News
Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP Partner Presents at the 2021 Massachusetts Municipal Association Annual Meeting and Trade Show
Katherine Hesse, a partner at Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP presented a Legal Update at this year’s MMA Annual Meeting and Trade Show. The annual meeting was held virtually this year due to the coronavirus, but there were still hundreds of attendees present to watch the presentations online. The two-day event had showed many professionals presenting on various municipal topics, along with some impressive keynote speakers including Governor Baker and Lieutenant Governor Polito. Throughout the event many companies held virtual booths for anyone attending the presentations to visit and speak with a professional. Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP had their own virtual booth, with municipal attorneys available to answer any questions.
Ms. Hesse was a panelist for the legal update workshop along with Demitrios Moschos of Counsel, Seder and Chandler, and Melissa Murray of Norris, Murray & Peloquin, LLC. During her presentation, Ms. Hesse discussed the statistics and key takeaways for the Joint Labor-Management Committee and Department of Labor Relations, where she advises to try to settle before going to arbitration, think strategically and other tips. She also provided statistics and case examples for the Civil Service Commission, Contributory Retirement Appeal Board and the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination. Some notable cases that she referenced were Lukasick v. Massachusetts Teacher’s Retirement System, Stokes-DeSalvo v. State Board of Retirement and Decesaro v. Middlesex County Retirement Board. Mr. Moschos discussed the updates on legislation and case law from 2020. Ms. Murray’s presentation focused on the Massachusetts Police Reform Bill that was filed by Governor Baker in June of 2020.
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 large Taft-Hartley 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. She led her team of attorneys to be named the only firm in New England and one of only 11 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. She received her B.A. degree from Smith College and her J.D. degree from the Boston University School of Law.
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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