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ULC Approves Seven New Acts at 2021 Annual Meeting

  • 1.  ULC Approves Seven New Acts at 2021 Annual Meeting

    Posted 07-14-2021 05:29 PM

    July 14, 2021 - At its 130th Annual Meeting in Madison, Wisconsin, the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) approved seven new acts.

    Uniform College Athlete Name, Image or Likeness Act. Until recently, college student athletes have not been allowed to receive compensation for the use of their name, image or likeness (NIL) while still maintaining eligibility. The Uniform College Athlete Name, Image or Likeness Act allows college athletes to earn compensation for the use of their NIL while also providing reasonable protections to educational institutions, athletic associations, and conferences. The Act will provide a clear and uniform framework for states to enact that allows college athletes to earn compensation for the use of their NIL while maintaining a level playing field across state lines.

    Uniform Personal Data Protection Act. In an increasingly online world, the concept of privacy must be broadened to protect an individual's privacy both online and offline. The Uniform Personal Data Protection Act provides a reasonable level of consumer protection without incurring the compliance and regulatory costs associated with some existing state regimes. The Act recognizes that the collection and use of personal data are important features of our modern economy but raise significant issues of privacy and control. The Act outlines compatible, incompatible, and prohibited data practices and provides an enforcement mechanism to ensure compliance with the Act.

    Uniform Restrictive Employment Agreement Act. This Act regulates restrictive employment agreements, which are agreements that prohibit or limit an employee or other worker from working after the work relationship ends. Uniformity in this area of the law benefits both employers and employees by enhancing clarity and predictability in our increasingly mobile society.  The Uniform Restrictive Employment Agreement Act addresses the enforceability of these agreements, notice and other procedural requirements, choice of law issues, and remedies.  The Act does not say anything about an agreement monitoring what a worker can or cannot do while employed.

    Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act. The rate of nonmarital cohabitation within the U.S. is increasing rapidly.  Today, states have no consistent approach for addressing whether and how cohabitants can enforce contract and equitable claims against each other when the relationship ends.  The Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act does not create any special status for cohabitants.  In most instances, the Act defers to other state law governing contracts and claims between individuals.  The Act enables cohabitants to exercise the usual rights of individual citizens of a state to contract and to successfully maintain contract and equitable claims against others in appropriate circumstances. The Act affirms the capacity of each cohabitant to contract with the other and to maintain claims with respect to "contributions to the relationship" without regard to any intimate relationship that exists between them and without subjecting them to hurdles that would not be imposed on litigants of similar claims. The Act ensures that the nature of the relationship of the parties is not a bar to a successful claim.

    Uniform Community Property Disposition at Death Act. Community property acquired by a married couple retains its character as community property even when the couple relocates to reside in a non-community property state.  This result creates potential distribution problems at the death of the first spouse but also creates potential estate planning opportunities.  However, the probate court in a non-community property state may not recognize the status of community property in a decedent's estate.  The Uniform Community Property Disposition at Death Act provides clear default rules to ensure the proper disposition of community property in any state.  It is recommended for adoption by all non-community property states.

    Uniform Unregulated Child Custody Transfer Act. In some cases, parents find that, after the birth or adoption of their child, they experience considerable difficulty or even inability in caring for or effectively managing the child's behavior, which sometimes leads to families transferring a child to another person outside of the courts and the child welfare system. Without specific regulations directed at these types of unregulated transfers, a transfer of custody might go unnoticed within the child welfare system. The Uniform Unregulated Child Custody Transfer Act addresses the transfer of children in these types of cases.

    Amendments to the Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act. The Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act governs the formation, management, and termination of common interest communities, including condominiums, homeowner associations, and real estate cooperatives. The 2021 amendments to the act update it to address recent legal and technological developments.

    Other drafts debated at the ULC annual meeting, but which were not scheduled for final approval, include the Telehealth Act, the Alcohol Direct-Shipping Compliance Act, the Public Meetings During Emergencies Act, and amendments to the Uniform Commercial Code regarding Emerging Technologies.

    The ULC, now in its 130th year, comprises more than 350 practicing lawyers, governmental lawyers, judges, law professors, and lawyer-legislators from every state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.  Commissioners are appointed by their states to draft and promote enactment of uniform laws that are designed to solve problems common to all the states.

    After receiving the ULC's seal of approval, a uniform act is officially promulgated for consideration by the states, and legislatures are urged to adopt it.  Since its inception in 1892, the ULC has been responsible for more than 200 acts, among them such bulwarks of state statutory law as the Uniform Commercial Code, the Uniform Probate Code, the Uniform Partnership Act, and the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act.

    The current drafts of all of these acts can be found at the ULC's website at www.uniformlaws.org.

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    Uniform Law Commission / 111 N. Wabash Ave., Suite 1010, Chicago IL 60602

    312/450-6600 / www.uniformlaws.org

    Contact:  Katie Robinson, ULC Communications Officer, krobinson@...

     



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    Katie Robinson
    Legislative Program Director
    Chicago IL
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