According to a recent study by Manpower and Jury Verdict Research, employers won only 39% of jury cases in the past year, tied for the lowest percentage in this decade. The lowest win rate was 33% for age cases and the highest win rate for employers was disability cases with 52%. The median settlement amount
Be Prepared for Job Loss
Job troubles occur for hundreds of different reasons, whether due to discrimination, breach of contract or simply a bad economy. CBS News offers some good tips to be prepared for that sudden, unexpected loss of your job.
San Antonio Riverwalk Becomes Fully Accessible
The City of San Antonio is spending $3 million to make the Riverwalk accessible to wheel chairs. Title II of the ADA requires that public places be accessible to persons with disabilities. The Department of Justice supposedly enforces Title II. The EEOC enforces a separate part of the ADA. It is long past overdue that
Online Research Causes Issues in Jury Trials
Five members of a jury "friend" each other during a jury trial. In another trial, one involving murder, jury members look up key scientific terms on Wikipedia during deliberations. The jury looked up terms helping them understand how blood settles, an important issue in the murder trial. Court personnel found the results of the research
Texas Supreme Court Overturns Another Jury Finding
The Texas Supreme Court has once again overturned a jury verdict and a successful appeal by a plaintiff. In Whirlpool, Inc. v. Camacho, Texas’ highest civil court found deficient the testimony of an expert who testified that a fire was caused by a faulty dryer. The fire took the life of teenage Joab Camacho
Employees Required to Check Work Email after Hours
Gene Lee writes a good post about whether workers should be paid for checking email after hours. More and more employees are being required to check their email after work. Accoding to a 2008 Pew internet survey, 50% of workers said they check their work email on weekends. 20% of workers said they were required
Unemployment Down to 10%
For the first time in months, the national unemployment rate has dropped. Down to a "mere" 10%……..
But, as the Workplace Prof mentions, that does not mean it will continue to decrease. In fact, it might well increase before it decreases. Since, once things start looking better, folks who had given up will re-enter
Texas Unemployment Benefits Can be a Mystery
Applying for unemployment benefits is a bit of a mystery, even to those of us who do employment law. Fortunately, TWC has some pretty good information online to explain the process. In general, you get unemployment benefits if you lose a job through no fault of yours. So, if you have committed some work
Oprah Explains the Family Medical Leave Act
We can count on Oprah for many things. One is a recent explanation of the rights for new mothers under the Family Medical Leave Act. Thanks, Oprah.
Risky Behavior Can Include Posting Pictures on Facebook
So, you’re diagnosed with depression. It will not get better. You are unemployed for a year and a half. Your problems mount. You live in Canada, so you see see gray skies everyday. Then, your doctor tells you to get away to some sunny climate for a brief time. You take a trip, take some