On May 15, 2017, New York City’s Freelance Isn’t Free Act (“FIFA”) will take effect, and make history as the first law of its kind. FIFA establishes significant protections for freelance workers, or independent contractors by requiring a written contract, timely payment and anti-retaliation provisions. The law will provide many of the protections afforded to

Seventh Circuit, Joining Other Circuits, Rejects ERISA Plan’s “Coordination of Benefits” Lawsuit Against Health Insurers

The plaintiff in this lawsuit, filed in a federal district court in Illinois, was the trustee of the Central States, Southeast and Southwest Areas Health and Welfare Fund, a self-funded plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974

Florida Court Upholds Denial of Long-Term Disability Benefits to Employee Who Worked Fewer Hours 

The plaintiff in this case was a financial sales professional with AXA Equitable Insurance Company who said that he experienced neck and back pains stemming from motor vehicle and snowboarding injuries that he had suffered in 2003. The plaintiff regularly worked 70 to

Implied-in-Fact CBA Excluded Time Spent Donning and Doffing Work Clothing from Compensable Time, Eighth Circuit Decides

Since at least 1967, hourly employees working at the battery manufacturing facility in Joplin, Missouri, operated by EaglePicher Technologies, LLC, were represented by a union, presently known as the United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial

On November 22, 2016, a federal judge in Texas granted a nationwide preliminary injunction blocking the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) overtime rule scheduled to take effect December 1, 2016. The rule more than doubles the required salary level to qualify for the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) “white collar” exemptions, increasing the annual salary

Last week, a Texas federal court issued a preliminary injunction delaying the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) latest rule for overtime exemptions from taking effect. The injunction comes as the result of a lawsuit filed by 21 states and several business organizations that claimed that the DOL exceeded its authority by more than doubling the

Company’s COBRA Breach Justified Award of Premiums to Former Employee, Eighth Circuit Rules

When Health Resources of Arkansas, Inc. (HRA) reduced its work force in response to financial difficulties in 2012, the plaintiff in this case was 57 years old and had been working for HRA since 1987. She had worked her way up from

Video Surveillance Properly Led Claim Administrator to Terminate Long-Term Disability Benefits, Eleventh Circuit Rules

The plaintiff in this case worked for JPMorgan Chase Bank as a technical operations lead – a sedentary position that required sitting most of the day – and had long-term disability insurance coverage as a participant in an employee welfare benefit plan

Court Permits Plaintiff to Proceed Under a Pseudonym with Complaint Seeking Long-Term Disability Benefits

The plaintiff in this case, who alleged that she suffered from HIV/AIDS, brought a lawsuit under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to recover benefits she asserted were due to her under a long-term disability insurance benefit plan sponsored by her former

Tribal Government’s ERISA Claims Against Blue Cross May Proceed, Court Rules

The Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, a federally recognized Indian tribe, entered into an administrative services contract (ASC) with Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Michigan that provided that the Little River Band was a “self-funded” customer of Blue Cross. As provided in