Muskat Devine is pleased to announce that Mike Muskat, Corey Devine and Nicole Su have been selected to the 2023 list of the Best Lawyers in America, a highly respected legal guide which recognizes only 4 percent of practicing attorneys in the United States. Mr. Muskat is recognized again this year for his work in …read more »
Muskat Devine Partner Mike Muskat Featured in Texas Lawyer on Political and Social Advocacy at Work After the Roe v. Wade Reversal
Texas Lawyer magazine has published a guest article by Muskat Devine partner Mike Muskat exploring what employers should know in handling political and social advocacy by their employees. “Political and Social Advocacy at Work After the Roe v. Wade Reversal – What Employers Should Know” (subscription required) walks through items employers should consider when deciding …read more »
Don’t Forget About the Obligations Surrounding Virtual I-9 Verification
On April 25, 2022, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced a six-month extension until October 31, 2022, of the policy allowing remote or virtual verification of the documentation required for a Form I-9 when an employee is working remotely. And while many employers relied heavily on this …read more »
Three Things to Remember When Drafting Commissions Agreements
The Texas Supreme Court recently issued a notable decision construing an employer’s obligation to pay pro-rata commissions to a terminating employee when the underlying agreement failed to specify certain criteria for payment. Perthuis v. Baylor Miraca Genetics Labs., LLC, 2022 WL 1592587 (Tex. May 20, 2022). The Perthuis case is a good reminder of several …read more »
Is Your Arbitration Agreement Up to Date?
There has been a lot of movement in the legal landscape surrounding arbitration recently, and I mean a lot. These are not typically headline grabbing cases or laws, but for employers with arbitration agreements and dispute resolution programs in place, they signal the importance of regularly reviewing and updating these documents. Alternatively, for employers who …read more »
Muskat Devine Attorney Nicole Su Writes in Texas Lawbook on the Importance of Diversity in the Law
In recognition of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Texas Lawbook published an article by Muskat Devine attorney Nicole Su on diversity in the law. Headlined “Embracing my ‘Otherness’ and Forging My Own Path” (subscription required), the article discusses Nicole’s career experiences that led to a feeling of “otherness” and how friends and mentors …read more »
Muskat Devine Partners Featured in Texas Lawyer on What Employers Should Know about Efforts to Limit Mandatory Employment Arbitration
Texas Lawyer magazine has published an article by Muskat Devine partners Mike Muskat and Corey Devine detailing what employers should know about mandatory employment arbitration. The article, “Texas Employers Should Beware of Efforts to Limit Mandatory Employment Arbitration” (subscription required), provides practical perspective on the growing patchwork of federal and state laws regarding the permissibility and …read more »
Efforts to Outlaw Race-Based Hair Discrimination Gain Traction: What Employers Need to Know about the CROWN Act
In 2010, Catastrophe Management Solutions hired Chastity Jones. Jones, a black woman, was fired after she refused to cut her dreadlocks to comply with CMS’s employee grooming standards. The EEOC sued, arguing that Jones’s dismissal amounted to race discrimination. But the courts disagreed, finding Jones’s dreadlocks were not a fixed (i.e., immutable) trait constituting “race” …read more »
Lessons in Labor: Takeaways from Recent Unionization Efforts Across the Country
Seemingly every day, there is a new headline regarding worker unionization. Since the summer of 2021, workers at over 200 Starbucks locations across the country have expressed interest in organization activity and have explored the possibility of unionization. In another recent example, in April 2022 Amazon workers voted to unionize a warehouse in Staten Island, …read more »
Returning to the Office: (Re)-Creating a Positive Work Environment and Avoiding the Activision Blizzard Scenario
Many workplaces have fully re-opened in the last few months and employees are being required to return to the office, at least on a part-time basis. With so many people back in the office after a two-year hiatus and interacting in-person with supervisors and co-workers on a daily basis, there are going to be challenges …read more »