Protection of Private Information
3/30/22
By: Paul Boylan The Supreme Judicial Court for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts recently confirmed what it means for something to be confidential. The case is In the matter of Attorney Michael J. Kelley, SJC-13145, March 16, 2022. Kelley confirms the long-standing principle in many jurisdictions that that protection of confidential information is not limited to…
California’s view of arbitration agreements just got more complicated for employers
2/23/22
By: Matthew Jones The California Court of Appeal in De Leon v. Pinnacle Property Management Services, LLC reviewed the issue of whether an employer’s arbitration agreement was unconscionable. The employee initially filed a lawsuit against the employer under certain wage and hour causes of action. In response, the employer moved to compel arbitration pursuant to…
Indemnification provisions merit attention when negotiating a contract or when facing litigation
2/7/22
By: Robert Buckley Many agreements between parties contain indemnification provisions. While parties often focus their negotiations on the terms controlling the ultimate requirements for performance of the contract and the terms of payment, indemnification provisions merit attention and can also be the subject of heavy negotiation. An indemnification provision is a contract term through which…
1/28/22
By: Paul Piantino III, Esq., Kaitlyn Grajek, Esq. and Julia Bover, Esq. On December 31, 2021, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law the Comprehensive Insurance Disclosure Act, (the “Act”). It takes effect immediately and applies to all pending civil actions in the State of New York. The Act amends CPLR 3101(f), a discovery…
Takeoff of 5G service delayed near some U.S. airports
1/25/22
By: Nicholas J. Hubner The largest airlines in the U.S. released a statement this week stating that the new 5G wireless service, if rolled out near airports, would interfere with aircraft technology and cause flight disruptions. The airline industry warned that thousands of flights may be grounded or delayed if the planned rollout took place…
Waiver through litigation conduct found after challenge to arbitration
10/27/21
By: William Gildea In LMH-Lane Cabot Yard Joint Venture v. Mass. Electric Construction Co., Unpublished (Suffolk County Superior Court Civil Action No. 2184CV02019) (Mass. Super. Ct. Sept. 22, 2021) (Ricciuti, J.), the Massachusetts Superior Court denied a Plaintiff’s application to stay arbitration after finding the Plaintiff waived its objection to arbitration through litigation conduct. The Court found that Plaintiff’s conduct insisting on mediation after receiving the initial arbitration…
Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL): The new business world of collegiate sports
10/13/21
By: A. Ali Sabzevari NIL, which stands for name, image, and likeness, should now be a familiar term for anyone who follows college sports. College athletes across the country are being offered marketing and sponsorship deals in exchange for large sums of money. Historically, payments to student-athletes were forbidden and would result in significant sanctions/discipline. In 2010, UGA star wide receiver A.J.…
Georgia’s new Uniform Mediation Act provides protections for private mediations
9/14/21
By: Robert E. Buckley Georgia’s Uniform Mediation Act (“GUMA”), codified at O.C.G.A. § 9-17-1, et seq., went into effect on July 1, 2021 and applies to mediation proceedings entered into from that date. GUMA provides new protections and requirements for parties and mediators engaging in private mediation in Georgia. GUMA applies where parties elect to pursue mediation with an individual who holds himself or herself out as a mediator…
9/9/21
By: R. Victoria Fuller & Diandra Franks In Shaw’s Supermarkets, Inc. v. Margarita Melendez, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (the “SJC”) recently held that its 2020 COVID-19 statute of limitations tolling order tolled the statute of limitations for all civil actions, not just those actions for which the limitations period would have expired during the tolling period. In Shaws, the plaintiff was allegedly injured on September 3,…
PA Supreme Court weighs novel doctrine of enterprise liability
8/25/21
By: Sean Riley In the case of Mortimer v. McCool, No. 37 MAP 2020 (Pa. July 21, 2021), the Pennsylvania Supreme Court addressed a doctrine of piercing the corporate veil previously novel to Pennsylvania law, known variously as “single-entity,” “enterprise,” or “horizontal” liability. The matter arose out of injuries sustained by the plaintiff as a result of an intoxicated driver. The driver recently had been served by employees of a nearby…
8/13/21
By: Brian Goldberg and Nicolas Bohorquez On August 13, 2021, U.S. District Judge Dabney L. Friedrich denied the Plaintiff Alabama Association of Realtor, et. al.’s Emergency Motion to Enforce the Supreme Court’s Ruling and to Vacate the Stay Pending Appeal filed in U.S. District Court, District of Columbia, Case No. 20-cv-3377 (DLF). In denying the…