Category: Litigation Issues

Deposing a Company’s CEO, Quirky Question # 157

Deposing a Company’s CEO, Quirky Question # 157

Question: An employee recently filed a Charge of Sex Discrimination against our company, with both the EEOC and the parallel state agency. Her lawyers want to depose our company’s CEO. This seems to be little more than a tactical ploy to force our company to expend undue time and resources on this dispute. We have more than 10,000 employees. Will...

Forcing Employees to Litigate in One State, Quirky Question # 153

Forcing Employees to Litigate in One State, Quirky Question # 153

Quirky Question #153 Our company has independent-contractor consultants in many states. Our headquarters is in Minnesota. We know that we could be sued in any of the states where we have independent contractors, and that many of those states apply their own legal tests to determine whether an individual is an independent contractor or employee. To get a little predictability,...

U.S. Supreme Court Finds Disparate Impact Claims Timely

U.S. Supreme Court Finds Disparate Impact Claims Timely

U.S. Supreme Court Finds Disparate Impact Claims Timely Years After City Adopts Original Employment Practice By: Sarah Evans The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a ruling that may create additional liability for employers whose policies have a disparate impact upon minorities.  On May 24, 2010, in Lewis v. City of Chicago, 560 U.S. _____ (2010), the Court held that a...

Reviewing Employee’s Email, Quirky Question # 144

Reviewing Employee’s Email, Quirky Question # 144

Quirky Question # 144: I’m confused.  I thought we could review our employee’s email communications when sent out on our company’s equipment.  Our electronic communications policy states clearly that we reserve the right to do so. I also thought we could review even privileged communications between our soon-to-be ex-employee and his attorney, if these communications were sent on our email...

The Lovable Litigator: Employment Litigation Truths from the Secret Inner Life of Judges and Juries

The Lovable Litigator: Employment Litigation Truths from the Secret Inner Life of Judges and Juries

The Lovable Litigator By:  Judge Lloyd Zimmerman “See you in court!” Those dreaded words by the soon-to-be-ex employee, screamed out with red face and eyes bulging, as the workplace door finally swings behind him (but not quite hard enough, you think), marking the end of years of careful documentation of  irritating, boorish, and downright scandalous behavior.  Yes, this is the...

Criminal Conduct by Executive, Quirky Question # 113

Criminal Conduct by Executive, Quirky Question # 113

Quirky Question # 113: We recently discovered that one of our executives opened up a joint checking account in a different state in both his name and the name of the Company.  The Company is a privately held company doing business in 40 states. The employee opened up this “joint checking account” without the Company’s knowledge or consent.  This employee...

Searching a Former In-House Counsel’s Computer, Quirky Question # 111

Searching a Former In-House Counsel’s Computer, Quirky Question # 111

Quirky Question # 111: We fired one of our in-house counsel.  He now has sued us for a variety of claims, all of which we think are bogus.  At the time his employment ended, we required him to turn in his company-owned computer.  We are reviewing it and finding that it contains a treasure trove of information useful to our...

Stray Remarks, Quirky Question # 108

Stray Remarks, Quirky Question # 108

Quirky Question # 108: We are a communications company in Colorado.  We recently terminated a sales employee for poor performance and he has since filed a charge against our company claiming his termination was the result of age discrimination.  In support of his charge, the former employee alleges that over a year ago he overheard the president of the Company...

Guest Article: Jury Deliberations in Recessionary Times

Guest Article: Jury Deliberations in Recessionary Times

The Anticipated Recession-Driven Increase in Employment Litigation:  What impact on jury decision making? By:  John D. Gilleland, PhD The legal news is replete these days with predictions of a coming rise in employment related litigation – stemming largely from the terminations, layoffs, and furloughs taking place throughout the workplace spectrum as employers cope with these harsh economic times.  But to...