Arbitration continues to be popular with many employers. Two significant factors driving employers to arbitration, and away from state and federal courts, are the potential for lower defense costs and reduced risk of runaway jury awards that seem to be more common than ever before. Many lawyers think the benefits of arbitration are overstated and
Circuit
Surprise! The Employees of the Vendor You Hired Might be Your Employees Too
While “joint employment” is not a new legal concept, federal agencies such as the Department of Labor and National Labor Relations Board have aggressively sought to expand its application in recent years.
A joint employment situation typically occurs when an employer uses an independent contractor or vendor for certain services, or relies upon a…
Recent 8th Circuit Case Likely to Encourage Continued Migration of Age Discrimination Claims to State Court
We have discussed in this blog before the migration of discrimination claims to Iowa state courts rather than federal courts. The trend is driven by a number of factors, including the recognition in 2005 of the right to a jury trial under the Iowa Civil Rights Act (ICRA) and the greater propensity of federal courts…
Gross v. FBL Remand: Eighth Circuit Considers Additional Issues
On November 30, 2009, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit issued an opinion on the remand of Gross v. FBL Financial Group, Inc. We have discussed the Gross case in several previous posts (here, here, and here). The case has particular local interest because it was tried in…