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Recent Articles from Sylvia Hsieh
High court upholds dismissal of sick time suit against state
A state employee who was denied leave for his own sickness cannot sue the state for violating the Family and Medical Leave Act, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in a 5-4 decision. States are immune under the Eleventh Amendment from suits under the self-care provision of FMLA, a plurality of the court said.
Verdict trends: What’s fueling the rise in jury awards?
The past year saw some of the highest Top Ten Jury Verdicts in recent years, exceeding the previous two years. Are jury verdicts trending higher? How is the prolonged economic downturn affecting juror attitudes, and has any of the public frustration displayed in anti-corporate protests like the Occupy Wall Street movement seeped into jury deliberations? We talked to several experts who spend a [...]
Lawsuits in the pipeline over ‘fracking’ practices
Litigation over oil and natural gas industry techniques that include hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” is underway across the country and expected to spread. Over the past few years, the use of fracking to drive natural gas out of shale rock has increased dramatically. The technique involves drilling a hole deep into the rock, then pumping in vast quantities of water mixed with sand and [...]
Google Plus: The next big thing for small law firms?
Some law firm marketing gurus are going gaga over Google+ (Google Plus), the latest social media platform. Even though it’s only been out for a few months, Google+ is already generating a heated debate over whether it’s the next big thing for small law firms. The main reason for the excitement is the fact that it’s not just another start-up. With over a billion searches on Google every mo[...]
Medicare rules on settlements unite litigators in frustration
BOSTON, MA — A looming deadline that will require reporting of personal injury settlements to Medicare has united trial lawyers who are normally adversaries in personal injury cases. Under rules designed to protect Medicare’s lien on medical bills recovered by a personal injury plaintiff, liability insurers must begin collecting data on cases that settle on or after Oct. 1 for reporting to [...]
Hey, you! Get off of my cloud
Cloud-computing has become so convenient for lawyers that security has almost become an after-thought. But the cloud recently rained down a flurry of concern about security and client confidentiality when users of the popular provider Drop Box learned that a security breach allowed access without a password for a period of four hours. When the company revised its security agreement to say that [...]
'Digital natives' change dynamic of jury trials
The generation of jurors known as the “net generation” or “digital natives” — those who were born in the digital age and know nothing of life before the Internet — […]
Small firm lawyers win $131 million in Ford rollover retrial
The third time was a charm for small firm lawyers who won $131 million against Ford for a rollover accident that killed 22-year-old New York Mets prospect Brian Cole. In […]
Commentary: What to do before and after you say 'You're fired!'
When it comes time to firing a legal assistant, many small-firm and solo attorneys are making mistakes that can come back to haunt them later on. Firing a once-trusted assistant […]
Use video to keep your practice moving
As any parent of a child wielding a Wii remote can tell you, video captivates like nothing else. It can persuade, entertain, inform and perhaps most importantly for lawyers humanize […]
Vt. Lawyers get trained in 'foreclosure mediation'
Lawyers in Vermont were trained earlier this summer in “foreclosure mediation” in preparation for a new state law that requires mediation before a home is foreclosed on. Eleven states have […]
Lots of contract work for health-care lawyers under new HIPAA rules
Lawyers can expect to be busy in the coming year reviewing and revising contracts of health-care entities and related businesses in light of new proposed HIPAA rules. The rules spell […]
Business Law
- Economy forces attorneys to get down to business
- Business Court judges trawl for customers
- Va. company's Web site did not subject business to personal jurisdiction in S.C., appeals panel rules
- Former running back from S.C. wins courtroom victory in contract dispute
- Contract – Government Contract – Qui Tam – False Claims Act
- Licenses & Permits – Beer & Wine Permit – Restrictive Covenant – Suitable Location
- Consumer Protection – FCRA – Auto Loan – Bank Accounting Errors
- Licenses & Permits – Veterinarian – Vaccine Maintenance
- Tort – Business Tort – Va. Computer Crimes Act – Trade Secrets
- Textile firm, railroad settle Graniteville train wreck lawsuit
- State regulators look at car dealer accused of lying to customers
- Subprime mortgage meltdown hits securities law
Commentary
- When is a PIP an adverse employment action?
- Legally Speaking: What spring can teach us about active listening
- A useful patent management government notice
- The third option: Why your best employees are quietly losing their edge
- ‘AI won’t take your job’ and other things CEOs say before the layoffs
- When not to believe (your lyin’ eyes)
- Conduct a technology audit to improve law firm efficiency
- When the client brings ChatGPT to the consultation
- Where is she now, this model who was so beautiful?
- Content Marketing: Where law firms lose referrals and how to prevent it
- Your best people are not leaving for more money — they are leaving because you stopped paying attention
- Best at Work Insights: The choice we’re making about AI
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