Details continue to emerge in the sexual misconduct lawsuit against Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill and the state of Indiana. New allegations contained in an amended complaint shed additional light on the responses of Statehouse officials to groping and harassment allegations made by four women.
Stephen Stitle, managing partner of the Indianapolis office of SmithAmundsen LLC, has been named chief operating officer over the entire Midwest regional law firm.
A state agency says a northern Indiana company was partly responsible for the death of a 43-year-old employee who was killed when welding equipment fell from a forklift.
A man who pleaded guilty to fraudulently wiring money from his Fishers employer to his personal bank account couldn’t convince the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that his circumstances presented a due process exception to the rule that most written appeal waivers are effective.
The U.S. Women’s National Team did not lose a match in route to their fourth World Cup title. When they returned home, the nation celebrated the team’s victory with numerous national TV appearances and a ticker tape parade. However, while the team reveled in victory, one battle stood ahead — not on the field, but in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
On April 3, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb signed Senate Enrolled Act 231, excluding a direct seller from the definition of “employee” under the state’s minimum wage law (Indiana Code § 22-2-2 et. seq.) and from the definition of “employment” under the state’s unemployment compensation system (I.C. 22-4 et. seq.), except under certain conditions. The law took effect July 1.
We all know the general rule about overtime: the Fair Labor Standards Act requires employees must be paid 150 percent of their standard rate of pay, or “time and a half,” for working more than 40 hours per week, but certain employees, especially executive or managerial employees, are exempt. In practice, the line between exempt and non-exempt employees is sometimes unclear, especially with respect to restaurant and retail employees.
This year, a group of unions, employment law attorneys and other labor organizations petitioned the Federal Trade Commission to ban noncompete agreements. But while there are some instances where a restrictive covenant can be too restrictive, experts say there are also instances where noncompete clauses are legitimate.
The landscape of the modern workplace is changing. Surrounding states have legalized marijuana. CBD oil has entered the Indiana market. And vaping is growing at an unprecedented rate. As these changes materialize in the workforce, employers are left asking, What what are these substances? Are they legal? And how can employers prepare themselves before these problems appear at their places of business?
A former East Chicago city employee who has alleged her constitutional rights were violated when she was fired from the city Health Department in 2015 has secured a partial victory from the Northern Indiana District Court, which also ruled partially in favor of city officials.
A woman whose hair weave sample returned a positive test after she claims she was denied the chance to submit her natural hair for a random employment drug screen will have a chance to make a negligence claim against the lab, a federal court ruled.
Even while the total number of entry-level law firm jobs is still below the pre-recession peak, the employment stats for the 2018 law school graduates improved, primarily because the smaller size of last year’s class meant fewer new lawyers were looking for work.
There were 20 new law firm combinations announced in the United States in the second quarter of 2019, according to Altman Weil’s MergerLine, falling slightly below reported numbers at the same time in previous years. In total, 47 deals were announced by mid-year.
The question of another economic recession in the United States is not if it will happen, but when. Roughly a decade since the end of the Great Recession, most economists predict the U.S. economy will take another dip some time in 2020. Businesses, including law firms, are starting to prepare.
A recent survey of young Florida attorneys found that roughly 58 percent say the practice of law has become “less desirable” to them as their years in practice have increased. But facing difficulties doesn’t mean the next generation of Indiana lawyers are preparing to switch careers. Rather, they say the struggles they encountered, though painful at the time, have improved their skills as client advocates.
First-year associates at larger firms are seeing heftier paychecks, according to a national study. But the Midwest is seeing the shorter end of that stick compared to other regions. In its 2019 Associate Salary Survey report released Wednesday, the National Association for Law Placement found that as of Jan. 1, the overall median first-year associate salary was up nearly 15 percent.
The legal profession has a problem, according to the International Bar Association. The largest survey of its kind found sexual harassment and bullying endemic in the legal profession in the United States and around the world.
Across the country, in-house counsel attorneys are taking steps to put their money where their mouth is — literally — when it comes to diversity in the legal profession.
Six intellectual property attorneys walked out of one law firm, boarded the elevator in their downtown Indianapolis office building and pushed the button for a competing law firm on the 19th floor. Thus, Frost Brown Todd last month bolstered its Indianapolis IP practice group by luring the entire intellectual property team from SmithAmundsen’s Indiana office. The move underscored what law firms say is a competitive job market where experienced lawyers are the hottest commodity.
Indianapolis attorney Yasmin Stump is among women lawyers who made a change to regain control over the time she spent in the workplace and become the ultimate decision maker in their careers. Stump and others chose to take a risk and open her their practices.