Chapter 93A, § 11 provides a right of action to persons engaged in business who suffer a loss of money or property as a result of unfair methods of competition, or unfair or deceptive acts or practices, used by another business in Massachusetts. An aggrieved business may recover its actual
Ordinarily, the burden of proof rests with the plaintiff. However, in Brotherston v. Putnam Investments, LLC, the First Circuit joined three of its sister circuit courts and held that the burden of proof in an ERISA fiduciary-breach case shifts to the defendant fiduciary to prove that its breach did not
According to a December 2015 press release, in Fiscal Year 2014 alone, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) resolved approximately 200 charges of discrimination based on HIV status, resulting in over $825,000 for job applicants and employees with HIV who were unlawfully denied employment or reasonable accommodations. See December 1, 2015 EEOC Press Release.
The First Circuit recently held that a material factual dispute existed as to whether store managers employed by Dunkin’ Donuts qualified as “bona fide executives” under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), and as such, were exempt from the FLSA’s overtime requirements. Marzuq v. Cadete Enters., 807 F.3d 431 (1st Cir. 2015) (hereinafter Dunkin’
David works in a secretarial position for a very busy office. At least once a week, while David is trying to enjoy his lunch, his boss bursts through the door and leaves David with a pile of work to finish during his lunch break. While this scenario may seem routine in a busy workplace, employers
Introduction Most employers will, at some point, have occasion to consider whether an individual who performs services for the employer is an “independent contractor” or an “employee.” How an employer classifies an individual is crucial to the employer’s compliance with wage and hour laws, discrimination statutes, workers’ compensation requirements, mandatory affirmative action programs, and a
An arcane provision in Chapter 149 of the Massachusetts General Laws states that “No person shall, by intimidation or force, prevent or seek to prevent a person from entering into or continuing in the employment of any person.” G. L. c. 149, § 19. Representative Lori A. Erlich (D-Marblehead) and others filed bills in the
