By Jeremy J. Gray of Zuber & Taillieu
In a split with other circuits, the Third Circuit recently limited relief available to benefit plan administrators under ERISA. In US Airways, Inc. v. McCutchen, 663 F.3d 671 (3d Cir. 2011), the Third Circuit held that the “appropriate equitable relief” available under ERISA § 502(a)(3) to plan administrators can be… More...
In a unanimous decision, the Sixth Circuit held that section 12112(b)(6) of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibits employers’ use of tests that tend to screen out disabled individuals does not protect employees who are not disabled. In Bates v. Dura Automotive Systems, Inc., More...
The California Supreme Court has unanimously held that courts must consider “stray remarks” made by non-decision-making employees together with all other admissible evidence in order to determine whether a discrimination lawsuit should survive summary judgment. In Brian Reid v. Google, Inc., More...
The U.S. Supreme Court issued a narrow ruling regarding the privacy rights and expectations of public employees who use government-employer-issued technological equipment. In City of Ontario v. Quon, ___ U.S. ___, 130 S.Ct. 2619 (2010), the Supreme Court held that a police department’s audit of More...
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit broke with the prevailing view in federal courts and held that a bankrupt employer cannot unilaterally terminate non-vested retiree benefits while in bankruptcy, even if it retained the contractual right to do so outside of bankruptcy. The decision in More...
The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has made it clear that employers cannot contractually circumvent the California Labor Code by labeling workers “independent contractors” or including an out-of-state choice of law provision. In Narayan v. EGL Inc., ___F.3d. ___, 2010 WL 3035487, No. More...
In a controversial sharply split decision, the U.S. Supreme Court has held that the arbitrator – not the court -- has the exclusive authority to decide the “gateway” question of whether an arbitration agreement is enforceable, unless the delegation provision in that agreement is specifically More...
In a sharply divided opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court resolved a Circuit Split and held that the National Labor Relations Board could not validly issue labor decisions as a two-member body, which it did for a period of about 27 months from January 2008 until March 2010. The decision, New Process More...
A warning to attorneys representing low income plaintiffs in actions against government agencies: If your client owes money to the government, you may not get paid, even if you win and receive an award of attorney’s fees pursuant to the EAJA. In Astrue v. Ratliff, 130 S.Ct. 2521 (2010), the U.S. More...
In a 9-0 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court has resolved a split among Circuit courts and has held that an ERISA claimant need not be the “prevailing party” in a lawsuit to receive an award of attorneys fees under 29 U.S.C. section 1132(g)(1). In Hardt v. Reliance Standard Life Insurance Co., ___ More...
The U.S. Supreme Court recently expanded the range of circumstances in which disparate impact cases can be filed, finding that an employment practice that has a disparate impact can be challenged both at the adoption of the practice and upon its application. In Lewis v. City of Chicago, 130 S.Ct. More...
