The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Department of the Army recently announced plans to amend the Corps Civil Works program to better serve Indian nations and other disadvantaged and underserved communities.

Verdicts in personal injury cases are greatly impacted by the amount of medical expenses a plaintiff can present to juries. In Florida, collateral sources of compensation, such as insurance payments, are generally not disclosed to juries. However, caselaw also typically does not allow plaintiffs to recover the gross amount of medical bills, but instead the amount after insurance adjustments.

Continuing to tighten economic pressure on Russia, on June 2, 2022, the White House announced the imposition of new sanctions against leading Russian government officials and business leaders. Businesses and individuals involved in transactions with or affecting Russian entities face a heightened level of risk in these matters and should take extra care both to ensure compliance and to structure dealings with these complicated factors in mind.

Despite the uncertainty amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, New York’s Appellate Division still decided a number of Labor Law appeals in 2021. Of particular interest were the 118 cases in which the Appellate Division decided appeals regarding Labor Law § 240(1), most of which were in the First and Second Departments. This article compiles statistics about those decisions, including the number of cases decided in plaintiffs’ favor, in defendants’ favor, and the cases in which the courts found questions of fact precluding summary judgment.

In recent years, there has been a concerning development regarding judicial analysis of Labor Law § 241(6). Specifically, courts have – incorrectly – applied a somewhat “absolute liability” interpretation to Labor Law § 241(6). However, § 241(6) is not an “absolute liability” statute, like Labor Law § 240(1), and these recent rulings are contrary to decades of jurisprudence.

It is widely known and accepted in the construction industry that fall protection must be provided to workers working at a height of six (6) feet or more. This six-foot rule is set forth in OSHA Subpart M (§1926.500, et. seq.). Additionally, Industrial Code Section 23-1.7(b) requires fall protection for workers who are working near unguarded openings or edges, consisting of barriers, safety railings, or gates. 

According to recent data, the theft of trade secrets has cost American companies between $225 billion and $600 billion annually. Sadly, restitution awards associated with the prosecution of these thefts have not made victims whole and point towards massive recovery disparities. As such, it is important to have competent counsel who can navigate these complexities when a matter is referred to the federal authorities.

Recently, the nation was riveted by the highly publicized criminal trial of former Registered Nurse, RaDonda Vaught, who was convicted of reckless homicide and impaired adult abuse after a 2017 medication error killed her 75-year-old patient, Charlene Murphey. Although medication errors occasionally result in patient injury or death, those committing such errors are typically disciplined by state licensing boards or tried for negligence in medical malpractice cases in civil courts.