Category: Florida BAR article

Disgruntled employees have always made damaging comments about their companies, and in the past, the companies could sue for defamation. But now, with the internet, people can make false claims anonymously. It’s easy to sue someone you can find and serve with legal papers, but what do you do when the person spreading lies about…

In a case called Lee v. GTE Florida, Inc., a court said that in order to prove that a company didn’t promote someone for unfair reasons, the person who wasn’t promoted has to show that they were clearly more qualified than the person who was promoted. In this case, Lee worked at GTE for a…

During the last few years, the job market in the US was really good, with low unemployment and higher wages. But even with all that, there were more cases of people filing complaints about being treated unfairly at work. Now, the economy is starting to not do as well, and more people are losing their…

In today’s world, how you look matters. People care a lot about appearance and it can affect your success. Studies show that attractive people are assumed to be smarter, more capable, and have more opportunities. Employers know that good-looking employees can help make sales and close deals. So, it’s important to look professional and put…

In a recent case, the N.L.R.B. decided that nonunion workers have the right to have a coworker with them in meetings that could lead to them getting in trouble. This is a big change from the past. The case was brought by two employees from the Epilepsy Foundation who said they were fired for criticizing…

In 2000, the Supreme Court made a decision in a case called Reeves v. Sanderson Plumbing Products. The decision helped make it easier for employees who believe they have been discriminated against to prove their case in court. This decision changed the way lower courts had been handling these cases and made it easier for…

Part one of this article looked at the reasons for and against class action lawsuits and arbitration in legal cases. It found that arbitration agreements are usually upheld, but there are exceptions for cases with very small amounts of money at stake. Part two will look at more cases where waivers were upheld, how courts…

Some rights given by law can’t be given up, even if someone agrees to give them up. The Supreme Court said that the law to protect workers from low wages can’t be waived. This means that workers can’t agree to not get the wages they’re supposed to. The Supreme Court also said that workers can’t…

The article discusses how the FLSA was expanded in 1961 to cover all employees of a business engaged in commerce, even if some employees are not directly involved in commerce. It also talks about further expansion in 1974. The 1961 amendments to the FLSA had a definition of enterprise that included employers whose employees worked…

If you work in a job that involves selling things, making things for sale, or working for a business that sells things, you have to be paid at least the minimum wage. If you work more than 40 hours in a week, you have to be paid extra for those extra hours. This applies to…

In the 21st century, when companies merge or sell their business, it can affect the people who work there. Employment lawyers have to study when a new company might be responsible for treating employees fairly. A famous court case in 1973 set the rules for this. It said that if a new company buys a…

Different courts had different standards for what constituted retaliation in employment cases. Some said it had to be a big change, like being fired or demoted, while others said it could be smaller, as long as it was meant to punish someone for speaking up. The Supreme Court wanted to fix this confusion. They wanted…

In 2006, the U.S. Supreme Court made a decision in the case of Garcetti v. Ceballos that will impact public employees across the country. The Court ruled that public employees can be disciplined for making statements about public matters as part of their job duties. In this case, a deputy district attorney, Ceballos, was disciplined…

A law called the Sarbanes-Oxley Act was created to protect people who report fraudulent activity that could harm innocent investors. It was made in response to the Enron scandal. However, the law’s whistleblower rules can be interpreted to cover more than just fraud that affects shareholders. For example, even if a company is small and…

The U.S. Supreme Court recently decided that employees must be paid for the time they spend putting on and taking off protective gear at work. They also have to be paid for the time they spend walking to and from their work areas after changing into their gear. But there are still some questions about…

The Faragher defense is a way for employers to avoid being held responsible for discrimination by their employees. In order to use this defense, the employer has to prove that they had a good system in place to prevent discrimination and that the employee didn’t take advantage of it. Even though some people were worried…