| Johnson v. York Hospital |
| Citation: 2019 ME 176 Opinion Date: December 30, 2019 Judge: Hjelm Areas of Law: Civil Rights, Labor & Employment Law |
| The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the summary judgment entered in favor of Defendant by the superior court on Plaintiff's claims of a hostile work environment and gender discrimination prohibited by the Maine Human Rights Act and unlawful retaliation in violation of the Maine Whistleblower's Protection Act, holding that the superior court did not err by granting a summary judgment in favor of Defendant on all of Plaintiff's claims of discrimination in the workplace. Specifically, the Supreme Judicial Court held that the superior court did not err when it concluded that Plaintiff failed to present evidence that he had been subjected to a hostile work environment arising from sexual harassment, that he was terminated from his employment in retaliation for complaints he had made about other employees, and that he was the victim of gender-based discrimination. |
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| Fortney & Weygandt, Inc. v. Lewiston DMEP IX, LLC |
| Citation: 2019 ME 175 Opinion Date: December 30, 2019 Judge: Hjelm Areas of Law: Contracts |
| In this appeal arising from a set of commercial construction projects the Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the judgment in favor of Fortney & Weygant, Inc. (F&W) on the counterclaims filed by Lewiston DMEP IX, LLC, et al. (collectively, GBT) for liquidated damages, affirmed in part as to the prompt payment remedies allowed to F&W, and vacated the portion of the judgment awarding attorney fees and costs to F&W pursuant to the terms of the parties' contract. The trial court determined that, in addition to damages for breach of contract, F&W was entitled to remedies, including attorney fees pursuant to Maine's prompt payment statutes, that F&W was entitled to attorney fees pursuant to the terms of the parties' contract, and that GBT was estopped from seeking to enforce a contractual right to liquidated damages against F&W. The Supreme Judicial Court held that the trial court (1) did not erroneously conclude that GBT was equitably estopped from recovering liquidated damages against F&W; (2) properly awarded F&W prompt payment remedies except to the extent that the remedy failed to account for the value of GBT's liquidated damages claims that GBT withheld in good faith; and (3) erred when it concluded that the contract contemplated an award of attorney fees outside the context of arbitration. |
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| In re Child of Vanessa G. |
| Citation: 2019 ME 178 Opinion Date: December 30, 2019 Judge: Per Curiam Areas of Law: Family Law |
| The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the judgment of the district court terminating Mother's parental rights to her child pursuant to Me. Rev. Stat. 22, 4055(1)(A)(1)(a), (B)(2)(a), and (B)(2)(b)(i)-(ii), holding that the court did not err in finding that Mother was an unfit parent. The district court concluded that Mother's parental rights should be terminated because Mother was unwilling or unable to protect the child from jeopardy and unwilling or unable to take responsibility for the child and those circumstances were unlikely to change within a time reasonably calculated to meet the child's needs and that termination of Mother's parental rights was in the best interests of the child. The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed, holding that there was no error of law or abuse of discretion in the court's termination of Mother's parental rights. |
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| In re Children of Danielle M. |
| Citation: 2019 ME 174 Opinion Date: December 30, 2019 Judge: Per Curiam Areas of Law: Family Law |
| The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the judgment entered by the district court terminating Parents' parental rights to their children, holding that there was sufficient evidence supporting an order terminating each parent's parental rights and that the Department of Health and Human Services provided appropriate and necessary reunification services. The district court terminated Mother's parental rights to her three children and terminated Father's parental rights to the child the parents had in common. Both parents appealed. The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed, holding (1) there was sufficient evidence to support the court's judgment terminating Parents' parental rights; and (2) the Department made good faith efforts to cooperate with Father in pursuit of the rehabilitation and reunification plan for him. |
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| In re Children of Troy P. |
| Citation: 2019 ME 177 Opinion Date: December 30, 2019 Judge: Per Curiam Areas of Law: Family Law |
| The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the judgment of the district court terminating Parents' parental rights to their three children, holding that the evidence was sufficient to support the court's findings of parental unfitness. The district court entered a judgment terminating Mother's and Father's parental rights to their three children. The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the judgment, holding (1) the evidence was sufficient to support the court's findings that the parents were unable to protect the children from jeopardy or take responsibility for them in a time reasonably calculated to meet their needs; (2) the evidence was sufficient to support the court's findings that both parents failed to make a good faith effort to rehabilitate and reunify with the children; and (3) the court did not err in determining that termination of Father's parental rights was in the best interests of the children. |
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| Waugh v. Genesis Healthcare LLC |
| Citation: 2019 ME 179 Opinion Date: December 30, 2019 Judge: Ellen A. Gorman Areas of Law: Labor & Employment Law, Personal Injury |
| The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the summary judgment entered in the superior court in favor of Defendants on Plaintiff's complaint for defamation and "slander/libel per se," holding that the superior court did not err in concluding that the statements at issue were subject to a conditional privilege. Plaintiff sought compensatory and punitive damages in her complaint alleging defamation and slander or libel per se, alleging that Defendants terminated her contract as a registered nurse based on false allegations of patient abuse. The superior court granted a summary judgment in favor of Defendants as to both counts. The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed, holding (1) Plaintiff failed to present prima facie evidence that Defendants abused the conditional privilege that otherwise protected the statements at issue; and (2) therefore, Defendants were entitled to summary judgment in their favor as to Plaintiff's claims. |
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