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Employment
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March 15, 2024
Trade Secret Cases Are Up As Clients Eye Patent Alternatives
Trade secret litigation has seen a gradual increase over the past decade, driven by the promise of substantial damages awards, a new federal law, and frustration over the challenges of patent litigation, according to intellectual property attorneys.
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March 15, 2024
Alston & Bird, Ex-Employee File Deal After Contempt Threat
Alston & Bird LLP and its former diversity and inclusion administrator have presented their proposed $55,000 settlement in Georgia federal court concerning unpaid overtime claims, after a judge ordered them to appear in court to explain why they hadn't already filed one.
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March 15, 2024
Amazon Tells 2nd Circ. Security Screenings Aren't Work
Amazon told the Second Circuit that the security screenings employees underwent after their shifts were over aren't work and should be compensated as such, urging the panel to keep a Connecticut federal court's ruling in its favor.
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March 15, 2024
Snack Co. Workers Get Cert. In Ohio Wage Suit
An Ohio federal judge preliminarily certified a collective of food distribution workers on claims that they had to perform work before clocking in and during breaks without pay, saying they proved that the company's policies were applied universally.
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March 14, 2024
Phillips, Workers Seek Dueling Wins In $46.5M Wage Fight
Phillips 66 Co. and certified classes of San Francisco and Los Angeles refinery workers fought before a California federal judge Thursday, with each side seeking a win on the workers' wage claims in a $46.5 million dispute over the energy giant's meal-break and time-rounding policies.
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March 14, 2024
Fox News Accused Of Lying About Ukrainian Reporter's Death
The parents of a Ukrainian journalist who died while reporting on Russia's invasion of her homeland sued Fox News on Thursday in New York state court, saying the network is trying to conceal its responsibility for the death of their daughter and shifting blame to a security adviser.
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March 14, 2024
CFTC Awards $1.3M To Whistleblower With Compliance Duties
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced Thursday that it has awarded roughly $1.25 million to a whistleblower who the agency said is the first to use a safe harbor provision for whistleblowers who serve in a firm's internal compliance or audit function.
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March 14, 2024
Petco's $445K BIPA Deal Gets Initial OK
An Illinois federal judge granted preliminary approval Thursday to a $445,000 settlement between Petco and 445 warehouse workers who accused the pet supply chain of unlawfully capturing, storing and using their voiceprints through headsets they used to navigate work tasks.
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March 14, 2024
Foul-Language Row Met With Fowl Metaphors In Court Showdown
An attorney for Welch Foods hatched a flock of duck-related metaphors Thursday during an oral argument over whether a male ex-worker's vulgar comments to a female coworker amounted to sexual harassment, and if an arbitrator had been wrong to reinstate the ex-worker despite the facts before her.
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March 14, 2024
Fired SoCal Edison Workers Drop Blacklist Suit Without Deal
A group of former Southern California Edison utilities line designers summarily dropped their California federal court lawsuit against the utility, dismissing claims that their new company was hurt by policies declaring certain terminated employees persona non grata on distribution line extension projects in company territory.
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March 14, 2024
Dallas Hospital Says Woman Wasn't Fired For Blowing Whistle
Methodist Hospital of Dallas says it didn't retaliate against an employee who accused the hospital of undercounting patients who acquired conditions while hospitalized, asking a federal judge Wednesday to rule that it followed the Texas Health and Safety Code.
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March 14, 2024
Denver DA Settles Ex-Deputy's Gender Pay Discrimination Suit
The Office of the Denver District Attorney has settled a Colorado state court lawsuit with one of its former prosecutors, who alleged she was paid less than her male colleagues in similar roles, and the office disclosed Thursday it agreed to pay the attorney $7,500 to resolve the dispute.
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March 14, 2024
DraftKings' Employment Feud With Former VP Heats Up
The battle between DraftKings and one of its former vice presidents intensified in Massachusetts federal court Thursday, with the online sportsbook sharpening its allegations of corporate espionage and the erstwhile executive calling to wipe out the suit entirely.
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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.
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March 14, 2024
Wash. Supreme Court Again Backs State's Fair Wage Law
The Washington State Supreme Court has again upheld the state's updated prevailing wage law for public works projects, ruling Thursday that there was no problem with regulators using collective bargaining agreements across county lines to set wage standards.
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March 14, 2024
Black Worker Denied Reinstatement In Dreadlock Bias Suit
An Alabama federal judge denied Thursday a Black former mail clerk's request that she be given her old job back after an $800,000 jury verdict finding a staffing agency fired her for complaining about biased hairstyle policies, saying that returning to a temporary gig wouldn't make sense.
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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.
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March 14, 2024
Colorado Truckers Too Few, Too Local For Class Treatment
A group of truck drivers who allege they were denied adequate overtime or meal and rest breaks cannot pursue their claims as a unified class, as a Colorado federal judge ruled that they were too few in number and too easy to contact to justify consolidation.
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March 14, 2024
NLRB Certifies Dartmouth Men's Basketball Player Union
Dartmouth College must bargain with its men's basketball team after the National Labor Relations Board certified the players' recent landmark vote to unionize with the Service Employees International Union on Thursday, but a legal challenge looms.
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March 14, 2024
Water Treatment Co. Must Face Rival's Trade Secrets Suit
A Tennessee federal judge has found that certain issues in a trade secrets suit against industrial water treatment service company ChemTreat need to go before a jury, shooting down arguments including that no trade secret was adequately identified.
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March 14, 2024
Ex-Mechanic, Trucking Co. Reach Deal In OT Suit
A former employee and a transportation company told a Georgia federal judge they have reached a deal to end the worker's lawsuit alleging he was misclassified as an independent contractor and shorted overtime wages, saying he will recover all of his missing pay under the settlement.
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March 14, 2024
Security Guards Score $132K Win In Drawn-Out Wage Suit
A Georgia security company must pay nearly $132,000 to four guards for years of unpaid overtime wages and retaliation after the company failed for years to respond to its workers' class action according to a Peach State federal judge's ruling.
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March 14, 2024
University Must Face Softball Coach's Pay Bias Claims
A Hawaii federal judge wouldn't entirely toss a female university softball coach's wage inequality suit against the school, ruling the two male coaches she referenced as being paid more for the same job cast doubt on the university's claim she was paid fairly.
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March 14, 2024
NY High Court Says Out-Of-State Applicants Can Sue For Bias
New York's highest court ruled Thursday that nonresidents who were denied employment in the state can bring claims under New York City and state anti-discrimination laws, settling a question that lower courts have long struggled with.
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March 14, 2024
Union Member Sues UNITE HERE Over Massive Data Breach
A Detroit-based UNITE HERE member has sued the union in New York federal court on behalf of a proposed class of current and former members, alleging the union acted negligently and breached an implied contract by failing to prevent a data breach that affected nearly 800,000 people.
Expert Analysis
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NLRA Expansion May Come With Risks For Workers
The last few years have seen a rapid expansion of the National Labor Relations Act to increase labor law coverage in as many ways and to as many areas as possible, but this could potentially weaken rather than strengthen support for unions and worker rights in the U.S., says Daniel Johns at Cozen O’Connor.
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What One Litigator Learned Serving On A Jury
Kilpatrick attorney April Isaacson shares insights for trial lawyers from her recent experience serving on a jury for the first time, including lessons about the impact of frequent sidebars, considerations for using demonstratives, the importance of clear jury instructions, and the unconscious habits that can drive jurors mad.
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Opinion
Noncompete Report Misinterpreted Critique Of FTC Proposal
A recent report on core questions surrounding the use of employee noncompete agreements published by the Economic Innovation Group misconstrues our stated views on the issue — and we stand behind our conclusion that the Federal Trade Commission made misrepresentations when proposing a rule to ban such provisions nationwide, say Erik Weibust and Stuart Gerson at Epstein Becker.
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What The NLRB Wants Employers To Know Post-Cemex
Recent guidance from the National Labor Relations Board illuminates prosecutorial goals following Cemex Construction Materials, a decision that upended decades of precedent, and includes several notable points to which employers should pay close attention, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.
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4 Legal Ethics Considerations For The New Year
As attorneys and clients reset for a new year, now is a good time to take a step back and review some core ethical issues that attorneys should keep front of mind in 2024, including approaching generative artificial intelligence with caution and care, and avoiding pitfalls in outside counsel guidelines, say attorneys at HWG.
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2 Cases Highlight NJ Cannabis Employment Law Uncertainties
More than two years after its enactment, the employee protections and employer obligations in New Jersey's Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance and Marketplace Modernization Act remain unsettled, and two recent lawsuits draw attention to the law's enforceability and its intersection with federal law, say Ruth Rauls at Saul Ewing and David White at Seton Hall.
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3 Compliance Reminders For Calif. Employers In 2024
As we enter into the new year, several recent updates to California employment law — including minimum wage and sick leave requirements — necessitate immediate compliance actions for employers, says Daniel Pyne at Hopkins & Carley.
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What The Law Firm Of The Future Will Look Like
As the legal landscape shifts, it’s become increasingly clear that the BigLaw business model must adapt in four key ways to remain viable, from fostering workplace flexibility to embracing technology, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.
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Navigating Class Actions After Papa John's Settlement Denial
A Kentucky federal court's surprising denial of preliminary approval for a $5 million settlement in the Papa John's no-poach case may prove to be an outlier but suggests a class action settlement would only be approved when a plaintiff demonstrates that a litigation class would be certified, say attorneys at Robins Kaplan.
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4 PR Pointers When Your Case Is In The News
Media coverage of new lawsuits exploded last year, demonstrating why defense attorneys should devise a public relations plan that complements their legal strategy, incorporating several objectives to balance ethical obligations and advocacy, say Nathan Burchfiel at Pinkston and Ryan June at Castañeda + Heidelman.
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Sex Harassment Arbitration Exemption: Devil Is In The Date
A Federal Arbitration Act amendment that exempts workplace sexual harassment claims from arbitration is muddled in ongoing confusion about its chronological reach — and as many such cases begin to run up against applicable statutes of limitations, the clock is ticking for claimants to bring their actions in court, says Abe Melamed at Signature Resolution.
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Compliance Refresher Amid DOL Child Labor Crackdown
In light of the Labor Department’s recent announcement of new penalty assessment procedures for child labor law violations, Erica MacDonald and Sylvia Bokyung St. Clair at Faegre Drinker discuss what employers should know about the department’s continued focus on this issue and how to bolster compliance efforts.
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Antitrust Enforcement Initiatives To Watch In 2024
The U.S. Department of Justice is likely to prioritize information-sharing prosecutions in 2024, following last year's withdrawal of safe harbors, as well as labor market enforcement after trial losses forced a pullback in 2023, say attorneys at Fried Frank.
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Law Firm Strategies For Successfully Navigating 2024 Trends
Though law firms face the dual challenge of external and internal pressures as they enter 2024, firms willing to pivot will be able to stand out by adapting to stakeholder needs and reimagining their infrastructure, says Shireen Hilal at Maior Consultants.
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Top 10 Employer Resolutions For 2024
From technological leaps to sea changes in labor policy to literal sea changes, 2024 provides opportunities for employers to face big-picture questions that will shape their business for years to come, say Allegra Lawrence-Hardy and Lisa Haldar at Lawrence & Bundy.