I am a small business owner, and I am lucky to have many friends and clients who own their own businesses. I have found that regardless of the backgrounds of these friends and clients, the size of their businesses, or their industries, that a common theme exists: a...
Category: Civil Litigation
The Medical Marijuana Wrongful Termination Case
The highest state court in Massachusetts (Supreme Judicial Court, or “SJC”) decided this week that an employee who has lawfully used marijuana for medical purposes cannot be subject to any adverse action against her by her employer because of her use of marijuana....
Untitled*
In reinforcement of our image as lawyers to self-adulate and cock-a-doodle-doo our talents and prowesses, lawyers have the benefit of an annual glitzy magazine called Super Lawyers. Yes, once a year, we self-designate ourselves (for our regional Super Lawyers group,...
Read This Before Packing Your Flip-Flops
It’s the summer vacation season, so the following scenario may sound familiar to you… You’re standing at a car rental counter in the airport. You’ve just touched down after hours of flying to your week-long vacation in paradise. You’re tired, and you can’t wait to get...
5 Things to Look Out for in a Contract to Avoid Getting Gotcha’d
Try to tuck this away in your memory bank with a trigger on it to leap back to the top of your dome the next time you enter into an agreement. Whether it is a lease, a purchase agreement, a loan, an employment agreement – any type of contract. I’m going to let you in...
Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness Against Thy Employee
The law of defamation is of growing importance in the area of employment law. Suits brought by employees against employers now account for one third of all defamation actions. For decades, the courts have tried to balance employees’ need for legal redress when...
The Need for Evolution in Employment Law
One area of law that has a lot of catching up to do is that of the employee’s rights when the employer terminates her for wholly unfair reasons. Such employer actions are often devastating to the well qualified, hardworking and productive employee who otherwise holds...
Musings
In re Female Marines Lawyers savvy on the subject of illegal discrimination in the form of “profiling” should be curious about a recent Marine Corps study comparing all male combat units to those that are mixed, i.e. “integrated” with women. Defense Secretary Ashton...
The Perils of Ambulance Chasers
By Michael Franco, Esq.
I have noticed a disturbing increase in the number of unsolicited letters and telephone calls being made by law firms to accident victims. These law firms review police blotters to look for auto accidents, and then reach out to accident victims who are identified in the police reports.
Beware the Binding Effects of Email*
By Adrienne Catherine H. Beauregard-Rheaume, Esq.,
You don’t need a signed document to have a binding settlement agreement. This was always a concern that needed to be considered with oral negotiations, which can amount to enforceable, oral contracts.