Texas House Passes Pandemic Liability Protection Act
More Emerging Litigation Claims and Demands from COVID-19
In See’s Candies v. Ek, a California Appellate Court ruled that the plaintiff’s claims against her employer for negligence were not preempted by the exclusivity provisions of the California Workers’ Compensation Act; thus,...more
On February 22, 2022, the Ninth Circuit ruled a COVID-19 wrongful death suit brought against a nursing home is not preempted by a federal health emergency law. The court affirmed a district court’s remand order which stated...more
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, people have wondered how the courts will handle the inevitable lawsuits by employees and customers alleging that a business negligently exposed them to infection. Enough time has...more
Over the past year, the big story has been the search for vaccines to protect people from Covid-19. You can’t vaccinate a business, but Arizona businesses are now protected from liability related to Covid-19. ...more
Welcome to the first 2021 edition of Unprecedented. Although a new year brings new hopes for vaccinations and a swift end to the COVID-19 pandemic, a sober assessment of the state of affairs suggests we are months out, at...more
As we entered a new decade in 2020, Canada saw significant developments in labour and employment law, some of which related to COVID-19. This Insight provides an overview of 14 key 2020 developments, with links to more...more
Marquardt v. Schaffhausen, 941 N.W.2d 715 (Minn. 2020), for example, is a medical malpractice action where Patricia Marquardt suffered a brain injury when she developed an untreated infection after undergoing a knee...more
This article summarizes the key 2020 legal, policy and political issues affecting Alabama health care providers. Prior to COVID-19, most healthcare providers were benefiting from a strong economy, low unemployment and...more
Litigators often refer to so-called "bad facts," which are the facts that have the potential to sink a case with a jury. This 33rd issue of Unprecedented discusses a case with perhaps the worst alleged set of "bad facts" that...more
How quickly things change. This, perhaps more than anything else, encapsulates the world of COVID-19 and the related litigation. Between Issue 31 and Issue 32 of Unprecedented, the United States has seen its reported COVID-19...more
Florida employers may be at risk of civil litigation if employees successfully circumvent the workers’ compensation scheme for COVID-19 related injury or death during the course and scope of their employment. In fact,...more
In our May 1, 2020 OnPoint discussing COVID-19 liability issues for nursing homes and other senior living facilities, we cautioned against reliance on state immunity provisions as a shield against COVID-19-related lawsuits....more
The much-anticipated surge of COVID-19 pandemic-related litigation has begun. As the pandemic continues to lay siege to the United States economy, claimants’ lawyers and government agencies have begun setting their sights on...more
In the midst of the pandemic, meat processing facilities have struggled to meet demand while protecting employees. Governmental regulations, orders and guidelines often have seemed to be inconsistent with one another. Even...more
The latest projections estimate that nearly 300,000 Americans will die from COVID-19 by the end of 2020. Many of those individuals will be employed when they contract the virus, and a significant number will be workers in...more
This 21st edition of Unprecedented, our weekly update on COVID-19-related litigation, pairs defense victories with new claims. Lenders obtained the dismissal of a lawsuit claiming agent fees under the PPP program, and...more
Since March 2020, approximately 4,219 Covid-19 related cases have been filed across the United States, including: 1,004 Insurance Related Cases... 716 Prisoner/Habeas Corpus Cases... 538 Civil Rights Cases... 415 Labor and...more
The Covid-19 pandemic has taken a terrible toll on residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities nationwide. Federal and state regulators have bungled their response, failing to safeguard residents. Governors...more
This 17th edition of Unprecedented, our weekly update on COVID-19-related litigation, discusses everything from insurance coverage disputes to statewide shutdown orders. Despite an uphill climb towards liability, businesses...more
Although top officials in the U.S. Senate have insisted that liability protections are a top priority for future COVID-19 relief legislation from the federal government, the current onus remains on the states to limit...more
A central question in every tort case is what caused the injury. The question of proximate cause does not end with the inquiry of whether it is possible for a particular product or act to cause an injury, but also whether it...more
ethikos 34, no. 5 (May 2020) - The March 19 issue of The Economist discusses the stark choice ahead for healthcare workers, executives, and civic leaders to either suppress the infection rate through extreme lockdown...more
Re-opening the workplace may expose employers to potential liabilities, particularly if an employee contracts the virus from a workplace exposure. Some companies are already becoming involved in such lawsuits and they may...more
Resuming business operations as the intensity of the COVID-19 pandemic decreases and governments in Kentucky and Indiana ease restrictions will involve more than unlocking your front door and turning the lights on. You must...more
On April 16, 2020, the Trump Administration issued Guidelines entitled “Opening Up America Again” to help ease the Nation’s economy into reactivity and recovery from the COVID-19 crisis. ...more