News from 2019

Nauman Smith Attorney Named Super Lawyer

Nauman Smith attorney Craig J. Staudenmaier has been selected as a 2019 Pennsylvania Super Lawyer, making it the eleventh consecutive year he has received this recognition. Super Lawyer is an honor reserved for those lawyers who exhibit excellence in the practice of law. Only 5% of the licensed active attorneys in the Commonwealth are selected. The process includes independent research… Read On

Right-to-Know Law’s Predecisional Deliberation Exemption Extends to Independent Contractors

The Commonwealth Court has held that predecisional deliberations between government agencies and independent contractors are not public records. Finnerty v. Pennsylvania Dep’t of Cmty. & Econ. Dev., No. 801 C.D. 2018, 2019 WL 1797668, at *7 (Pa. Commw. Ct. Apr. 25, 2019). The decision allows government agencies to engage private entities for advice on policy matters without disclosing such advice to the public… Read On

Pennsylvania Could Be Instrumental in Helping to Achieve Pay Equality for Women as America Continues to Wait for Congress to Decide Yea or Nay on Salary History Bans

In 1963 the Equal Pay Act was passed with the noble intention of eliminating pay inequality by making it illegal to pay men and women unequally for equal work. Although an initial step in the right direction, over fifty years have passed, and America still struggles with the gender pay gap. According to a study done by the National Women’s Law Center… Read On

The Esports Gambling Market and Regulations – What you Need to Know

Esports is the latest trend in Central Pennsylvania which is growing in popularity. It has, however, sparked a flurry of legislative activity with interest groups seeking to promote leagues and even provide college scholarships for high school students who participate and compete in esports tournaments. Esports is competitive video gaming where individuals or teams can compete in various games… Read On

Justice Thomas and Defamation: Why Current Press Protections Should Stand

On February 19, 2019, United States Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas called for a reevaluation of the existing libel and defamation laws grounded in the precedential case of New York Times v. Sullivan.  Justice Thomas’ thoughts appeared in a concurrence to deny Kathrine McKee, a woman who accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault, the opportunity to appeal her defamation case to the U.S… Read On

ADA Website Compliance: What Is a Place of Public Accommodation in Terms of E-Commerce?

Lately there has been an uptick in litigation surrounding website compliance under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). These cases are coming to light in part because blind plaintiffs are suing website owners for better access to their online marketplaces. People with sight disabilities have special tools that can read underlying code from websites out loud… Read On

Railroad Workers’ Recovery of Lost Earnings Are Now Taxable Under the RRTA

Railroad workers who successfully sued their employers for lost wages under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) used to be able to retain the full amount of those recoveries assigned for lost wages without paying taxes under the Railroad Retirement Tax Act (RRTA). After a recent United States Supreme Court opinion, however, railroad workers may be seeing smaller settlements or decreased lost wages awards under the FELA… Read On

Why your Employer may be able to Access your Facebook

For younger generations, it is probably not surprising that employers may have access to any internet records generated on a work computer. For others, this may seem like a huge invasion of privacy. Regardless, in February 2019, the Third Circuit Court ruled that employers are permitted to monitor their past employees’ current activity on their previous work computers after the employees have departed from the employer… Read On

District Attorney Ordered to Disclose Drug Forfeiture Account Records

The Cambria County Court of Common Pleas has affirmed in part and reversed in part a final determination by the County’s Assistant District Attorney, which partially denied a Right-to-Know Law (RTKL) request for records showing the utilization of drug forfeiture funds.  The President Judge, Norman A. Krumenacker, III, held that the District Attorney is obligated to disclose certain financial records related to the drug forfeiture account… Read On

Independent Contractors May be Entitled to Employee Status Under the FLSA

An increasing number of individuals are relying on more than one job to handle the economic realities of making ends meet for their households. Recently, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals considered the legal implications of employees working “side gigs” and found that, for purposes of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), some workers, although labeled as independent contractors… Read On


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