More than 30 years ago, the Washington Supreme Court ruled defense counsel may not engage in ex parte (or one-party) communications with a suing employee's treating physician. The Loudon rule, as it's known, was...
Employment Law Letter
A decade after passing the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act (AMMA) by ballot initiative, Arizona citizens enthusiastically voted yes on Proposition 207, the "Smart and Safe Arizona Act" (SSAA), in November. Arizona and...
Courts again recently thwarted the Trump administration's efforts to change the H-1B rules and increase the wages U.S. employers are required to pay to foreign workers. On December 1 and 3, 2020, a federal court order in...
Q Should we allow bereavement leave for an employee to attend the funeral of her live-in boyfriend’s mother? Our bereavement policy covers employees’ mothers, fathers, siblings, children, grandparents, and in-laws. A...
With winter just around the corner, it won’t be long before many areas start seeing snow in the forecast. Businesses will soon be scrambling to clear their parking lots to ensure the safety of their customers and...
Now that the divisive and controversial presidential election is over, what can employers expect from the federal government in the next few months? With our crystal ball dusted off and polished, we expect Joe Biden’s...
The saying “elections have consequences” may be about to be proven true in the context of labor law. It doesn’t require a political judgment to recognize that if the Biden administration follows through on the Democratic...
Often, employees will surreptitiously record supervisors, managers, or coworkers in the workplace in an attempt to gather evidence to support a discrimination claim. Even if the employer has a “no recording” policy in...
We can all agree 2020 was a dumpster fire difficult year for employees and employers alike. As we enter 2021, it’s a good time to reexamine our workplaces and look for ways to make improvements for the business and our...
Q Thirty months ago, we promoted an individual to a position that requires a special license and included a pay raise. He has repeatedly failed to get his license and, as a result, has never been able to perform the job...
More than 30 years ago, the Washington Supreme Court ruled defense counsel may not engage in ex parte (or one-party) communications with a suing employee’s treating physician. The Loudon rule, as it’s known, was...
In an historic first, Virginia is on the verge of becoming the first state in the South to legalize and regulate recreational marijuana use. This follows the Commonwealth’s recent moves to legalize medical marijuana and...
A New York federal court ordered the Trump administration to reinstate the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program on December 4, 2020. A few days later, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and...
The Vermont Supreme Court recently issued its third major opinion in an employment law case with a long and complex history. While the issues in the appeal (and there are many) are interesting, one is particularly...
Almost nine months have passed since the Upper Midwest began feeling the impact of the 2019 novel coronavirus. In the second week of March 2020, dozens of state and local governments began enacting shelter-in-place...