My Car's Airbag Failed -- Do I Have A Case?
Car accidents can be terrible, but if you have a car defect as well then the damages can be catastrophic. These are the common causes of an airbag’s failure.
Iowa Supreme Court Clarifies State Pregnancy Discrimination Law
Iowa law prohibits discrimination against pregnant employees. Yet this is a commonly misunderstood law. We clarify it for you.
The Iowa Supreme Court Knows The Value Of A Dollar, And It's Not Fair Compensation For Pain And Suffering
You could be owed more money for your past personal injury cases.
Revisiting Iowa's Uniform Trade Secrets Act -- A Deeper Look At What Constitutes A "Trade Secret"
Whether something actually constitutes a trade secret is often a heavily contested issue in such cases. Iowa's courts have spilled a lot of ink over that question. Let's take a look at it.
Female-On-Male Sexual Harassment
Most news stories about sexual harassment involve female victims. Most studies about sexual harassment have been concerned with how it affects women. But men can be the victims of sexual harassment too.
Coverage For Alcohol-Related And Drug-Related Deaths Under Accidental Death Benefit Insurance Policies
A common issue under accidental death policies is whether a drug-related or alcohol-related death is covered
Revisiting The "Interactive Process" Under The Americans With Disabilities Act
The ADA mandates that employers reasonably accommodate employees' disabilities. Federal regulations further instruct that reasonable accommodations must be determined through an “interactive process.” Failure to do so can expose an employer to an employment law claim for failing to offer a reasonable accommodation to a person with a disability.
Can My Employer Force Me To Stay On FMLA Leave Until I Can Return With No Restrictions?
Many employers have FMLA policies, or even just regular medical leave policies, that require employees to be 100% recovered from an injury and have no restrictions before the employee is allowed to return to work. EThose policies are possibly illegal and can lead to employment discrimination lawsuits.
Iowa's Uniform Trade Secrets Act
A seldom used, but fairly powerful Iowa law, is Iowa's Uniform Trade Secrets Act, Iowa Code Chapter 550. A trade secrets claim can arise under any circumstances. Common situations for a trade secrets claim are business relationships and employment relationships.
Nursing Home Liability For Wandering Or Eloping Patients
Wandering and eloping patients are a significant problem for nursing homes. A wandering patient is someone who's moving aimlessly throughout the nursing home facility. Elopement, which is much more dangerous then wandering within the facility, encompasses situations when a resident leaves the facility unsupervised.
Your Legal Rights When A Neighbor's Trees Encroach On Your Property
Many people don't realize this, but when your trees' roots, branches, or limbs cross onto someone else's property, even in the air, you’re trespassing on that neighbor's property.
Holding Employers To Their FMLA Promises -- The Theory Of "Estoppel" Under The Family And Medical Leave Act
Employers occasionally grant FMLA leave by mistake when they had no legal obligation to do so. Then they discipline or fire the employee for missing too much work without FMLA protection, even though the employer initially told the employee that FMLA time was available. That's not fair to the employee, who thought that work could be missed without repercussions based upon the employer's FMLA representations. Is there anything the employee can do about that?
Landlord Liability For Attacks By A Tenant's Dog
Your landlord could be at risk depending on any kind of dog bites and attacks that occur on the property.
The Overtime Exemption For "Partsmen" At Automobile Dealerships
Certain employees of automobile dealerships, including parts department employees, may be exempt from overtime law under the "automobile dealership exemption." That portion of the federal overtime law exempts “any salesman, partsman, or mechanic primarily engaged in selling or servicing automobiles, trucks, or farm implements, if he is employed by a nonmanufacturing establishment primarily engaged in the business of selling such vehicles or implements to ultimate purchasers.” Let's focus just on the "partsman" exemption.
Iowa Supreme Court Clarifies Iowa's Wrongful Termination Law
A deep-dive into a case that gives us the answer we’ve bene waiting for in terms of what employees need to prove in order to win a wrongful termination claim.
Liability For Fraud In The Sale Of A Vehicle
It’s important to beware of purchasing a used vehicle because of a lack of damage disclosure.
Calculating Overtime For Salaried Employees
Overtime work is a pretty common encounter for today’s typical employee, but how do you calculate overtime for someone who’s not hourly? We’ll dive into the ins and outs of how to understand where a salaried employee stands with overtime.
Standards For Residential Real Estate Seller Disclosure Documents
Iowa Code Chapter 558A is Iowa's Real Estate Disclosure Act. It requires persons interested in transferring real estate to deliver a written disclosure statement to prospective buyers. The disclosure statement must include certain information about the condition and important characteristics and structures on the property.
Work-Related Social Media Activity As Compensable Working Time
Some organizations require their employees to be active on social media as part of the employer's branding, marketing, or whatever. So should employees be paid for such work, given that it benefits the employer and cuts into the employee's free time?
Iowa Supreme Court Is "Sold" On Expanding Iowa's Dram Shop Law
Read on to learn about the expansion of Iowa’s Dram Shop Law.