Employment Law

The Employment Law Group at Prince Lobel gets results. The Group’s ability to identify and resolve issues before they become problems is renowned.  If a problem does develop into litigation, our employment lawyers litigate with great success, representing a broad array of employers in state and federal courts and before government agencies. We also train employers to limit risk by devising and implementing sound employment practices.

The firm’s Employment Law Practice Group offers a broad range of employment law services including:

• Defending employers against retaliation discrimination, whistleblower, wage and hour claims, and defamation claims
• Advising on and litigating non-competition, confidentiality, and trade secret issues 
• Counseling with respect to critical employment decisions, such as terminations and disciplinary actions
• Drafting employment contracts and severance agreements
• Preparing employment policies and manuals
• Ensuring compliance with federal legislation, including Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and the Fair Labor Standards Act
• Conducting wage and hour audits and advising employers on worker classification issues
• Assisting clients in responding to investigations or audits by state and federal agencies and regulatory bodies
  
• Providing advice with respect to plant closings and workforce reductions
• Providing policy advice with regard to the use of email, Internet, social media and personal blogs
• Considering and pursuing alternative dispute resolutions

Training

Prince Lobel offers a variety of employment law training courses, and can tailor any course to meet your needs. Anti-harassment and discrimination training courses are conducted by trainers certified by the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination. A sample of our training courses include:

• Preventing and Addressing Sexual Harassment (for managers and/or employees)
  
• Addressing and Preventing Unlawful Harassment (for managers and/or employees)
• Assessing the Need for and Providing Reasonable Accommodations
• Avoiding Pitfalls in Hiring, Discipline, and Termination
• Meeting the Challenges of Social Media Use in the Workplace
  
• Avoiding Wage and Hour Claims
• Addressing Basic Employment Law for Managers
  

All of our trainings can be modified for newly hired managers and employees, or for those requiring only refresher courses.

For more information on our Employment Law Practice Group or the firm's training programs, please contact Group Chair Daniel S. Tarlow at dtarlow@princelobel.com or 617 456 8013.

Representative Matters

• In a recent case, Prince Lobel successfully defended class-action claims brought by employees who sought to represent all black and Hispanic employees denied promotions at the employer railroad. After many months of factual discovery, extensive legal briefing, and a lengthy oral argument to the court, a United States district court judge refused to certify the class. The victory was significant for Prince Lobel's client, and had even wider implications generally for employers who may face similar class claims. Prince Lobel attorneys proved that, with the right facts and a thorough understanding of the complex law governing discrimination class actions, employers can convince courts to rule in their favor.
• Prince Lobel obtained the dismissal of a 17-count complaint brought by a police officer against his department in which the officer alleged various civil rights and tort claims relating to his alleged whistleblowing activity. By adopting an aggressive legal strategy, and mastering complex legal and factual arguments, Prince Lobel was able to defeat the claims early on, thus avoiding costly and lengthy litigation.
• Prince Lobel won a significant decision when the trial court awarded summary judgment in favor of our client, a day care center for the children of hospital employees. The decision is meaningful for employers as it confirms that a claim for wrongful termination in violation of public policy is a very narrow exception to the at-will employment doctrine and does not constitute a catch-all cause of action. The court found that to sustain a claim of that type, an employee must identify a "clearly defined" public policy articulated by the legislature.
• Prince Lobel attorneys defended their client and ten male supervisors against claims by six female former employees, each of whom claimed that she was subjected to gender discrimination and retaliation. Among their claims, the women contended that they received inferior equipment and were subjected to greater discipline than male bus drivers who worked for the company. The plaintiffs sought compensatory and punitive damages against the company, in addition to attorney fees and costs. Prince Lobel's attorneys proved that, with the right facts, juries can get beyond first impressions created by "me too" evidence. After a five-week trial, the jury returned a take-nothing verdict in favor Prince Lobel's client and the ten male supervisors.
  
• A former temporary worker sued Prince Lobel's client claiming it had discriminated against him based on handicap when it failed to hire him for a series of full-time job openings. The plaintiff also asserted client retaliation. We were able to achieve summary judgment in Massachusetts Superior Court showing that there was no discrimination in the hiring process, and that the plaintiff’s employment was terminated due to the employer’s legitimate concerns about his conduct on the job.
• Prince Lobel represented a start-up technology company and the members of its board of directors in a case brought by its founder alleging that the company had engaged in age discrimination when it terminated his employment at age 79 in a layoff. Through an exhaustive presentation of the facts to the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination at the prehearing stage, we were able to get all of the claims dismissed. 
• A former employee of a high-tech company filed a complaint under USERRA asserting that Polaroid had failed to honor its obligation to rehire him after his tour of duty ended. Prince Lobel was able to successfully resolve the case for nuisance value by persuading the Department of Labor that the employee’s claim was likely time-barred and negated by the reduction in force. 
• In a class-action lawsuit brought on behalf of individuals whose health and welfare benefits were terminated prior to the sale of a Fortune 1000 company, Prince Lobel's employment litigators persuaded the United States district court to transfer proceedings to the District of Delaware resulting in the dismissal of the action and avoidance of exposure which could have exceeded $25,000,000. 
• In a particularly difficult sexual harassment case wherein the individual plaintiff accused Prince Lobel's multimedia client of sexual harassment due to the alleged gross behavior of the client’s on-air personalities. The firm's efforts enabled the client to resolve the matter after minimal litigation and at less than 5% of the plaintiff’s settlement demand. 
• When an international vice president responsible for sales left the client’s employ to work for one of its chief competitors, Prince Lobel successfully prevented the former employee from competing with the client for the duration of the employee’s non-compete agreement by obtaining court orders restricting the scope of the employee’s employment in his new position. 
• A partner in a large regional accounting firm was discovered to have engaged in a personal relationship with an associate of the firm. Prince Lobel's employment lawyers succeeded in developing a strategy resulting in the adoption of a non-fraternization policy and the voluntary termination of the partner.
• Firm attorneys obtained EEOC dismissal of gender discrimination and retaliation claims brought by a female news reporter against our client, a cable and Internet financial news program.
• Prince Lobel defended a national magazine in federal court against an allegation that it had misclassified a sales representative as an independent contractor rather than an employee.
• Employment attorneys counseled a teaching hospital during its internal grievance proceedings, which were initiated by a female medical resident alleging gender discrimination.