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Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP Partner Presents for the Quincy Chamber of Commerce Lunchtime Stew
Nan ONeill, a partner at Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP, presented for the Quincy Chamber of Commerce on December 16, 2020. Her presentation, titled “PFML Benefits Begin January 1, 2021: Are You Prepared?”, provided any information needed to know about Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML). Ms. ONeill is the resident expert at MHTL for all things related to PFML. Her presentation begins with an overview on the PFML benefit eligibility. She then discusses the highlights from recently amended PFML regulations, focusing on who is covered, integration of employer policies in relation to PFML, leave laws and if they run concurrently, and all the nuts and bolts that go with it. Finally, Ms. ONeill provides a planning checklist, with items to consider when reviewing PFML.
Ms. O’Neill is a Partner at the firm with 30 years of experience counseling and representing employers in all aspects of traditional labor law and employment. She has extensive experience in labor arbitration and litigation of employment-related disputes, including discrimination, sexual harassment and wrongful termination matters, before state and federal courts and administrative agencies such as the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination. Ms. O’Neill’s experience as a traditional labor lawyer includes negotiating collective bargaining agreements and representing employers in labor arbitrations, unfair labor practice proceedings, and union election and decertification proceedings, with a concentration on acute care hospitals. In addition to grievance and arbitration proceedings, Ms. O’Neill has advised companies regarding corporate campaigns, strike and contingency planning, bargaining strategies, interpreting collective bargaining agreements and obligations under the National Labor Relations Act. As an employment lawyer, in addition to the litigation of employment-related disputes, Ms. O’Neill counsels clients on a day-to-day basis on employment compliance issues. Ms. O’Neill is often called upon to conduct internal investigations including complaints of harassment, discrimination, and ethical violations.
Ms. O’Neill is a graduate of Boston College and the Georgetown University Law Center, where she served as Articles and Notes Editor of the American Criminal Law Review and received awards for outstanding work in the study of labor law.
Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP Receives Favorable Decision for Town of Dracut
On April 11, 2023, MHTL Attorneys Peter Mello and Madison Harris-Parks represented the Town of Dracut, and successfully obtained a preliminary injunction order requiring, among other things, that the Defendant homeowners cease renting out their pool to the public. The case, Town of Dracut by and Through Its Building Inspector vs. Nason, Gilbert et al., was initiated by the Town after the Defendants failed to comply with the Town’s associated underlying zoning enforcement order. The Town requested the injunction Read More
EXTENSION OF MUNICIPAL RELIEF MEASURES - INCLUDING OPEN MEETING LAW REMOTE OPTION - SIGNED BY THE GOVERNOR
The option for public bodies in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to hold public meetings remotely or in a hybrid fashion, which came into play at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, has been extended by the General Court for another two years, until March 31, 2025. The Governor signed the legislation, which will be codified at Chapter 2 of the Acts of 2023, on March 29, 2023. Because of the inclusion of an emergency preamble, the law goes into effect immediately.

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