Philip Berkowitz

May 10, 2023 | New York Law Journal

In the era of the whistleblower, we often see "hybrid" complaints in which claims of discrimination or harassment are coupled with a claim of retaliation for blowing the whistle on alleged illegal conduct. Employers need to consider putting processes in place that will help to assure a fair and thorough investigation of claims of improper conduct, while protecting the legitimate rights of employees who raise those concerns in good faith.

By Philip Berkowitz

8 minute read

March 08, 2023 | New York Law Journal

Departing employees who leave, whether voluntarily or otherwise, may claim they earned a bonus and that the employer's failure to pay it on their termination constituted a breach of contract or even a violation of wage payment laws. Recently issued SEC regulations and announcements from the U.S. Department of Justice with regard to bonus policies have imposed new obligations on employers, and new areas of liability.

By Philip Berkowitz

8 minute read

January 12, 2022 | New York Law Journal

Financial services and other employers have been scrambling to respond to recent mandates and wondering how they interact with laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Philip Berkowitz and Britney Torres review the latest legal developments in this edition of their Employment Issues column.

By Philip Berkowitz and Britney Torres

12 minute read

July 07, 2021 | New York Law Journal

In this edition of his Employment Issues column, Philip Berkowitz writes that if you are internal counsel or a human resources executive, your compliance department may want to review not only policies, but also backup data.

By Philip Berkowitz

7 minute read

November 10, 2020 | New York Law Journal

Just as many individuals are anxious to get back to bars and restaurants, concerts, theater, and family gatherings, these desires must be tempered by the risks that this behavior presents. In this Employment Issues column, Philip M. Berkowitz and Devjani Mishra write that opening prematurely can constitute an invitation to unwelcome and intrusive government oversight of workplaces, and can result in significant legal liability. Employers may, for the time being, choose to move cautiously before encouraging employees to return to work.

By Philip Berkowitz and Devjani Mishra

13 minute read

July 08, 2020 | New York Law Journal

In this column on corporate employment issues, Philip M. Berkowitz provides tips on dealing with executives and trainees sent by foreign companies to the U.S. to hold positions with their U.S. subsidiaries.

By Philip Berkowitz

9 minute read

July 02, 2020 | New York Law Journal

Whether personnel records are admissible into evidence is a different issue than whether they are discoverable, and this will always be a fact-intensive inquiry.

By Philip Berkowitz and James Horton

9 minute read

January 08, 2020 | New York Law Journal

In this Employment Issues column, Philip M. Berkowitz and Maria Caceres Boneau discuss issues to consider when your client's controller appears to have made some critical errors that have caused substantial financial damage. How likely is it that your client can recover? What are the impediments to proceeding against the employee? And how wise, in any event, is it to move forward?

By Philip Berkowitz and Maria Caceres Boneau

10 minute read

July 10, 2019 | New York Law Journal

In his Employment Issues column, Philip Berkowitz writes: In the current regulatory environment, employers must anticipate that more, not less, government and regulatory authorities will impose increasingly scrupulous obligations to ensure the existence of rules and procedures safeguarding the rights of whistleblowers and assuring that employers promote lawful, ethical conduct, while screening for unlawful conduct.

By Philip Berkowitz

9 minute read

May 08, 2019 | New York Law Journal

In his Employment Issues column, Philip Berkowitz discusses a recent decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which provides a good illustration of the intersection between FCPA enforcement and whistleblower claims.

By Philip Berkowitz

8 minute read