New England Biz Law Update
After hearing arguments in Meehan v. Medical Information Technology, Inc. on Nov. 1, the Supreme Judicial Court in Massachusetts will have an opportunity to clarify whether an employee’s exercise of his rights under the state’s Personnel Records Act can serve ...
Read More »Response starting to form to Biden ‘competition’ order
The title of the Biden administration’s recent executive order on “Promoting Competition in the American Economy” is unlikely to set off alarm bells. After all, “more competition” conjures images of new jobs, better wages and prices for consumers, and more ...
Read More »Judge: MCAD not a necessary first step for public accommodations case
A person aggrieved by discrimination in a place of public accommodation need not file a charge with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination and exhaust her administrative remedies before filing suit, a Superior Court judge has decided. In so ruling, the ...
Read More »Court: Tax abatement still available for software used out of state
The normal abatement process remains available to vendors and purchasers of software used outside of Massachusetts, even if they did not follow the regulations for sales tax apportionment prescribed by the state’s commissioner of revenue, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ...
Read More »Hospital ‘offer letter’ found not to be binding contract
A hospital’s emailed “offer letter” did not constitute a valid, binding contract, nor could the doctor who received it establish a promissory estoppel claim, a Superior Court judge in Massachusetts has decided. At the outset of his decision in Moore ...
Read More »IP attorneys doubt patent waivers solution to global need for COVID vaccine
It certainly makes for a good sound bite, especially as outbreaks rage across India. But intellectual property attorneys doubt that waiving patent and other IP protections for COVID-19 vaccines would turn the tide on the global pandemic. On May 5, ...
Read More »Northeastern seeks summary judgment in students’ COVID suit
Whether or not its students signed a binding contract, Northeastern University should prevail in the federal lawsuit seeking to disgorge the school of tuition paid for the spring 2020 semester, when the school switched to remote instruction due to the ...
Read More »Court sides with professor in Gordon College ‘ministerial exception’ case
The “ministerial exception” does not apply to an associate professor of social work at a private Christian liberal arts college, and she should be allowed to pursue her claims that the school unlawfully retaliated against her for her vocal opposition ...
Read More »Bid to end professor’s suit cites to ‘ministerial exception’
A case recently argued before the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court pits the religious freedom of a Christian college against a professor’s right to seek redress for alleged workplace discrimination. Specifically, the SJC in DeWeese-Boyd v. Gordon College, et al. was ...
Read More »Court rejects Uber’s arbitration agreement
Due to an inadequate registration process, Uber could not compel two of its users to arbitrate their discrimination claims against the company, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled on Jan. 4. “The app’s registration process did not provide users with ...
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