Employment

Expert Analysis

• High Court Inaction Paves Way For Increasing FCA Dismissals

  

  Monday’s U.S. Supreme Court denial of certiorari in U.S. v. JPMorgan Chase has implications for False Claims Act litigants because it maintains important precedent allowing the U.S. Department of Justice to dismiss whistleblower cases without being subject to probing judicial review, say Brandon Moss and Michelle Bradshaw at Wiley Rein.

• CARES Act May Propel Gig Economy Employment Law Shift

  

  The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act’s extension of unemployment benefits to independent contractors could provide insight into how gig economy employment law standards might evolve, but some proposed changes may do more harm than good, says Kevin Vozzo at Epstein Becker.

• Opinion

  In #MeToo Era, Victims Must Have Choice Over NDAs

  

  States have started enacting laws that invalidate nondisclosure agreements in sexual harassment cases, but victims should have the individual choice of whether to agree to confidentiality, say Lynne Bernabei and Kristen Sinisi at Bernabei & Kabat.

• Don't Forget Firm Culture When Adapting To Remote Work

  

  While law firms suddenly pivoting to remote work due to coronavirus restrictions are busy dealing with logistical challenges, an equally pressing and perhaps more difficult task may be adjusting a long-standing brick-and-mortar culture to working remotely for the first time, say Heather Clauson Haughian and Grant Walsh at Culhane Meadows.

• Employer Work Sharing Perks Amid Pandemic Uncertainty

  

  During the coronavirus pandemic, obtaining approval for a work sharing plan can broaden an employer’s long-term options, provide immediate cost savings, curb liability exposure, support employee well-being, and free up time for considering next steps, say attorneys at Blank Rome.

• How To Handle No-Cut Employment Contracts In Hard Times

  

  Executives who are beneficiaries of no-cut employment agreements could still be asked to take significant pay cuts due to the economic impact of the coronavirus. Parties must treat the request like any other business transaction and negotiate the terms, says Jose Sariego at Bilzin Sumberg.

• What Privacy Compliance Looks Like During COVID-19

  

  As regulators in the U.S. and EU issue COVID-19 guidance aimed at striking a balance between protecting privacy and facilitating effective treatment, employers and health care providers must be mindful of changing privacy obligations, say Anna Clark and Joel Thayer at Phillips Lytle.

• What Employers Need To Know About Furloughs

  

  Employer considerations for implementing furloughs should include wage and hour challenges, paid time off questions, and federal and state notice requirements, says Jonathan Wetchler at Duane Morris.

• 5th Circ. Ruling Amplifies Bristol-Myers Class Action Debate

  

  The Fifth Circuit’s recent decision in Cruson v. Jackson National Life Insurance guides defendants on raising the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2017 Bristol-Myers ruling as a jurisdictional objection to a nationwide class, even though it deepens a circuit split, says Michael Ruttinger at Tucker Ellis.

• Conducting Court Hearings Remotely: 12 Considerations

  

  As more courts begin to explore remote hearings during the COVID-19 crisis, attorneys and courts should be aware of some of the common concerns accompanying video- and teleconferencing technology and make allowances to avoid these issues, say Attison Barnes III and Krystal Swendsboe at Wiley Rein.

• Key CARES Act Implications For Health And Life Sciences

  

  The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, passed last month, is expected to provide significant monetary relief to the health care and life sciences companies, as well as investors in the space, say Kevin Rinker and Jacob Stahl at Debevoise.

• Pandemic Telework May Undermine Employer ADA Defense

  

  The broad embrace of teleworking during the coronavirus pandemic may expand Federal courts’ willingness to consider working from home as a reasonable employee accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act, weakening employer arguments against such claims, say Robert Nichols and Caroline Melo at Bracewell.

• The Era Of Video Mediation Is Here — Or Is It?

  

  Mediator Jeff Kichaven has heard from several first-chair trial lawyers and senior claims executives that they are reluctant to adopt online video mediation even during the COVID-19 crisis, and says this reluctance is grounded in reality.

• Furloughs: Weighing The Unemployment Costs And Benefits

  

  Employers considering furloughs so workers can access expanded unemployment benefits under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act should look for two factors that would minimize drawbacks for all parties, says Isaac Mamaysky at Potomac Law Group.

• COVID-19 Highlights BigLaw Need For Emotional Intelligence

  

  The formula for making decisions at BigLaw firms has historically been rooted in IQ-based factors, but with the ongoing pandemic, lawyers and firm leaders are increasingly dealing with issues that require emotional intelligence — from establishing effective virtual offices to retaining firm morale and client confidence, say Jolie Balido and Tina van der Ven at NewStar Media.