Practus LLP
Co-Founder & Partner, Philadelphia

Robert Elwood

Practus LLP
Partner, Los Angeles

Andrew Heger

Practus LLP
Partner, South Jersey

Janet Hallahan

Co-Founder & Partner, Philadelphia

Robert Elwood

Bob provides outside legal counsel to a range of companies and businesses, and he’s proud to call JVC a client. As a business lawyer with tax savvy, he advises businesses on tax planning ideas, including entity formation and creating partnership and LLC agreements, and he has handled hundreds of reorganizations, mergers, and acquisitions. Bob solves legal problems with the wisdom and good judgment that comes from 30 years of experience.

Bob has appeared on Nasdaq Trade Talks and has been quoted in U.S. News & World Report and other leading publications. Prior to co-founding Practus, he was an equity partner at Dechert LLP for 20 years. He has a B.A. from Haverford College and J.D. from Boston University where he was a member of the Law Review and finished first in his class.

Area of Expertise:Tax

Phone:(484) 477-2729

Email:robert.elwood@practus.com

Partner, Los Angeles

Andrew Heger

Andy’s services to the jewelry industry, particularly businesses based in California, include counseling regulations (e.g., SB5 and overtime rules), harassment and discrimination litigation, executive compensation, workplace safety, and employee ownership. He has extensive experience with workplace investigations prior to litigation that may be related to security issues, harassment, or discrimination. Andy has handled claims both in court and through the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE).

In his more than 20 years as an attorney, Andy’s clients have ranged from family businesses to Fortune 100 companies. After graduating from law school, Andy clerked in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Prior to joining Practus, he worked at Paul Hastings Janofsky & Walker and served as COO for the Violence Intervention Program Community Mental Health Center. He holds two bachelor’s degrees from the University of Missouri and earned his J.D. at the University of Chicago.

Area of Expertise:Employment Law & Litigation

Phone:(626) 215-4441

Email:andrew.heger@practus.com

Partner, South Jersey

Janet Hallahan

Janet helps companies in the jewelry and precious metals industry navigate intellectual property matters (e.g., licensing, trademarks, and copyrights), general corporate issues (e.g., joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, and creation of entities), technology and cloud computing matters, and privacy/data security problems. She has worked both in-house as corporate counsel and at leading law firms. She is certified as a CIPP/US information privacy professional by the International Association of Privacy Professionals. Janet has also been appointed to serve on the Commercialization of Brands Committee of the International Trademark Association for a two-year term commencing in January 2022.

Janet is an adjunct professor at Rutgers University School of Law, and she has regularly spoken about technology, privacy, and governance matters. Prior to joining Practus, Janet served as in-house corporate and technology counsel to a healthcare organization as well as to a SaaS-based technology company. She has also been a corporate and technology attorney at Morgan Lewis and Bockius, Dechert, and Troutman-Pepper. She also clerked in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware. Janet earned her B.A. at Swarthmore College and J.D. at Temple University.

Area of Expertise:Corporate, IP, Data Security & Privacy, Technology & Cloud Computing

Phone:(609) 236-3458

Email:janet.hallahan@practus.com

Our uniquely flexible rate structure (including using fixed-fees, retainers, and other alternative fee arrangements) enables us to partner with clients to ensure that they are appropriately managing their legal risks as they execute their business strategies, and do so in a cost-efficient manner.

JVC members will benefit from our expertise in:

Employment Law & Litigation

  • Executive compensation
  • Employee ownership
  • Harassment and discrimination litigation
  • Overtime rules
  • Regulations
  • Wage and hourly issues
  • Workplace investigations
  • Workplace safety

Corporate

  • Customizing industry trade guidance to your business
  • Creating template agreements and playbooks to simplify the negotiating process for key contracts
  • Negotiating general commercial matters, such as reseller agreements, supply chain, marketing, purchasing agreements
  • Creating internal policies and procedures
  • Corporate and governance matters

Intellectual Property

  • Counselling on intellectual property matters, such as licensing, branding, trademarks, and copyright
  • Negotiating licensing rights to both in manufacturing processes as well as marketing and online rights

Data Security & Privacy

  • Compliance with regulatory requirements, including FTC guidelines and privacy requirements
  • Privacy and data security, including terms of use and privacy notices

Technology

  • Cloud computing/software

Tax

  • Audits
  • LLC formations
  • Mergers and acquisitions
  • Reorganizations

Three Cybersecurity Risks Jewelry Professionals Must Address Right Now

By Janet V. Hallahan, Partner, Practus LLP

Practus LLP is a JVC Law Firm Finder Partner Cybersecurity incidents are skyrocketing around the world, and the jewelry industry has not been immune from these incidents.  Jewelry professionals have recently faced many cyberattacks, ranging from data breaches and e-commerce hacks to compromised payment systems.  Cyberattacks like these are expensive…

7 Best Practices for Workplace Investigations

By Andrew W. Heger, Partner, Practus LLP

Workplace investigations are an inevitable occurrence in running a growing and successful business, including businesses engaged in the jewelry and precious metals industry. Although the issues to be investigated range from theft to sexual harassment to workplace violence, there are some general principles worth remembering when an investigation is warranted….

 

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