NLRB Atty OKs Microsoft's Gaza Protest Firings

By Braden Campbell

Microsoft did not violate federal labor law by firing two workers who organized a protest of the war in Gaza at the company's Washington headquarters because the event didn't have a clear enough tie to their work, a National Labor Relations Board attorney said in a newly released advice memo.

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EEOC Says NYT Retaliation Claims Lack Basis In Bias Suit

By Craig Clough

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission urged a New York federal judge Friday to toss The New York Times' counterclaims in a race and sex bias suit, saying the newspaper is trying to reframe a straightforward employment discrimination case as a dispute over press freedoms.

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Ex-Clifford Chance Attys Fight Bid To Toss Clawback Suit

By Ryan Boysen

The two partners facing a $6 million clawback demand by Clifford Chance LLP have again asked a federal judge to decide whether English or New York law should govern the arbitration, claiming the firm's partnership agreement is unclear.

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6th Circ. Backs $450K Punitive Award For Mich. Farmworkers

By Melanie Dorsey

A Sixth Circuit panel has upheld a $450,000 punitive damages award for five Guatemalan farmworkers who accused a West Michigan agricultural labor contractor and its owners of trafficking-related and wage law abuses, ruling that the award was constitutionally permissible despite the jury awarding only economic compensatory damages.

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Erie Bus Dispatchers Aren't Union-Exempt Supervisors

By Matthew Santoni

Seven dispatchers at the Metropolitan Transit Authority for Erie, Pennsylvania, are not "supervisors" exempt from membership in the authority's labor union, since their roles in scheduling overtime or reporting rule infractions were constrained by their contract and only occasionally crossed the line into supervision, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court ruled Monday.

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Energy Utility Hit With Age Bias Suit In Ga.

By David Aaro

A gas and electric utility has been hit with an age discrimination lawsuit in Georgia federal court by a former senior vendor manager who alleges his boss's supervisor stated there were "too many people over 60" at the company, which fired him shortly after his 60th birthday.

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Brief

NASCAR, Racetrack Settle Security Guard's Harassment Suit

By Susan Smiley

A former Michigan International Speedway guard asked a federal court to dismiss her sexual harassment suit against her former supervisor, NASCAR and the racetrack, a request that follows docket entries indicating the remaining claims and counterclaims were successfully mediated. 

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Brief

Fiat Chrysler Workers Win Final OK Of $3.8M OT Deal

By MJ Koo

A Michigan federal court has granted final approval of a nearly $3.8 million settlement resolving overtime claims brought by current and former hourly production employees at Fiat Chrysler's U.S. facilities, with $1.26 million of that amount going to attorney fees.

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Fla. Union Denied Worker Due Process, NLRB Judge Says

By Katherine Smith

An International Longshoremen's Association local violated federal labor law by failing to notify a member of the internal charges filed against him and using "questionable evidence" to make its case, a National Labor Relations Board judge found.

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General Dynamics Beats Widow's Workers' Comp Bid

By Grace Elletson

A Connecticut appeals court upheld the denial of a widow's claim for workers' compensation after her husband had a cardiac event she said was caused by work stress at General Dynamics, ruling an administrative law judge was fair to attribute his death to his pre-existing heart disease.

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Domino's Seeks To Deliver Noncompete Suit To Arbitration

By MJ Koo

Domino's Pizza asked a Washington state court to compel individual arbitration of a former yard driver's proposed class claims alleging the company's conflict-of-interest policy illegally restricted workers from taking second jobs, arguing the worker signed a binding arbitration agreement when he was hired that includes a class action waiver.

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Apple Can't Shake Fintech Co.'s Trade Secret, RICO Suit

By Bonnie Eslinger

A Georgia federal judge on Monday denied Apple's motion to dismiss Fintiv's trade secrets and racketeering litigation, finding the fintech company plausibly alleges that Apple stole its trade secrets and encouraged credit card issuers and payment processors to promote the false message that Apple created the technology behind Apple Pay.

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Korean Bank Whistleblower Suit May Be Bound For Arbitration

By Pete Brush

The Second Circuit on Monday asked if whistleblower retaliation claims by four former compliance executives at the New York arm of a Korean bank should have been sent to arbitration — and if a judge should have bothered with the bank's dismissal bid.

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Tackling DOL Tips On When Midday Commutes Are Paid Time

Two recent U.S. Department of Labor opinion letters explain when travel between home and work is compensable, providing wage compliance guidance to employers that want to offer flexible work schedules, and establishing clearer rules as litigation over travel time compensability heats up, say attorneys at Jackson Lewis.

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New F-1 Rule Will Cloud Day 1 Practical Training Backup Plans

A new F-1 visa rule scheduled to take effect Sept. 15 could significantly affect employers of international students by replacing duration of status with fixed admission periods and making curricular practical training a less predictable retention option, says Dillon Colucci at Greenberg Traurig.

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How Did Litigants Fare In Judge Albright's 55 Patent Trials?

By Dani Kass

U.S. District Judge Alan Albright oversaw more than 50 patent trials between his 2018 arrival on the bench and planned Monday departure, and in a surprise for many attorneys, there was a near-even split between victories for patent owners and accused infringers.

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New Report Rings Alarm On Threats To Judicial Independence

By Jack Karp

Verbal attacks on judges, disinformation about the courts and the defiance of court orders are undermining the independence of the federal judiciary and significantly affecting individual judges' ability to do their jobs, a report out Monday says.

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Roundup

Defamation Litigation Roundup: NYT, J&J, Azerbaijan

By Theresa Schliep

In this month's review of defamation fights, Law360 details a jury verdict against The New York Times in a suit involving its reporting on a shooting in Alabama, and highlights a judge's decision to spare researchers from a suit by a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary over their talc research.

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House Passes Bill To Curb Secret Prosecutor Orders

By Courtney Bublé

The House passed a bipartisan bill via voice vote Monday afternoon to add transparency to prosecutors' use of nondisclosure orders for telephone service providers.

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Brief

House Passes Bill Adding Texas, California Court Sites

By Courtney Bublé

The House voted 378-10 on Monday evening to expand access to federal courts in Texas and California, the two most populous states in the nation.

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Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court this past week saw disputes over a $200 million federal grant, a $1.7 billion software take-private deal, the ouster of Better.com founder Vishal Garg and a proposed $4 million settlement stemming from an electric vehicle company's SPAC merger.

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Roundup

Hub Hires: MassBar, Kirkland, Troutman

By Chris Villani

Massachusetts' legal landscape saw a sizzling summer finish, with several major firms making hires. Kirkland added a veteran white collar defense attorney, Troutman bolstered its real estate team and Day Pitney nabbed an experienced corporate attorney.

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