The Paley Rothman Blog
Paley Rothman shares this library of resources with clients and friends of the firm to help them stay ahead of legal and business developments and trends. Here, you will find helpful tips and tools written by our attorneys. The information in the blogs and articles is not a substitute for legal advice and should not be relied on as such. Should you have any questions or want legal advice, please contact the attorney who wrote the blog or article.
January 23, 2013
In Campusano v. Lusitano Construction, the Court of Special Appeals of Maryland held for the first time that the economic reality test governs the definition of “employer” under the Wage Payment and Collection Act (WPCA). The test had previously been applied under the Maryland Wage and Hour Law (MWHL) and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Here, it was extended so that the Court could determine whether a supervisor or manager could be personally liable under the WPCA in the same manner that a supervisor or manager could be personally liable under the FLSA or MWHL.
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January 22, 2013
By
Jessica Summers on January 22, 2013
A recent decision by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals overturning a $555,000 jury verdict has reemphasized the importance and effectiveness of including “at-will” language in employee handbooks and other employment documents. The decision in Scott v. Merck & Company, Inc. (found here), may help to reassure wary employers that an at-will provision is still one of their most valuable tools.
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January 18, 2013
On December 21, 2012, the Supreme Court of Iowa decided that a female employee, viewed by her male boss as an “irresistible attraction,” and terminated because the boss’s wife perceived the employee as a threat to her marriage, could not state a claim for gender-based discrimination. The case was widely reported by the media, but the decision is not particularly remarkable and, in fact, follows established federal law.
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January 18, 2013
The Affordable Care Act (ACA), beginning in 2014, will require that employers with 50 or more full-time employees provide each one with health insurance–or face a potentially steep fine. With the Treasury Department’s recent announcement that employers’ 2013 staffing levels will be used to determine the mandate’s application, a recent Wall Street Journal article discussed the hiring of independent contractors as one tactic that many small businesses might consider in an effort to avoid the ACA’s employer mandate.
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December 18, 2012
By
Jessica Summers on December 18, 2012
In a move supported by many local business leaders, the District of Columbia City Council on December 4, 2012, rejected a bill to amend the D.C. Human Rights Act to prohibit discrimination in employment, housing and education based on arrest and conviction records. Among other things, the bill (available here), would have prohibited employers from considering an applicant or employee’s arrest or conviction record unless it was directly relevant to the job sought. In rejecting this bill, the council approved a more moderate measure that will encourage employers to hire individuals with criminal records and provide certain ex-offenders with certificates of good standing (available here).
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