New Guidelines For Treatment of Transgender Students
Written by: Sean Cox, Esq. and Don Benson, Esq. This month the United States Departments of Education and Justice issued Guidelines intended to direct educational institutions in how Title IX requirements apply to transgender students, or stu
Georgia Court of Appeals Confirms Exclusive Remedy of Workers’ Comp Applies to Workplace Murder Pending Appeal to Supreme Court of Georgia
Written by: Michael Memberg, Esq. The Georgia Court of Appeals was recently asked to decide if a horrific case of workplace violence constituted an injury as defined by the Georgia Workers’ Compensation Act. In summary, a convicted felon li
New Federal Trade Secrets Law Almost Here
Written by: Don Benson, Esq. The Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”), passed by both houses of Congress, is headed to President Barack Obama for his signature and his office has stated it “strongly supports” the legislation. On April 4
The Rise of Opting-Out?
Written By: Byron Lindberg, Esq. Texas has always allowed employers to “opt-out” of its workers’ compensation system. Nonetheless, most employers in Texas have traditionally elected to eschew the Wild West uncertainty of liability proceed
Sixth Circuit Shuts Down End Run By Plaintiff Using A HIPAA Breach To Claim Violations Of The False Claims Act
Written by: Richard Sheinis, Esq. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals recently upheld a dismissal of a lawsuit in which a plaintiff tried to use the improper accessing of her protected health information (“PHI”) as a basis for a claim under
4th Circuit Rules Insurer Must Defend Insured Against Class Action Data Breach
Written by: Tiffany Winks, Esq. On Monday, April 11, 2016, the 4th Circuit ruled in Travelers Insurance v. Portal Healthcare Solutions that Travelers had a duty to defend Portal in a class action related to Portal posting patients’ medical
Five Employment Law Issues for Risk Managers Throughout 2016
By: Don Benson, Esq. Risk Managers can expect to be confronted in the remainder of 2016 with five growing trends in employment law that require organizational attention and planning: Protecting Trade Secrets Protecting your competitive edge is
Georgia Appeals Court Narrow Justification for Workers’ Comp. Denial
Written by: Melanie V. Slaton, Esq. The recent decision of Burdette v. Chandler Telecom, LLC, 335 Ga App 190 (2015), is instructive and explored what constitutes an “employee’s willful misconduct ” in the workers’ compensation context
Fourth Circuit To Decide If Commercial General Liability Policy Covers Internet Publication of Medical Records
Written by: Tiffany Winks, Esq. On March 24, 2015, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments as to whether a Commercial General Liability insurance policy provides coverage for a data breach. The case on appeal is Travelers In
Assisted Living Facility Miss-Classifies Employees As Independent Contractors: Owes $56,000.00 To Nine Employees
Written by: Don Benson, Esq. The U.S. Labor Department announces in a March 16, 2016 press release that a Tampa assisted living facility must pay more than $56K in back wages to nine employees. Two employees were miss-classified as indepe