As 2020 draws to an end, COVID-19 continues to impact the way of life for individuals and businesses across the Commonwealth, and the Massachusetts Probate and Family Court bar is no exception. Beginning in March 2020, and seemingly overnight, Probate and Family Court...
On December 16, 2020, the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") issued guidance addressing questions related to the administration of the COVID-19 vaccine to their employees. Under this guidance, employers may require their employers to be...
In United States v. Ackerly, the government appealed the District Court's decision to grant a new trial on the basis of the defendant's argument that the government violated the Confrontation Clause. In that case, the defendant and her co-defendants were alleged to...
This post is part one in a series aimed at helping business litigation and family law litigation attorneys expand their arsenal of strategies for helping clients resolve their disputes. To the casual observer, the practice of business litigation and the practice of...
In a win for developers, Supreme Judicial Court says six-year clock for design and construction defect claims runs separately for each building within condominium development. On November 3, the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) made it harder for condominium owners to...
In Wildlands Trust of Southeastern Mass., Inc v. Cedar Hill Retreat Center, Inc., the Massachusetts Appeals Court affirms a Superior Court judge's determination that Defendant Cedar Hill Retreat Center, Inc. ("Cedar Hill") did not violate a conservation restriction...
When a borrower defaults on the terms of the mortgage, the loan is accelerated, thereby allowing the bank to conduct a foreclosure sale. Because Massachusetts is a non-judicial foreclosure state, a bank does not need to obtain a judgment to foreclose (provided the...
The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has held that, where a foreclosing mortgagee is required by HUD regulations incorporated into the mortgage, to make reasonable efforts to hold a face-to-face meeting with a borrower before foreclosure, there is...
In July 2020, the European Court of Justice invalidated the use of the Privacy Shield framework, which thousands of companies had been using to transfer data between the European Union (EU) and the United States. The Court reasoned that the Privacy Shield did not...
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