The State’s lawsuit against the former actuary for its pension plans was removed to federal court on January 7th. It’s assigned to Judge John Sedwick.
The State’s Retirement Management Board is represented by Paul Weiss from New York; Michael Lessmeier of Juneau’s Lessmeier & Winters, and Michael Barnhill from the Juneau AG’s office are the Board’s local counsel. Mercer […]
On Monday, Jan. 28th, President Bush signed the bill that expands the FMLA benefits for employees with family members in the military. For complete coverage of the amendments, go to the FMLA Blog and Pennsylvania Employment Law Blog. The amendments are effective immediately.
The student has apparently failed to answer written interrogatories about his assets (he’s reportedly in China), and the School District is considering a deposition regarding the assets.
One story quotes Doug Mertz, the student’s attorney:
Since [the District] know[s] that Joe is broke, they know they probably will never collect anything. So the motive is almost certainly something else, likely […]
Retaliation for earlier litigation: An employer’s retaliation against an employee because the employee earlier sued the employer violates § 1983 rights under the 1st Amendment only if the subject matter of the earlier lawsuit was a matter of “public concern.” Mason v. Univ. and Comm. College Sys. of Nevada, 2008 WL _______ (9th Cir. Jan. […]
The 9th Circuit has now issued its en banc opinion in the social worker immunity case, previously discussed here. It reversed earlier 9th Circuit precedent and held that social workers are not immune under § 1983 for investigatory conduct and other discretionary decisions about whether to pursue dependency proceedings. This is the issue that was before […]
Oral argument will be on February 27th.
Here are the briefs:
Exxon
Plaintiff class
Alaska Legislative Council amicus brief
Other amicus briefs may be found at the Faegre Benson website.
H/T: ProgressiveAlaska.
FMLA expansion: Both the U. S. Senate and House have now passed a bill that includes an expansion of FMLA related to military service. Pres. Bush is expected to sign the bill. FMLA expert Carl Bosland summarizes the FMLA changes:
First, the bill adds two categories of covered conditions permitting an eligible employee to take FMLA leave. An eligible employee […]
Mixed motive in Alaska: The current issue of the Alaska Law Review carries an article entitled, “Mixed-motives for Firing Employees: Alaska’s inconsistent standards and its failure to follow the changing federal tide.” The author is Brianne Schwanitz, a Duke 3L.
Employer’s duty to maintain insurance while employee is on FMLA leave: An employer’s failure to do so constitutes […]
Legislature may require injured state ferry workers to bring claims against the State to the Workers Comp Board, not to court.
In 2003, the Alaska legislature amended AS 09.50.250 and thereby a) restored the state’s sovereign immunity from suit by injured state-employed seamen (employees of the Alaska Marine Highway System), and b) referred claims by such employees […]
To encourage an ex-employee to comply with a non-disclosure or a non-compete provision in a separation agreement, consider this proposal from an attorney:
I suggest that any severance payment be made over time rather than in a lump sum. That gives the business the opportunity to stop payment if there is a problem and the former […]
The New York Times Magazine for Sunday the 20th carried an article entitled “Unintended Consequences: Why do well-meaning laws backfire?” by the authors of Freakonomics, Stephen Dubner and Steven Levitt. One example of such laws, they say, is the Americans with Disabilities Act, relying on the article in the Journal of Political Economy by Daron […]
The Court’s opinion today in Glover v. State, DOTPF, MMHS, Op. No. 6222 (Alaska Jan. 18, 2008), covers important issues surrounding sovereign immunity (federal abrogation, constructive consent), pre-emption (discrimination against federal claims), access to courts, and Equal Protection. The Court (per Justice Carpeneti) compliments Superior Court Judge Patricia Collins by incorporating a major part of her […]
A law enforcement officer alleged that his department transferred him in retaliation for public positions he took during an election, and sued under 42 USC § 1983. The panel reversed several trial court rulings adverse to the employee.
Undesired duties as adverse employment action: The panel held that the transfer was an adverse employment action, though it apparently […]
Three opinions on expert witnesses issued by the District of Alaska appeared yesterday on Westlaw. They date from March 2006 through May 2007. (I can’t tell if Westlaw just published them, or if the Westlaw retrieval tool that I use daily picked them up only yesterday.) They are as follows.
Police practices and procedures: In this action against […]
Privacy of employee contact information: In a wage and hour action, a California appellate court has held that the employer must release residential address and telephone information for fellow employees. The court rejected the employer’s proposal (adopted by the trial court) that each employee must first authorize the release of such information. In the absence of […]
Court-awarded back pay for VA probationary employees: The 9th Circuit has held that a probationary Veterans Administration employee (here, a VA radiologist) may not rely on either the Administrative Procedures Act or the Back Pay Act to obtain judicially-awarded damages for termination in violation of VA procedures. As to the APA, first, it doesn’t authorize […]
Sierra Nevada Community Access Television, Inc. broadcasts film produced by members of the public (including “aspiring Wayne Campbells”). It is governed by an unpaid, volunteer Board of Directors. When the Board fired its Executive Director, he sued under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. The ED claimed that the […]
Ah, Michael Moore, you stir up such complex feelings! Your personality too often barges in on your story. Your oversize, badly dressed, frumpy frame fills the screen. Sometimes you seem like a big, wet dog in a red baseball cap who wants to play, even when told repeatedly to GO LIE DOWN! But in the […]
Judicial vacancies: Ketchikan Superior Court Judge Michael Thompson will not run for retention.
Barrow Superior Court Judge Michael Jeffery is sitting pro tem until the Judicial Council fills the seat vacated by the Supreme Court. The applicants are Jeffery, Rosemary (”Poke”) Haffner of Fairbanks, and Steven D. Smith of Anchorage.
TransCanada AGIA application: The full text is available […]
Caltech may be liable for unnecessary enforcement of federally-mandated background checks
NASA required “low risk” employees at Caltech’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to submit to the same in-depth background investigation required of federal civil service employees. That process requires completion of Standard Form 85 and authorization for the government to send a Form 42 (”Investigative Request for Personal Information”) […]
“Severance pay” v. “continued salary”
The Court of Appeals has reversed the District of Oregon and held that an EPLI insurer must indemnify an employer for settlement payments it made to an employee based on employment contract provisions relating to salary continuation and stock options.
Salary continuation v. severance pay: The employment contract guaranteed Mark Lehnert six years unreduced pay […]
ERISA preemption of municipal regulation of “health care expenditures”: After the District Court enjoined the implementation of San Francisco’s ordinance requiring larger private employers to make provide health care expenditures, the Court of Appeals has now stayed that injunction and issued a lengthy opinion (35 pages) holding that the City and the union intervenors have “a probability, […]
The only pre-filed bill in the Second Session of the 25th Legislature that would significantly effect employment law is SB 187, which would increase the state minimum wage.
SB 187 provides:
The minimum wage under this subsection is the greater of (1) $1 more an hour than the federal minimum wage; or (2) $8.00 an hour as […]
Judge Ralph Beistline has granted, in part, Joshua Alan Wade’s change of venue motion. Beistline moved the fraud trial to Fairbanks, and kept the felon-in-possession trial in Anchorage.
The Anchorage Daily News article about the decision is here.
U. S. v. Wade, 3:07-cr-111-RB, 3:07-cr-122-RRB (D.Alaska Order of Jan. 3, 2008)
Non-compete provisions undercut employer argument
An Oakland, California, taxicab company refused to bargain with the union representing its drivers, claiming that they were independent contractors rather than employees. The NLRB found that the drivers were statutory employees and held that the company violated the NLRA by refusing to bargain with the drivers’ union. On appeal, the 9th […]
May retirees rely on the presumption of arbitrability?
Retirees and their union filed grievances against their former employer and its pension plan, challenging the denial of pension benefits. The plan refused to arbitrate. On the retirees/union’s motion to compel, the District Court applied the presumption of arbitrability and entered summary judgment against the plan.
On appeal, the plan […]
Kleinfeld on the liberty to drink beer while watching football
Marcus Betts was the “inside man” at the TransUnion credit reporting agency; he took bribes to help people improve their poor credit scores. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy, but then challenged several conditions of supervised release, including restrictions on any employment where he would handle an employer’s […]
The Judicial Council has sent Gov. Sarah Palin four names for the 4th Judicial District seat vacated by Niesje Steinkruger: Beth Harbison (4.0), Jane Kauvar (3.9), Paul Lyle (3.6), and Michael McConahy (4.1). The nominees had the top four overall scores from the Bar poll (shown in parentheses).
Court again punts standard of review issue
The Alaska Supreme Court has affirmed arbitration awards made by William Dorsey and Janet Gaunt. Though granted about 1 1/2 yeas of back pay, the APEA-represented state employee was dissatisfied and pursued challenges to the awards and an independent action pro se.
Superior Court Judge Patricia Collins of Juneau consolidated the employee’s various cases, […]
A novel by Michael Chabon
As Chassidic Jews living in Sitka, Alaska, my family and I occupy what one could call, a narrow demographic. No focus group here. You can imagine our entertainment at learning of Michael Chabon’s book, The Yiddish Policemen’s Union. No longer are we called Mushugenneh Yidden in Yenemsville; now we enjoy the […]
The 9th Circuit has affirmed judgment in favor of a college that allegedly made recruiting-related incentive payments to employees in violation of the Higher Education Act.
The Court held:
Relators have not pled with sufficient particularity any facts indicating that the periodic salary adjustments violated the Higher Education Act or its associated regulations. The Act does not […]
In a commercial lease matter, Judge Sedwick has relied, in part, on the Joint Statement of Issues to prevent a party from advancing an argument it hadn’t reserved in the Joint Statement - here, the enforceability under state (Georgia) law of a contractual provision about attorney fees.
OFC Capital v. AT Publishing, Inc., 2007 WL 4557806 (D.Alaska Dec. 20, […]
The 9th Circuit has affirmed Judge Beistline’s refusal to stop work on the Rock Creek Mine Project outside of Nome. The plaintiffs argued that the Corp of Engineers had failed to comply with NEPA and Section 404 of the Clean Water Act before issuing a permit to the Alaska Gold Company.
Judge Gould wrote the opinion for […]
