Law Alerts

Architectural, Engineering & Construction

• Florida - United States District Court For the Eastern District Of Louisiana Explains Florida's Economic Loss Rule.
• Florida - The Supreme Court Of Florida Finds Common Law Duty Of Polluters To Protect Economic Interests Of Commercial Fishermen.
• Pennsylvania - Claims For Violation Of Constitutional Rights Asserted Against An Individual Township Engineer Are To Be Dismissed Where The Claim Is Also Asserted Against The Township.
• Pennsylvania - Professional Liability And General Liability Insurance Policies Cover Different Risks.

Auto

• Delaware - As A Matter Of First Impression, The Delaware Supreme Court Held That The Collateral Source Rules Applies In The Underinsured Motorist Context And That Plaintiffs' Paid Insurance Premiums Entitled Plaintiffs To Double Recovery.
• Florida - Where Plaintiffs Sought Billing And Litigation Records From A Non-Party Hospital, The Trial Court Should Have Stayed The Discovery Until The Parties Had An Opportunity To Negotiate A Confidentiality Agreement Per Florida's Trade Secrets Laws.
• Florida - The Changes To Florida's Pre-Suit Provisions, Enacted In 2001, Cannot Be Applied Retroactively As The Changes Were Substantive And Not Procedural.
• Pennsylvania - As A Matter Of First Impression, The Pennsylvania Supreme Court Held That An Insured's Recovery Under UM/UIM Policies May Be Offset Under 75 Pa.C.S. §1722 By Group/Program/Arrangement Benefits, Including Disability Benefits Purchased.

E & O Coverage (Legal, Accounting, Insurance, Real Estate, Etc.)

• Florida - Florida Supreme Court Determines That Posting Defamatory Material On A Website Alone Does Not Constitute The Commission Of A Tortious Act Within Florida For Purposes Of The Long-Arm Statute (F.S. 48.193(1)(b)).
• New Jersey - The Supreme Court Of New Jersey Resolved The Tension Between Two Leading Precedents Regarding Post-Settlement Malpractice Suits.

Employment Law

• Federal - The Supreme Court Holds That The Enforceability Of A Delegation Provision In An Arbitration Agreement Was For An Arbitrator--Not A Court--Because The Employee Attempted To Challenge The Validity Of The Contract As A Whole.
• Federal - The Supreme Court Holds That A City's Search Of A Police Employee's Text Messages On A Government-Issued Pager Was Reasonable And, Therefore, Did Not Violate The Fourth Amendment.
• Federal - The Supreme Court Holds That The National Labor Relations Board's Delegation Clause Requires A Delegated Group To Maintain A Membership Of Three.
• Federal - The Supreme Court Holds That A Disparate Impact Class May Challenge An Employer's Application Of A Practice, Despite The Fact That The Class Plaintiff Failed To Timely Challenge The Initial Adoption Of The Practice.
• Federal - The Third Circuit Holds That Unsolicited Internal Complaints Are Not Protected Activities Under The Anti-Retaliation Provision Of The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA").
• Federal - The Third Circuit Determines That Side Effects From Medical Treatment May Constitute An Impairment Under The Americans With Disabilities Act In Certain Circumstances.
• Federal - The Third Circuit Holds That The Americans With Disabilities Act Contemplated That Employers May Need To Make Reasonable Shift Changes In Order To Accommodate A Disabled Employee's Disability-Related Difficulties In Getting To Work.
• New Jersey - The Failure To Accommodate May Be An Act That Proves Discrimination In A Disability Discrimination Claim.
• New Jersey - Employer May Not Access Employee's Private, Password Protected E-Mail Account On Work Computer.
• New Jersey - Failure To Renew Employment Can Be Akin To Discharge.
• New Jersey - Deliberative Process Privilege Does Not Apply To Document Requests In Employment Related Claims.

Health Care Liability

• New Jersey - Choosing The Right Kind Of Doctor In A New Jersey Malpractice Case Can Be Tricky.
• New Jersey - The Nature Of The Treatment Not The Specialty That Controls When Determining The Sufficiency Of The Affidavit Of Merit.
• Pennsylvania - Pennsylvania Supreme Court Holds Medical Oncologist May Offer Standard Of Care Testimony Against Otolaryngologist And Radiation Oncologist.

Municipal Liability/Civil Rights

• New Jersey - The Age Of 70 Exception In New Jersey Law Against Discrimination Does Not Apply To Non-Renewal Of Existing Employee's Contract.
• New Jersey - Internal Documents Of NJ State League Of Municipalities Not Subject To Public Scrutiny Under Open Public Records Act. 
• Pennsylvania - In A Section 1983 Claim By AN Inmate, The Third Circuit Reversed Summary Judgment Granted To The Officer But Refused To Hold That The PLRA Imposes A Strict Timing Requirement On Institutional Defendants.
• Pennsylvania - 3rd Circuit Issues conflicting Rulings On Student Internet Speech And Vacates Both Opinions.
• Pennsylvania - Third Circuit Holds That Correctional Officer Is Entitled To Qualified Immunity For Incarcerating The Plaintiff Prisoner Beyond The Expiration Of His Maximum Term Of Imprisonment.

Trucking & Transportation

• Ohio - An Agricultural Society's Demolition Derby Rough Truck Competition Was Not A Governmental Function And Could Not Seek Protection Under Sovereign Immunity For A Political Subdivision.
• Pennsylvania - SEPTA Was Immune From Liability Under The Sovereign Immunity Act For Injuries Claimed While Bus Was Temporarily Stopped And Not In "Operation."

Workers' Compensation

• Delaware - The Employer Is Not Entitled To A Reduction In Total Disability Compensation Payments Where Following A Compensable Injury, The Claimant Resumes Working At Concurrent Employment Since The Second Job Was Not Counted In Establishing The Average Weekly Wage.
• Delaware - Industrial Accident Board Overturns Utilization Review Determination And Finds That Disc Replacement Surgery Was Necessary And Reasonable Treatment For The Claimant's Compensable Back Injury.
• New Jersey - Enforcement Of An Eight-year-Old Reimbursement Obligation Between Workers' Compensation Carriers Survives Equitable Estoppel And Laches Arguments.
• New Jersey - The Composite Employment Incidents Test: When May The New Jersey Division Of Workers' Compensation Invoke Jurisdiction?
• New Jersey - Is Psychiatric Disability Resulting From Notice Of Termination Of Employment A compensation Injury Under The New Jersey Workers' Compensation Statute?
• Pennsylvania - The Pennsylvania Supreme Court Holds That A Furlough Allowance Is Not A Severance Benefits And, Therefore, The Employer Is Not Entitled To A Credit For It Against Workers' Compensation Payments Under Section 204 (a) Of The Workers' Compensation Act.
• Pennsylvania - When Is "Payment" Of compensation Made Pursuant To A Temporary Notice Of Compensation Payable So As To Require Five Days Notice To Stop Payment?
• Pennsylvania - Commonwealth Court Clarifies That A Utilization Review Challenge To Physical Therapy Treatment Need Not Name Each Individual Therapist Who Provides Treatment.
• Pennsylvania - A Workers' Compensation Judge's Decision Crediting Medical Testimony That Included A Description Of Injury Beyond That Described In The Notice Of Compensation Payable Is Binding In A Subsequent Termination Petition.
• Pennsylvania - A Medical Provider's Failure To Provide The URO With The Password To Access Encrypted Medical Records Does Not Satisfy The Requirement Of Section 127.464 To Provide The URO With The Claimant's Medical Records.
• Pennsylvania - Employer Subject To Penalty For Continuing Nonpayment Of Medical Expenses While Litigating Petition To Review URO That Found Medical Treatment Reasonable And Necessary.