Independent Contractor v. Employee
In Falconi v. Coombs & Coombs, Inc., read opinion here, the Delaware Supreme Court addressed an issue of interest to many business lawyers--including business litigators: When is a worker an independent contractor as opposed to an employee. This decision was made in the context of a worker's compensation claim but the analysis, including a discussion of the Restatement (Second) of Agency, Section 220, arguably has wide application in many other contexts. Among other notable aspects of this case was that "employee status" was found, despite the employer's use of an IRS Form 1099 for the worker's pay, which is commonly used as a factor in favor of independent contractor status.
