| Volume 142 Number 15 |
Subscribe to the Newsletter
Forward this news alert to your family and friends
Helpful Links
Texas Consumer Complaint Center
Credit Reports and Identity Theft
Your Guide to Small Claims Court
Contact Us
1-713-743-2168
The People’s Lawyer’s Tip of the Day
It won’t be long before young people across the country will put on their caps and gowns to celebrate their graduations. Many graduation speakers offer advice, some based on their own life experiences. The FTC has some practical advice to offer, too. Click here for more.
Congress raises the curtain on Medicare for All
It was a big day recently for Medicare legislation on Capitol Hill.
There were three separate bills to amend parts of the Social Security Act that relate to Medicare. Among them is one designed to eliminate a provision under the Medicare Advantage program that inadvertently penalizes Medicare Advantage plans for providing high-quality care to Medicare beneficiaries; another ensures access by Medicaid beneficiaries to appropriate quality foot and ankle care and modifies the requirements for diabetic shoes to be included under Medicare. But the centerpiece Medicare legislation was the unveiling of the Medicare for All Act of 2019. Click here for more.
Your Money
While you don't have much choice when it comes to paying taxes, you can benefit from significant deductions that reduce the amount you owe Uncle Sam. Deductions are especially important this year now that personal exemptions have been eliminated, says Bill Smith, the managing director for the National Tax Office at the financial firm CBIZ MHM LLC. For the 2017 tax year, taxpayers could claim an exemption of $4,050 for themselves and each of their dependents. However, those exemptions were eliminated for the 2018 tax year under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, making deductions now the prime way to reduce taxable income. Click here for more.
For the Lawyers
Claim for sexual assault and battery of an employee at the hands of an employer or supervisor is not conduct related to employment and not subject to arbitration clause. Plaintiff-employees sued a law firm under Michigan’s Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights Act (“ELCRA”), which prohibits sexual discrimination and harassment in the workplace. Plaintiffs sued Mr. Morse individually for sexual assault and battery; and the Morse law firm and Mr. Morse jointly and severally for negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, gross negligence, and wanton and willful misconduct. Defendants argued that the Mandatory Dispute Resolution Procedure Agreement (MDRPA) required plaintiffs to arbitrate their claims. Plaintiffs argued that claims of sexual assault do not arise out of employment. The majority of the court of appeals concluded that such conduct is not conduct related to employment. The majority stated that despite the fact that the sexual assaults may not have happened but for plaintiffs’ employment with the Morse firm, claims of sexual assault cannot be related to employment. The dissent agreed that sexual assault is not conduct related to employment but stated “I would more broadly frame the question before us as to whether plaintiffs’ claims arguably fall within the scope of the arbitration agreement.” The dissent reasoned that under the ELCRA, sexual assault is sexual harassment, and sexual harassment is, under the ELCRA, discrimination because of sex. Thus, based on the unambiguous language in the parties’ arbitration agreement, the dissent believed that plaintiffs’ claims arguably fall within the scope of the MDRPA. Click here for more.