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Novartis defends sex bias accusations at NYC trial
Law News |
2010/04/09 09:44
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pA lawyer opened a sex discrimination trial Thursday by accusing the U.S. arm of Swiss drug company Novartis of discriminating against 5,600 female sales representatives, saying they are denied promotions and equal pay and sometimes face a hostile workplace./ppAttorney Katherine Kimpel acknowledged to the jury in federal court in Manhattan that the company has extensive written materials warning against discrimination but accused it of saying one thing on paper but another thing in real life./ppShe said women hired since 2002 entered a company that disrespects and undermines its female workers, resulting in lower pay, fewer promotions and sometimes a hostile workplace dominated by an old boys network./ppShe said the discrimination was especially severe for women who became pregnant. Sometimes, she said, they faced managers who fished through their work looking for ways to spoil their careers or pressured them to take shorter leaves or to work while they were on leave./ppNovartis attorney Richard Schnadig said the company does not discriminate against women and there was no glass ceiling./ppThis is a fair, decent, responsive company that has been sensitive to women's' needs, he said. We don't discriminate. ... the company makes no claims that we're perfect./ppSchnadig said 70 percent of its sales managers are men because the demographics of the workplace have not yet recovered from the days when fewer women entered the work force. He said the company has 14,000 U.S. employees with significant numbers of senior positions held by women, some of whom will testify at the trial.
/p |
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Toyota faces Prius class-action lawsuit
Law News |
2010/02/16 08:56
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pThe public relations nightmare for Toyota continues. The company has been plagued with recall after recall. After its most recent announcement, the company faces a class-action lawsuit. On Feb. 9, Toyota announced that the 2010 Toyota Prius, which was previously exempt from recalls, was now being recalled because of a problem with the brake system./ppAt the same time, Toyota announced that the all-new Lexus HS 250h hybrid was also being recalled due to a similar brake issue. Embedded in that same announcement was a note that about 7,300 2010-model Toyota Camrys were also being recalled due to a completely unrelated issue.
Two days later, Alabama law firm Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis amp; Miles, P.C. announced that they were pursuing a class-action lawsuit on behalf of more than 500,000 Toyota Prius and Lexus hybrid owners.
According to Dan Miles, head of the law firm’s consumer fraud and class action department, Toyota knew about the braking system defect well in advance of the official recall./p |
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Judge Slashes Music Sharing Fine
Law News |
2010/01/26 04:55
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A Minnesota woman fined nearly $2 million for illegally downloading music has seen the fine reduced from that monstrous amount by a U.S. District Court judge who dropped the fine to $54,000.
Jammie Thomas-Rasset, a single mother with four children, said she is seeking a way to have the fine -- leveled after she lost a case with the Recording Industry Association of America -- reduced even further.
Whether it's $2 million or $54,000, I'm a mom with four kids and one income and we're not exactly rolling in that kind of dough right now, she said, according to media reports.
In his opinion, Judge Michael Davis said, The need for deterrence cannot justify a $2 million verdict for stealing and illegally distributing 24 songs for the sole purpose of obtaining free music. Judge Davis added that the $54,000 for downloading the music tracks is significant and harsh... this Court has merely reduced that award to the maximum amount that is no longer monstrous and shocking. |
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Balloon Boy parents enter guilty plea
Law News |
2009/11/16 09:46
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| pThe Colorado parents of three children could wind up in jail after admitting in court they fabricated a story about their son in a runaway balloon to gain publicity for a possible reality TV show./ppRichard Heene appeared before a Larimer County District Court judge first, pleading guilty to a felony count of falsely influencing the sheriff who led the rescue effort during the 50-mile balloon chase that captivated a global television audience Oct. 15./ppMayumi Heene pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of knowingly filing a false report with emergency services. Prosecutors said she had a lower level of culpability and cooperated with authorities, telling investigators the balloon launch was a publicity stunt two weeks in the making./ppBut even as the Heenes entered their guilty pleas, their attorneys' comments in court set off speculation of talk show appearances or other deals./ppJudge Stephen Schapanski agreed to the attorneys' request that the couple be allowed to travel to New York and California to explore employment opportunities. David Lane, Richard Heene's lawyer, declined to elaborate as he left the courtroom, and Heene waved off questions./p |
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Ex-Mass. House speaker DiMasi pleads not guilty
Law News |
2009/11/15 09:48
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| Former Massachusetts House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi has again pleaded not guilty to federal corruption charges.pDiMasi and three co-defendants entered the pleas Thursday during their arraignment on an expanded indictment adding extortion to earlier public corruption charges./ppThe original indictment alleged DiMasi and three associates rigged two lucrative state contracts for the software company Cognos in exchange for payments, with the former speaker pocketing $57,000./ppA superseding indictment handed up last month added the extortion charge. It says DiMasi accepted payments from Cognos and a second member of the scheme, Joseph Lally, knowing the money was in exchange for helping the Burlington, Mass.-based firm win the contracts./p |
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