New Year’s resolutions for design professionals: negotiate new contracts carefully
1/20/22
By: Catherine Bednar The start of a new year is an excellent time for design professionals to review and implement measures for avoiding and minimizing their potential exposure from liability claims. Below are some key contract issues to consider as you pursue new projects and business opportunities. Avoid Heightened Standards of Care and Warranties. Architects…
Eleventh Circuit clarifies standard of care for attorneys advising on unsettled areas of the law
1/12/22
By: Alyssa Wolf A recent ruling in the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a decision of the Northern District of Alabama siding with a law firm sued for malpractice after not warning the client to cease behavior in an unsettled area of law later found to be illegal. In Reynolds v. Levin No. 20-13581, 2021 WL 4627905…
1/10/22
By: Kirsten Patzer and Courtney Mazzio On October 27, 2021, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced an update to the rules implemented by the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act expanding the definition of “financial institutions” under the Financial Privacy Rule and requiring these institutions to enact specific measures to protect their customers’ nonpublic personal information under the accompanying…
Legal considerations for stethoscope hygiene in a new era of infection control (COVID-19)
12/21/21
By: Edward Solensky, Jr. A recent article in American Heart Journal Plus: Cardiology Research and Practice discusses how stethoscopes may be implicated in medical malpractice lawsuits as a potential cause of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). The authors note that while there is limited evidence demonstrating a direct connection between stethoscope contamination and HAIs, malpractice lawsuits often…
Recent Second Circuit decision demonstrates importance of carefully drafted engagement letters
12/6/21
By: David A. Slocum A recent decision issued by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit demonstrates the importance of having carefully drafted client engagement letters clearly defining the scope of an attorney’s representation. In Allegrino v. Moscou, 2021 U.S. App. LEXIS 34936 (2d. Cir. November 24, 2021), the Second Circuit Court…
Attention debt collectors in California: new law requires action by December 31, 2021
12/3/21
By: Mandy D. Hexom Beginning January 1, 2022, pursuant to California’s new Debt Collection Licensing Act (DCLA), all consumer debt collectors who are collecting on their own account or the account of others, including debt buyers, must be licensed with the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI). To comply with this new law, consumer debt collectors must apply for a…
11/1/21
By: Marissa Dunn E-filing has radically changed the way we practice law. No longer are the days of finding parking near the courthouse and waiting your turn in line for the clerk. So too has service by physical mail disappeared. E-service dominates in jurisdictions where e-filing is provided. But is this always a positive trend? Compared to the olden days…
9/22/21
By: R. Victoria Fuller and Jessica Gray Kelly Intellectual Property attorneys face malpractice risks unique to their specialty. Avoiding claims from clients and complying with the rules of professional conduct requires practitioners to exercise constant vigilance. Understanding both the circumstances that tend to drive claims, and the types of conflicts that trip-up IP practitioners, will help you mitigate your risk. Recent data trends show claims arise from foreign filings,…
6/21/21
By: Nancy Reimer, Victoria Fuller and Lori Eller In Tedeschi-Freij vs. Percy Law Group, P.C., et al., the Massachusetts Appeals Court held a plaintiff need not show evidence of quantifiable damages to survive a motion for summary judgment on a claim for the unauthorized use of her name in violation of (1) M.G.L. c. 214,…
Another Hit to Short-Term Rentals: Styller v. Zoning Board of Appeals of Lynnfield
6/11/21
By: Jessica Gray Kelly, Esq. & Matthew L. Schwartz, Esq. Local governments seeking to curb short-term rentals by private homeowners received a win this week in the case of Styller v. Zoning Board of Appeals of Lynnfield, SJC-12901. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held the Plaintiff’s occasional, short-term rental of his private single-family home was not…
4/30/21
By: Kirsten Patzer In a 6-2 decision, the Supreme Court of the United States(the “Court”) reversed the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Google LLC v. Oracle America, Inc., holding Google’s use of Oracle’s Java Application Programming Interfaces (API) in its Android operating system was “fair use.” The Court granted Google’s certiorari…
Departing Lawyers’ “Theft of Files” May Lead to a Violation of M.G.L.c. 93A
4/29/21
By: Nancy Reimer, Jennifer Markowski and Lori Eller The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court recently held in Governo Law Firm LLC v. Bergeron, 487 Mass. 188 (2021), that the inapplicability of G. L. c. 93A, § 11, to disputes arising from an employment relationship does not mean that an employee never can be liable to its…