Financial stress is often cited as a leading cause of divorce. Financial stress can have an extreme impact on a relationship. It can eventually wear away at the love and affection that one has for another because of how consuming the issue can be in someone's life -...
A recent Appeals Court decision should serve as a warning to employers about the importance of clarity in communications with employees concerning policies on overtime pay and timekeeping. In Vitale v. Reit Management & Research, LLC, 2015 WL 4946051 (2015), the...
The Supreme Judicial Court has recently affirmed in Monell v. Boston Pads, LLC, 471 Mass. 566 (2015) that real estate brokerage companies can continue to classify real estate salespersons as independent contractors and are not subject to the Massachusetts independent...
From a legal perspective, getting hitched in Massachusetts is fairly quick and simple, requiring little more than a valid marriage license and a proper officiant. It is not even necessary to be wed by a clergy member or Justice of the Peace, as anyone over the age of...
Shortly after New York Attorney General Loretta Lynch's 47-count indictment involving FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) was announced in May, legal insiders and outsiders alike were asking how the U.S. was able to coordinate the arrests of...
Even a seemingly objective performance evaluation process may not insulate an employer from claims by an employee that their termination was discriminatory. In a 2013 unpublished decision, Rochat v. L.E.K. Consulting, LLC, 83 Mass. App. Ct. 1108 (2013), the Appeals...
Trustees sometimes face beneficiaries disagreeing about how to maintain real estate owned by a trust, such as a family vacation home. But does a trustee have standing to bring a partition action to sell Massachusetts real estate? Likely not. Under Massachusetts's...
The United States Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit has held that recording Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. ("MERS") as the holder or beneficiary of a mortgage comports with Texas law. Harris County Texas, et al. v. MERSCORP Inc., et al., No....
Alternative dispute resolution is rightly gaining steam as an efficient, fair mechanism for the resolution of complex business disputes. Many companies are redrafting their standard-form contracts to include mandatory arbitration clauses. This is particularly true for...
In a recent decision, a panel of the Massachusetts Appeals Court considered a Probate and Family Court's modification judgment ordering the payment of additional child support that was calculated based upon the portion of the parties' joint income in excess of...
Fitch Law Partners LLP reports news and insights on complex litigation topics. Clients, colleagues and friends may receive The Fitch Briefs by signing up here.
