Philip M Berkowitz

July 09, 2009 | New York Law Journal

Philip M. Berkowitz, a partner at Nixon Peabody, writes that the diversity practices of employers that seek to give favorable weight to race, ethnicity, and other protected characteristics, are now put under piercing scrutiny by the Supreme Court's reverse-discrimination decision last week in Ricci v. DeStefano. The ruling jeopardizes not only diversity consideration in hiring practices, it also heightens an employer's risk, when conducting a work force reduction, of seeking to maintain a diverse workplace by changing termination decisions when it appears that the reduction decisions would result in a statistically negative disparity against minorities.

By Philip M. Berkowitz

9 minute read

May 13, 2010 | New York Law Journal

Philip M. Berkowitz, a partner at Nixon Peabody, writes: Why the continued, strong interest in social media in the workplace? Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social media sites aren't new. But with their continued growth, employers are struggling to understand them and to learn how to adapt them to their internal use, while avoiding the myriad liabilities - from the loss of trade secrets, to invasion of privacy, to claims of discrimination - that may accompany them.

By Philip M. Berkowitz

8 minute read

March 12, 2009 | New York Law Journal

By Philip M. Berkowitz

10 minute read

January 19, 2007 | Corporate Counsel

Reports of multimillion-dollar settlements of class actions under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act have been so rampant that a casual observer could be excused for believing that the news is dismal for many employers. But a number of recent developments suggest a turning of the tide, at least with respect to discrimination cases. And even in FLSA cases, the courts and the Labor Department have made it clear that plaintiffs don't enjoy a free pass, writes attorney Philip M. Berkowitz.

By Philip M. Berkowitz

10 minute read

July 14, 2005 | New York Law Journal

Philip M. Berkowitz, a partner at Nixon Peabody, writes that the U.S. Supreme Court recently tackled the extraterritorial enforcement of U.S. discrimination laws in a disability discrimination case filed against a foreign cruise ship.

By Philip M. Berkowitz

14 minute read

March 08, 2007 | New York Law Journal

Philip M. Berkowitz, a partner at Nixon Peabody, writes that for many employers, large and small, settlement and release agreements for departing employees have become standardized and commonplace. They have come to expect that these agreements will shield them from an employment lawsuit. Not so fast.

By Philip M. Berkowitz

10 minute read

March 15, 2006 | Law.com

Employees have sought to extend SOX's whistleblower protection -- with mixed success -- to mere workplace matters, such as complaints about a company's business decisions, or other complaints unrelated to what Congress sought to remedy in passing SOX. These cases, says attorney Philip M. Berkowitz, are disturbing enough. Now, he says, putative whistleblowers are adding breach of contract claims to their blunderbuss approach when the employee is terminated in violation of an internal "speak up" policy.

By Philip M. Berkowitz

9 minute read

May 08, 2008 | New York Law Journal

Philip M. Berkowitz, a partner at Nixon Peabody, looks at two recent cases in London which make clear that U.S. lawyers need to anticipate in draft choice-of-law and choice-of-forum clauses that foreign law may rule, and that the matter may be heard in a foreign court - particularly (as may seem obvious) where the employee competes overseas.

By Philip M. Berkowitz

9 minute read

May 22, 2007 | Law.com

Today, virtually every major company and law firm has put diversity on its front burner. It's generally accepted that having a diverse workforce gives employers a perspective that enables them to be more successful and a better place to work. And law firms have recognized that diversity programs can help their relationships with clients. But attorney Philip M. Berkowitz warns that companies and firms that focus on diversity need to assure that in doing so, employees aren't victims of active discrimination.

By Philip M. Berkowitz

8 minute read

March 10, 2011 | New York Law Journal

In his Employment Law Issues column, Philip M. Berkowitz, a shareholder at Littler Mendelson, focuses on the international reach of some of the act's employment provisions, including its corporate governance and compensation rules, expanded whistleblower programs and anti-retaliation protections, and new diversity obligations for covered federal agencies.

By Philip M. Berkowitz

12 minute read