Author Info for Carr Maloney P.C.

Danny Bartle

Nonrefundable Advanced Legal Fees are Per Se Unethical Under the Proposed New Rule of Professional Conduct 1.5(g)

At its March 1, 2025, meeting, the VSB Council voted to approve changes to Rule of Professional Conduct 1.5. The proposed amendment to the Rule includes a new subjection (g), which codifies an understanding that has been around…more

Client Representation, Client Services, Compliance, Contract Terms, Ethics

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Matthew Berkowitz

Fourth Circuit Reiterates that Absent Class Members Must Suffer Actual Harm

On January 23, 2025, the Fourt Circuit, in Alig v. Rocket Mortg., LLC, No. 22-2289, 2025 WL 271563 (4th. Cir. Jan. 23, 2025), reversed the District Court’s decision that a certified class action. In Alig, the plaintiffs filed a…more

Appeals, Class Action, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Consumer Protection Laws, Financial Institutions

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Janette Blee

FTC Issues Final Rule Banning Most Non-Compete Agreements

By Thomas McCally and Janette M. Blee On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted 3-to-2 to issue a final rule that will ban most employer-employee non-compete agreements. The final rule is scheduled to go into…more

Competition, Employer Liability Issues, Employer Responsibilities, Employment Contract, Federal Bans

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Dennis Chong

Allegedly Discriminatory Transfer No Longer Needs to Cause “Significant” Harm to Be Actionable Under Title VII

On April 17, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Muldrow v. St. Louis, and held that a plaintiff alleging a discriminatory job transfer doesn’t have to allege or prove that the transfer resulted in a “significant” change in…more

Civil Rights Act, Employee Transfers, Employment Litigation, Lateral Transfers, Muldrow v City of St Louis

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Sarah Conkright

Proposed Changes to the U.S. District Court of Maryland’s Local Rules Affect Attorney Incapacity

Some key changes impacting attorneys have been proposed to the Local Rules for the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. Two of the proposed changes concern attorney incapacity, caused by issues such as illness,…more

Attorney Malpractice, Attorney's Fees, Disciplinary Proceedings, Filing Requirements, Government Agencies

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Kelly Cousoulis

“Pay-if-paid” and “Pay-when-paid” Clauses in Virginia

Similar to its neighbors in Maryland and the District of Columbia, Virginia has analyzed its treatment of the “pay-if-paid” or “pay-when-paid” clauses in construction contracts. Virginia previously allowed pay-if-paid clauses in…more

Construction Contracts, Construction Industry, Contract Terms, General Contractors, Pay if Paid

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Stuart Davis

Federal Courts Must Grant Requests for Stays Pending Arbitration

Last week, in Smith v. Spizzirri, the United States Supreme Court unanimously held that a federal court must grant a party’s request for a stay while arbitration is pending. In Spizzirri, a group of delivery drivers sued their…more

Arbitration, Arbitration Agreements, Federal Arbitration Act, Judicial Proceedings, SCOTUS

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Edward Krill

Do I Have to Pay My Staff Overtime?

On April 23, 2024, the Department of Labor published revised Regulations governing the exemptions from entitlement to overtime for salaried employees. The minimum dollar amount of compensation required for exempt status…more

Department of Labor (DOL), Employment Policies, Exempt-Employees, Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Highly Compensated Employees

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Sasha Magruder

Supreme Court to Hear Case on Detainee Labor and Sovereign Immunity

On October 22, 2014, a class action lawsuit was filed by over 60,000 detainees of GEO Group’s Processing Immigration Center against GEO Group Inc. for violating the Trafficking Victims Protection Act and unjustly enriching…more

Appeals, Class Action, Employee Rights, Employment Litigation, Federal Labor Laws

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Tina Maiolo

25 Lawmakers Oppose Cannabis Rescheduling

On August 29, 2023, the Department of Health and Human Services sent a letter to the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) urging them to reclassify marijuana as a schedule III drug. The Department of Health and Human Services…more

Cannabis Products, Classification, Controlled Substances, Controlled Substances Act, DEA

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Thomas McCally

FTC Issues Final Rule Banning Most Non-Compete Agreements

By Thomas McCally and Janette M. Blee On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted 3-to-2 to issue a final rule that will ban most employer-employee non-compete agreements. The final rule is scheduled to go into…more

Competition, Employer Liability Issues, Employer Responsibilities, Employment Contract, Federal Bans

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Andrew Nagel

Coverage Exclusion Under Commercial General Liability Policy In Light of OCIP

Understanding coverage exclusions in a subcontractor’s commercial general liability insurance policy can be a daunting task. What the insuring language of the policy appears to provide, may be taken away through a policy…more

Commercial General Liability Policies, Construction Industry, General Contractors, Insurance Industry, Liability Insurance

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Colin Neal

Due Process is due for sanctions under Va. Code § 8.01-271.1

In a February 18, 2025 unpublished opinion overruling the Circuit Court of Loudon County, the Court of Appeals of Virginia confirmed that under Va. Code § 8.01-271.1, an attorney facing sanctions must be afforded notice and the…more

Appeals, Appellate Courts, Attorney's Fees, Due Process, Litigation Strategies

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Kerri Nicholson

Construction Bonds: What They Are and Why They Matter

Construction bonds are vital tools in the construction industry. A construction bond is an instrument arising out of suretyship law. A project owner may require a contractor to obtain one or more types of construction bond to…more

Appeals, Bid Protests, Construction Contracts, Construction Industry, Construction Litigation

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Dennis Quinn

“Earned Upon Receipt” for Attorney Fee Arrangements Is Ending in Maryland - Effective July 2025

Effective July 1, 2025, attorneys practicing law in Maryland may no longer state that their fees are “earned upon receipt” in their engagement agreements. Under the new, amended Rule 19-301.15, “[a]n attorney shall deposit into…more

Advance-Payment Retainers, Alternative Fee Arrangements, Attorney's Fees, Business of Law, Compliance

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Stephen Rutigliano

Preliminary Approval of Settlement in Cannabis Dispensary Employee Class Action Lawsuit

The New Mexico federal court preliminarily approved a class action settlement for $525,000 in a wage claim asserted by a group of hourly employees from two cannabis dispensary chains, Medicine Man Technologies, Inc. (which does…more

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David Schlosser

The Appellate Court of Maryland Holds Corporate Auto Policies Cannot Extend to Individuals

This past January, Judge Glenn T. Harrell, Jr. of the Appellate Court of Maryland (ACM) found in favor of an insurance company that disclaimed coverage, under a corporate automobile liability issued to a business, when the…more

Appellate Courts, Auto Insurance, Breach of Contract, Denial of Insurance Coverage, Insurance Industry

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Martin Shaw

To Pay or Not to Pay “Rip and Tear” Damages

Should a contractor’s Commercial General Liability (CGL) insurance policy cover the expense of uncovering defective work causing damage to the owner’s property as well as the costs of exposing or accessing damaged building…more

Commercial General Liability Policies, Construction Contracts, Construction Defects, Construction Industry, Construction Project

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Kenneth Stallard

Coverage Exclusion Under Commercial General Liability Policy In Light of OCIP

Understanding coverage exclusions in a subcontractor’s commercial general liability insurance policy can be a daunting task. What the insuring language of the policy appears to provide, may be taken away through a policy…more

Commercial General Liability Policies, Construction Industry, General Contractors, Insurance Industry, Liability Insurance

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James Steele

The Appellate Court of Maryland Holds Corporate Auto Policies Cannot Extend to Individuals

This past January, Judge Glenn T. Harrell, Jr. of the Appellate Court of Maryland (ACM) found in favor of an insurance company that disclaimed coverage, under a corporate automobile liability issued to a business, when the…more

Appellate Courts, Auto Insurance, Breach of Contract, Denial of Insurance Coverage, Insurance Industry

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Andrew Stewart

When is an injured worker’s own conduct a defense to liability under New York’s Scaffold Law?

In a recently published opinion, the Appellate Division, Second Department, upheld a Suffolk County Supreme Court decision granting summary judgment in favor of an injured bridge worker who slipped backwards off a scaffold while…more

Appeals, Construction Accidents, Construction Industry, Construction Litigation, Employer Liability Issues

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Kelsey Williams

Proposed Changes to the U.S. District Court of Maryland’s Local Rules Affect Attorney Incapacity

Some key changes impacting attorneys have been proposed to the Local Rules for the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. Two of the proposed changes concern attorney incapacity, caused by issues such as illness,…more

Attorney Malpractice, Attorney's Fees, Disciplinary Proceedings, Filing Requirements, Government Agencies

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Nima Youchidje

Supreme Court Declines to Consider New Pleading Standard for Securities Fraud Claims

On December 11, 2024, the Supreme Court dismissed NVIDIA Corporation’s appeal, allowing a class action securities fraud case to move forward towards trial. The Plaintiffs originally brought the case in the United States…more

Class Action, Cryptocurrency, False Statements, Frivolous Lawsuits, Gaming

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Carr Maloney P.C.

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