If your company sponsors a health plan, especially a self-funded one, there is a good chance that you, or someone on your team, is an ERISA fiduciary. Most people in that position have never been told so. Here is what the role requires, why it has become one of the fastest-growing areas of litigation and
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Per Class, Per Session, Per Lawsuit: Wage and Hour Risks in Boutique Fitness
By Sara Jodka
The boutique fitness boom, from cycle dungeons and yoga studios to Pilates clubs and Lagree shops, has created a thriving industry projected to outpace national employment growth averages for years to come. But behind the curated playlists and aspirational branding lies a thicket of wage-and-hour compliance issues that have already cost fitness companies millions of…
It Ends with Contractor Status: Lessons from Blake Lively’s Sexual Harassment Case
By Sara Jodka
A closer look at worker classification, retaliation risk, and the limits of federal protections
On April 2, 2026, Judge Lewis J. Liman of the Southern District of New York issued an opinion in Lively v. Wayfarer Studios LLC et al., No. 24-CV-10049, dismissing ten of thirteen claims actress Blake Lively brought against director and…
You Just Saved Us a Lawsuit: $22.5M Verdict Redefines Ohio Employer Accommodations
By Sara Jodka
On March 18, 2026, an Ohio jury delivered what may be the most consequential employer-accommodation verdict in the state’s history, and it was not even brought as an accommodation case.
In Larkin v. Total Quality Logistics, LLC, the jury ordered the defendant/employer to pay $22.5 million in compensatory damages after finding the company’s refusal to…
Death By a Single Claim: How One Harassment Claim Nukes Arbitration for the Whole Case
By Sara Jodka
In Bruce v. Adams & Reese, LLP (6th Cir. February 25, 2026), the Sixth Circuit became the first federal court of appeals to rule on whether the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act (“EFAA”) applies to the entire case or only to individual harassment claims, and it held that it applies…
Sixth Circuit Raises Bar for Employer Liability for Customer Harassment of Employees
By Sara Jodka
In Bivens v. ZEP, Inc., the Sixth Circuit held that an employer is not liable under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (Title VII), for harassment by a customer unless the employer intended the harassment to happen or was substantially certain it would. This holding represents a clear break from the EEOC and most other
…
$27M Verdict Warns Employers: Vet and Train Employees or Pay the Price
By Sara Jodka
A recent $27 million jury verdict should put every employer, especially those in the hospitality, retail, and entertainment industries, on high alert: failing to properly screen and train employees can result in significant liability.
On July 26, 2024, a Franklin County, Ohio jury awarded $27 million to the estate of Gregory Coleman Jr., who was…
Are Employee Driver’s License Requirements in the Rearview Mirror? What Washington’s New Law Says
Heads up, employers—a new law went into effect in Washington State this week (effective as of July 27, 2025) limiting when an employer can require job applicants and employees to have a valid driver’s license. A recent update to the Washington Equal Pay and Opportunities Act now prohibits employers from requiring employees to have a…
Orbiting Opportunity: Why Relocating Employees to Florida is a Strategic Magnet for Retaining Mission-Critical Staff
By Sara Jodka
With the Federal Trade Commission’s non-compete ban out of the picture, the Supreme Court barring most universal injunctions, and the National Labor Relations’ Board directive identifying non-compete agreements as violating the National Labor Relations Act rescinded, the enforceability of non-competes is even more of a state-by-state issue.
Florida recently passed HB1219, the Contracts Honoring Opportunity, Investment…
Washington State Expands Employee Access to Personnel Files
Washington State has long required employers to allow employees to inspect their own personnel files, but the relevant statutes previously did not define what qualifies as a “personnel file” nor provide clear timelines for providing it. Washington State recently amended these statutes, including making three key changes: (1) defining “personnel file,” (2) establishing timelines for…