Giving employers a significant win, a sharply divided Supreme Court upheld the right of employers to include arbitration clauses in their employment agreements that seriously curtail employees’ ability to file class actions and pursue court claims for wage and hour violations. The case was closely watched by advocates on both sides of the issue as […]
When I first started practicing law in 1986, copyright in a piece was easy to determine. It lasted 28 years from date of publication and then could be renewed for another 28 years. That gave the author a good 56 years of exclusive ownership to profit from: then the work became the world’s – public […]
In powerful language that will likely find its way into many future briefs to overturn wrongful convictions, a NY appeals court has reminded everyone that, when it comes to the criminal justice system, courts should not place form over substance. The case is People v. Hargrove 2018 WL 1833080, and it was handed down on […]
I was recently made aware of the case of Daniel Holtzclaw, an Oklahoma City police officer currently serving a 263-year sentence for 18 sex-related felonies, arising out of alleged crimes committed during traffic stops. Journalist Michelle Malkin invited me to join a panel discussion on wrongful convictions after the screening of her documentary Railroaded at […]
On April 12, 2018, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law the New York State budget, which includes several significant measures directed at both private and government employers regarding sexual harassment in the workplace. The signing of the budget bills triggers the countdown to the effective dates of the various provisions, as follows, with […]
Suffolk County lawmakers on Thursday approved a $10 million settlement for Martin Tankleff, who served 17 years in prison for killing his parents before an appellate court overturned the conviction in 2007. The legislature’s Ways and Means Committee voted 5-0 for the settlement, which was recommended by County Attorney Dennis Brown. “There’s no amount of […]
The President is screaming that the search warrant executed on the offices Michael Cohen, his longtime attorney, is an attack on our country and a violation of the attorney-client privilege. First of all, 9-11 was an attack on our country; this search is just one step in a long criminal investigation. But Presidential histrionics aside, […]
2018 has been a bad year for copyright infringement troll attorney Richard Liebowitz. He specializes in bringing hundreds of suits over the alleged infringing use of a digital photograph. In February, in the case of McDermott v. Monday, Monday LLC Southern District of NY Judge Denise Cote labeled him a “Copyright Troll” for filing over […]
Back in 2010, I wrote an article for this blog on Top 10 Tips for Young Trial Lawyers It remains one of the most viewed and re-viewed articles on my blog. Since its publication, there has not been a week that it has not been viewed. This week, I judged New York Law School’s Wagner […]
Copyright 2009-2018 Oscar Michelen.