By Natalie Tupta, Staff Writer Recently, lawsuits against Jimmy John’s by the attorney generals of Illinois and New York turned heads, as the popular fast food sandwich shop was forcing noncompete agreements onto its sandwich makers and delivery drivers through their employment contracts.[1] Noncompete clauses prohibited them from working for […]
Juris Blog
The Fight on Arbitration in Nursing Homes
By Susan Pickup, Staff Writer The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services (DHS), just enacted a provision forbidding nursing home facilities that receive federal funding to force potential patients to enter into pre-dispute arbitration agreements before receiving care.[1] […]
How ‘Hamilton’ Cast’s Message to Mike Pence Could Have Faced Punishment Despite First Amendment
By Nick Frost, Staff Writer When Vice President-elect Mike Pence attended the hit Broadway musical “Hamilton” on Nov. 18, 2016, he was delivered a message from actor Brandon Victor Dixon, who plays the role of Vice President Aaron Burr: “Vice President-elect Pence, we welcome you and we truly thank […]
Expungement Law Change Helps Expand Pennsylvanians’ Employment Opportunities
By Phil Raymond, Staff Writer Putting past minor mistakes behind you just recently became a lot easier thanks to an addition to Pennsylvania’s expungement law. In February 2016, Gov. Tom Wolf signed into law Pennsylvania Senate Bill 166.[1] This bill became active on Nov. 14. To celebrate this important […]
SCOTUS Granted Cert on Transgender Bathroom Issue
By Amy Kerlin, Staff Writer[1] Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972[2] is most commonly known as the regulation that requires schools and universities to provide equal athletic opportunities for females in order to receive funds from the federal government. Not commonly known, however, is that Title IX […]
The New Age of Terrorism: Social Media, Free Speech, and Public Safety
By Karissa Murphy, Staff Writer On Nov. 18, 2016, U.S. District Judge William H. Orrick of the Northern District of California dismissed claims brought against Twitter Inc. by the wives and children of American police officers killed in a terrorist attack in Jordan. The families claim that Twitter provided […]
Employment Discrimination in 2016: Why Isn’t It Racial Discrimination to Make Employees Cut Their Dreadlocks?
By Natalie Tupta, Staff Writer A recent decision by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has rekindled a national debate about the ability of the law to ensure equal employment opportunities to individuals of all races. The debate arises from Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Catastrophe Management Solutions, a […]
Nice Until Proven Naughty: 5 Crazy Christmas Crimes
By Carlie Masterson, Staff Writer ’Tis the season for spreading love and cheer… and also for some psycho Santas to board their sleighs? Here is a synopsis of five crimes where Santa proved to be quite naughty: Santa’s Ho-Ho-Holdup In 2009, a man dressed as Santa with dark sunglasses […]
Pay to Play: Voter ID Laws as the New Poll Taxes
By Matt DeSantis, Staff Writer The unprecedented nature of this election cycle and its final result have inspired closer inspection of the voting process and the laws that govern it. While the U.S. Constitution relegates certain election laws to the states, the states must still comply with all other […]
Hidden Pitfalls of New Overtime Rules
By Jennifer Carter, Staff Writer On Dec. 1, salaried employees who make less than $47,476 per year will be eligible for overtime pay if they work in excess of 40 hours per week under the revised Fair Labor Standards Act.[1] Employers will have to make choices in how to […]
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