Employment

March 02, 2025
WH Appeals After Watchdog Chief Is Permanently Reinstalled

A D.C. federal judge ruled Saturday that President Donald Trump's firing of the head of the Office of Special Counsel was illegal, finding that the federal employment watchdog can only be ousted for cause.
February 28, 2025
CFPB Endgame Is Just 'Five Men And A Phone,' Filings Allege

Current and former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau employees alleged in D.C. federal court filings that the Trump administration is much more aggressively trying to gut the agency than it has let on, warning it has already damaged vital functions.
February 28, 2025
Employment Authority: High Court Majority-Bias Case Effects

Law360 Employment Authority covers the biggest employment cases and trends. Catch up this week with how a possible U.S. Supreme Court decision easing the path for plaintiffs belonging to majority groups could create the "perfect storm" for litigation, a look at the cases challenging U.S. Department of Labor rules that are currently on hold after the new Trump administration took office, and how the striking energy is set to continue.
February 28, 2025
OPM Tells Agencies To Give On-The-Clock Union Task Info

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management's acting director instructed federal agency heads to submit information about the official time unionized workers spent negotiating, handling grievances and engaging in labor-management relations, issuing the memorandum to carry out President Donald Trump's aim of restoring "efficiency and accountability" in the government.
February 28, 2025
'Not So': Trump Says Wilcox Firing Case Won't Ax Humphrey's

A D.C. federal judge should reject former National Labor Relations Board member Gwynne Wilcox's claim that the Trump administration is trying to ax landmark U.S. Supreme Court precedent, President Donald Trump and board Chairman Marvin Kaplan argued Friday, saying they only want the decision properly applied.
February 28, 2025
Calif. Justices Revive Yacht Club Worker's Injury Suit

The California Supreme Court has revived a suit brought by a yacht club maintenance worker seeking to hold his employer liable for his workplace injuries under federal maritime law, saying the law preempts California's workers' compensation statute.
February 28, 2025
8th Circ. Backs Auto Co. Exec's Win In $5M Benefits Suit

The Eighth Circuit declined Friday to overturn a former chief operating officer's win in his lawsuit accusing an automotive company of reneging on the terms of his deferred compensation plan when he left the firm, saying the company can't rely on nonexistent documents to deny his claim to the funds.
February 28, 2025
Trump Admin Cuts Raise Trade Secret Security Concerns

As the Trump administration reduces the size of the federal government, intellectual property attorneys are expressing concerns about the continued safeguarding of trade secrets that companies are required to disclose to certain agencies.
February 28, 2025
5 Argument Sessions Benefits Attys Should Watch In March

The Ninth Circuit will mull Express Scripts and OptumRx's bid to force a public nuisance suit brought by the state of California into federal court, and the Second Circuit will hear from pensioners who say that IBM's use of outdated mortality tables shrank their benefits payouts. Here, Law360 looks at these and other appellate arguments happening in March that should be on benefits lawyers' radar.
February 28, 2025
Trafficking Claims Against Marriott Should Go On, Judge Says

A Colorado federal judge said Thursday that a Mexican national has plausibly alleged Marriott engaged in a bait-and-switch scheme at its St. Regis Hotel in Aspen to procure his labor under false pretenses, recommending that half of his claims proceed in the litigation.
February 28, 2025
Kraft Heinz Beats Ex-R&D Worker's Vaccine Bias Claims

A former Kraft Heinz research and development manager cannot go to trial over claims the company discriminated against her religious beliefs by rejecting her COVID-19 exemption request, with an Illinois federal judge saying on Friday her concerns were not religious in nature.
February 28, 2025
2nd Circ. Revives Electrical Worker's Union Pension Fight

An electrical worker can try again to argue that two trustees of his union pension fund violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act by paying themselves over $1 million in compensation from the fund's assets, with the Second Circuit ruling Friday that the worker has standing to sue.
February 28, 2025
CVS, Catholic Nurse Settle Bias Suit Over Contraceptive Care

CVS Health Corp. agreed to settle a former nurse's lawsuit alleging the company unlawfully tried to force her to provide contraceptive care to patients in violation of her Catholic beliefs, according to filings in Florida federal court.
February 28, 2025
Presidents v. Courts: Lincoln, Trump & Judicial Power Limits

Amid fears of President Donald Trump disobeying judges with impunity, debate has focused on famous instances of officials defying the U.S. Supreme Court. But some of the clearest insights into America's handling of White House disregard for courts exist in relatively obscure cases from the Civil War era, when unprecedented presidential actions provoked extraordinary responses from the judiciary — and underscored the limits of its powers.
February 28, 2025
Steakhouse Workers Score Collective Cert. In Tips Row

Servers and bartenders claiming that a steakhouse known for its 72-ounce steak challenge cheated them out of tips and didn't reimburse them for their uniforms can move forward as a collective, a Texas federal judge ruled, while saying the limitation period clock will start ticking later.
February 28, 2025
Advocates Step Up After EEOC About-Face On Gender Identity

Two nonprofits taking up gender identity discrimination cases that the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is abandoning offers a preview of the role that advocacy organizations will play defending transgender workers as the Trump administration attacks their rights, experts said.
February 28, 2025
Off The Bench: Trans Ban Recusal Bid, Wemby Spat, Fox Suit

In this week's Off The Bench, a Colorado federal judge won't recuse himself from a case centering on a transgender athlete over his pronoun use, the sale of a high-profile Victor Wembanyama jersey will go forward despite feverish litigation and a sprawling harassment suit against Fox Sports is shuffled from federal to state court.
February 28, 2025
7th Circ. Says It's Too Early To Mull Fired ISU Coach's Suit

A Seventh Circuit panel says it lacks the jurisdiction to consider if a lower court rightly denied dismissal of a lawsuit brought by an ex-Illinois State University football coach who claims he was unlawfully fired for posting an "All Lives Matter" sign on his office door, because the district judge postponed a decision on the school officials' qualified immunity argument.
February 28, 2025
Software Engineer Faces Prison For Sharing Info With China

A Southern California man has pled guilty to downloading sensitive technology from a former employer and using it to market his own competing business to a company in China, according to a statement from the U.S. Department of Justice.
February 28, 2025
New Jersey AG Office Tells Court It Wasn't Whistleblowers' Boss

The New Jersey Attorney General's Office told a state judge Friday that it should be removed from a lawsuit accusing the Warren County prosecutor's office of retaliating against two detectives for their part in uncovering an alleged fraud scheme, because the attorney general was never their employer.
February 28, 2025
Mich. Atty Says Ex-Firm Foiling Cases Over Retaliation Suit

A lawyer urged a Michigan federal judge to pause matters in several state court cases as she alleged her former law firm, Olsman MacKenzie Peacock PC, is using the proceedings to retaliate against her for filing a sexual harassment and hostile workplace suit against it and another firm run by a well-known mediator.
February 28, 2025
SuperValu Complains About Falsity Question In FCA Case

Whistleblowers claiming SuperValu overcharged the government by $123 million for prescriptions can ask witnesses a single question alluding to a bitterly contested legal finding in the False Claims Act case in Illinois federal court, the grocer revealed in a motion objecting to the judge allowing that question.
February 28, 2025
DA Eyes Type Of Weinstein Evidence That Sank 1st Verdict

Manhattan prosecutors preparing to retry Harvey Weinstein want a jury to hear about alleged sexual assaults by the jailed Hollywood mogul that are not part of his indictment — the same kind of testimony that doomed his original conviction on appeal.
February 28, 2025
Colo. Corrections Dept. Says No Pay Needed For On-Call Time

A collective action accusing the Colorado Department of Corrections of failing to pay criminal investigators for time they spent on call should be thrown out, the department told a federal court, saying the workers weren't barred from doing personal activities during this time and thus aren't owed any extra wages.
February 28, 2025
Adobe Hit With Age Bias Claim By Former Sales Manager

A former Adobe sales manager was sidelined and then fired after reporting a supervisor's comments on his age to human resources, according to a lawsuit filed in Massachusetts state court.

Expert Analysis

What To Expect In Higher Ed Enforcement Under Trump

Colleges and universities should prepare for shifting priorities, as President-elect Donald Trump is likely to focus less on antitrust cases and more on foreign relations policy, while congressional oversight of higher education continues to increase, say attorneys at Steptoe.
Series

NY Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q4

In 2024's final quarter, the New York State Department of Financial Services published guidance on mitigating the rising cybersecurity risks of artificial intelligence and remote technology workers with North Korean ties, and the state attorney general launched an antitrust investigation into Capital One's proposed Discover merger, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.
How Trial Attys Can Wield Amended Federal Evidence Rules

Trial lawyers should assess recent amendments to four Federal Rules of Evidence and a newly enacted rule on illustrative aids to determine how to best use the rules to enhance pretrial discovery and trial strategy, says Stewart Edelstein, former litigation chair at Cohen & Wolf.
Series

Exercising On My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer

While I originally came to the Peloton bike for exercise, one cycling instructor’s teachings have come to serve as a road map for practicing law thoughtfully and mindfully, which has opened opportunities for growth and change in my career, says Andrea Kirshenbaum at Littler.
Lessons From United's Axed Win In Firing Over Online Pics

In Wawrzenski v. United Airlines, a California state appeals court revived a flight attendant’s suit over her termination for linking photos of herself in uniform to her OnlyFans account, providing a cautionary tale for employers navigating the complexities of workplace policy enforcement in the digital age, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.
3 Factors Affecting Retail M&A Deals In 2025

Retailers considering mergers and acquisitions this year face an evolving antitrust environment, including a new administration under President-elect Donald Trump, revised merger guidelines and a precedent set last year by a canceled $8.5 billion handbag merger, say attorneys at DLA Piper.
How Trump Admin May Approach AI In The Workplace

Key indicators suggest that the incoming Trump administration will adopt a deregulatory approach to artificial intelligence, allowing states to fill the void, so it is critical that employers pay close attention to developing legal authority concerning AI tools, say attorneys at Littler.
Top 10 Legal Issues This Year For Transportation Industry GCs

General counsel must carefully consider numerous legal and policy challenges facing the automotive and transportation industry in the year to come, especially while navigating new technologies, regulations and global markets, says Francesco Liberatore at Squire Patton.
Exploring Venue Strategy For Trump-Era Regulatory Litigation

Litigation will likely play a prominent role in shaping policy outcomes during the second Trump administration, and stakeholders have several tools at their disposal to steer regulatory litigation toward more favorable venues, say attorneys at Covington.
What 2024's Noncompete Turmoil Means For Banks In 2025

A look back at the most significant legal challenges to the enforceability of various restrictive covenants like noncompete and nonsolicitation agreements in 2024 can help financial institutions address the use of these critical tools this year, say attorneys at Maynard Nexsen.
Lessons Learned From 2024's Top FMLA Decisions

Last year's major litigation related to the Family and Medical Leave Act underscores why it is critical for employers to understand the basics of when leave and accommodations are required, say attorneys at Dechert.
New Year, New Risks: 8 Top Cyber Issues For Finance In 2025

As financial institutions forge ahead in 2025, they must strike a delicate balance between embracing technological innovation and guarding against its darker threats, which this year could include everything from supply chain vulnerabilities to deepfakes, say attorneys at Baker Donelson.
Lessons Learned From 2024's Top ADA Decisions

Last year's major litigation related to the Americans with Disabilities Act highlights that when dealing with accommodation requests, employers must communicate clearly, appreciate context and remain flexible in addressing needs, say attorneys at Dechert.
Series

Playing Esports Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Competing in a global esports tournament at Wimbledon last year not only fulfilled my childhood dream, but also sharpened skills that are essential to my day job, including strategic thinking, confidence and networking, says AJ Schuyler at Jackson Lewis.
Lessons From The SEC's 2024 Crackdown On AI Washing

AI washing was the subject of increased scrutiny from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2024 following a surge in the commercial adoption of generative artificial intelligence technologies in 2023, highlighting the importance of transparency, accuracy and accountability when communicating about AI, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.