New England Biz Law Update

An ex-DLA Piper secretary has abruptly pulled the plug on a sexual harassment complaint she lodged against the Boston law firm and a former supervisor.

Tagged with: March 31 2012 issue

A Superior Court judge in Boston’s Business Litigation Session has ruled that a company that intentionally destroyed tens of thousands of pages of evidence must pay the plaintiffs’ counsel fees.

Tagged with: March 31 2012 issue

The slow economy and competitive labor market may be contributing to an upswing in discrimination claims by pregnant women in the workplace, employment attorneys say.

Tagged with: March 31 2012 issue

A couple who claimed an investment firm fraudulently induced them into settling litigation over an unsuccessful investment deal could subsequently sue the company for deceit and breach of fiduciary duty, even though they were represented by counsel at the time ...

Tagged with: March 31 2012 issue

A provision in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act protecting whistleblowers from retaliation does not extend to employees of private companies that act under contract as advisers to, and managers of, mutual funds, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has decided in ...

Tagged with: Feb. 29 2012 issue

The Rhode Island city of Providence could require hotels to retain their employees for three months in the event of a change in ownership, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has found.

Tagged with: Feb. 29 2012 issue

A truck driver who brought a purported class action alleging that companies he worked for had violated state and federal wage laws by misclassifying drivers as independent contractors could also sue a management-services firm for providing the companies with independent ...

Tagged with: Feb. 29 2012 issue

Just when attorneys thought the issue of class action waivers in mandatory arbitration clauses had been settled by the U.S. Supreme Court once and for all, a National Labor Relations Board ruling has called into question the ability of employers ...

Tagged with: Feb. 29 2012 issue

A former employee who worked in the risk management and internal audit department at a data management company may have become a security risk herself after she reported losing a USB flash drive containing thousands of sensitive documents.

Tagged with: Feb. 29 2012 issue

A Florida-based private equity firm that bought the iconic Friendly’s restaurant chain in 2007 and managed it straight into Chapter 11 bankruptcy by 2011 used a common industry practice to buy back the assets of the business for a bargain ...

Tagged with: Feb. 29 2012 issue