Effective August 1, 2020 Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker’s Order 45 requires all out of state (and international) travelers entering Massachusetts, specifically including students and returning residents, to quarantine...more
Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker recently issued Order 43, moving Massachusetts into Phase 3 of the Commonwealth's four-phased Reopening Plan. Phase 3, like prior phases, has two steps, with Step 1 of Phase 3 taking...more
Earlier this month, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker issued Order 37 initiating Phase 2 of the Commonwealth's four-phased Reopening Plan. The order builds on Order 35, which provided the initial framework for Phase 2. ...more
Last Updated July 1, 2020
With this unprecedented school year winding down across the Commonwealth, there has been uncertainty about organized, out-of-the-home activities for children this summer and how to ensure that kids...more
On June 1, 2020, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker issued COVID-19 Order No. 35, providing new guidance on Phase 2 of the Reopening Advisory Board’s Reopening Massachusetts Plan. ...more
In just two months, more than 110 class action lawsuits have been filed against colleges and universities. These complaints arise out of the COVID-19 pandemic that forced higher education institutions to close their campuses...more
5/31/2020
/ Breach of Contract ,
Class Action ,
Colleges ,
Conversion ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Educational Institutions ,
Refunds ,
School Closures ,
Tuition ,
Universities ,
Unjust Enrichment
On May 18, 2020, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker released the Reopening Advisory Board’s Reopening Massachusetts Plan, effectuated by Order 33, commencing Phase One of the Commonwealth’s four-phase approach to reopening...more
On May 11, 2020, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker announced a four-phase approach to reopening the Massachusetts economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and published Mandatory Workplace Safety Standards that will apply...more
April was a cruel month for higher education. After most colleges and universities closed their campuses in mid-March to protect students, faculty, and staff from the coronavirus, some students began requesting partial...more
Last updated November 9, 2020
Although the COVID-19 pandemic is still unfolding, class actions related to the coronavirus have already arrived and are on the rise. Despite unprecedented court closures and changing procedural...more
5/6/2020
/ Airlines ,
Breach of Contract ,
CARES Act ,
Class Action ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Debt Relief ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Event Cancellation ,
Executive Orders ,
Health Care Providers ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Prisoners ,
School Closures ,
Ticket Pricing ,
WARN Act
On April 28, 2020, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker announced the second extension of Massachusetts’ non-essential business closure order, now in effect until May 18, 2020. ...more
On March 25, 2020, the First Circuit Court of Appeals in Squeri v. Mount Ida College upheld the lower court’s dismissal of prospective and former Mount Ida College students’ claims against the college and its Board of...more
Last updated December 23, 2020
These restrictions are changing rapidly – please check back regularly for updates, or refer to state websites
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its threat to public health from...more
Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker today announced several key updates to his March 23, 2020 executive order, which had directed the closure of physical workplaces and facilities for non-essential businesses from noon on...more
In response to widespread disruptions and difficulties caused by the recent COVID-19 outbreak and the significant impact on financial markets, federal regulatory authorities (including the Securities and Exchange Commission...more
On Monday morning, March 23, Governor Baker issued an executive order, COVID-19 Order No. 13, which expanded on previous executive orders already in place throughout the Commonwealth. ...more
Massachusetts consumers and businesses now know that the Commonwealth will likely not be the next jurisdiction to adopt sweeping consumer data privacy legislation. Earlier last week, the Joint Committee on Consumer Protection...more
2/10/2020
/ California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Collection ,
Data Management ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Information Governance ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Online Platforms ,
Personal Data ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Privacy Laws ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government
It is a legal maxim that arbitration is a creature of contract. A recent District of Massachusetts decision explores critical questions about when that creature can exist outside of the confines of a binding agreement to...more
12/11/2019
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Contract Terms ,
DraftKings ,
FanDuel ,
Fantasy Sports ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Gambling ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Motion to Compel ,
Payment Processors ,
Terms of Use ,
Unenforceable Contract Terms
On November 4, 2019, in Wainblat v. Comcast Cable Communications, LLC, et. al., No. 19-cv-10976, the District of Massachusetts ordered that a consumer privacy class action against Comcast must be arbitrated on an individual...more
11/15/2019
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Cable Television Providers ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Comcast ,
Consumer Contracts ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Data Management ,
Motion to Compel ,
Personal Data ,
Popular ,
Statutory Violations ,
Subscribers ,
Subscription Services
On October 7, 2019, the Joint Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure held a hearing on pending legislation, including An Act Relative to Consumer Data Privacy (S.120). Modeled on the California Consumer...more
10/14/2019
/ California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Gramm-Leach-Blilely Act ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
Pending Legislation ,
Personal Data ,
Privacy Laws ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government
On September 24, 2019, the District of Massachusetts held in Katz v. Liberty Power Corp., LLC that the government debt collection exemption to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”), 47 U.S.C. §§ 227 et seq., is an...more
10/2/2019
/ Class Action ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Debt Collection ,
Do Not Call List ,
Exemptions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Robocalling ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
TCPA
Earlier this month, in Plastic Surgery Associates, SC v. Cynosure, Inc., United States District Judge Denise Casper denied plaintiffs’ motion for class certification and allowed Cynosure’s motion for summary judgment on...more
8/21/2019
/ Affirmative Defenses ,
Causation ,
Chapter 93A ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Commonality ,
Damages ,
Fraudulent Marketing ,
FRCP 23(c)(4) ,
Healthcare ,
Medical Devices ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Summary Judgment ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
In McIntyre v. RentGrow, Inc., No. 18-cv-12141-ADB, the District of Massachusetts recently denied a defendant’s motion to dismiss or to strike class claims in a putative Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) action. The...more
8/7/2019
/ Ascertainable Class ,
Class Action ,
Credit Reports ,
Eviction ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Federal Rule 12(b)(6) ,
FRCP 12(f) ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Motion To Strike ,
Pleading Standards ,
Predominance Requirement ,
Rental Property ,
Rule 8 ,
Screening Procedures ,
Tenants
For a growing number of companies, websites are not only a valuable asset, but also a potential liability risk. In recent years, the number of website accessibility lawsuits has significantly increased, where plaintiffs with...more
The 2018-2019 term of the U.S. Supreme Court opened with a newly configured court in which Justice Kavanaugh joined as an Associate Justice following the retirement of Justice Kennedy. Since October of last year, the Court...more
6/21/2019
/ Apple Inc v Pepper ,
Carlton & Harris Chiropractic Inc v PDR Network LLC ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Denial of Certiorari ,
Frank v Gaos ,
Home Depot USA Inc v Jackson ,
Lamps Plus Inc v Varela ,
Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. v. Albrecht ,
Nutraceutical Corp v Lambert ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
SCOTUS