Labor & Employment

Laws and Cultural Pressures Condemn Some Widows to Poverty

Discrimination against widows in many countries is a hidden problem that dooms the women and their families to a life of poverty. Cherie Blair, the wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, set out to shine a spotlight on cultural traditions and laws that discriminate against widows in an…

Dec 18, 2007 3:28 PM CST

Kansas AG in Sex Scandal Resigns

The attorney general of Kansas, who has been embroiled in a sex scandal that also raises significant legal ethics issues, announced today that he will resign from office effective at the end of January. At that point, he will have been in office barely one year. “Many people feel betrayed…

Dec 14, 2007 10:59 PM CST

$2.5M Settlement in Rare Clery Act Case re Murdered Student

Eastern Michigan University has agreed to pay a $2.5 million settlement to the family of a murdered student apparently slain in her dorm room, in an unusual case related to violations of the federal Clery Act due to non-disclosure of campus safety information. EMU and the family of Laura Dickinson…

Dec 14, 2007 12:56 AM CST

DOJ Sues Colorado Springs Police for Retaliating Against Officer

The U.S. Justice Department has sued the Colorado Springs police department for refusing to promote an officer who helped his wife in a successful disabilities suit against the police. The suit alleges the department did not promote Lance Lazoff in retaliation for helping his wife challenge its policy requiring the…

Dec 12, 2007 7:23 PM CST

MLB Steroids Scandal: 50 Named in Mitchell Report

Updated: A much-awaited report on steroid use in Major League Baseball will be released tomorrow, and it reportedly will identify at least 50 current and former players who may have cheated on the game with steroids, stimulants and human growth hormone. Apparently, former Sen. George Mitchell, a former federal prosecutor…

Dec 12, 2007 6:16 PM CST

Isiah Thomas Settles Sex-Harass Suit

A settlement in an undisclosed amount was reached today by Madison Square Garden and New York Knicks coach Isiah Thomas with a former female team executive in a sexual harassment and retaliation case. One apparent impetus for the pact: additional compensatory damages beyond the $11.6 million in punitives previously awarded…

Dec 11, 2007 12:06 AM CST

Prominent Partner Beaten in Street

The chairman of Dilworth Paxson’s labor and employment practice was found at around 8 p.m. Thursday in a southwest Philadelphia street near his Acura, badly beaten. Police think that Gino Benedetti, who has chest and severe head injuries, may have been the victim of a botched robbery, reports the Legal…

Dec 10, 2007 9:56 PM CST

No-No-No: Tips for Holiday Parties

Lawyers and clients alike can cut down on potential liability for holiday merrymaking at office events by following a few simple tips. Among them: hire professional bartenders, arrange for free taxis home and make clear to managers that they are considered on duty at such holiday events and should not…

Dec 10, 2007 8:25 PM CST

Court to Consider Whether Disabled Employees Get Preference

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether a worker who cannot perform her present job because of a disability should be given preference for an open position. The suit by Pam Huber claims Wal-Mart should have given her a job as a router, which paid $12.50 an hour,…

Dec 10, 2007 12:23 PM CST

Court Bans Age Discrimination in Worker’s Comp Award

Siding with a 76-year-old worker who injured her back bending over to pick up some dropped brochures, the California Court of Appeals has reversed a reduction in disability benefits it said was because of her age. Although a medical expert concluded that Lois Vaira’s injury was in part attributable to…

Dec 7, 2007 7:12 PM CST

‘Confrontational’ Lawyer Loses DLA Piper Bias Suit

A lawyer who claimed DLA Piper fired her for complaining about discriminatory treatment has lost her lawsuit against the firm. U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan dismissed the suit by Charlene Morisseau after she failed to file court papers opposing the law firm’s summary judgment by the court’s extended deadline, the…

Dec 7, 2007 11:04 AM CST

Police Informant Sues Over Job Loss

A confidential police informant in Atlanta who lost his job after his identity was revealed because of a furor of publicity over a botched drug raid has sued the city for damages. Alex White contends in his federal lawsuit that he made about $25,000 annually from this work and seeks…

Dec 6, 2007 10:47 PM CST

Supreme Court Skeptical of ‘Me, Too’ Bias Evidence

During U.S. Supreme Court oral arguments in an age bias suit yesterday, several justices appeared to side with an employer who is seeking to exclude testimony by other workers alleging discrimination by different supervisors. The New York Times reports that “several justices, perhaps a majority” agree that such “me, too”…

Dec 4, 2007 1:36 PM CST

Overlooked No Longer

A new ABA commission will address sexual orientation and gender identity issues in the legal profession

Dec 1, 2007 4:58 PM CST

Refusal to Hire Pregnant Woman to Cost Company $$

A unanimous Washington Supreme Court has ruled that a southwestern Washington woman was wrongfully barred from getting a job as a clerk and checker because she was pregnant. In 2001, Stacey Hegwine was offered a job at Longview Fibre Co. pending the results of a physical, the Daily News, of…

Nov 30, 2007 7:59 PM CST