Labor & Employment

Boycott seeking $70 per hour for court-appointed lawyers fizzled when other attorneys took the cases

Several defense attorneys in Maine were hoping a boycott of all sexual assault cases would persuade the state to raise its hourly rate for court-appointed lawyers in all criminal cases from $50 to $70. But the attorney organized-labor movement fizzled out when the state was able to find defense lawyers…

May 29, 2014 9:15 PM CDT

Attorney accused of harboring a fugitive in his law office gives up law license

A former prosecutor accused last year of harboring a fugitive—his legal assistant—in his law office for several months has given up his license to practice. The resignation of William Mark Blasdel was accepted by the Oklahoma Supreme Court in a Tuesday opinion (PDF). He was criminally charged last year with…

May 29, 2014 7:50 PM CDT

Judge dismisses former in-house counsel’s suit against county

A California judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought against Siskiyou County by its former in-house county counsel. Thomas Guarino had claimed the county and other defendants did not follow proper procedures in removing him from office after another in-house lawyer accused him in 2011 of creating a hostile work environment,…

May 28, 2014 11:00 PM CDT

Forced retirement of law firm partners gets green light from Canada’s top court

A longtime equity partner at a major Canadian law firm has lost his battle against a policy requiring him to retire at age 65. Ruling Thursday in a much-watched case brought by John Michael “Mitch” McCormick against Fasken Martineau DuMoulin, the country’s top court said partners do not qualify as…

May 22, 2014 7:44 PM CDT

Partner can sue own law firm as a whistleblower, top UK court rules

Rejecting a law firm’s argument that a partner is not an employee and hence can’t file a whistleblower suit, the United Kingdom’s top civil court Wednesday gave a green light for former partner Krista Bates Van Winkelhof to pursue such a case against Clyde & Co. concerning claimed corruption. “One…

May 21, 2014 5:25 PM CDT

Recent admittee sues law firm founder, says he sent graphic email, spoke of ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’

Within months of being admitted to practice in Oregon last year, a new lawyer was not only gaining experience as an attorney at a small suburban Portland law firm but being sexually harassed by its well-known founder, a lawsuit alleges. Beginning in December, plaintiff Andrea R. Meyer says, Ross Day…

May 21, 2014 3:45 PM CDT

Bankuptcy trustee seeks $22M from 9 former Dewey partners in compensation clawback suits

Saying that Dewey & LeBoeuf was insolvent more than three years prior to its record-breaking bankruptcy in May of 2012, a trustee is seeking to claw back $22 million in compensation paid to nine former international partners of the now-shuttered megafirm. Lawsuits filed Tuesday in federal bankruptcy court in Manhattan…

May 15, 2014 7:50 PM CDT

NYU law students hit with subpoenas after criticizing labor practices of school trustee

Updated: A New York University law school trustee who donates more than $1 million a year to an institute at the school has subpoenaed two law students who opposed his labor practices as the owner of two elder-care companies. The trustee, Daniel Straus, owns a company that is seeking emails,…

May 1, 2014 3:26 PM CDT

Jurors to decide validity of right-to-sue waiver signed by Allstate agents who claim age bias

Thirteen years after filing their age bias case, 31 Allstate agents who signed a waiver giving up their right to sue are still waiting for a trial date. Before their bias claims can be heard, jurors will decide whether the agents were coerced into signing the agreement, a judge ruled…

May 1, 2014 10:55 AM CDT

Prosecutor accused of sexual harassment gets his job back—for now

Five months after he was stripped of his prosecutorial powers due to a sexual harassment scandal, Rockingham County Attorney Jim Reams is back in office. Reams, who serves as the chief criminal prosecutor in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, is not out of the woods just yet. Reams reached an agreement…

Apr 30, 2014 5:00 PM CDT

NBA owner Donald Sterling suspended for life, and experts say his legal options are limited

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling was banned for life from the National Basketball Association and fined $2.5 million after a recording surfaced over the weekend of him making racist and sexist statements. In a press conference in New York City on Tuesday, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver announced that Sterling…

Apr 29, 2014 11:40 PM CDT

ABA committee reaffirms proposal to remove ban on academic credit for paid externships

An ABA committee has wrapped up its comprehensive review of the law school accreditation standards after deciding not to make any changes in the last of its pending proposals to amend the standards. The Section of Legal Education and Admission to the Bar’s standards review committee, which met Friday in…

Apr 28, 2014 10:08 PM CDT

Congressman indicted for fraud in his restaurant business

The long simmering federal investigation of U.S. Rep. Michael Grimm, who represents Staten Island and parts of Brooklyn in Congress, reached a critical stage today with the release of his indictment on multiple fraud charges relating to his business, the New York Times reports. Grimm pleaded not guilty on Monday…

Apr 28, 2014 8:27 PM CDT

Small town rallies in support of lesbian police chief after mayor fires her

The newly elected mayor of Latta, South Carolina, fired the town’s police chief shortly after his February election, claiming that 23-year member of the force Crystal Moore had questioned authority and failed to maintain order at a town council meeting, the Los Angeles Times reports. Mayor Earl Bullard denied that…

Apr 28, 2014 6:26 PM CDT

Workplace gossip ban runs afoul of NLRA

Parts of a policy that prohibited employees from “engaging in or listening to” gossip and negative comments at work was recently struck down by the National Labor Relations Board on the basis that some of it could prohibit employees from discussing work complaints. “The NLRB has been making it clear…

Apr 25, 2014 6:30 PM CDT