Benefits

  • March 14, 2024

    NC Tells Appeals Court Worker Was Transferred, Not Demoted

    The state of North Carolina has asked a state appeals court to uphold a state agency's determination that a Department of Health and Human Services employee was not unlawfully demoted, arguing that the facts indicate that the worker was merely reassigned.

  • March 14, 2024

    Extended Workers' Comp Needs High Bar, NC Justices Told

    The North Carolina Department of Public Safety told the state's top court Wednesday that injured workers must clear a higher hurdle to keep collecting disability benefits after their initial workers' compensation runs out, saying an appellate court got it wrong by applying a more lax standard.

  • March 14, 2024

    Mass. High Court Says Tufts Win In Tenure Case 'Premature'

    Tenured professors at Tufts University whose salaries were slashed under a newly enacted requirement that they bring in at least half their income through research grants will have another chance to prove those pay cuts undermine academic freedom, Massachusetts' highest court said Thursday.

  • March 14, 2024

    8th Circ. Questions Patient Standing In ERISA Claims Dispute

    An Eighth Circuit panel appeared skeptical Thursday of reviving a suit from patients insured by UnitedHealth Group alleging a billing practice known as cross-plan offsetting violated federal benefits law, with judges questioning whether the patients sufficiently established injury.

  • March 14, 2024

    NFL Had Ample Cause To Deny Disability Benefits, Court Says

    A Texas federal judge has tossed a former NFL player's suit against the league for denying him permanent disability benefits, following the recommendation from a magistrate judge who determined that, although injuries ultimately ended his football career, eight different doctors had said he was capable of working.

  • March 14, 2024

    NBA Ref Fired Over COVID Vax Refusal Can Get Benefits

    A Manhattan federal court ruled that an NBA referee who was fired for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine for religious reasons can get his retirement benefits, rejecting the league's contention that the prospect of his reemployment made him ineligible.

  • March 14, 2024

    Ex-Mass. Pol Says Federalism Bars COVID Fraud Cases

    A former Massachusetts state senator charged with collecting CARES Act-funded unemployment benefits while being paid for consulting work said in a motion filed Thursday that the 10th Amendment prohibits the federal government from prosecuting him for actions that occurred at the state level.

  • March 14, 2024

    Lockheed Offloaded Pensions In Risky Deal, Retirees Say

    A group of retirees claim aerospace defense company Lockheed Martin committed an "egregious act of disloyalty" when it passed off $9 billion in pension responsibilities for 31,000 beneficiaries to a risky annuity provider, according to a suit filed in Maryland federal court.

  • March 13, 2024

    9th Circ. Unsure If Abortion Pill Suit Harms Red States

    Two Ninth Circuit judges on Wednesday challenged Idaho and other Republican-led states' bid to intervene in Washington's lawsuit seeking to expand access to the abortion pill mifepristone, asking if the states could back up their claims of economic harm.

  • March 13, 2024

    Cherry IP Deception Claims Would Inflame Jury, Canada Says

    The Canadian government has told a Washington federal judge that jurors should not hear allegations that its IP licenser deceived the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in a trial against Washington fruit growers it claims rebranded a unique Canadian sweet cherry variety as their own, citing the "inflammatory" nature of the growers' counterclaim.

  • March 13, 2024

    Pa. Energy Co. Workers Secure Class Status In 401(k) Suit

    Current and former employees of a Pennsylvania energy company were granted class status Wednesday in their suit alleging the business loaded its employee retirement plans with expensive, underperforming investment options for years, after a federal judge ruled the company couldn't escape the suit.

  • March 13, 2024

    Google Ordered To Turn Over Docs In Discrimination Suit

    A Texas federal judge ordered Google to hand over additional documents Wednesday as the tech giant continued to spar with a former employee, settling the latest spat between the parties in what has become an increasingly contentious battle over the ex-worker's discrimination claims.

  • March 13, 2024

    Aetna Can't Avoid Bias Suit Over Fertility Treatment Policy

    Aetna must face a proposed class action alleging it readily covers fertility treatments for infertile heterosexual women but forces non-heterosexual women to spend thousands out of pocket before paying for their treatments, with a Connecticut federal judge saying it doesn't matter if the insurer didn't control the health plan's terms.

  • March 13, 2024

    Customer Support Co. To Pay $3M In DC Misclassification Suit

    A customer service company that partners with Comcast and others will shell out $3 million and halt operations in D.C. to end a suit lodged by the district's attorney general claiming the company misclassified workers as independent contractors.

  • March 12, 2024

    Ex-Biopharma CEO Sues For Post-Sale Share Appraisal In Del.

    The co-founder of Caraway Therapeutics Inc. sued in Delaware's Court of Chancery on Tuesday for an appraisal of his shares following the company's November merger with a subsidiary of pharmaceutical giant Merck, alleging that it "was an unfair cash-out transaction" and that he is owed at least a million more shares.

  • March 12, 2024

    Retirees Seek Final OK On $8.7M Data Breach Settlement

    Employer benefit plan members whose sensitive data was exposed in a massive breach at a consulting company have asked a Georgia federal judge to approve an $8.7 million agreement to resolve allegations the firm failed to protect their information.

  • March 12, 2024

    Detroit Retirees Appeal Pension Gap Funding Pause

    Detroit's retired police and firefighters are appealing a ruling that allowed the city to continue pausing its pension gap funding payments, asking a Michigan federal court to reverse a bankruptcy judge's decision that extended a decade-long funding reprieve to 30 years.

  • March 12, 2024

    ERISA Preempts Part Of Ill. Law Amedment, Judge Rules

    The portion of an amendment to an Illinois law regulating temporary labor forces agencies to modify their Employee Retirement Income Security Act plans, a federal judge ruled, granting a group of staffing associations and agencies' bid for an injunction.

  • March 12, 2024

    5th Circ. Backs Insurer's Win In Widow's Benefits Suit

    The Fifth Circuit declined to reinstate a widow's lawsuit seeking nearly $1 million from an insurer after she said her husband died during a business trip, saying the carrier showed it provided a full review before denying her request because she didn't qualify for the payment.

  • March 12, 2024

    UnitedHealth Can't Get Early Win In Workers' ERISA Suit

    A Minnesota federal court denied most of UnitedHealth Group Inc.'s bid for a pretrial win in a lawsuit alleging mismanagement of an employee 401(k) plan, finding Tuesday that allegations the company refused to ax underperforming funds to preserve a business relationship with Wells Fargo should go to trial.

  • March 12, 2024

    Pharmacy Calls $11M False Claims Case A 'House Of Cards'

    A compounding pharmacy and its president trashed the Connecticut attorney general's $11 million false claims and kickback allegations against them as a "house of cards" that awarded "a sweetheart cooperation deal" to an alleged co-conspirator and improperly benefited private attorneys, calling instead for a judgment against the state.

  • March 12, 2024

    AT&T Offloaded Pensions In Risky Annuity Deal, Suit Says

    AT&T shirked its fiduciary duty and put 96,000 workers' retirement savings in jeopardy by transferring pension obligations to a "risky" annuity provider, according to a proposed class action filed in Massachusetts federal court.

  • March 11, 2024

    Fired Lithium Co. Co-Founder Sues To Recoup 3.25M Shares

    The former co-CEO and co-founder of a lithium fracking company sued the company in Delaware's Court of Chancery, seeking a court order that the company return 3.25 million shares of stock it allegedly repurchased from him after firing him in "bad faith."

  • March 11, 2024

    Contractor Wants Mich. Judge To Rethink Agreement Order

    A demolition company has urged a Michigan federal judge to reconsider his finding that the number of labor contracts between its parent association and a union fund was ambiguous and needed more thought by an arbitrator, saying evidence on the record shows that the contractor was bound by just one agreement.

  • March 11, 2024

    Teamsters Can't Pause Discovery In $137M Fight With Yellow

    A Kansas federal judge shot down the Teamsters' request to pause the discovery process in a $137 million lawsuit accusing the union of holding up a necessary corporate restructuring at the now-bankrupt trucking company Yellow Corp., ordering the union to keep producing documents.

Expert Analysis

  • Business Litigators Have A Source Of Untapped Fulfillment

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    As increasing numbers of attorneys struggle with stress and mental health issues, business litigators can find protection against burnout by remembering their important role in society — because fulfillment in one’s work isn’t just reserved for public interest lawyers, say Bennett Rawicki and Peter Bigelow at Hilgers Graben.

  • Series

    Skiing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    A lifetime of skiing has helped me develop important professional skills, and taught me that embracing challenges with a spirit of adventure can allow lawyers to push boundaries, expand their capabilities and ultimately excel in their careers, says Andrea Przybysz at Tucker Ellis.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Forget Everything You Know About IRAC

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    The mode of legal reasoning most students learn in law school, often called “Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion,” or IRAC, erroneously frames analysis as a separate, discrete step, resulting in disorganized briefs and untold obfuscation — but the fix is pretty simple, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Employers, Prep For Shorter Stock Awards Settlement Cycle

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    Companies that provide equity compensation in the form of publicly traded stock will soon have one less day to complete such transactions under U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Nasdaq rules — so employers should implement expedited equity compensation stock settlement and payroll tax deposit procedures now, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • How Firms Can Ensure Associate Gender Parity Lasts

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    Among associates, women now outnumber men for the first time, but progress toward gender equality at the top of the legal profession remains glacially slow, and firms must implement time-tested solutions to ensure associates’ gender parity lasts throughout their careers, say Kelly Culhane and Nicole Joseph at Culhane Meadows.

  • 7 Common Myths About Lateral Partner Moves

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    As lateral recruiting remains a key factor for law firm growth, partners considering a lateral move should be aware of a few commonly held myths — some of which contain a kernel of truth, and some of which are flat out wrong, says Dave Maurer at Major Lindsey.

  • Series

    Cheering In The NFL Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Balancing my time between a BigLaw career and my role as an NFL cheerleader has taught me that pursuing your passions outside of work is not a distraction, but rather an opportunity to harness important skills that can positively affect how you approach work and view success in your career, says Rachel Schuster at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Navigating ACA Reporting Nuances As Deadlines Loom

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    Stephanie Lowe at Liebert Cassidy walks employers through need-to-know elements of Affordable Care Act reporting, including two quickly approaching deadlines, the updated affordability threshold, strategies for choosing an affordability safe harbor, and common coding pitfalls.

  • 6 Pointers For Attys To Build Trust, Credibility On Social Media

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    In an era of information overload, attorneys can use social media strategically — from making infographics to leveraging targeted advertising — to cut through the noise and establish a reputation among current and potential clients, says Marly Broudie at SocialEyes Communications.

  • Del. Ruling Stands Out In Thorny Noncompete Landscape

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    In Cantor Fitzgerald v. Ainslie, the Delaware Supreme Court last month upheld the enforceability of forfeiture-for-competition provisions in limited partnership agreements, providing a noteworthy opinion amid a time of increasing disfavor toward noncompetes and following a string of Chancery Court rulings deeming them unreasonable, say Margaret Butler and Steven Goldberg at BakerHostetler.

  • A Post-Mortem Analysis Of Stroock's Demise

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    After the dissolution of 147-year-old firm Stroock late last year shook up the legal world, a post-mortem analysis of the data reveals a long list of warning signs preceding the firm’s collapse — and provides some insight into how other firms might avoid the same disastrous fate, says Craig Savitzky at Leopard Solutions.

  • Series

    Coaching High School Wrestling Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Coaching my son’s high school wrestling team has been great fun, but it’s also demonstrated how a legal career can benefit from certain experiences, such as embracing the unknown, studying the rules and engaging with new people, says Richard Davis at Maynard Nexsen.

  • SG's Office Is Case Study To Help Close Legal Gender Gap

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    As women continue to be underrepresented in the upper echelons of the legal profession, law firms could learn from the example set by the Office of the Solicitor General, where culture and workplace policies have helped foster greater gender equality, say attorneys at Ocean Tomo.

  • Verizon Benefits Ruling Clears Up Lien Burden Of Proof

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    A Rhode Island federal court recently ruled that a Verizon benefits plan could not recoup a former employee’s settlement funds from the attorney who represented her in a personal injury case, importantly clarifying two Employee Retirement Income Security Act burden of proof issues that were previously unsettled, says Mark DeBofsky at DeBofsky Law.

  • 4 Steps To Navigating Employee Dementia With Care

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    A recent Connecticut suit brought by an employee terminated after her managers could not reasonably accommodate her Alzheimer's-related dementia should prompt employers to plan how they can compassionately address older employees whose cognitive impairments affect their job performance, while also protecting the company from potential disability and age discrimination claims, says Robin Shea at Constangy.

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