Ohio gun shop's lead, respiratory hazards endanger workers - FIned $195K

Federal safety and health investigators found that employees of an Ohio gun shop may face life-long health damage because their employer continues to expose them tolead hazards and has failed to establish a respiratory protection program.

Lack of Enforceability of Fee Sharing Arrangments

A NJ Appellate Court ruled that an agreement to share fees between lawyers, not holding NJ Supreme Court Certification, was unenforceable without the informed consent of the client and written acknowledgement of the client and all participating attorneys.

“Viewing the facts in a light most favorable to plaintiffs, we accept LaPorta's representation that he informed the client that he would receive a referral fee for referring the client's case. Even so, plaintiffs concede that they failed to inform the client of Weiner & Mazzei's participation in the alleged fee-splitting arrangement, and failed to solicit the client's consent to Weiner & Mazzei's participation. Thus, there is no genuine dispute that plaintiffs failed to satisfy the requirements of R.P.C. 1.5(e)(2) by failing to fully notify the client regarding the parameters of the fee arrangement in this case. Likewise, there is no genuine dispute whether the client consented to the participation of 'all the lawyers involved[,]' as required by R.P.C. 1.5(e)(3).”

The Court cited R.P.C. 1.5(e) which sets forth the following requirements for the sharing of fees:

Except as otherwise provided by the Court Rules, a division of fee between lawyers who are not in the same firm may be made only if:

1. the division is in proportion to the services performed by each lawyer, or, by written agreement with the client, each lawyer assumes joint responsibility for the representation; and
2. the client is notified of the fee division; and
3. the client consents to the participation of all the lawyers involved; and
4. the total fee is reasonable.

WEINER & MAZZEI, P.C., and PHILLIP A. LAPORTA, ESQ., v. THE SATTIRAJU LAW FIRM, PC,, DOCKET NO. A–1079–14T3, (NJ App Div 2016) 2016 WL 2993123, Decided January 12, 2016.

Arkansas Supreme Court rules donning and doffing activities are on the clock

The Arkansas Supreme Court ruled that putting on and taking off work clothes is considered work and compensation should be paid for the time performed doing these tasks.

Human exposure to carbon nanotubes and the carcinogenic consequences

As the application of carbon nanotubes (CNT) in consumer products continues to rise, studies have expanded to determine the associated risks of exposure on human and environmental health. In particular, several lines of evidence indicate that exposure to multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) could pose a carcinogenic risk similar to asbestos fibers. However, to date the potential markers of MWCNT exposure are not yet explored in humans.

NJ Supreme Court Hears Argument on Employer's Duty to Household Contact

An employer's duty to a employee's household contact was the focus of an oral argument recently before the NJ Supreme Court. The NJ Supreme Court reviewed the question, that was certified by the US Third Circuit Court of Appeals, to define the duty and its scope. The household contact, the fiance, subsequently spouse, suffered beryllium related disease causally related to the employee's toxic exposure.

Passaic NJ distribution warehouse fined $112K for two dozen safety violations

OSHA cites Oaxaca Mexican Products for blocking fire exit, 20 other serious violations

Oaxaca Mexican Products, 100 8th St., Passaic, New Jersey was issued citations by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued citations for one willful, 20 serious and three other-than-serious violations on May 3, 2016.

CMS Publishes Final Rule for MSP Conditional Payments Via Web Portal

This final rule, effective June 16, 2016,  specifies the process and timeline for expanding CMS' existing Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) Web portal to conform to section 201 of the Medicare IVIG and Strengthening Medicare and Repaying Taxpayers Act of 2012 (the SMART Act).