#1 “Face of Channel 4 News” Fired -- Too Old to be Female on TVNashville, TN News anchor Demetria Kalodimos, who had repeatedly been named the Best Local Reporter and Best Local TV News Personality by the readers of the Nashville Scene, was abruptly fired by WSMV, Channel 4 on December 4, 2017. On November 27, 2018, she filed an employment lawsuit in the Middle District of Tennessee, alleging violations of the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the Tennessee Human Rights Act and Disability Act and Tennessee common law. Allegations concerning violations of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 are expected to follow.
#2 Zetia and/or Statins: The Good, the Bad and the UglyHalle-Wittenberg, Germany Can a drug designed to curb heart attacks also cause heart attacks in some people? Apparently, it's possible with statins or medication like Zetia when used in combination with a statin. Statins are designed to lower the "bad" cholesterol thought to be a contributing factor for heart attack and stroke, while leaving the so-called "good" cholesterol to do the good work that good cholesterol, ultimately, does.
#3 Parties to Settle 401k Fiduciary Breach Lawsuit in Reichert v. Juniper Networks, Inc.San Jose, CA On November 11, the District Court for the Northern District of California is expected to approve a settlement in Reichert v. Juniper Networks Inc. The class action ERISA lawsuit, like many before it, alleges that the fiduciaries of the Juniper Networks, Inc. 401(k) Plan breached their legal duty to plan participants because of the way that they managed the participants’ retirement savings.
#5 Texas Employment Law: Don't Wait to Take Your PTOHouston, TX Pete did his company a service by not taking Paid Time Off (PTO) in over four years of employment. Yesterday was his last day of work. He has accrued 150 hours of PTO, but Texas Employment law does not require that employers pay workers for earned but unused vacation upon termination, unless the employer has a written policy or past practice of doing so.
#6 Instacart Settles California Misclassification LawsuitSan Francisco, CA Instacart is settling a misclassification complaint claiming that the gig company violated the California labor code by misclassifying its workers, known as “shoppers” as independent contractors instead of employees. (Shoppers gather groceries in stores for customers and sometimes deliver them.) The city of San Diego claimed Instacart misclassified its shoppers as independent contractors in order to avoid paying them benefits.
#7 2014: The Year the FDA Said No to a Black Box for StatinsWashington, DC The start of a new year gives pause to look back at the year that was, and the various stories and issues relating to pharmaceutical drugs and medical products that defined 2014. One defining moment that almost flew under the radar occurred in June, when the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rejected the call for a black box warning for statin drugs. Crestor is amongst those statins, and Crestor side effects are among those identified with those of other competing statins by a well-known health watchdog in petitioning the FDA to implement the black box warning.
#8 City National Bank Sued for Whistleblower Retaliation in California CourtLos Angeles, CA A former senior vice president for City National Bank, a subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada, alleges he was fired because of whistleblower retaliation and in violation of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which allows California employees to sue their employers in federal court if the employer wrongfully terminates or retaliates against them for reporting potential unlawful conduct
#9 Celexa Side Effects May Affect the ElderlyPittsburgh, PA When it comes to Celexa side effects, at least some of the focus has been on the risk of Celexa birth defects and whether or not Celexa is linked to birth defects at all. But a study recently published in the British Medical Journal suggests that seniors who take medications like Celexa could be at an increased risk of serious side effects, too.
#10 Unum Group Agrees to Settle Unum Lawsuit for $46 MillionThe insurance provider known in recent years as Unum Group has struggled beneath a black cloud of controversy amidst accusations of wrongdoing and bad faith insurance. While the insurer has undertaken various efforts to distance itself from a reputation that has dogged Unum insurance for some time, continuing Unum lawsuits appear to suggest that consumers are still having their problems with Unum, or so it is alleged.
