate Judge Jane Hird Mitton.

Former Police Chief Bradley Bloom, of the Village of Hinsdale, received a 2016 Law Enforcement Award from the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) on Friday, July 22 during a ceremony at the Hinsdale Village Hall. The ISBA’s Law Enforcement Award was created to recognize sworn law enforcement officers for conduct that promotes justice and to distinguish those individuals whose service to the public brings honor and respect to the criminal justice system. It recognizes those who excel in law enforcement. Bloom was acknowledged for upholding high ethical standards, bringing people from diverse backgrounds together to pursue a common goal, and his strong work ethic. During his time as Chief of Police, Bloom improved the resident satisfaction rate, increased officer training hours, and implemented new programs that have focused on creating partnerships and improving community relationships. Bloom served as the Chief of Police for the Village of Hinsdale for the last 13 years and currently serves as the Village’s Director of Public Safety. One program that Bloom helped implement was to allow police officers to carry the heroin antidote Narcan. This program involved training over 2,000 police officers in DuPage County and those officers have saved over 180 lives administering the antidote to heroin overdose victims.