http://www.elinfonet.com/fedindex/14 Articles discussing issues involving the practice of employment law, labor law, immigration law and employee benefits. Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:07:08 EST en-us http://www.elinfonet.com/newscount.php?popID=7003 Article: 7003 Wed, 11 Jun 2008 00:00:00 EST elin@elinfonet.com (Employment Law Information Network) In this attorney authored article, A. Michael Weber of Littler's New York office explains the intricacies of electronic discovery in employment-related litigation and how this type of litigation is the primary vehicle for the development of E-discovery laws. "There are sui generis aspects to employment disputes that tend to incubate the growth of e-discovery problems," says Weber. Although e-discovery has proven to be detrimental to employers, Weber also explains how the preservation of electronic records may benefit the employer. http://www.elinfonet.com/newscount.php?popID=6922 Article: 6922 Thu, 15 May 2008 00:00:00 EST elin@elinfonet.com (Employment Law Information Network) Last year, the Supreme Court affirmed the grant of a motion to dismiss in a putative antitrust class action, holding that the complaint failed to allege sufficient facts to show that the plaintiffs could plausibly win at trial. In Bell Atlantic v. Twombly, the Court expressly rejected the standard long used by the lower federal courts that "a complaint should not be dismissed for failure to state a claim unless it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of his claim which would entitle him to relief." Instead, the Court held that, while the factual allegations of a complaint need not be "detailed," they must "possess enough heft" so as to "plausibly" suggest that the plaintiff can prevail. http://www.elinfonet.com/newscount.php?popID=6807 Article: 6807 Mon, 17 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EST elin@elinfonet.com (Employment Law Information Network) Lawyers are focused on the demands of practicing law and running their practices. Often, they do not have time to dedicate to managing their employees. And, in fact, some lawyers may not see themselves as employers. However, the success of any business, including law firms, is tied directly to its employees. Competent and professional employees are critical to a firm's ability to produce quality work and keep good clients. http://www.elinfonet.com/newscount.php?popID=6470 Article: 6470 Thu, 25 Oct 2007 00:00:00 EST elin@elinfonet.com (Employment Law Information Network) On December 1, 2006, Congress amended the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure to address the developing area of electronic discovery ("e-discovery"). The amendments were designed to modernize the Rules and provide guidance to litigants and attorneys on their obligations to preserve and produce electronic documents. http://www.elinfonet.com/newscount.php?popID=6354 Article: 6354 Tue, 21 Aug 2007 00:00:00 EST elin@elinfonet.com (Employment Law Information Network) In this Littler attorney-authored article, Michael Brewer discusses five effective motions in limine specific to employment trials. Brewer says that these "are favorites among defense attorneys and offer significant strategic benefits both at trial and on appeal." Some of the motions Brewer discusses include "Evidence of Misconduct Against Plaintiff's Co-Workers," and "Testimony of Employee's Own Opinion of His or Her Job or Job Performance." http://www.elinfonet.com/newscount.php?popID=6309 Article: 6309 Thu, 02 Aug 2007 00:00:00 EST elin@elinfonet.com (Employment Law Information Network) Reading through the many eDiscovery vendor whitepapers on the topic, one would think that instant message (“IM”) retention and archiving should be the focus of every good eDiscovery preparedness initiative. In a thinly veiled effort to boost demand for their products, these vendors have made the blanket assertion that all companies must retain IM for discovery purposes as a result of the amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (the “Amended Federal Rules”), which went into effect on December 1, 2006. According to these vendors, this is so because IM falls within the definition of electronically stored information (“ESI”) as set forth in the Amended Federal Rules. While organizations must account for the Amended Federal Rules in their eDiscovery undertakings, the impact of IM on information management policies is debatable. http://www.elinfonet.com/newscount.php?popID=6221 Article: 6221 Fri, 22 Jun 2007 00:00:00 EST elin@elinfonet.com (Employment Law Information Network) Employers are often frustrated by the difficulty in obtaining early dismissals of seemingly frivolous or meritless federal lawsuits. Courts tend to deny motions to dismiss and allow such lawsuits to proceed through the entire discovery process, rather than carefully scrutinizing a plaintiff's initiating complaint. The Supreme Court recently issued an opinion in an antitrust lawsuit that has the potential to alter the relative ease by which plaintiffs avoid early dismissals. Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 127 S.Ct. 1955 (May 21, 2007). http://www.elinfonet.com/newscount.php?popID=6086 Article: 6086 Wed, 02 May 2007 00:00:00 EST elin@elinfonet.com (Employment Law Information Network) Most Organizations Have Not Taken Appropriate Steps to Manage Risks Posed by E-mails; Employers May Be at Risk for Employees' Internet Usage; Liability for Data Security Breaches Expanding. http://www.elinfonet.com/newscount.php?popID=5989 Article: 5989 Tue, 13 Mar 2007 00:00:00 EST elin@elinfonet.com (Employment Law Information Network) The U.S. Supreme Court approved amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure pertaining to discovery of electronically stored information (ESI) that took effect on December 1, 2006. The new rules substantially alter prior practice by requiring litigants to, among other things, exchange, during the initial Rule 26(f) conference, detailed information about ESI, including how it is stored, whether it is being preserved and whether the information is reasonably accessible. http://www.elinfonet.com/newscount.php?popID=5970 Article: 5970 Mon, 05 Mar 2007 00:00:00 EST elin@elinfonet.com (Employment Law Information Network) In recent years, far too many employers who are not sure how to protect their electronic information have allowed departing employees to take their most valuable trade secrets, degrade the value of their electronic data for litigation purposes, or have seen critical electronic evidence completely destroyed, exposing their organizations to serious civil and criminal liability.