Excerpt of Ellen Messing’s Speech at the National Lawyers Guild 2022 Dinner
Ellen Messing honored by the National Lawyers Guild for her many contributions to the Guild and her career representing employees in their fight for dignity and justice in the workplace.
What Employers Can & Cannot Ask During an Interview
Partner James Weliky was a panelist with a management-side colleague on MCLE’s one-hour program: “What Employers Can & Cannot Ask During an Interview.” This discussion on April 14, 2022 highlighted best practices during the job interview process and featured a discussion about ways to minimize legal risk and safeguarding legal rights the application process.
Click here to view the PowerPoint presentation slides in conjunction with the webcast.
2021–2022 Scholar-Mentor Honored
Every year, MCLE recognizes as Scholar-Mentors outstanding individuals who have “raised the bar” through their career-long contributions to the continuing legal education of the bar and their exceptional service to the legal profession by volunteering their time and expertise to MCLE programs and publications. These awards are presented throughout the year at annual conferences or other programs in the practice areas relevant and meaningful to the recipients.
This year’s first MCLE Scholar-Mentor award was presented to James S. Weliky on Friday, December 3, 2021, at the virtual 24th Annual Employment Law Conference 2021. MCLE Trustee Rebecca G. Pontikes, of Pontikes Law LLC, extended to him MCLE’s deep gratitude for his exceptional contributions to continuing legal education as friends and colleagues tuned in from across the Commonwealth.
Examining Sexual Misconduct and the Role of Power in the Corporate Workplace
Ellen Messing was featured as an expert commentator in this edition of “The Emily Rooney Show,” originally aired November 9, 2011 on WGBH radio. This episode examined the ability of large organizations and corporate culture to confront sexual misconduct in the workplace, an issue recently amplified by separate reports about Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain and the Pennsylvania State University football program. Ms. Messing was joined by Boston College School of Law professor Kent Greenfield.
Exploring the Basics of Employment Discrimination Law
This video clip features excerpts from Ellen Messing’s presentation at Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education’s annual program on labor and employment law basics held in November 2011. In this excerpt, Ms. Messing reviews various basic employment discrimination law concepts including: protected classes, forms of discriminatory action, disability accommodations and deadlines imposed on discrimination claims.
Dahlia Rudavsky was featured at the same 2011 Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education basics program where her presentation covered a wide variety of civil rights protections afforded to working people. This audio excerpt features parts of Ms. Rudavsky’s presenation convering Title VII, COBRA, and special protections for older workers.
These excerpted recordings are reproduced with permission from Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education. All rights reserved.
Harvard University Police Officer Alleges Discrimination in Lawsuit
Ellen Messing and her client, Officer George Pierce, are featured in this Spring 2011 WBZ-TV segment regarding Officer Pierce’s discrimination suit against the Harvard University Police Department. Officer Pierce alleges he was passed over for several promotions at the Department because of his race.
Advocating for Employee Rights Before the Supreme Judicial Court
In January 2011, Dahlia Rudavsky argued before Massachusetts’ highest court, the Supreme Judicial Court, on behalf of her client, Kimberly Schive. The question presented in this appeal was whether state anti-retaliation provisions were broad enough to restrict employers’ actions toward not only current employees, but also former employees. In May 2011, the Court issues a ruling in favor of Ms. Schive. The ruling represents a landmark expansion of retaliation protections for employees.
Click here to view a video of the oral arguments held before the Court. Ms. Rudavsky’s argument begins approximately 35 minutes into the recording. The recording is hosted online by Suffolk University Law School in association with the Supreme Judicial Court. (Note: the video may be very slow to load.)
Forced Arbitration: Techniques For Success
This recording features excerpts from Ellen Messing’s presentation at the National Employment Lawyers Association’s 2010 Annual Convention. Ms. Messing presented as part of a panel focusing on strategies available to attorneys representing employees in employment arbitration cases.
This excerpted recording is reproduced with permission from the National Employment Lawyers Association, and was recorded at the 2010 NELA Annual Conference. All rights reserved.
Age Discrimination & Wrongful Termination Mediation Program
Dahlia Rudavsky participated in this mock mediation produced by the Harvard Law School Program on Negotiation. The unscripted program demonstrates the mediation process for an age discrimination and wrongful termination case brought by a salesman against his former employer. The employer cited poor performance as the reason for the salesman’s termination. The salesman, represented by Ms. Rudavsky, alleged that his performance declined only after the employer deliberately reassigned the salesman’s best clients to other salespersons.
In this excerpt, Ms. Rudavsky presents her evaluation of the case and explains her client’s position on damages during a joint session of the parties.
This excerpt is reproduced here with permission from the Harvard Law School Program on Negotiation. The video is available in its entirety from the Program on Negotiation’s Clearinghouse.
Selecting Witnesses in Employment Cases
Ellen Messing served as an expert panelist during the National Employment Lawyers Association’s 2008 Spring Seminar on “Trial Advocacy for the Plaintiff’s Employment Lawyer.” In this excerpt from her presentation on the “Order and Selection of Witnesses,” Ms. Messing discusses some strategical advantages of identifying witnesses who can provide positive testimony regarding an employment plaintiff’s job performance.
This excerpted recording is reproduced with permission from the National Employment Lawyers Association, and was recorded at the 2008 NELA Spring Seminar. All rights reserved.
Litigating and Winning Employment Discrimination Cases
James Weliky served as an expert panelist at this March 2008 Boston Bar Association seminar titled “Litigating and Winning Employment Discrimination Cases.” This clip features excerpts from Mr. Weliky’s presentation where he discusses effective strategies used by plaintiffs’ lawyers when collecting evidence and presenting it to courts.
This excerpt is reproduced here with permission from the Boston Bar Association. Information about upcoming seminars is available on the Boston Bar Association website.