Walruses In The Nation’s Capital?
Posted on Apr 18, 2015 in Energy/Environmental, Litigation | Comments Off on Walruses In The Nation’s Capital?
According to yesterday’s opinion from the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, “There are no Pacific walruses in Washington, D.C. — not even at the National Zoo.” An environmental group seeking to protect the safety of Pacific walruses asked the court to review a regulation from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service allowing certain oil and gas...
Review Confidentiality Agreements For Potential Whistleblower Stifling
Posted on Apr 2, 2015 in Investigations, Litigation | Comments Off on Review Confidentiality Agreements For Potential Whistleblower Stifling
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced yesterday its first enforcement action against a company using alleged improperly restrictive language in confidentiality agreements with the potential to prevent the whistleblowing process. The SEC charged a company with violating the whistleblower protections of Rule 21F-17, enacted under the Dodd-Frank Act, for requiring employees in...
Alleged Inconsistencies In Applying Lock-out/Tag-out Violations Open Up Company To Race Discrimination Case
Posted on Mar 27, 2015 in Construction, Litigation | Comments Off on Alleged Inconsistencies In Applying Lock-out/Tag-out Violations Open Up Company To Race Discrimination Case
An employee responsible for plant maintenance was terminated by a manufacturing company after the employee allegedly violated a “zero-tolerance” policy for failing to properly apply the company’s lock-out/tag-out procedures to the plant’s equipment. In the plant, each maintenance employee is issued an individual lock with the employee’s lock number and...
Supreme Court Declines To Review MSHA/OSHA Jurisdiction Dispute Over Coal Preparation Facility
Posted on Mar 24, 2015 in Construction, Litigation, OSHA | Comments Off on Supreme Court Declines To Review MSHA/OSHA Jurisdiction Dispute Over Coal Preparation Facility
The new owner of a Pennsylvania custom coal preparation facility that the Federal Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) regulated since 1977 challenged whether MSHA properly had jurisdiction over the plant, and instead contended that it should be regulated by OSHA. The Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission concluded that MSHA jurisdiction was appropriate because the...
Foreign Tire Manufacturer Subject To Personal Jurisdiction In Iowa
Posted on Mar 21, 2015 in Litigation, Product Liability, Transportation | Comments Off on Foreign Tire Manufacturer Subject To Personal Jurisdiction In Iowa
The Supreme Court of Iowa had to confront unsettled federal precedent to decide whether a Chinese tire manufacturer that sold thousands of tires in Iowa through an American distributor could be subject to personal jurisdiction in the state. The tire at issue exploded as it was being inflated and caused severe injuries to the individual inflating it. The individual’s family...
Work Product Protection Does Not Extend To Claims Investigator’s Report In Admiralty Case
Posted on Mar 5, 2015 in Investigations, Litigation, OSHA, Transportation | Comments Off on Work Product Protection Does Not Extend To Claims Investigator’s Report In Admiralty Case
Company A chartered a barge to Company B as a platform for A/C generation and refrigeration of fish products. In the summer of 2011, the President of Company A wrote to Company B requesting that it examine the barge for potential electrolysis given fears that the barge had developed a starboard list. Company B responded that it did not have responsibility or the time to inspect...
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