By Porter Wright on In a recent blog, we discussed a case that challenges the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act ("DOMA"), which defines marriage for federal law purposes as a legal union between a man and a woman. DOMA was enacted during the administration of President Bill Clinton. Presuming DOMA is deemed constitutional by the courts and is not repealed by Congress (a possibility that appears remote at this point in time), employers theoretically could comply with federal employee benefits laws contained in ERISA by adopting (or maintaining) the DOMA definition of spouse. … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on I wanted to share a recent blog posted on our sister blog – Employer Law Report – that may be of interest to readers of this blog with multi-state operations. As Leigh Anne Benedic details in her blog, several states and local governments have recently considered or enacted "wage theft" legislation to include the criminal and increased civil penalties and fines for employers who underpay their workers. … Continue Reading