The Litigation Counsellor®

The city of Warwick, Rhode Island has voluntarily discontinued a noise ordinance case against Lynne Taylor, who was cited by the city after numerous complaints from her neighbors concerning her foul-mouthed pet cockatoo. According to the neighbors, Taylor’s pet cockatoo repeatedly swore and hurled insults at them over a period of months in 2011. Taylor’s next-door neighbors were particularly sensitive to the constant taunting from the bird, which is understandable since they were Taylor’s ex-husband and his girlfriend.

Formerly straight-A student, Megan Thode, sued her professor, Amanda Eckhardt, and Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA after she received only a C+ in Eckhardt’s therapy internship class in 2009. She claimed the low grade not only cost her a master’s degree in education and her dream of becoming a licensed therapist, but also allegedly $1.3 million in future lost earnings. However, her lawsuit really wasn’t about the money—she just wanted a B in Eckhard’s class.

Chances are that if you are a woman and have visited Paris in your lifetime, you—and millions of other women like you—most certainly broke the law without even realizing it.

Can an employer lawfully terminate an employee simply for being irresistible? According to a December 21, 2012 decision from the Iowa Supreme Court, the answer appears to be “yes.”

On November 9, 2012, the First Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the District Court of Massachusetts' determination that Starbucks' shift supervisors had improperly shared in tips left at the counter for baristas at their numerous coffee shop locations.