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Pursuit of medical leave claims may become more difficult
February 23rd, 2014
When the Supreme Court decided Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662 (2009), lawyers representing employers and other defendants declared that Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8 had essentially been nullified. According to these employment and civil rights…
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A rare victory before the Supreme Court for consumers and the public interest
January 26th, 2014
As has been discussed in prior postings here, the Supreme Court has typically decided matters before it in a way that favors corporations to the detriment of employees, civil rights, or consumer protection. In a case brought by the Attorney General o…
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Employment litigation in 2014: mostly more of the same
January 15th, 2014
Much of the court caseloads in recent years has focused on class actions and collective actions prosecuted concerning wage-and-hour violations as opposed to discrimination, retaliation, harassment, or other civil rights claims. For over a decade, in…
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Spymaster smack-down
December 21st, 2013
In the wake of the attacks on September 11, 2001, President George Bush instituted perhaps the largest and most aggressive expansion ever of domestic surveillance. It is especially noteworthy, then, that one of his judicial appointments has issued an…
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Walmart feeling the heat as winter approaches
November 27th, 2013
This is typically the season to be merry for big box retailers like Walmart, which reap enormous profits at the end of each year. The world’s largest retailer, however, now faces a number of problems related to how it treats its employees. Only day…
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What is discrimination?
November 11th, 2013
The law defines illegal discrimination as treating someone less favorably – regarding wages, employee benefits, or other terms of employment – because of a protected status, such as race, sex, age, disability, religion, and national origin. The s…
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Civil rights in the crosshairs yet again
October 30th, 2013
Michigan, which has been embroiled in significant anti-union activity, adopted a referendum banning affirmative action – underscoring againa the connection between labor rights and civil rights. In other words, the recently adopted Proposal 2 – w…
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Access to the civil justice system increasingly at risk
October 14th, 2013
An expanding campaign about legal technicalities, if successful, would have real consequences for plaintiffs and their counsel: further limitations on effective prosecution of, and meaningful damages recoveries in, employment law, civil rights, and c…
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More judicial activism from the Supreme Court
September 28th, 2013
The time-honored practice of the Supreme Court has been to take cases for review when there is a significant disagreement among the Circuit Courts of Appeals about how to apply a legal principle. Not anymore evidently, at least when it comes to civil…
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The labor movement forward
September 10th, 2013
In the past year, workers and their allies in the larger communities have been coalescing around the cause for a living wage and workplace fairness generally. The organizing and related job actions by these employees across the nation have included u…
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Categories: Blog