Publications

U.S. Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Independent Contractors/Owner Operators

In a recent U.S. Supreme Court case, the plaintiff filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of himself and thousands of other contractors alleging an employer had misclassified him as a contractor to underpay him in violation of a federal labor law. In a blockbuster holding, the Court ruled in favor of independent contractors who work in transportation.
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Duck Boat Owners Avoid Seeking Limitation, Ducking Potential Exposure to Punitive Damages

Is a vessel a vessel when it’s on land? The U.S. Code says “The word ‘vessel’ includes every description of watercraft or other artificial contrivance used, or capable of being used, as a means of transportation on water.” The U.S. Supreme Court’s most recent case relevant to defining a vessel attempts to create a more practical approach in articulating a “reasonable observer” test in “borderline cases where ‘capacity’ to transport over water is in doubt.
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Safety Concerns Prompt New FAA Regulations for Drones

Due to heightened safety concerns, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has mandated that drone owners display their FAA-issued registration number on an outside surface of the aircraft to ensure ease of identification. The new FAA mandate is due to increased fear of drones injuring members of the public and safety personnel, and the potential for drones to conceal explosive devices. In these circumstances, it becomes urgent to find the owner quickly to mitigate further harm to the public.
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NJ Supreme Court Signals Potential Sea Change on Scope of Damages in Auto Accident Cases

The New Jersey Supreme Court has rejected the validity of an entire category of damages in motor vehicle accident suits, with the potential implications reaching far beyond. The Court held that permitting suits for only medical expense damages between the $15,000 reduced PIP limits and the statutory standard $250,000 injects a fault-based determination into the No-Fault system, necessarily increasing court congestion and overall costs of insurance.
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