In The News

2/27/2010

Illinois’ non-discrimination law is in danger and we need your help now!

The State Senate is considering a bill (SB3447) to roll back some protections of the Illinois Human Rights Act, which currently prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

The bill would carve out exceptions to the Act, allowing certain employers and tax-exempt organizations to discriminate against Illinoisans on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, or religion.

The bill was authored by State Senator Bill Brady, Republican gubernatorial hopeful, though the chief sponsorship has since changed to State Sen. John O. Jones.

The bill has been assigned to the Judiciary Committee and a hearing on the bill is scheduled for Tuesday, March 2.

Here’s what you can do NOW to save Illinois Human Rights Act:

Learn more about the proposed bill and then

1.  Contact a State Senator on the Judiciary Committee, especially if this is your State Senator. 

2.  Help Equality Illinois launch a forceful defense of the Human Rights Act in Springfield, by donating to our advocacy efforts today.  We need to have a full advocacy team in Springfield to derail these angry, ill-willed attacks. We cannot do this work without your help.

Thank you for your help!

01/18/2009

“Kristin Case has been selected as an Illinois Rising Star by Superlawyers Magazine.“ 

Kristin M. Case

online at

visit superlawyers.com

01/15/2010

Kristin Case is featured in The Journal of the DuPage County Bar Association writing about the Family and Medical Leave Act. 
Go to http://www.dcbabrief.org/vol220110art3.html to read her article.

01/10/2010

13th Annual Labor and Employment Law Update

March 19, 2009 Chicago, UBS Conference Center

Kristin Case of The Case Law Firm is scheduled to speak at the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education's 13th Annual Employment Law Update on March 19, 2010. 
Ms. Case will be speaking about the benefits and risks to employees who are using social media in the workplace.   
For more information click here.


11/02/2009

Amendments to the Victim’s Economic Security and Safety Act

The Victim’s Economic Security and Safety Act (VESSA) was enacted in 2003 to protect employees who are victims, or family members of victims, of domestic or sexual violence.  Domestic and sexual violence are troubling societal problems and the assembly sought to offset their devastating economic consequences.  Under the Act, protected employees are entitled to unpaid leave and certain reasonable accommodations.  However, at the time the Act was enacted the definitions of family member and employer were fairly restrictive. In 2009, the Illinois general assembly sought to amend VESSA to provide employees with broader protections.

On August 24, 2009, the amendments to VESSA became law.  Public Act 096-0635 (August 24, 2009).  While only private employers with at least 50 employees were covered under the initial act, now all employers, public or private with at least 15 employees, are covered. 2009 Ill. Legis. Serv. P.A.  96-635 (S.B. 1770)(WEST).  However, the amount of leave employees are entitled to is dependent on the employer’s size.  Employees working for an employer who has 15-49 employees are entitled to a total of 8 weeks of leave in a 12-month period while employees working for an employer with 50 or more employees are entitled to 12 weeks of leave during a 12-month period.

Additionally, the amendments expand the meaning of “family or household member;” consequently, this expands the number of employees who are protected.  Prior to the amendments, the act only defined household members as the employees’ spouse, child, or another person residing jointly in the house.  Now, the general assembly added “other person related by blood or by present or prior marriage, other person who shares a relationship through a son or daughter” to that definition. 

While many of the discrimination protections remain the same, the amendment clarified the reasonable accommodation requirement.  The amendments add the provision that an employer must assist the documentation of violence that occurs in work-related settings.  Additionally, the amendments require that the reasonable accommodation must be made in a timely manner. Furthermore, any exigent circumstance or danger must be considered in determining whether an accommodation is reasonable.

Another expansion of VESSA in favor of employees is the change in the substitution provision of Section 25 of the old law.   Under the old law, it was not clear whether the employee would be entitled to two separate leaves, one under VESSA and one under another law or agreement.  The amendments make clear that the employee is entitled to take both. Under the new provisions, an employee who is entitled to take paid or unpaid leave under another law or agreement may choose to do so; however, the amendments prohibit the employer from requiring the employee to substitute some alternative leave for the leave provided under VESSA.
The amendments also changed the notice provisions.  If the employer fails to post the Department of Labor’s mandatory notice, the employer cannot deny the employee leave because the employee did not provide adequate notice of her need for that leave (which is still at least 48 hours’ advance unless that notice is not practicable).

The amendments to VESSA constitute a significant effort to broaden the workplace protections for victims of domestic or sexual violence.

10/14/2009

As you are aware, the Franken Amendment passed out of the Senate 68-30 last week, with 10 Republicans voting in favor of it.  The Amendment (SA 2588 to H.R. 3326 (the Department of Defense Appropriations Act)) would bar defense contractors from imposing forced arbitration clauses on their employees for Title VII violations and sexual assault tort claims.  We now expect the Amendment to proceed to conference between the House and the Senate early next week!! 

  For more information .

“Kristin Case has been selected as an Illinois Rising Star by Superlawyers Magazine.“  Kristin Case is featured in The Journal of the DuPage County Bar Association writing about the Family and Medical Leave Act.

As one of our coalition partners wrote earlier today: 

This amendment is incredibly important to the fight against forced arbitration for several reasons.  First, it addresses one way in which employees ' rights are hindered by forced arbitration and if passed would enable some employees access to a fair and impartial hearing.  Second, in regards to the larger fight, the Franken Amendment provides yet another illustration of how forced arbitration is so egregiously unfair.  Third, the amendment, if passed, becomes a stepping stone for us to argue that if forced arbitration is unfair in the context of sexual harassment and assault, why is it also not unfair in the context of consumer disputes, nursing home admission contracts, franchisee contracts, and other employment matters? 

WE NEED YOUR HELP to ensure that the amendment is not taken out of the bill in conference.  All of the Members of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittees in both the House and Senate will be the ones to decide whether this amendment stays in the bill or is stripped out. Please contact the Senator(s) and/or Representative(s) from your state (listed below) who will be one of the conferees and urge them to make sure this important amendment stays in the bill. 

            [insert contact info for all Senators/Reps for each state here] 

Here is a possible script for you to use when you make your calls: 

Good morning my name is ___________ and I ' m calling on behalf of ________________.  I am calling to ask for Sen./Rep. _____________ ' s support of Amendment 2588, sponsored by Senator Al Franken and co-sponsored by Senator Mary Landrieu, to H.R. 3326, the Department of Defense Appropriations Act.  This is an important amendment because it would bar defense contractors from imposing forced arbitration clauses on their employees for only Title VII violations and sexual assault claims. The amendment passed the Senate with a bipartisan vote of 68-30 and now must be protected in conference. 

If the amendment survives conference committee, companies like Halliburton will no longer be able to get federal defense contracts if they deny employees their day in court when they are subjected to rape, sexual assault, or a hostile working environment. We need your boss ' s help to ensure that the amendment isn ' t taken out of the bill in conference. 

10/05/2009

Action Alert: Senator Franken Needs Your Help To End Forced Arbitration

Senator Al Franken (D-MN) has introduced an amendment to the annual Defense Appropriations bill that would prohibit Department of Defense dollars from funding contractors or subcontractors that require their employees to resolve Title VII and sexual assault tort claims by forced arbitration.

Urge Your Senators to Support the
Franken Amendment

Call 202-224-3121 and ask to be connected to your Senators' offices.
 
This amendment is limited in scope since it only covers Title VII and sexual assault cases. But if passed, the amendment would cover a major portion of employment cases brought by workers and would be an extremely important precedent for blocking forced arbitration of other employment claims.
We expect the Senate to vote on Senator Franken's amendment on Tuesday, October 6, 2009, in the afternoon.
Please contact both your Senators' offices immediately to urge them to support the Franken amendment. Call 202-224-3121 and ask the operator to connect you to your Senators' offices. Thank you for Working for Change!

09/02/2009

Editorial

Workers in America, Cheated 

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/03/opinion/03thu2.html?_r=1&ref=opinion
 
An important new study has cast an appalling light on a place where workplace laws fail to protect workers, where wages and tips are routinely stolen, where having to work sick, injured or off the clock is the price of having a job.
 
The place is the United States, all across the lower strata of the urban economy.
 
The most comprehensive investigation of labor-law violations in years, released Wednesday by the Center for Urban Economic Development, the National Employment Law Project and the U.C.L.A. Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, surveyed 4,387 workers in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York. Its researchers sought out people often missed by standard surveys and found abuses everywhere: in factories, grocery stores, retail shops, construction sites, offices, warehouses and private homes. The word sweatshop clearly is not big enough anymore to
capture the extent and severity of the rot in the low-wage workplace.
 
Workers told of employers who ignored the minimum wage, denied overtime, took illegal deductions to pay for tools or transportation, or forced them to work unpaid before or after their shifts. More than two-thirds of them had endured at least one wage violation in the previous workweek. More than a quarter had been paid less than the minimum wage, often by more than $1 an hour. Violations typically robbed workers of $51 a week, from an average paycheck of $339.
 
The report paints an acute picture of powerlessness. Of workers who had been seriously injured on the job, only 8 percent had filed for workers’ compensation — a symptom, researchers said, of the power of employer pressure. Although 86 percent of respondents had worked enough consecutive hours to be entitled to time off for meals, more than two-thirds had had their breaks denied, interrupted or shortened. Workers who complained to bosses or government agencies or tried to form unions suffered illegal retaliation: firing, suspension, pay cuts or threats to call immigration authorities.
 
It is, of course, morally abhorrent that the American economy should be so riddled with exploitation. But it is also powerfully evident that there are practical consequences when the powerless are abused. Low-wage workers spend a high proportion of their income on necessities; when their paychecks are systematically bled by greedy employers, an entire community’s economic vitality is sapped as well.
 
The answers are basic, though too long ignored. Government needs to send more investigators to back rooms, offices and factory floors, and to enlist labor organizations and immigrant-rights groups as their investigative eyes and ears. Penalties for wage-law violations need toughening. Employees who have historically been denied basic labor rights — domestic workers and home health aides — need to finally be given the protection of wage-and-hour laws. Companies must not be allowed to skirt their legal obligations by outsourcing hiring to subcontractors, letting others break the law for them.
 
The report has particular significance for immigrant workers, who made up 70 percent of the survey (39 percent of them were undocumented). Workplace abuses are flourishing in the absence of a working immigration system, where illegal immigrants are vital to the economy but helpless to assert their rights.
 
The report upends the argument that the way to help American workers is to make illegal immigrants ever more frightened and exploitable. Only by protecting all workers will the country begin to rebuild a workplace matching its ideals of decency and fair play.

09/01/2009

Obama administration taking on big civil right changes.

Seven months after taking office, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. is reshaping the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division by pushing it back into some of the most important areas of American political life, including voting rights, housing, employment, bank lending practices and redistricting after the 2010 census. Click here to read the rest of the article.


08/25/2009

The Case Law Firm defeats summary judgment in Salas v. 3M & Sedgwick. 

On August 25, 2009, Judge Blanche Manning of the Northern District of Illinois denied Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment, finding that a number of issues of fact precluded the dismissal of the case prior to trial.  

At issue in this case is whether or not the Plaintiff (who is represented by The Case Law Firm) was entitled to Family Medical Leave in order to care for her adult disabled daughter.  Defendant 3M terminated the Plaintiff after her absences to care for her daughter caused her to exceed 3M’s absentee policy.  The Court also held that there were issues of fact as to whether Plaintiff’s termination was in retaliation for requesting the FMLA leave.

The case will now be set for trial.

08/06/2009

National Employment Lawyers Association Congratulates Sonia Sotomayor on
Her Confirmation as Associate Justice to the United States Supreme Court

Today, the United States Senate confirmed Judge Sonia Sotomayor - the first Latina nominated to the Court - to be Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court by a vote of 68 to 31. The National Employment Lawyers Association congratulates Justice Sotomayor on her confirmation and commends the Senate for proceeding in an expeditious manner to complete the confirmation process. On this historic day, NELA is encouraged and hopeful that Justice Sotomayor will continue to enforce the rights of all individuals to be free from discrimination in the workplace, to be paid wages that they have earned, to receive benefits to which they are entitled, and to be free from retaliation for standing up for their rights.

To read NELA's previous report on now-Justice Sotomayor's record in employment cases while she served on the U.S. Court of Appeals to the Second Circuit, please click here.

07/13/2009

National Employment Lawyers Association Releases Report on
Judge Sotomayor's Employment Rulings

Today, the United States Senate began confirmation hearings on United States Supreme Court Nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor - the first Latina nominated to the Court. On this historic day, the National Employment Lawyers Association released a report on the judge's employment rulings during her tenure on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. This report contains qualitative and quantitative analyses of the judge's record in employment rulings, which show her to be a scrupulously fair and impartial jurist.

While serving on the Second Circuit, Judge Sotomayor has enforced the rights of all individuals to be free from discrimination in the workplace, to be paid wages that they have earned, to receive benefits to which they are entitled, and to be free from retaliation for standing up for their rights. The report finds that Judge Sotomayor's record on these employment cases shows that she is a scrupulously fair and impartial jurist who faithfully adheres to precedent and pays careful attention to statutory text and Congressional intent.

One of the most salient characteristics of Judge Sotomayor's opinions is the great care she takes in analyzing the factual record of each case, especially when she reviews a lower court's summary dismissal of a claim without allowing the dispute to go before a jury - a common scenario in employment discrimination cases. In such situations, she is generally meticulous in following the appropriate legal standard, which requires judges to consider all the facts and the reasonable inferences to be drawn from them and to view the evidence in the light most favorable to the non-moving party (generally, the plaintiff/employee). Her care in considering summary judgment rulings demonstrates both her deep respect for the American jury and her insistence on the law affording due process to all parties, regardless of their circumstances.

Of the 134 employment discrimination rulings in NELA's sample, including those in which she wrote an opinion and those in which she joined a panel without writing separately, Judge Sotomayor ruled for the employer in approximately 75 percent of these cases, and for the employee, in approximately 25 percent. These rates are generally consistent, regardless of whom the appellant is, the type of ruling appealed (pre-trial or trial adjudication), or the type of discrimination claim. In a few categories of her discrimination rulings, however, this pattern holds less true: the rates of rulings for employees are 54 percent among her written pre-trial rulings, 52 percent among her disability discrimination rulings, and only 15 percent among her Section 1981 rulings (which generally involve race discrimination). Because the sample sizes for these subsets are so small, these percentages must be viewed with extreme caution. Nevertheless, one can fairly conclude that Judge Sotomayor's statistical record in employment discrimination cases stands in complete contradiction to the criticism that Judge Sotomayor will not be impartial in her decisions regarding race discrimination cases.

To read the full report, please go to: http://www.nela.org/NELA/docDownload/25420

07/9/2009

Civil Rights Tax Relief Act of 2009 (CRTRA) Introduced!  

Good news! On June 25th, 2009, just in time for the opening day of NELA's 20th Annual Convention, and in a bicameral, bipartisan effort, the Civil Rights Tax Relief Act of 2009 (CRTRA) was introduced in both the House and Senate. The House bill, H.R. 3035, was introduced by Representatives John Lewis (D-GA) and James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), while the Senate bill, S. 1360, was introduced by Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and Susan Collins (R-ME). The CRTRA will implement necessary changes in our tax law regarding damages received by plaintiffs in employment discrimination cases. The bill will eliminate taxes on non-economic damages and will allow income-averaging for awards of back pay to successful plaintiffs. These changes will bring employment discrimination law into parity with the taxation of tort awards and will prevent the unfair taxation of unpaid wages earned over a number of years as one lump sum.
Please contact your members of Congress today and ask them to co-sponsor this bill.

06/24/2009

Employee Non-Discrimination Act Introduced

On June 24, 2009, Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) introduced an inclusive Employee Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), H.R. 3017, with 126 cosponsors. ENDA would ban employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. It was referred to the Committees on Education & Labor, on House Administration, Oversight & Government Reform, and on The Judiciary.

As previously reported, in the 110th Congress, the House passed a similar bill that would have banned employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation (but not gender identity) by a vote of 235-184.

06/09/2009

SUPPORT H.R. 2564, THE PAID VACATION ACT OF 2009!

NOW IS THE TIME TO REALLY MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN WINNING PAID VACATION TIME FOR AMERICAN WORKERS!!!
WRITE YOUR REPRESENTATIVES AND SENATORS!!!
As you may know, on May 21st, Congressman Alan Grayson introduced H.R. 2564, The Paid Vacation Act of 2009.  
We understand that this bill is much more modest than what TAKE BACK YOUR TIME originally called for, yet is in a hugely important step in the right direction and we urge you to support it now.  You can let Congress know if you think it should be strengthened, but please register your support for the bill. 
Just go to http://www.right2vacation.org/ and check out the second item in BREAKING NEWS.
PLEASE WRITE OR CALL YOUR U.S. REPRESENTATIVE https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml
And SENATORS
http://www.congress.org/congressorg/home/ 

URGING THEM TO CO-SPONSOR AND/OR SUPPORT H.R. 2564, THE PAID VACATION ACT OF 2009. 
http://www.farr.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=260&Itemid=0


05/27/2009

NELA Endorses Sonia Sotomayor's Elevation To Associate Justice Of The United States Supreme Court

05/17/2009

Congratulations Kate!
Kate Sedey earns her Juris Doctorate degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law. Kate will join The Case Law Firm in September 2009 as an Associate Attorney.

05/07/2009

Illinois NOW Legislative Action Alert:
Call your House Rep in Springfield and urge them to vote YES on SB 1770 today!
Call the Capitol switchboard and ask for your rep's office: 217/782-2000
SB 1770: The Victims'Economic Security and Safety Act (VESSA) Amendment
VESSA promotes employment stability, economic security, and safety for employees coping with domestic or sexual violence by permitting them to take unpaid leave to address domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking and by providing discrimination protections related to such violence.
What SB 1770 does:
Amends current law to allow more covered employees by reducing the threshold number of employees in private industry from 50 or more employees to 15 or more employees;
Updates current law to include recent legislation that was not in effect when VESSA was first enacted  (e.g., civil no contact orders); and Provides clarification on some provisions of the law.

04/24/2009

Take Action Now: Ask Your Senators and Representatives to Cosponsor
ehe Arbitration Fairness Act, H.R. 1020

Last week, the National Employment Lawyers Association joined with representatives of employees, consumers, homeowners, and others to introduce the Fair Arbitration Now Coalition and NELA's campaign to end forced arbitration - a longstanding top priority for NELA. The Coalition will hold a press conference and lobby day on Wednesday, April 29, 2009, with more than 50 consumers, employees, and their lawyers, who will speak about their experiences when they were forced into arbitration.

Read the press release > http://www.nela.org/nela/docdownload/17702

To win this fight, we must persuade Congress to ban forced arbitration and restore basic fundamental rights for employees and consumers. The Arbitration Fairness Act, H.R. 1020, would ban the predatory business practice of forcing employees into a private system of biased arbitration, and giving up their right to go to court if they are harmed by a company. Companies routinely bury mandatory arbitration clauses in the fine print of employment, cell phone, credit card, nursing home and other contracts. The result is that, just by taking a job or buying a product or service, an individual is forced to pursue any dispute with the company through arbitration. Because the private system of forced arbitration benefits companies and disadvantages employees and consumers, more and more industries are using the tactic of forced arbitration to evade accountability. The Arbitration Fairness Act gives employees a true choice - it does not eliminate arbitration and other forms of alternative dispute resolution agreed to voluntarily after a dispute arises.

** Now is the time to stop companies from evading accountability.**

Please show your support by asking your Senators and Representative today to co-sponsor the Arbitration Fairness Act, H.R. 1020 and its Senate counterpart, soon to be introduced by Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI). This is your chance to make a difference. Here's what you can do:

1. Ask your Senators and Representative to cosponsor the Arbitration Fairness Act.

Go to NELA's Action Center. There you will find a sample letter to email to your Senators and Representative to ask them to stand up for employees and consumers, and ensure companies are held accountable for their misdeeds, by passing the Arbitration Fairness Act, H.R. 1020, to end forced arbitration.

Take Action > http://capwiz.com/nela/home/

Or you can call your Senators' and Representatives' offices by dialing 202-224-3121 (Senate) or 202-225-3121 (House), and asking the Capitol Operator to connect you.

2. Sign our petition and demand an end to forced arbitration today!

The Fair Arbitration Now Coalition is mounting a petition drive to end forced arbitration and pass the Arbitration Fairness Act. We'll be using the petition in conversations with congressional leaders to show how important this issue is to voters. And we have already collected nearly 5,000 petition signatures!

But we're just getting started. Our goal is to gather 25,000 signatures by April 29th. We need your help to get there!

Sign the Petition > http://www.fairarbitrationnow.org/

Thank you all for rallying to action for the Arbitration Fairness Act.

 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The National Employment Lawyers Association advances employee rights and serves lawyers who advocate for equality and justice in the American workplace.


04/02/2009

Kristin M. Case becomes member of the National Association of Professional Women.

www.napw.com

01/29/2009

Obama signs 'Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act'

President Obama just signed into law the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009.

As On Deadline previously wrote, "the legislation cancels out a Supreme Court ruling last year that declared plaintiffs had to file wage claims within 180 days of a company's decision to pay a worker less than a counterpart doing the same work."

Before putting his pen to the paper, Obama said:

 "Lilly Ledbetter did not set out to be a trailblazer or a household name. She was just a good hard worker who did her job -– and she did it well -– for nearly two decades before discovering that for years, she was paid less than her male colleagues for doing the very same work. Over the course of her career, she lost more than $200,000 in salary, and even more in pension and Social Security benefits -– losses that she still feels today.

"Now, Lilly could have accepted her lot and moved on. She could have decided that it wasn't worth the hassle and the harassment that would inevitably come with speaking up for what she deserved. But instead, she decided that there was a principle at stake, something worth fighting for. So she set out on a journey that would take more than 10 years, take her all the way to the Supreme Court of the United States, and lead to this day and this bill which will help others get the justice she was denied. ...

"I intend to send a clear message: That making our economy work means making sure it works for everyone. That there are no second class citizens in our workplaces, and that it's not just unfair and illegal –- it's bad for business -– to pay someone less because of their gender, or their age, race, ethnicity, religion or disability."

01/13/2009

In one such case, Salas v. 3M & Sedgwick Claims Management Services, 08-CV-1614, the Defendants’ counsel, Littler Mendelson of Chicago, sent a subpoena to plaintiff’s current employer and also to her disabled daughter’s current employer without first providing plaintiff’s attorney with prior notice and a chance to object.  The Case Law Firm, LLC brought a motion before the Magistrate Judge to quash the subpoena arguing that the Defendants’ counsel failed to comply with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in issuing the subpoenas without prior notice and also that the subpoena, itself, was inappropriate and harassing in nature. 

The Magistrate Judge agreed with The Case Law Firm and held that Defendant’s counsel failed to comply with the Federal Rule’s notice provision and also that the subpoenas, themselves, were wholly inappropriate.  This ruling will hopefully provide plaintiffs with additional protection from harassing litigation tactics.   


7/10/2008

Take Action and Tell Your Senators to Vote For the ADA Amendments Act!

At the end of June, the House passed the ADA Amendments Act of 2008, H.R. 3195, by an overwhelming vote of 402-17. This bipartisan bill will expand protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act and reverse restrictive judicial decisions that have left employees with disabilities unprotected from job discrimination. The bill was a product of negotiations between the business and disability communities and is supported by everyone from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and much more.  Please see the ADA-AA website (www.adabill.com) for more information about the bill.
You can reach your Senators through the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121. And/or, you can send an email to your Senators by going to the NELA Action Center at http://capwiz.com/nela/home/.

6/24/2008

Kristin Case discusses associational discrimination with Employment Law360.

'Employers Face More Association Bias Claims'
By Erin Coe, Portfolio Media, Inc.,www.law360.com

To read the entire article visit:
http://employment.law360.com/secure/printview.aspx?id=58515


6/12/2008

Supreme Court: Guantanamo Detainees Have Rights in Court

The Supreme Court decided 5-4 that the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, detainees have a constitutional right of habeus corpus that cannot be taken away by statute.  Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote for the majority including himself, Stevens, Souter, Ginsburg, and Breyer.  Souter also wrote a concurrence.  Justice Roberts dissented for himself, Scalia, Thomas, and Alito.  Justice Scalia also wrote a dissent, in which Justices Roberts, Thomas, and Alito joined.  The court has ruled previously (twice) that people held at Guantanamo without charges can go into civilian courts to ask that the government justify their continued detention. Each time, the administration and Congress,changed the law to try to close the courthouse doors to the detainees.

Kristin Case has been elected as a board member of the Illinois National Employment  Lawyers Association.

www.nela-illinois.org

10/05/2007

SUPPORT THE ADA RESTORATION ACT

On July 26, 2007, the ADA Restoration Act was introduced to Congress. 

 In 1990, Congress passed the Americans with Disability Act (“ ADA”) with the specific intention of providing protections, including workplace protections, to disabled Americans.  Since its passage, the federal courts have whittled away at the Act, making it extremely difficult for disabled employees to bring claims and, thus, adequately protect themselves.  The ADA Restoration Act is designed to restore the Act to its original intent.  For more information and to learn how to support the Act, visit:

The Case Law Firm, LLC.

150 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 2700
Chicago, IL 60601
(312) 920-0400 (phone)
(312) 920-0800 (fax)
kcase@thecaselawfirm.com