A joint defense agreement provides an exception to what would be the waiver of the attorney client and work product privileges. At least one Illinois court now recognizes the validity of the joint defense agreement rule, allowing separately-represented codefendants to share privileged information without waiving the attorney-client and work-product privileges.
Federal Courts Are Expanding Title VII Protections to Transgender Status and Sexual Orientation
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employment discrimination “because of . . . sex.” 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(a) (2012 Since its enactment, the Supreme Court has interpreted Title VII expansively to prohibit not only discrimination based on gender, but also same-sex sexual harassment and discrimination based on gender stereotypes. Nevertheless, the […]
Kristin Dvorsky Tauras Named a Partner at McKenna Storer
McKenna Storer is pleased to announce the naming of attorney Kristin Dvorsky Tauras as its newest partner. Kristin combines a client-oriented focus with highly developed skills as a litigator to achieve an impressive record of success. She will continue to concentrate her practice at McKenna in employment law, professional liability litigation defense and commercial litigation.
Department of Labor Relaxes the “Unpaid Intern Test” in time for Summer Employment.
This is the season when employers are finalizing their plans for summer interns. The summer internship gives students experience in the working world and the company is provided the opportunity to get to know the student prior to extending post-graduation employment offers.
What Employers Need to Know About the Legal Obligations of the Working Interview
The typical job applicant will put their credentials on a job application or resume and the employer has to decipher through the job interview and background review process whether the credentials accurately reflect the applicant’s abilities and maybe more importantly, whether the applicant is a good fit for the company.
Service Animals and the Americans With Disabilities Act
We often see people with service dogs on the street, in the stores, and on trains and it appears as if the number is growing. People with disabilities use a service dog in order to fully participate in everyday life. Service animals perform tasks such as helping a vision impaired individual get around, to alerting […]
All Employers Need To Know About The National Labor Relations Act
Employers too often take the approach that they do not have to worry about the National Labor Relations Act, most commonly called the NLRA, because they are not a ‘union shop.’ It is a short-sighted view. While the NLRA is most-often applied to protect union activities, employees who are not represented by a union also […]
Sexual Harassment In The Workplace
New allegations of sexual harassment in the workplace appear in the headlines daily now. We have all heard the reports about Harvey Weinstein, former president George H. W. Bush and now Matt Lauer.
Courts Limit Hospital “Peer Review” Protection
Illinois hospitals routinely use physician peer reviews and hospitals and other health care facilities quality control committees to improve the quality of patient care. These reviews most-often, but not always, look into a specific patient’s care where there has been a negative outcome to determine if there is something that the can be done to […]
The ADA Does Not Entitle Employees To Long Term Leave
A long-term leave of absence is not a reasonable accommodation under the Americans With Disabilities Act (“ADA”) , at least according to the Seventh Circuit. On September 20, 2017, the Seventh Circuit in Severson v. Heartland Woodcraft, Inc. held that an employee who needs a long term leave is not a qualified individual with a […]