The B&B Docket Blog:

COURT PUNISHES COMPANY FOR HIDING THE ARBITRATION BALL   Congratulations to Bennett & Belfort attorneys Craig Levey, Jillian Guilfoyle and Todd Bennett who defeated a Motion To Dismiss and Motion To Compel Arbitration that was filed by a Defendant based on an Arbitration agreement that was not produced in response to a personnel file request under MGL c. 149 s.…

A Federal appeals court has ruled that a group of Uber drivers suing the company for misclassifying them as independent contractors instead of as employees must pursue their claims in arbitration. In this case, Capriole v. Uber Technologies, Inc., the drivers claim that under Massachusetts law, Uber should have classified them as employees. Because the company classified them as independent…

Last month, the United States Supreme Court declined to settle an apparent disagreement among the federal appeals courts over whether the ADA requires an employee bringing a failure-to-accommodate claim to show that they suffered an adverse-employment-action. The Supreme Court denied the employer’s request to hear the appeal in a case out of the Tenth Circuit, Exby-Stolley v. Board of County…

On May 26, 2021, Bennett & Belfort, P.C. attorneys Todd J. Bennett and Craig D. Levey completed a five-day jury trial in Middlesex Superior Court, where B&B’s clients prevailed on all counts for disability discrimination (failure to accommodate and termination) and retaliation. Due to the pandemic, this trial involved a number of measures put into place to prevent the spread…

B&B Partner David E. Belfort was quoted in the April 8th, 2021 issue of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly (MLW) regarding the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision in Bossé v. New York Life Insurance Co., et al. https://masslawyersweekly.com/2021/04/08/1st-circuit-kicks-ex-employees-race-bias-claim-to-arbitration/   The article titled “1st Circuit kicks ex-employee’s race-bias claim to arbitration,” highlights the majorities’ analysis and conclusion that the employer’s delegation…

Bennett & Belfort PC is pleased to announce that on March 31st, 2021 B&B Partner, David E. Belfort will serve as a panelist at the Massachusetts Bar Association’s  (“MBA”) presentation entitled “Best Practices For Drafting Employee Handbooks” The Panelists will address how handbooks and personnel manuals serve as important rules of the road for employees.  The panel will explore how handbooks…

Attorney Eric R. LeBlancAttorney Michaela C. MayBennett & Belfort is pleased to announce that a judge of the Business Litigation Session of the Suffolk Superior Court has denied efforts by GrubHub to force B&B's clients to arbitrate their wage claims against the company. As a result, B&B’s clients – former GrubHub drivers --will be able to pursue a class action…

With the recent rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine in Britain, Canada, and the United States, some employers are implementing policies that require employees to receive the vaccine prior to reentering the workplace.  This poses thorny societal and legal issues. While some people eagerly await the opportunity to be vaccinated, others are not so keen on the idea.  Whether it is…