Employment Law and Labour Law

The Iowa Supreme Court recently addressed whether a workers' compensation claimant who settles with their employer through a compromise agreement can pursue subsequent claims against the Second Injury Fund. The decision clarifies critical distinctions between settlement types and their impact on establishing employer liability for permanent disability. Understanding how settlement language affects future claims is essential for both claimants and defendants navigating Iowa's workers' compensation system.

While it’s difficult to think about winter and the new year as we swelter through our hottest weeks of the year, the approach of Q4 means that California employers are budgeting for 2027.

The parties had spent plenty of time talking about the law, the facts, and the value of the claims. In the end, what mattered most to the employee was hearing someone acknowledge that the situation had been handled poorly.

The traditional reception model assumed someone was physically present at a front desk. That structure is less practical for solo, virtual, hybrid, and small practices, where one person often wears every hat. Smaller firms are separating reception work from physical office presence, driven by operational necessity rather than enthusiasm for remote work itself.

A mid-sized manufacturing company facing financial turmoil after a private equity acquisition found itself struggling with employee turnover, delayed accounting, and unreliable financial reporting. When traditional support failed to deliver the hands-on assistance needed, a specialized advisory team stepped in to restore financial clarity and guide the business from crisis to profitability.

Peyton Recer, a summer associate in Foley's Tampa office, shares her journey from earning degrees at the University of Florida to attending University of Miami School of Law. She discusses her approach to law school success, her summer associate experience, and offers valuable insights on networking and relationship building for aspiring legal professionals.

The Iowa Supreme Court recently addressed whether a workers' compensation claimant who settles with their employer through a compromise agreement can pursue subsequent claims against the Second Injury Fund. The decision clarifies critical distinctions between settlement types and their impact on establishing employer liability for permanent disability. Understanding how settlement language affects future claims is essential for both claimants and defendants navigating Iowa's workers' compensation system.

Employers increasingly rely on AI-enabled recruiting tools to streamline hiring, but these technologies introduce new litigation risks under employment discrimination laws and emerging AI regulations. Understanding the legal landscape, discovery implications, and governance strategies is essential for organizations implementing AI-assisted hiring systems.

A California federal court ruled that plaintiffs cannot avoid arbitration simply by labeling their claims as "sexual harassment." The decision requires plaintiffs to plausibly allege conduct that actually constitutes sexual harassment under governing law before the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act applies. This ruling establishes important limits on attempts to circumvent arbitration agreements through strategic claim labeling.

The DOL's latest MHPAEA guidance provides plan sponsors with a practical roadmap for mental health parity compliance reviews, highlighting three key enforcement focus areas and identifying red flags in both written plan provisions and operational practices. While offering limited nonenforcement relief for certain portions of the 2024 Final Rule, the agency emphasizes continued enforcement of core statutory requirements...

On September 8, 2026, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) issued “Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2026-03” to clarify compliance with the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) and nonquantitative treatment limitations (NQTL). Under the 2013 final rule implementing MHPAEA, health plans and issuers must use comparable processes, strategies, evidentiary standards, or other factors when applying NQTLs and they cannot apply such methods more stringently to benefits for mental health and substance use disorder (MH/SUD) compared to benefits for general medical and surgical care. While the bulletin doesn’t break much new ground on compliance, it does reaffirm existing enforcement priorities and expectations.

The EPA has released its draft risk evaluation for ethylene dibromide under TSCA, identifying unreasonable risks to workers and occupational non-users from inhalation and dermal exposure across ten conditions of use. With a February 2027 court-ordered deadline looming, EPA must navigate public comments, peer review, and finalize the evaluation while broader questions remain about the agency's approach to assessing worker risks and coordinating with OSHA on risk management.