Legal Alerts

Every year around the holidays, Hurwitz & Fine’s Safety and Wellness Committee partners with a local organization to conduct our Adopt-a-Family drive. This year, we partnered with Child and Family Services of Western New York to bring some holiday cheer to a local, in-need family.

On November 4, 2021, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) issued a new Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”) “intended to establish minimum vaccination, vaccination verification, face covering, and testing requirements to address the grave danger of COVID-19 in the workplace.” 

Employment and Business litigator Joseph S. Brown provides an overview of the basics of the ETS, an update on legal challenges to the rule, and what employers can do now to prepare.

On October 7, 2021, the New York Court of Appeals addressed the issue of whether a foreign corporation consents to general jurisdiction by registering to do business in the State of New York and designating a local agent for service of process as required by Article 13 of the NY Business Corporation Law in order to be authorized to transact business in the state. Litigation associate Cara M. Pascarella advises.

Insurance Litigator Lee S. Siegel was quoted in a Law360 article, "COVID-19 Coverage Fights Head to State High Courts" by Shawn Rice. He comments on whether the courts will be consistent with their decisions on COVID-19 coverage fights or will take a more state-specific approach.

Hurwitz and Fine Managing Partner, Jody E. Briandi was recently featured in the 2022 publication of U.S. News - Best Lawyers "Best Law Firms" for her article, "Navigating the New Normal," in which she discusses how the pandemic has affected law firm culture and work environment

Michael J. Williams has joined Hurwitz & Fine, P.C. as special counsel in the firm’s general liability defense department. Mike will be focusing his practice on product liability, medical device litigation, defense of institutions involved in claims brought under New York’s Child Victims Act and municipal law with a focus on firefighters.

Attorney Joe Brown summarizes the key takeaways from the recent FAQ document released by the New York State Department of Labor on cannabis and the workplace.  

New guidance released by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) on October 13, 2021, discusses vaccine mandates and employer incentives for vaccination.  The new guidance also discusses employer requests for vaccine confirmation and confidentiality of employees’ vaccine information. Attorney Katherine L. Wood advises on this guidance.

Since the beginning of October, Hurwitz & Fine’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee has been collecting personal hygiene and household items across the firm’s multiple offices to benefit the Buffalo United for Afghan Evacuees organization.

On October 19, 2021, Governor Hochul signed legislation to amend the Open Meetings Law. Specifically, documents to be discussed at open meetings are to be made available to the public upon request or on an agency’s website at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting. 

The Commissioner of Health has extended the designation of COVID-19 as a highly contagious communicable disease that presents a serious risk of harm to the public health under the New York Health and Essential Rights (“HERO”) Act until October 31, 2021. The New York State Department of Labor released updated Information & FAQs on the HERO Act and updated the Model Airborne Infectious Disease Exposure Prevention Plan.  This alert summarizes these recent developments.

For a recent Inside P&C article, Hurwitz & Fine Attorney Ryan Maxwell provided insight into the current appellate landscape confronted by insurance carriers and policyholders alike in ongoing COVID-19 business interruption litigation.

Labor and Employment Member Joseph S. Brown, Esq. was featured in an interview with Buffalo Business First for his input on various labor employment law scenarios related to mental health in the workplace.

Hurwitz & Fine President/Managing Partner Jody E. Briandi was honored as a 2021 Woman of Influence by Buffalo Business First in the Corporate Executive category. 

Determining whether to grant a particular accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) can be a tricky area for employers to navigate.  Adding COVID-19 considerations to the discussion has complicated matters even further.  Labor and employment attorney Katherine L. Wood examines a recent lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) that should be taken into consideration when analyzing whether to grant or deny telework accommodations.

The law firm is the only Western New York law firm to participate in the national certification process.

Anastasia M. McCarthy, attorney in Hurwitz & Fine's Child Victims Act practice group, answers questions recently received in regards to the close of the Look-Back Window and the next steps in CVA cases. 

Insurance Litigator Lee S. Siegel was featured in a Law360 article, "Pandemic, Cyberattacks Fuel Demand for Insurance Attys," on his take on the recent demand for insurance attorneys.

On September 9, 2021, the White House issued Path Out of the Pandemic: President Biden’s COVID-19 Action Plan.  The Plan sets forth a six-pronged approach aimed at reducing “the number of unvaccinated Americans by using regulatory powers and other actions to substantially increase the number of Americans covered by vaccination requirements.” Attorney Joseph Brown discusses how this plan may affect employers in the coming weeks.