Posts by Hanan Isaacs
NJ “Watchdog” Whistleblower Case from 2015 Could Help Workers and the Public in the New Year
“Watchdog” Whistleblower Protections Expand Employee Rights
In July of 2015, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled unanimously on key provisions of the NJ Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA), N.J.S.A. 34:19-1, et seq., New Jersey’s so-called “whistleblower” statute, which protects whistleblowing employees from the adverse economic effects of employer retaliation. The CEPA statute has been considered one of American’s strongest bulwarks against employer misconduct and retaliation against employees whose only “crimes” were their reporting of criminal, financial, environmental, and/or unethical wrongs. The High Court’s definitive interpretation puts an end to certain lower court rulings that exempted from CEPA’s coverage those employees whose jobs already required them to report malefaction in the workplace. Joel S. Lippman, M.D., vs. Ethicon, Inc., and Johnson & Johnson, Inc., 222 N.J. 362 (2015).
Read MoreADA and FMLA: Two Public Policies in Search of Employee Fairness
Keeping a job is important to all of us. Keeping a job while you are disabled or dealing with an illness can be difficult, but maintaining employment and a pay check is critical to having an income to pay your bills (including medical bills) and for many of us our health insurance is provided by…
Read MoreDeath, Divorce, and . . . Life Insurance: What Do You Need to Know?
Most people don’t want to insure their lives to the possible financial benefit of a former spouse. However, often the law requires that parties create a financial backstop to their long-term obligations, whether alimony, child support, or even property held in one party’s name for a length of time before it will be distributed.
Most often, that financial backstop will be a life insurance policy, owned by the insured, with a death benefit naming a former spouse or children for a designated sum. But that is not universally so. Some people choose to retain or create an insurance policy for the benefit of a former spouse, post-divorce, that has nothing to do with alimony, child support, or property distribution.
Assume that while a couple is married they purchase a life insurance policy on husband’s life and they name the wife the owner and beneficiary of the policy. Assume further the parties later divorce and that neither party has an alimony obligation to the other. Is there anything wrong with this picture?
“How do I protect my inherited property in a New Jersey Divorce?” Here’s how!
When things are going well in a marriage, many spouses yield to the impulse to financially share everything under the sun. Financially, this may mean pooling all assets into common bank accounts and sharing and accessing those funds randomly. While some may feel such an approach “strengthens the bond” between a husband and wife during marriage, it can actually prove disastrous if the marriage begins to crumble and marital assets need to be inventoried, valued, and equitably divided. This is especially true when it comes to assets that only one spouse inherited.
Read MoreWrongful Dismissal in The State of New Jersey: Know Your Rights!
Have you lost your valuable job? Was your employer just in terminating your employment? It is crucial for employees to have a basic understanding of New Jersey employment laws, so they will know when an employer has illegally or wrongfully violated their rights as an employee – or not. For instance, if your employer fired you for an unfair reason (gender, race, etc.), you may have the right to file a wrongful discharge lawsuit against your former employer.
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