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Week Of Monday January 30, 2012
Mandatory CLE Gets A Formal Endorsement FREE
For the better part of two decades, the issue of mandatory continuing legal education has ping-ponged between Connecticut Bar Association supporters and the judges who will make the final call. The issue is about to end up back in the judges’ court.
The CBA’s House of Delegates overwhelmingly approved the latest MCLE proposal at its Jan. 23 meeting, with only one member of at least 35 present dissenting, according to Keith Bradoc “Brad” Gallant, CBA president.
Police Indictments Signal Court Battle FREE
The indictment last week of four East Haven police officers in a long-running civil rights probe signals the beginning of a protracted, if not political, battle in criminal and civil courts. “It’s a tornado and it’s still moving. There are a lot of parts to it with the civil case that’s pending and this new indictment,” said New Haven attorney Jonathan J. Einhorn, who represents the town’s police chief, Leonard Gallo. Gallo was not charged last week, but Einhorn said his client was mentioned in the indictment as “co-conspirator 1”. Gallo is a named defendant in a related civil suit.
Employment & Immigration Law
Employment: Free Speech Not Limited By Time, Place Or Protocol FREE
Employment law practitioners in Connecticut should take interest in a recent decision handed down by the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals. The case, Nagle v. Marron, was decided Dec. 12, 2011, and involved a non-tenured teacher’s First Amendment retaliation claim against the school district and its officials.
Employment & Immigration Law
Employment: Changing Gender — The New Sex Discrimination FREE
Sex discrimination used to mean one thing: treating a man differently because he’s a man or a woman differently because she’s a woman. But our nation is in the midst of a civil rights revolution around sexual orientation and gender identity.
Employment & Immigration Law
Employment: Feds Target Connecticut, R.I. Construction Industry FREE
Connecticut and Rhode Island construction industry employers will face increased government scrutiny of their labor and employment practices over the next several years. On Nov. 30, 2011, the Hartford office of the U.S Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division issued a press release announcing a “multiyear enforcement initiative” aimed at improving what it sees as “widespread noncompliance with minimum wage, overtime and record-keeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act” in the Connecticut and Rhode Island construction industry.
Employment & Immigration Law
Employment: Consider Using ADR For Workplace Disputes FREE
Disputes arise in union and non-union workplaces and you must be prepared to handle them effectively for your client. Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) options provide flexibility and efficiency often saving time, money, and publicity sometimes associated with litigation. This article highlights the dispute resolution processes that exist to resolve workplace disputes for both the employer and employee.
After Hours
Tooting Her Own Horn FREE
Renee Redman was playing French horn with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra in the late 1980s when she decided that the composition of her life was incomplete. She had already mastered music — not to mention learning Hebrew on the side — when she found herself yearning to learn another language.
Employment & Immigration Law
Employment: Without Crystal Ball, Employment Laws Remain Murky FREE
Employers are once again caught between a rock and a hard place when it comes to employment laws, making ongoing compliance difficult and putting them at a competitive disadvantage in the global economy. While well-intentioned employers simply want to know the rules of engagement, conflicting and changing opinions on federal employment laws make compliance an admirable but ultimately illusory goal.
Dispute Over Legal Fees Sends Client To Jail FREE
Last month, Hamden school lunch aide Joann Daddio-Geriac was in a legal bind — caught between her lawyer’s advice and a judge’s order. And the only way out she could see led to her spending 14 days in the York Correctional Center in Niantic, in contempt of court.
Employment & Immigration Law
Employment: Child Abuse And Pornography In The Workplace FREE
Following the recent child abuse scandals at Penn State and Syracuse University, much attention has been focused on the question of whether employers have a legal obligation to report suspected abuse to law enforcement.
Workers’ Comp Litigator Is A Commercial Success 
Norwalk attorney Robert J. Sciglimpaglia Jr., who specializes in workers’ compensation claims, is admitted to practice law in three states and Washington, D.C. He’s even been named a Super Lawyer, which in this instance serves as a sort of foreshadowing. Despite his success in the legal arena, Sciglimpaglia’s biggest career break is about to come on Sunday, Feb. 5, a day when no court is in session.
Q & A
A Small Agency With A Big Footprint FREE
As he nears the end of his first year in office, Connecticut Consumer Protection Commissioner William H. Rubenstein has a new perspective on a topic he’s studied throughout an illustrious career in and out of government — the operation of markets. He says the heart of consumer protection is removing the obstacles or “occlusions” that prevent markets from providing a high-quality array of goods and services at the lowest possible price.
Employment & Immigration Law
Employment: Five Reasons Paid Sick Leave Isn’t A Good Idea FREE
On Jan 1, 2012, Connecticut became the first and only state in the nation to require employers to provide paid sick leave to employees. By passing yet another law entitling employees not to report to work under certain circumstances, the state is promoting the continued erosion of an employer’s ability to require regular and predictable attendance as a condition of employment.
Employment & Immigration Law
Employment: Sorting Out ICE’s Prosecutorial Discretion Program FREE
On June 17, 2011, the director of the Office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), John Morton, issued two memoranda outlining a framework to be used when exercising “prosecutorial discretion” in the context of deportation of non-U.S. citizens.
New Center Focuses On Gender, Sexuality Issues FREE
With a nationally known Title IX authority on its faculty, not to mention a professor whose legal work paved the way for the legalization of gay marriage in Massachusetts, it may be no surprise that Western New England University School of Law has become the first New England law school to establish a Center on Gender and Sexuality Studies.
Employment & Immigration Law
Employment: NLRB Important To Non-Union Employers Like Never Before FREE
Earlier articles in this newspaper have drawn attention to the phenomenon of the National Labor Relations Board’s efforts to broaden its reach into the non-organized workplace and the significance of its successes in that effort to the great bulk of Americans engaged in private sector, non-unionized employment. The trend continues.
Verdicts & Settlements
Dentist Gets Drilled For $453,000 Jury Award FREE
Doreen Jasonis v. Rashmi Patel, DMD: A woman employed by a dentist agreed to a procedure that left her with a mouthful of problems and the dentist with a malpractice verdict against him for nearly $453,000. Doreen Jasonis, a Litchfield resident in her late 40s, was hired by Dr. Rashmi C. Patel at Dr. Patel’s Dental Center in Torrington in February 2006, according to the woman’s lawyer, Angelo Cicchiello, of Cicchiello & Cicchiello LLP in Hartford.
New Partners, New Optimism FREE
If this were his grandfather’s law business, Geoffrey M. Goodale might have just settled in at one law firm and worked his way up to partner after earning his juris doctorate from George Washington University in 2001. Instead, he earned his reputation as a go-to guy on trade and export compliance issues at two other large firms before recently jumping ship to become a partner at Shipman & Goodwin.
Getting Technical FREE
A decade ago, the state’s law library advisory committee basically had to meet once a year and satisfied itself that the book collections were up to “minimum standards.” Now, with the legislature proposing wildly different annual budgets in recent years — from zero dollars three years ago, to $2 million, and now $1 million — committee members are being asked to actively reinvent the state’s shrinking collection of law libraries.
Baby Name Dispute Grows Old In Court FREE
What’s in a name? Ask lawyers Tamara Shockley and Edward Okeke. Their dispute over the name of their son has spanned a dozen years and has consumed the attention of judges in four different levels of Connecticut courts, including the state Supreme Court. The dispute started when the boy was born in Stamford Hospital on May 25, 2000, to the couple, who are licensed to practice law in New York and at the time worked for the United Nations. In an acknowledgement of paternity signed by both parties before a notary, the child was named Nnamdi Ikwunne Okeke.
Feds Targeting White Collar Crime FREE
In what white collar crime experts say is no surprise, federal prosecutors in Connecticut are targeting insider trading and similar financial crimes for the first time.
Elder Law & Estate Planning
Challenging Issues In Estate, Gift Tax Valuations FREE
The valuation of a business or business interest for estate and gift tax purposes presents certain challenges due to unique facts and circumstances specific to each engagement, requiring consideration of and an understanding of recent topics, court opinions, and legislative changes. Over the years, there have been some lively debates within the business valuation community over a number of hot topics, three of which are: 1) tax-affecting earnings of pass-through entities; 2) calculating deductions for built-in capital gains taxes; and 3) consideration of subsequent events.
Survey Finds Concern About Business ConditionsFREE
General counsel are the nerve center of the company. They have to make it their business to know something about every business their corporation works in. And they are paid to worry about what former U.S. Department of Defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld called “unknown unknowns.” So who better in the company to ask what issues they are most concerned about in 2012? To find out the answers, Corporate Counsel, an affiliate of the Connecticut Law Tribune, surveyed 107 general counsel and some of their deputies at U.S. companies. Their responses suggest that they and their companies will face a challenging year ahead.
In-House Connecticut
GC Says No To Non-Lawyer Investment In Firms FREE
The idea of allowing non-lawyers to hold ownership in law firms has taken hold in Australia, the United Kingdom, parts of Canada, and in Washington, D.C. Now the American Bar Association is discussing whether the concept should expand across the United States.
Verdicts & Settlements
Passenger Gets $1.6M After Breaking Back FREE
Gary Merrill et al. v. Joseph F. Marie, Commissioner of the Department of Transportation: A man who fractured his back when a vehicle driven by his wife skidded off of an ice-covered highway sued the state and was recently awarded $1.6 million by a Litchfield jury. Gary Merrill, 55, of Thomaston, was a front-seat passenger on March 2, 2007. His wife, Denise, was behind the wheel and their daughter, Andye, and a friend were in the back seat.
Governor Nominates Six To Superior Court BenchFREE
Legal experience comes in many forms, and Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s selection of six new judicial candidates showcases that variety. Upon confirmation by the legislature, they will replace slightly more than a quarter of the 23 current vacancies on the bench.
Elder Law & Estate Planning
Embezzlement Lessons Learned From Monopoly FREE
There’s a lot you can learn about fiduciary relationships from a game of Monopoly. I found that out recently when I took a look at the rules after being away from the game for many years. The section I found most interesting pertained to “The Banker.”
Elder Law & Estate Planning
Powers Of Attorney – Use And Abuse FREE
A general durable financial power of attorney is one of the simplest, most flexible, efficient and cost-effective tools available to address the need for property management in the event someone becomes ill or incompetent. There is, perhaps, no more essential document to have in place when planning for possible incapacity. A well-crafted instrument can broaden options available to an incapacitated client as well as provide safeguards to restrain an overreaching agent. Most importantly, with a durable power of attorney, one can avoid an intrusive and cumbersome conservator proceeding in the event of incapacity.
Trooper Staffing Triggers Clash Between Branches FREE
On the surface, the issue is fairly simple: Gov. Danell Malloy, in a money-saving measure, wants to limit the number of state troopers. In response, the troopers and their union have argued that public safety is compromised when their ranks are less than full.
Judicial Branch Joins World Of Twitter FREE
The next time there’s a sizable snow storm, just check Twitter to find out if your jurisdiction’s courthouse is closed or not.
That’s because last week the state Judicial Branch announced it had launched an account with the social media phenomenon Twitter, signifying in Connecticut that tweeting may officially have gone from a trend met with skepticism by some in the legal field to an accepted form of modern communication.
Harassment Claim Turns Into Terrorism Accusation FREE
Balayla Ahmad appeared to be a bright student. She earned a master’s degree at Central Michigan University and then began studying at the University of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic in January 2009. But Ahmad, an African-American Muslim who regularly wore the hijab head covering traditionally worn by Muslim women, suddenly stopped going to class. School officials allegedly received a report that Ahmad had terrorist ties. When she failed to complete her final exams, the university expelled her.
Q & A
Consumer Counsel Gets Jolt From Electrifying Work FREE
When consumer counsel Elin Swanson Katz took office Oct. 3, life was comparatively calm. The state Public Utility Regulatory Authority, the successor to the Department of Public Utility Control, had officially decided it had no authority to review the looming merger between Boston-based NStar and Northeast Utilities, the corporate parent of Connecticut Light & Power and Yankee Gas.
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