(Civil Court had Jurisdiction To Adjudicate Coverage Under Excess Workers' Compensation Policy)

Alabama has adopted an equal pay statute modeled after its federal counterpart. Effective September 1, 2019, Alabama now prohibits paying an employee less than another employee of a different race or sex for equal work (note, Federal EPA does not include race).

California’s Contractors’ State License Law, Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 7000 et seq., requires licensees to provide various pieces of information to the Contractors State License Board (CSLB) both in the application for an original contractors license and “within 90 days” of a triggering event. 

Two recent decisions, one from the Supreme Court of Kentucky and the other from the Supreme Court of Ohio, addressed the issue of liability for police officers and political subdivisions, respectively, following claims that arose from motor vehicle accidents caused during suspect vehicle pursuits. The two courts took opposing views, with one expanding liability and the other limiting it. This alert provides a summary of these cases.

Missouri legislators were silent on employment and labor law in 2019, neither presenting nor enacting any legislation in the area. The Missouri Supreme Court, on the other hand, actively handed down rulings in labor and employment.

New York Partner Alecia Walters-Hinds obtained a very favorable verdict after a two-week damages-only trial in Queens Supreme, limiting a potential multimillion-dollar verdict to a jury award of less than $150,000.

In October we reported on California’s passage of AB 51, a law which prohibits mandatory arbitration agreements for nearly all types of employment law claims.