Recent News & Publications
Search News & Publications
February 04, 2015
News - Family Law
Jennifer Brandt, a member in the firm's family law group, appeared on Fox 29 Good Day Philadelphia to discuss the legal battle over actor Robin Williams' estate.
Tweet
February 02, 2015
Publication - Employment Litigation, Labor & Employment
In an article titled ''Complaints from Transgender Employees by the EEOC: How Can a Company Prepare & Respond?'' Jason Cabrera, an associate in Cozen O’Connor’s Labor & Employment Department, discusses how companies should prepare for and learn how to respond to Title VII claims from transgender employees given the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s recent enforcement actions in fall 2014.
Tweet
February 01, 2015
Publication - Condominiums & Cooperatives, Real Estate
Leni Morrison Cummins, a member in the firm's Real Estate Group, answers a question discussing parking garage issues in an apartment building.
Tweet
January 29, 2015
Publication
In an article titled ''The PA Supreme Court makes decisive eminent domain ruling,'' Michael Klein, co-chair of Cozen O’Connor’s Energy Industry Team, discusses Pennsylvania’s Property Rights Protection Act and how investor-owned water utilities are not regulated under the Act, but remain subject to the Eminent Domain Code and applicable case law that provide restrictions on their exercise of the right of eminent domain.
Tweet
January 29, 2015
News
In an article titled ‘’Simpson Thacher May Be Haunted By $1.5B Loan Gaffe,’’ H. Robert Fiebach, a member of Cozen O’Connor’s Commercial Litigation Department, comments on a paralegal’s error that went unnoticed by Simpson Thacher attorneys, dooming JP Morgan Chase & Co.’s secured interest in a $1.5 billion loan tied up in the General Motors bankruptcy. Whatever may be in store for Simpson Thacher, the larger takeaway of the Second Circuit’s ruling is that law firms and their clients cannot expect to be saved from their own mistakes even when their intentions are beyond dispute — particularly where correcting those errors could create negative consequences for others, Robert said.
Tweet
January 29, 2015
Publication - Utility & Energy
In September 2014, responsibility for regulation of water and wastewater utilities was transferred from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to the Public Utility Commission (PUC). The transfer allows TCEQ to focus on its core environmental mission while taking advantage of PUC’s historic ratemaking expertise. The PUC originally regulated water and sewer rates, and the agency historically has regulated rates and services of electric and telecommunications companies in areas where competition was weak or nonexistent. According to Darryl Tietjen, director of Rate Regulation for the PUC, one of the basic objectives of the move is to make water regulation more consistent with the way electric utilities are regulated.
Tweet
January 28, 2015
Publication - Commercial Litigation, Products Liability
Shelby Riney, of the firm's Commercial Litigation Department, authored, "District Court Denies Takeda's Motion for a New Trial," for the ABA Section of Litigation, Products Liability, News & Developments.
Tweet
January 28, 2015
News - Employment Litigation, Labor & Employment
In an article titled ''How to not get sued when cutting jobs at your office,'' David Barron, a member of Cozen O'Connor's Labor & Employment Department, discusses five basic steps employers should take before they move forward with job terminations.
Tweet
January 27, 2015
News - Tax
Joseph C. Bright, a member in the firm's tax group, speaks about how Pennsylvania's taxing authorities and bureaus are held to strict rules when it comes to notice of tax sales, and how the Commonwealth Court has cracked down on some authorities in recent cases.
Tweet
January 26, 2015
News - Intellectual Property, Trademark & Copyright
In an article titled "Lawyers Weigh In On High Court Trademark Tacking Ruling," David Sunshine, a member of Cozen O'Connor's Intellectual Property Department, comments on the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the Hana Financial Inc. v. Hana Bank case.
Tweet
January 26, 2015
Publication - Tax
A panel of the Commonwealth Court held that taxpayers could not be reassessed when they subdivided a parcel into two parcels but retained title. Raup v. Dauphin County Board of Assessment Appeals, No. 237 C.D. 2014 (Pa. Commw. Jan. 14, 2015). The taxpayers owned a property that they subdivided into two lots. One of the parcels had been improved with half of a duplex property long before the subdivision. The court held that the subdivision could not be the occasion for a reassessment when the improvements were not made contemporaneously, citing 53 Pa. C. S. § 8817(a). Any improvement to the property could justify a reassessment at the time the improvements are made but not at an arbitrary time in the future. A subdivision does not constitute an improvement; an improvement requires an addition to the property. The court further held that the subdivision by a deed for $1.00 did not constitute a sale taking the conveyance out of the protection of the subdivision.
Tweet
January 26, 2015
Publication - Tax
A panel of the Commonwealth Court held that a taxpayer failed to prove that he was a nonresident of Pennsylvania in 2005. Lust v. Commonwealth, No. 645 F.R. 2011 (Pa Commw. Jan. 9, 2015) (unreported). The taxpayer filed Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey tax returns reflecting part year residency in Pennsylvania in 2005. Several years later, the taxpayer filed an amended Pennsylvania return claiming nonresidency for the entire year. The court stated that, when asked about the conflicting documentary evidence on cross examination, the taxpayer was evasive, repeatedly declined to identify documents that he had filed, would not confirm information contained therein, testified that he could not remember critical facts, and provided only the most basic information. The court found the taxpayer’s testimony not credible and held that he had failed to prove nonresidency in Pennsylvania.
Tweet
January 23, 2015
Publication - Employment Litigation, Labor & Employment
In an article titled, ''Is OSHA About To Ramp Up Its Whistleblower Program?'' Debra Friedman, a member of Cozen O'Connor's Labor & Employment Department, discusses the significant challenges employers face when a whistleblower complaint is filed with the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and recommends that employers prepare themselves by implementing a whistleblower complaint procedure program.
Tweet
January 22, 2015
Press Release - Subrogation & Recovery
Los Angeles, CA, January 22, 2015 – The 2015 Southern California edition of Super Lawyers Magazine, published by Thomson Reuters, has named two Cozen O’Connor attorneys to its list of Super Lawyers.
Tweet
January 22, 2015
Publication - Family Law
It is a well-known fact among divorce lawyers that January is the most popular month for people to initiate divorce. Perhaps that can be attributed to its promise of a new beginning; perhaps spending extra time over the holidays with spouses and extended family members was the final straw. No matter the cause, for those contemplating divorce in the start of the New Year, here are some key resolutions.
Tweet
January 21, 2015
News - Aviation, Maritime Antitrust & Competition, Maritime Corporate & Finance, Maritime Litigation, Maritime Regulatory, Transportation & Trade
Bisnow interviewed several members of the Transportation & Logistic Practice who are residents in our Washington, D.C., office to get a realistic perspective of transportation and logistics issues coming up in 2015. For the article titled “This Firm Puts Advisors on Seven Continents. Here’s Why,” Bisnow spoke with David Heffernan, Ken Hines, Mark Atwood and Steve Lachter regarding aviation regulatory issues. On the maritime side, Bisnow had discussions with Marc Fink and also interviewed Jeff Lawrence as the chair of the Transportation & Logistics Practice Group.
Tweet
January 20, 2015
News - Employment Litigation, Labor & Employment
In an article titled ‘’Worker Misclassification Tops HR Agenda in 2015,’’ Jeffrey Pasek, a member of Cozen O’Connor’s Labor & Employment Department, discusses the possibility of Congressional pushback against a number of National Labor Relations Board policies and recent developments at the Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs.
Tweet
January 20, 2015
News - Employment Litigation, Labor & Employment
In an article titled ‘’Worker Misclassification Tops HR Agenda in 2015,’’ George Voegele, a member of Cozen O’Connor’s Labor & Employment Department, discusses a potentially major change in the way the National Labor Relations Board views franchisers’ relationships to their franchisees’ employees.
Tweet
January 20, 2015
Publication - Aviation, Aviation Litigation, Transportation & Trade - Aviation
Highlights of this edition of the Cozen O’Connor Aviation Regulatory Update include the FAA’s recent rulemakings involving New York area airport slots and safety management systems for U.S. Part 121 air carriers, developments relating to unmanned aircraft, and DOT and FAA enforcement actions.
Tweet
January 20, 2015
News - Employment Litigation, Labor & Employment
In an article titled ‘’Worker Misclassification Tops HR Agenda in 2015,’’ Debra Friedman, a member of Cozen O’Connor’s Labor & Employment Department, discusses the increase in employee retaliation claims and the implications for employers.
Tweet