The Legal Line^®

The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly caused substantial interruption to business these last 18 months. The legal question from nearly the beginning has been whether the business losses arising from the viral spread constitute covered “business interruption” losses resulting from a covered cause under those insurance policies that cover losses stemming from “physical property damage”.  According … Read more

Back in March we warned that the U.S. Department of Labor might make further revisions to the tip credit rules promulgated at the end of the Trump administration.  That warning has now become reality.  Late in June 2021, the DOL announced yet another proposed new rule to the Federal regulations governing when an employee may … Read more

The EEOC today has confirmed that an employee’s vaccine status is confidential medical information under the ADA (although it may not be under HIPAA). Here is the EEOC’s statement in that regard: K.4.  Is information about an employee’s COVID-19 vaccination confidential medical information under the ADA?  (5/28/21) Yes.  The ADA requires an employer to maintain the … Read more

Businesses are probably reaching for their seatbelts as they continue to adjust to the whiplash associated with a new Presidential administration.  These changes to the law have become more common given that increasingly legal guidance is driven by executive action rather than legislation.  Most recently, we have seen the whiplash arise in the context of … Read more

In “Redefining Hospitality, for All”, the New York Times provides some important insight but also some maddening misconceptions about the status and future of the hospitality industry.  The writer fairly points out how difficult restaurant work can be for workers and business owners, but it misdirects focus to the tip credit and misstates how it … Read more

On March 8, 2021, President Biden issued two separate executive orders aimed at reflecting in enforceable law his stated campaign commitment to promote gender equity. The first Executive Order concerns the new administration’s intent to reverse course on Title IX regulations concerning campus sexual assault and harassment.  Title IX is the federal law prohibiting sex … Read more

The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) recently announced the delay of the effective date of a pair of important regulations published at the end of the Trump administration.  These regulations were propounded in December, 2020, and early January, 2021, respectively, right before President Biden’s inauguration.  Just when the pandemic seemed to be coming under control … Read more

Retaliation was far and away the most frequently cited claim in charges filed with the EEOC in 2020, followed distantly by disability, race and sex in that order in a close scrum. Retaliation stood at 55.8% of all charges filed. Here the numbers in descending order of frequency: Retaliation: 37,632 (55.8 percent of all charges … Read more

Earlier this month, the Superior Court in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, held that a tenant need not pay rent if the agreed upon purpose for its lease has been banned.  It is no doubt a ruling for our times that applies old law and common sense to doing business during the current COVID-19 pandemic. The Judgment: … Read more

Colleges and universities have already had to adjust to many changes this year.  In the middle of the COVID-crisis, the U.S. Department of Education finalized new Title IX regulations (summarized in this VAC blog post).  Now Massachusetts colleges and universities have additional rules to contend with. Last month, Massachusetts passed new legislation addressing the obligations … Read more