News
Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP Attorney Moderates a Roundtable Discussion on Public Records for the MMLA
Attorney Karis North from Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP was the moderator for a Roundtable discussion on Public Records Law, hosted by the Massachusetts Municipal Lawyers Association (MMLA). The panelists included Shawn Williams, the Director of Public Records for the City of Boston, Stephen Roche of the City of Springfield Solicitor’s Office and Jack Collins, the General Counsel to the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association. The discussion had an emphasis on the recent changes to the Public Records Law by the Police Reform Law. In addition, the panelists discussed the issues identified by responding to requests, consistent supervisor determinations as to how to handle requests, how to handle responding to the volume of requests that the change in the law has initiated, and the potential for further guidance from litigation.
Karis L. North is an attorney at the Firm and has been practicing municipal and public sector law since 2006 and has over twenty years of experience counseling and resolving complex disputes for public clients. She is also an experienced litigator on behalf of municipalities and municipal agencies, private parties, and non-profit organizations. Her practice is focused on counseling and advocacy on behalf of municipal governments and agencies. Ms. North has a B.S. from Cornell University and received her J.D. cum laude from Vermont Law School, where she was the Managing Editor of the Vermont Law Review. She is admitted to practice in state and federal courts in Massachusetts, in the state of Maryland, and before the Supreme Court of the United States. Active in the community, Ms. North is a Director of the Massachusetts Municipal Lawyer’s Association and a member of the Vermont Law School Board of Trustees, where she chairs the Governance Committee. She was also recently appointed to the inaugural Plymouth County Commission on the Status of Women and was elected to the position of Chairwoman by her sister Commissioners.
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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