New England Biz Law Update

In recent weeks, two separate cases have emerged involving business owners accused of harboring illegal aliens and, in one case, failing to pay millions in employment taxes.

Attorney General Pamela Bondi issued a memorandum to all Department of Justice employees in February outlining a shift in the DOJ’s approach to immigration enforcement. Citing illegal immigration as a “historic threat” to the nation, the memo called for an aggressive stance that prioritizes criminal prosecution of immigration-related violations.

A jury can decide whether Texas A&M University-Texarkana discriminated against a White administrator on the basis of race when it forced him to resign after 25 years of employment and replaced him with a younger Black woman, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas has ruled.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has appealed a Texas federal court’s decision that invalidated its 2024 overtime rule, setting the stage for a review by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

LeoPalace Guam Corporation, operating as LeoPalace Resort in Guam, has agreed to pay $1,412,500 to resolve a national origin discrimination lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

A plaintiff who was reassigned months after filing a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission could not hold her employer liable under Title VII for retaliation, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled.

A municipal attorney who accused a city solicitor of harassment, unequal pay, Wage Act violations, and unethical conduct did not waive her claims by also filing a whistleblower suit, a U.S. District Court judge in Massachusetts has ruled.

An employee can proceed with a putative class action alleging his employer violated the Wage Act by failing to pay him within six days of the end of the company’s pay period, even though the statute allows payment within seven days for some categories of workers, a U.S. District Court judge in Massachusetts has ruled in an issue of first impression.

The annual H-1B pre-registration process is set to open on March 7 and will continue through March 24, 2025.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) electronic reporting regulation, covered employers were required to submit their OSHA Forms 300, 300A, and 301 using the agency's electronic Injury Tracking Application (ITA) by March 2, 2025.