Miscellaneous

The Massachusetts employment bar is abuzz with word that a Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) Commissioner has publically stated that the Massachusetts Maternity Leave Act (MMLA) will apply to new parents of either sex. This means that new fathers would be entitled to eight weeks of unpaid leave upon the birth or adoption of their child. (The MMLA applies to employers with six or more employees). This all unfolded in a strange manner, to say the very least. There has been no formal written announcement. The MCAD online regs have not been changed to include fathers. The underlying statute still refers only to “female employees”, and makes no mention of fathers. There has been no formal press release or request for comment or feedback from the Massachusetts business community. Legislation by adminstrative fiat. Apparently, the MCAD Commissioner announced this at a speaking event at a law firm in Boston in early June. His comments were confirmed in a follow-up interview by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, which quotes the Commissioner as follows: I’m not going to tell you how we are going to come out on every case, because it depends on the facts and circumstances presented,” he said. “But what we are saying is that if a man now walks in and makes a complaint, we are going to take that complaint and investigate it – which, yes, is something that…

The “Oyez” web site now presents oral arguments before the Supreme Court in multimedia: As you listen to the argument you see a synchronized transcript, and a photo of the judge or lawyer speaking appears every time there is a change in speaker. This multimedia presentation makes the experience of listening to these arguments much easier and more pleasant. Link here. The Massachusetts Appeals Court has made its unpublished decisions available here. This is particularly helpful, since these decisions are difficult to obtain, and on February 25, 2008, the Court issued a ruling permitting unpublished decisions to be cited for their “persuasive value.” This modified a 23 year old court rule that unpublished decisions could not be cited as legal authority. Massachusetts Federal District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor, IV has issued a written decision in Commerce Bank and Trust Co. v. TD Banknorth, Inc. (see below). Judge Saylor found a likelihood of confusion between “Commerce Bank” and “TD Commerce Bank,” and issued a preliminary injunction in favor of the plaintiff. While this decision is unexceptional, it is a helpful road map to trademark law in this district, and is another example of Judge Saylor’s crisp and comprehensive writing style. Commerce Bank PI Decision – Upload a doc Read this doc on Scribd: Commerce Bank PI Decision