Litigationblawg - Hoguet Newman Regal & Kenney, LLP

SUMMER ASSOCIATES STRENGTHEN HNRK TEAM

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 22:21:00 GMT

Summer Associates Jason Burns, Hamilton Falk and Robin Suh have joined us for the summer, adding considerable depth and talent to our litigation team. We will miss them when they return to law school this Fall. Below, Jason, Hamilton and Robin show off their HNRK headwear at our annual Summer Party.

HNRK Obtains Dismissal of 9/11 Claim Against MTA

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 15:24:00 GMT

United States District Judge Victor Marrero dismissed as untimely a suit brought by a former MTA police officer alleging that he sustained injuries as a result of being exposed to toxic air around the World Trade Center in the days following 9/11. The plaintiff sued HNRK's client, the MTA, in 2007 under the Federal Employers Liability Act ("FELA") alleging that the MTA was negligent in assigning him in 2001 to perform police work in the WTC vicinity with insufficient protection. FELA has a three-year statute of limitations. According to plaintiff, however, he only learned in 2007 that his ailments stemmed from his exposure to the toxic air in 2001 and therefore, under the "discovery rule," his time to commence suit was tolled.

We successfully argued that plaintiff's time to commence his FELA claim was not tolled by the discovery rule. In turns out that plaintiff had settled a previous lawsuit against the MTA in 2004, more than three years prior to this latest suit. In his 2004 suit, he complained of the same injuries, but attributed those injuries to a different negligent act - in that case, an accident in which he was struck in the head with a pipe. The Court refused to allow plaintiff to sue the same defendant for the same injuries based on a new theory of causation, notwithstanding plaintiff's assertion that he was unaware until recently of the allegedly true cause of his ailments. Agreeing with our argument, the Court held that a FELA cause of action accrues when the plaintiff knows or should know that the injuries he complains of were job-related, even if he is unaware of the true cause of that injury.

The Court also dismissed a separate claim by this plaintiff at our urging. Plaintiff complained that, while out on injury leave as a result of the pipe incident, he was wrongfully subjected to the MTA's sick/injury leave rules, which requires that the injured officer remain at home unless given permission to leave by the Police Department. Plaintiff argued that the MTA's rule was unlawful, but Judge Marrero rejected this claim on the grounds that plaintiff had failed to establish the elements of a FELA claim and failed to explain how he was injured.

Daniel Bruno v. Metropolitan Transp. Authority, No. 07 Civ. 7503 (S.D.N.Y. April 10. 2008).

HNRK PROUDLY ANNOUNCES THAT RANDI MAY WILL BECOME A PARTNER OF THE FIRM

Sat, 15 Dec 2007 00:11:00 GMT

Hoguet Newman Regal & Kenney, LLP is pleased to announce that Randi May will become a partner of the firm, effective January 1, 2008. Randi will continue her practice focusing on employment law, representing both employees and employers in all aspects of the employment relationship. Randi has litigated before federal and state courts, administrative agencies and arbitration panels, including conducting trials and hearings. Her experience includes the defense and prosecution of discrimination claims, harassment claims, retaliation claims, breach of contract, compensation disputes, breach of fiduciary duty, unfair competition, theft of trade secrets and other claims relating to the termination of employment. In addition to litigation, Randi’s practice includes consulting employers and employees on a wide variety of employment issues.

Randi is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the State University of New York at Albany, summa cum laude, and a 1998 graduate of Brooklyn Law School, cum laude, where she was Notes and Comments Editor of the Brooklyn Journal of International Law, in which she published “The Erroneous Interpretation of the Foreign Compulsion Defense in the ADEA: Mahoney v. RFE/RL, Inc.,” 23 Brook. J. Int'l L. 655, 682 (1997). Before joining HNRK as an associate in 2002, Randi was an associate in the Labor and Employment group at Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP.

HNRK Partner Josh Rievman Speaks at CILS Conference

Wed, 12 Dec 2007 20:00:00 GMT

On December 5, 2007, HNRK partner Josh Rievman delivered a presentation at the Center for International Legal Studies' conference on "Emerging Trends in Disute Resolution." Josh's presentation was based on his recent article, "The U.S. Supreme Court’s Expansion of 28 U.S.C. § 1782: Is the Door Now Open to Discovery in Aid of Foreign Arbitration Proceedings?" Josh is a Fellow of the Center for International legal Studies, and speaks regularly on issues related to international and domestic arbitration and litigation.

HNRK Defeats Injunction Application by Trucking Group Seeking to Cross New York Area Bridges With Overweight Loads

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 18:03:00 GMT

In August, HNRK was retained to defend the nation's largest bridge and tunnel authority in a lawsuit brought by an association of trucking companies specializing in hauling sand, gravel and other construction materials across the metropolitan region. The trucking group sued New York's Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority ("TBTA") after the TBTA refused passage across its bridges to trucks carrying loads beyond the legal limit of 80,000 pounds. The truckers were accustomed to bringing greater loads across the Throgs Neck Bridge but TBTA ordered the weight limit strictly enforced following an inspection of the bridge which revealed significant deterioration and safety issues. The trucking group challenged TBTA's enforcement of the 80,000 pound limit , maintaining that its members were entitled to continue carrying the overweight loads across the Throgs Neck as well as TBTA's other bridges.

HNRK led a team of TBTA bridge engineers and law enforcement officers to the injunction hearing which was held in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan, before Justice Paul Feinman. After hearing the evidence, Justice Feinman declined the truckers request for an injunction, sustaining the safety concerns and prerogatives of HNRK's client.

HNRK previously fended off two applications by the trucking group seeking temporary restraining orders pending the hearing on the injunction. The litigation is ongoing.

JOHN J. KENNEY JOINS HOGUET NEWMAN & REGAL, LLP
-Firm Renamed Hoguet Newman Regal & Kenney, LLP-

Fri, 18 May 2007 23:08:00 GMT

March 1, 2007 Hoguet Newman & Regal, LLP announced today that John J. Kenney has joined the firm as a name partner, effective immediately. The firm will be called Hoguet Newman Regal & Kenney, LLP. Mr. Kenney is a well-known trial lawyer and “white collar” criminal defense counsel. From 1981 until 2005, Mr. Kenney was a partner of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, specializing in complex civil and criminal litigation. Laura B. Hoguet said “John is a fabulous lawyer and he will add both depth and a new dimension to our firm.” Mr. Kenney served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York from 1971 to 1980 and as the Executive Assistant U.S. Attorney from 1977 to 1980. Mr. Kenney is a fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers. He is the former President of the New York County Lawyers’ Association and of the Federal Bar Council and has served as the Chair of the Criminal Law Committee of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York. He is listed in The Best Lawyers in America and serves as a Director of both the Citizens Crime Commission of the City of New York and of the American Association for the International Commission of Jurists, Inc. Mr. Kenney received his B.A. from St. Michael’s College and his J.D. from Fordham University. The firm also announced that Tai-Heng Cheng has joined it as Of Counsel. Mr. Cheng is an Associate Professor of Law and Assistant Director of the International Law Center at New York Law School.

Can Your “Vested” Compensation Be Forfeited?
Read on—you may need legal advice.

Fri, 18 May 2007 22:42:00 GMT

Many companies, to incent employees to keep working, require that a portion of the employee's bonus, cash or equity, be deferred. Under the typical plan, the employee "vests" in the deferred compensation after he has worked for three years. If the employee leaves before the three years are up, he forfeits the unvested deferred compensation. What happens if the employee leaves after the deferred compensation has “vested”?

Whether the employee will receive his vested deferred compensation depends on the terms of the employer’s plan. If the termination was for “cause,” even vested deferred compensation may be forfeited. The employer’s plan may also provide for forfeiture in the event the employee competes with the employer in his new job.

Another unmarked hazard for employees is the employer’s plan that requires employees who receive stock options to exercise them during employment. If the employee quits or is fired without having exercised her options, she may lose them even though they were fully vested on her termination date.

The bottom line: an employee may need legal advice to understand and get maximum value out of his or her compensation plan.

Delaware Chancery Judge Orders Payment to “Awosting” Creditors Represented by HNRK

Fri, 18 May 2007 22:38:00 GMT

A multi-year litigation finally came to a close on May 18 when Delaware Vice Chancellor Leo E. Strine, Jr. approved a settlement of claims brought against the managing member of a defunct development project. The Project, known as the Awosting Reserve, was to consist of luxury homes and a championship golf course on 2,600 acres in the Shawangunk Mountains, about 70 miles north of the New York City in the Town of Gardiner, New York. But after protests from local residents, the Town refused to issue building permits, killing the Project. The managing member of the Project, John Atwater Bradley, refused to repay his investors, triggering a lawsuit brought in Delaware Chancery Court by the investors, represented by HNRK. The investors won a judgment forcing the sale of the Project land to generate proceeds to return their money and pay off other creditors. The land was purchased by the Trust for Public Land last year for $17 million. The investors received all of their capital back (nearly $13 million), and today, two creditors – the Project’s former law firm and the Project developer both won judgments for the partial payment of their respective professional fees, totaling $500,000. HNRK represented both the law firm and the developer.

The Awosting Reserve is now state parkland operated by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission.