Congress overrules the US Supreme Court on un-equal pay. Almost two years ago, Rick Levine wrote an article analyzing the surprising decision in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co., and suggesting that the next step -- in the right political climate -- would be for Congress to take action to correct this bad result. In January 2009 Congress (and President Obama) did exactly that, passing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 (PDF, 161KB) to give employees a realistic chance of remedying ongoing pay violations.

Help from Uncle Sam for post-termination health insurance premiums. Title III of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (PDF, 54KB) sets out a 65% subsidy for certain COBRA premiums. Although the law includes many complicated rules, its purpose is simple: to give people who have lost their jobs during this financial crisis the ability to retain health insurance for themselves and their families. Download our summary chart (PDF, 106KB) for an overview of how the subsidy works.

Baker's Choice: May 2009
After our long, hard winter, the flowers are blooming, baseball season is in full swing, summer vacation is peeking over the horizon. . . . Before spring fever completely overtakes us, we've put together links to the new federal COBRA premium subsidy, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, and the rush to exchange underwater options at companies like Google. Plus, a cautionary tale about relying on someone else's lawyer (PDF, 112KB) and an update on the SF municipal health ordinance battle.

Tenth Anniversary Edition of The Stock Options Book available now. Information on how to get the latest version of Alisa Baker's popular text for equity compensation professionals and students here.