News
Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP Partner Presents Legal Update for the ISCEBS 39th Annual Employee Benefits Symposium
Katherine Hesse, a Partner at Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane has been presenting a legal update at the International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists, ISCEBS, annual symposium since 1987. On October 7, 2020 ISCEBS 360 launched their first virtual symposium, Ms. Hesse was amongst the speakers. Her presentation included several of the most recent U.S. Supreme Court Cases, ten tips to avoid litigation, and other recent cases and trends. Amongst the Supreme Court cases were Bostock v. Clayton County, which is a case involving discrimination against gay or transgendered individuals; Intel Corporation Investment Policy Committee v. Sulyma, a case involving the ERISA statute of limitations; and more. Ms. Hesse also discussed The Guiding Principles: The Ds: dignity, discretion, diversity, disclosure, due diligence, due process, and documentation are described as the Ds to remember. Delay, discrimination, and deceit are the Ds to avoid. She then describes which cases she talked about relate to which of the Ds. Ms. Hesse’s presentation is still available to view on the ISCEBS website.
Ms. Hesse practices primarily in labor, employment and employee benefits law. She serves as counsel to Fortune 500 companies, emerging businesses, government, tax-exempt organizations and governmental trusts. She advises clients on employment and benefits issues, and has litigated employment and benefits cases before state and federal trial and appellate courts, administrative agencies and arbitrators. Katherine Hesse has led her team of attorneys to be named the only firm in New England and one of only eleven in the United States to the special ERISA fiduciary litigation panel for one of the world’s largest insurance companies. She serves on the Board of Directors of the International Foundation and as Chair of its Government Liaison Committee. Ms. Hesse, a CEBS Compliant ISCEBS Fellow, was inducted into the new ISCEBS Hall of Fame in 2018.
Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP Partner Prevails in U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
Attorney Felicia Vasudevan, a partner at Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP, received a favorable decision on behalf of her client, Marshfield Public Schools. The Plaintiff appealed the district court’s judgement that upheld a decision of the Massachusetts Bureau of Special Education Appeals (“BSEA”). However, as the notice was filed more than 30 days after entry, the First Circuit ultimately dismissed the appeal for being untimely. The Plaintiff also appealed the district court’s order, denying her motion to vacate. Read More
New Features of Public Participation at School Committee Meetings
Following our Alert from March 16, 2023, Civility is Dead – The Supreme Court Rules Municipal Control of Public Speak Limited to Reasonable Time/Place/Manner Restrictions, which discussed the holding to the Supreme Judicial Court’s decision in Barron v. Kolenda and the Town of Southborough (SJC-13284), we promised to bring you more detailed guidance on developing a Public Speak policy for your public body or municipality. The Barron case involved a constitutional challenge to the Town of Southborough’s public comment policy, which attempted to impose a code of civility on members of the public who participated in public comment before public bodies. In Barron, the court interpreted the state constitution to mean that public bodies may request, but not require, that public commentators be respectful and courteous. Instead, a public body may set restrictions on reasonable time, place, and manner comments to ensure that the meeting retains an orderly and peaceable manner.
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