Employment

May 06, 2025
Split 5th Circ. Nixes Amazon's Appeal To Halt NLRB Case

A divided Fifth Circuit panel found Tuesday that a Texas federal judge did not "effectively deny" Amazon's bid to halt a refusal-to-bargain case at the National Labor Relations Board based on allegations that the agency is unconstitutional, tossing the e-commerce giant's appeal for lack of jurisdiction.
May 06, 2025
DOD Says It Has Standing To Halt Labor Contracts

The U.S. Department of Defense asked a court not to end its lawsuit over President Donald Trump's move to end collective bargaining with its workers, saying it cannot manage its workforce "without facing substantial legal uncertainty."
May 06, 2025
Marriott Accused Of Revoking Sabbath Accommodation In Fla.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is suing Marriott for alleged religious discrimination in Florida federal court, alleging an employee was forced to resign after her managers rescinded her Sabbath accommodation and required her to work on Saturdays.
May 06, 2025
11th Circ. Seems Open To Reviving Coal Workers' Bias Suit

The Eleventh Circuit on Tuesday appeared inclined to reinstate a race discrimination suit brought against a coal company by two Black former employees, with one judge saying the case could present two narratives for jurors to sort out.
May 06, 2025
Army Base Teachers' Unions Sue Trump Over Executive Order

Unions representing schoolteachers on military bases have sued President Donald Trump, the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management over a March executive order aimed at stripping them of their bargaining rights, asking a Washington, D.C., federal judge to invalidate the directive.
May 06, 2025
State Officials Say CFPB Is Holding Up $4.2M Redress Checks

Officials from a dozen states have accused the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau of ghosting them on a $4.2 million redress plan for former students of a shuttered sales-training firm, saying the agency has not cut any checks and is not answering them.
May 06, 2025
Bakery Driver Agrees To Drop Teamsters Benefits Fight

A delivery driver and a Philadelphia Teamsters local will drop their dispute over whether the driver was wrongfully denied early retirement benefits, the parties announced Monday.
May 06, 2025
Trade Secrets Emerge As Path For Cos. To Protect AI Works

Classifying creations of artificial intelligence tools as trade secrets has become a viable alternative to copyrights and patents — a shift that is presenting businesses using AI with a range of strategies and risks they must consider to protect their innovations.
May 06, 2025
Jay-Z Claims Atty Buzbee's Conspiracy Extends To NY Lawyer

Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter expanded his malicious prosecution claims against attorney Tony Buzbee over a rape suit that has since been dropped to also target a New York personal injury lawyer over what the music mogul alleged was a conspiracy to coerce him into paying off their client.
May 06, 2025
McCarter & English Pushes To End Ex-Atty's Firing Suit

McCarter & English LLP has urged a New Jersey state court to toss an anti-veteran discrimination suit from a former firm attorney and Navy SEAL this week, arguing the lawyer is unsuccessfully trying to pivot off failed claims from his original complaint in later filings.
May 06, 2025
Insurer Denies Coverage For Amtrak Employee Slip-And-Fall

An insurer told an Illinois federal court that Amtrak has no coverage for an underlying slip-and-fall injury lawsuit brought by an employee, because it's not an additional insured under its policy and the underlying litigation cannot be covered because of a workers' compensation exclusion, among other reasons.
May 06, 2025
Colo. Trauma Hospital Left Bonuses Out Of OT Math, Suit Says

A Colorado critical care hospital failed to factor bonuses into overtime calculations, resulting in a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act and unpaid wages, a registration specialist said in a proposed collective action in federal court Tuesday.
May 06, 2025
Ex-Greenberg Traurig Employment Trio Moves To Reed Smith

Reed Smith LLP announced Tuesday the expansion of its employment law services in Philadelphia with the addition of three attorneys who moved their practices from Greenberg Traurig LLP.
May 06, 2025
Co. Not Liable For Injuries In Employee Attack, 11th Circ. Says

The Eleventh Circuit ruled Monday that wholesale restaurant supply store McLane Foodservice is not liable for injuries suffered by an employee who was set on fire at work by a former partner because the company could not have foreseen this kind of violent, premeditated act.
May 06, 2025
Approach The Bench: Judge Robinson On Workplace Conduct

A long-awaited survey of judiciary employees revealed misconduct is rare within the federal judiciary, but U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson says there's still plenty of work to be done.
May 06, 2025
Buchanan Adds Senate Health Policy Vet To Gov't Practice

Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC has hired the majority staff director of the U.S. Senate's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee who aided Republican lawmakers, including its chair, Sen. Bill Cassidy, in advancing health policy legislation.
May 06, 2025
High Court Lets Transgender Troop Ban Take Effect

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday lifted a Washington federal judge's nationwide order barring implementation of the Pentagon's ban on transgender military service, allowing the controversial policy to take effect while its constitutionality is challenged.
May 06, 2025
ND Provides Tax Credit For Employer Child Care Contributions

North Dakota established an income tax credit for employers that help pay for their employees' child care costs under a bill signed by the governor.
May 06, 2025
Aviation Co. Says Workers' Class Action Too Broad

Former employees' bid to certify a class of more than 200 individuals who were abruptly terminated should be rejected, an aviation company told a Florida federal court, saying none of the proposed members reported to the same site and some of the workers were rehired.
May 05, 2025
Ex-OneTaste Leaders Face Trial On Forced Labor Charges

After nearly three years of bruising pretrial litigation, jury selection began Monday for OneTaste founder and "orgasmic meditation" advocate Nicole Daedone and her former deputy over allegations that they extracted free labor from followers by fostering an abusive environment at the sexual wellness company.
May 05, 2025
4th Circ. Seems Split On Fight Over DOGE's Data Access

The Fourth Circuit on Monday seemed poised for another split on letting the government share citizens' personally identifiable information with Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, with a line of questioning that parroted their earlier division over pausing the trial court's injunction blocking DOGE from accessing that data.
May 05, 2025
High Court Urged To Back HHS Authority On Preventive Care

The federal government urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to overturn a Fifth Circuit ruling that found the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' secretary lacked authority over a preventive healthcare services task force, arguing the HHS secretary's oversight stemmed from multiple laws and precedent.
May 05, 2025
Citizens Policy May Cover BIPA Claim, 7th Circ. Says

An Illinois food ingredient manufacturer may be able to tap into one of its Citizens insurance policies for coverage of an underlying biometric privacy suit, if the company can prove it provided the insurer with timely notice of the claim, the Seventh Circuit said.
May 05, 2025
Judge Backs Biden-Era Protections For H-2A Farmworkers

A North Carolina federal judge tossed a challenge to a Biden-era regulation that enhanced the organizing rights of seasonal farmworkers with H-2A visas, saying Monday that the U.S. Department of Labor didn't act arbitrarily and capriciously when it issued the regulation.
May 05, 2025
3rd Circ. Revives Ex-NJ College Prof's Gender Bias Suit

The Third Circuit said a jury should review a Ukrainian ex-professor's claim that The College of New Jersey declined to renew her contract out of gender bias, finding concerns with her commitment could have been driven by her pregnancy.

Expert Analysis

What To Expect In Higher Ed Enforcement Under Trump

Colleges and universities should prepare for shifting priorities, as President-elect Donald Trump is likely to focus less on antitrust cases and more on foreign relations policy, while congressional oversight of higher education continues to increase, say attorneys at Steptoe.
Series

NY Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q4

In 2024's final quarter, the New York State Department of Financial Services published guidance on mitigating the rising cybersecurity risks of artificial intelligence and remote technology workers with North Korean ties, and the state attorney general launched an antitrust investigation into Capital One's proposed Discover merger, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.
How Trial Attys Can Wield Amended Federal Evidence Rules

Trial lawyers should assess recent amendments to four Federal Rules of Evidence and a newly enacted rule on illustrative aids to determine how to best use the rules to enhance pretrial discovery and trial strategy, says Stewart Edelstein, former litigation chair at Cohen & Wolf.
Series

Exercising On My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer

While I originally came to the Peloton bike for exercise, one cycling instructor’s teachings have come to serve as a road map for practicing law thoughtfully and mindfully, which has opened opportunities for growth and change in my career, says Andrea Kirshenbaum at Littler.
Lessons From United's Axed Win In Firing Over Online Pics

In Wawrzenski v. United Airlines, a California state appeals court revived a flight attendant’s suit over her termination for linking photos of herself in uniform to her OnlyFans account, providing a cautionary tale for employers navigating the complexities of workplace policy enforcement in the digital age, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.
3 Factors Affecting Retail M&A Deals In 2025

Retailers considering mergers and acquisitions this year face an evolving antitrust environment, including a new administration under President-elect Donald Trump, revised merger guidelines and a precedent set last year by a canceled $8.5 billion handbag merger, say attorneys at DLA Piper.
How Trump Admin May Approach AI In The Workplace

Key indicators suggest that the incoming Trump administration will adopt a deregulatory approach to artificial intelligence, allowing states to fill the void, so it is critical that employers pay close attention to developing legal authority concerning AI tools, say attorneys at Littler.
Top 10 Legal Issues This Year For Transportation Industry GCs

General counsel must carefully consider numerous legal and policy challenges facing the automotive and transportation industry in the year to come, especially while navigating new technologies, regulations and global markets, says Francesco Liberatore at Squire Patton.
Exploring Venue Strategy For Trump-Era Regulatory Litigation

Litigation will likely play a prominent role in shaping policy outcomes during the second Trump administration, and stakeholders have several tools at their disposal to steer regulatory litigation toward more favorable venues, say attorneys at Covington.
What 2024's Noncompete Turmoil Means For Banks In 2025

A look back at the most significant legal challenges to the enforceability of various restrictive covenants like noncompete and nonsolicitation agreements in 2024 can help financial institutions address the use of these critical tools this year, say attorneys at Maynard Nexsen.
Lessons Learned From 2024's Top FMLA Decisions

Last year's major litigation related to the Family and Medical Leave Act underscores why it is critical for employers to understand the basics of when leave and accommodations are required, say attorneys at Dechert.
New Year, New Risks: 8 Top Cyber Issues For Finance In 2025

As financial institutions forge ahead in 2025, they must strike a delicate balance between embracing technological innovation and guarding against its darker threats, which this year could include everything from supply chain vulnerabilities to deepfakes, say attorneys at Baker Donelson.
Lessons Learned From 2024's Top ADA Decisions

Last year's major litigation related to the Americans with Disabilities Act highlights that when dealing with accommodation requests, employers must communicate clearly, appreciate context and remain flexible in addressing needs, say attorneys at Dechert.
Series

Playing Esports Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Competing in a global esports tournament at Wimbledon last year not only fulfilled my childhood dream, but also sharpened skills that are essential to my day job, including strategic thinking, confidence and networking, says AJ Schuyler at Jackson Lewis.
Lessons From The SEC's 2024 Crackdown On AI Washing

AI washing was the subject of increased scrutiny from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2024 following a surge in the commercial adoption of generative artificial intelligence technologies in 2023, highlighting the importance of transparency, accuracy and accountability when communicating about AI, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.