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Employment – Retaliation – First Amendment
Where the defendant city of Boston has moved to dismiss a complaint filed by a plaintiff who was suspended without pay and then fired, the city’s motion should be denied with respect to the plaintiff’ First Amendment retaliation claim, as her statements to the police about a potentially inappropriate workplace relationship she had with a high-ranking city official plausibly amounts to protecte[...]
In state’s first PFMLA verdict, employee wins $4.75M against Wayfair
A Suffolk Superior Court jury awarded $4.75M in a PFMLA retaliation case against Wayfair, highlighting the strict burden on employers under the paid leave law.
Employment – Discrimination – Retaliation
Where a defendant supervisor has moved to dismiss claims brought by a plaintiff employee, that motion should be denied because each of the claims against the supervisor is plausibly alleged.
Employment – Retaliation – First Amendment
Where a plaintiff employee of the Boston Police Department was demoted following his acceptance of a position on the Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission, the plaintiff’s complaint must be dismissed because it does not set forth adequate factual allegations to state a claim for relief for First Amendment retaliation or for violation of the Massachusetts Civil Rights Act.
Employment – Retaliation – Nexus
Where a defendant employer was awarded summary judgment on claims of unlawful retaliation, that judgment should be affirmed because the plaintiff has not produced evidence from which a reasonable jury could conclude that he was terminated for asserting his right to seek accommodation of a disability under Massachusetts law or for exercising his rights under the Family and Medical Leave Act.
Employment – Wages – Retaliation
Where a plaintiff has alleged that the defendants failed to pay wages according to the terms of his employment contract and subsequently retaliated against him for demanding those wages, the plaintiff’s breach of contract and breach of covenant claims should be dismissed as moot since the plaintiff has admitted that the defendants paid him the wages that he earned, but the defendants should be d[...]
Employment – Retaliation – Immigration status
Where three citations were issued by the Fair Labor Division of the Attorney General’s Office, the third citation, for retaliation, must be reversed because a text exchange in which one of the employers wrote that his attorney can “run an immigration status” was not an adverse action capable of grounding a retaliation claim.
Panel revives religious bias, retaliation claims vs. Hasbro
1st Circuit revives lawsuit by Hasbro managers alleging religious discrimination and retaliation over COVID-19 vaccine exemptions they failed to receive.
Employment – Retaliation – Causation
Where summary judgment was awarded to the defendants in Title VII retaliation suit brought by a plaintiff police officer, the judgment should be affirmed because the plaintiff failed to provide evidence that would permit a reasonable jury to find that retaliation for protected conduct was the but-for cause of any of the police department’s challenged actions concerning the release of her discipl[...]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Injury during baby’s adenoidectomy leads to stroke
- Construction worker’s hand caught in cement mixer
- Worker trapped in freezer, dies during steam cleaning
- Pedestrian, 69, hit by motor vehicle while in crosswalk
- Four-vehicle pileup leaves driver with spinal cord injury
- Nursing home staff blamed for kidney-failure death
- Pharmacy’s late delivery blamed for patient’s death
- Man, 25, drowns after swimming lesson at fitness club
Opinion Digests
- Jurisdiction – Forum selection clause – Non-signatory
- Criminal – Responsibility
- Attorneys – Lien
- Landlord and tenant – Default judgment
- Zoning – Constructive grant – Comprehensive permit
- Fraud – False Claims Act – Settlement share
- Civil practice – Discovery – Cybersecurity
